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RUCK.SHOOT.REPEAT

ruck. shoot. repeat. florida's ruck and shoot competition

a run and gun format built around a decision rather than a stopwatch. ruck, shoot, and choose when to stop pushing your luck.

Next date: September 13, 2026 Where it runs

What Ruck. Shoot. Repeat. is

what is ruck. shoot. repeat.?

Ruck. Shoot. Repeat. is a ruck and shoot competition run by DEFCON Tactical Fitness at Manatee Gun and Archery Club in Myakka City, Florida. You ruck a weighted pack around a 250 yard loop, then engage a Know Your Limits steel array at 100 yards, and you repeat that cycle as many times as you can inside a 45 minute heat. Every hit is a point, but a single miss zeros the round it happened in.

A DEFCON athlete in a plate carrier front-squatting a loaded barbell outdoors with a holstered pistol

how a heat runs

Heats run several shooters at once, each with their own lane. The clock starts and you repeat one cycle until it stops.

  1. R the ruck Carry a weighted rucksack around a roughly 250 yard loop behind the line of fire. 30 lb for men, 20 lb for women.
  2. S the shoot Back at the line, engage the Know Your Limits steel array from 100 yards, largest plate to smallest: 12", 10", 8", 6", 4". Each hit scores a point. Miss once in a round and that round scores nothing, so you decide when to stop.
  3. R the repeat Go again. As many rounds as you can put together before the 45 minute cap.
Rifles stay at the line of fire at all times while the line is hot. You ruck without it.

scoring, and the part that stings

The plate rack runs largest to smallest, so every round gets harder the further you go. A hit is a point. A miss zeros everything you scored in that round, not just the shot you missed.

That is the whole game. Bank three easy plates and go ruck again, or push for the 4 inch plate with your heart rate at the ceiling and risk the round. Fitness decides how many rounds you get. Judgment decides what they were worth.

who is watching you

Every heat runs with a range officer on the line for overall safety, and one lane judge per shooter handling scoring, firearm safety, and clearing. Competitors judge each other, and you always get at least one heat between judging and running your own.

how it differs from a run and gun biathlon

Most events filed under run and gun in Florida are long-course biathlons. If that is what you came looking for, here is where this one departs from it.

  a run and gun biathlon ruck. shoot. repeat.
the course A long one-way course, often three to seven miles, with shooting stations spaced along it. A short loop you repeat. Roughly 250 yards, behind the firing line, over and over.
your rifle You carry it the whole way, along with your ammo and water. It stays at the line of fire the entire time. You ruck empty handed.
the score Total elapsed time, with penalties added for misses. Points for hits, on a fixed clock. Fastest does not win. Most points does.
the decision Shoot the stage, clear it, move on. Every round you choose how far down the plate rack to push before a miss wipes the round.

if you are coming from rucking

Plenty of entries arrive with a GORUCK background, and the carry itself will feel completely familiar. Four things are different.

individual, not team

You are scored on your own hits. There is no team objective and no cadre assigning tasks.

45 minutes, not all night

One heat, one time cap, and you know exactly when it ends before you start.

there is live fire

The shooting half is the point. That is the part we brief, walk through, and judge one-to-one.

the weight is handed to you

GORUCK provides the bags and the plates. You do not need to own a ruck to enter.

what to bring

Rifle only. There is no pistol component in this format.

  • your rifle
  • chamber flag or case
  • ammo: 150 rounds, or more if you think you're fast
  • eye and ear protection
  • water, hydration, and nutrition
  • sunscreen and bug spray

Read the full ruleset

the ruck and the weight

You do not need to own a ruck. GORUCK provides the bags and the weight, so there is nothing to buy and nothing to load before you arrive.

Weight is 30 lb for men and 20 lb for women. It is the same for everyone in a division, so nobody is gaming the load, and there is no plate carrier requirement in this format.

where it runs, and what the drive looks like

Ruck. Shoot. Repeat. runs at Manatee Gun and Archery Club in Myakka City, FL, on the Area 51 range. Entries come from all over the state, so most people are driving to this one.

from Bradenton
30 to 40 minutes
from Sarasota
35 to 45 minutes
from Tampa
1 hour to 1 hour 15
from Fort Myers
1 hour 30 to 1 hour 45
from Naples
2 hours to 2 hours 15
from Orlando
2 hours to 2 hours 30
from Miami
3 hours 30 to 4 hours
from Jacksonville
3 hours 45 to 4 hours 30

Typical door to door times by road, not adjusted for traffic. The venue page has parking, check-in, and directions.

upcoming dates

See the full calendar

know your limits

the field caps at 20. first time doing anything like this is the normal case here, not the exception.

Register on PractiScore Read the FAQ

Questions? info@defcontf.com