TFB Interview: Raine Peltokoski - World Champion Senior - IPSC

This is an in-depth interview with Raine Peltokoski, one of the best shooters in the history of practical shooting. The author had the fortune to spend a full week together with him and the Finnish Senior Semi-Auto Team at the Rifle World Shoot. Apart from learning about his background, how he trains and how he sets up his rifle you’ll learn about his Suomi sub-machine gun and why he needs a Lahti L-39 20 mm anti-tank gun. Let’s go!

TFB: Terve Raine! Congratulations on third place overall with 97.91% on the winner, and first in the senior category. How does it feel to be a World Champion in senior?

Raine: It feels very good. I put a lot of effort into this match and the competition was very tough.

TFB: In senior your margin was 8% to the previous World Champion. Did you at some point feel confident that you were going to win, or was it a battle to the end? Please tell us what was going on in your head towards the end of the competition?

Raine: I knew I could win and that is naturally what I aimed for. The first day was hard mentally, and I did not start very strong. Regardless, I was in a small lead after the first day. That lead grew bigger every day and of course, my confidence grew with the lead. I also considered the overall situation and was trying to maximize the end results. On the last day, I took a well calculated, but risky plan on a fast-moving target stage. I had a very good time, but one miss. In the end that did not change the overall situation.

TFB: You’re regarded as one of the best shooters in the history of practical shooting. Can you give TFB’s readers an in-depth story about your shooting background? When and how did you start, and how has your career developed?

Raine: I started to shoot with my uncle's air rifle at the age of ten. My grandfather gave me an air pistol on my 14th birthday. At that time in Finland, one could get a gun license at the age of 15, with one’s parent’s permission. So, I bought my first .22LR pistol at 15 and a 9 mm at 16 and my first 7,62x39 rifle at 17. Nowadays, that is not possible and shooting without parent involvement is practically impossible for teenagers.

I shot my first practical competition at 19 in 1989. My first official Finnish Championship was won in 1993, with a modified pistol.

I have shot all long gun European and World Championships and actually have a medal from all of them. I have a team gold medal even in the Shotgun World Shoot, where I ended up at the hospital after food poisoning, thanks to a very strong Finnish team.

TFB: Yes, I remember I was there in Hungary in 2012, and met you at the awards where you were a bit careful with the food. Back to the Rifle World Shoot of this year. Can you please tell us about your involvement in the match? Did you design or build any of the stages?

Raine: We were three designers: Jarkko Laukia, Petri Runtti and myself. We visited the range in winter at -20C with a lot of snow. We measured the bays and then went on to make sketches inside. When one of us had an idea, the others simply agreed or developed the idea further.

TFB: I spent the whole week shooting in the same squad as you. It was an honor, and I did my best to study your strategy and execution of the stages. You make the art of rifle shooting look so smooth and easy, and so hard for the rest of us. What’s the secret? Where do you steal our points?

Raine: I have spent a lot of time studying systematically different techniques for different situations. I think of a stage as a jigsaw puzzle. All targets, transitions, positions and movements are the pieces. Once you have a strong technique for all the pieces, you can complete your puzzle quite easily.

TFB: You master all gun disciplines: handgun, shotgun and rifle and you are the only one who has won a World Champion title with all three guns. Which one is your favorite and why?

Raine: My favorite gun is the one I will shoot my next match with. I follow the IPSC World Shoot cycle and therefore I concentrate on one gun per year. In 2022 it was a pistol, in 2023 it was a shotgun and this year it was a rifle. Now my focus is on PCC due to that World Shoot next year.

(Author's note: After Raine, Jojo Vidanes is the closest to 3 discipline World Champ Titles. Jojo has silver with an open shotgun in senior. So that leaves Raine Peltokoski as the only one with all 3 titles.)

TFB: You’re on the JP Rifles Shooting Team and use a JP CTR-02 like myself. As with any tool, the rifle is of course a part of any success. Is the balance more important than the total weight? How do you like your AR15s, and why?

Raine: I used to shoot 20” heavy-barreled rifles for many years. That was actually the starting point of my JP as well. I ended up cutting the barrel shorter and shorter and also made it thinner. A long and heavy rifle is good for long distances but the majority of stages are short distances and require fast movements and transitions. I think an 18” light barrel is the way to go. Accuracy is naturally very important. 1 MOA is the maximum allowed group size for a match gun at 300m. 

TFB: I noticed that you run your JP very wet. I do too, but after having seen yours I think my oil consumption went up substantially. Which oil do you use, and how and how often do you clean your rifle?

Raine: I use a JP aluminium carrier group, with an adjustable gas block. That makes a beautifully small dot movement. Light carrier and light recoil spring do not have the inertia to overcome dirt and other obstacles as well as a heavy steel does, so you better keep the gun clean and oiled. I do not put oil all over the place, but on the carrier in places touching the upper and hammer and the gas rings especially. I oil the rings through the two holes in a carrier after every stage and clean it after 6 stages. I consider it like a drag race car where you open the engine after every start. Steel carrier with a standard buffer/spring and non-regulated gas is like a diesel truck which can go and go and go, but you would not win a race with that.

Any oil is better than no oil, but thick oils work better on carriers. On gas rings nothing sticks for longer than a few shots. That is why I add a drop after every stage in a match. It also gives a longer lifetime for the aluminium carrier.

Barrel cleaning with copper removal I do between 500-1000 rounds. That keeps the group sizes down. 

TFB: Your main optic is a Kahles K-18i in a Spuhr mount. Please tell us more about the reticle you are using.

Raine: I use an IPSC reticle with a red dot and two assistant dots over and under the red main dot. I use mainly the red dot and sometimes the upper black dot. It is a minimized view reticle, designed for fast shooting. The dot is basically all you see on fast stages. For long distances, you can use the thin horizontal line for setting the rifle straight.

(Author’s note: It’s not by coincidence that TFB made a review of the Kahles K18i and this reticle back in 2022. Read it here.)

TFB: Do you ever click for a stage, or do you use a set zero and do holdovers?

Raine: I do click all the time. I set the zero for the longest distance on a given stage and hold under for closer targets on that stage. I use a ballistic calculator to control my clicks and sight picture. See the instructions for how to use the IPSC reticle for stages with multiple target distances:   IPSC_K18i.pdf (kahles.at)

TFB: Do you use a secondary red dot, and how and when do you use it compared to your main optic?

Raine: This year was the first time I used a secondary dot in competitions. Over the years I tried it several times and every time I opted it out. The problem that dot users often have is that they do not know how to adjust their zoom on the scope. Knowing how to adjust the zoom on the stage is more important than the secondary dot. The dot is for very close distances only, usually below 10 meters.

TFB: A big discussion point before the IPSC World Shoot was the new bipod rules and the recent interpretation. Yet, the match was designed so that long bipods couldn’t really be used in a lot of positions, which kind of stopped the debate. What is your opinion about bipods, when to use them and what should be allowed?

Raine: The new rules allow only one bipod to be used at a given stage. If the stage needs a prone position, then shorter ones are needed. In medium distances, and if moving is needed after the bipod use, the longer safari bipods come in handy. The shooter must make a choice.

TFB: Do you ever use long bipods?

Raine: Yes, when needed. The maximum height in the rules says 90 cm from the ground to the barrel center line. I actually have only a very old set of 3 Harris bipods and the longest falls short of the allowed height. I have been doing fine with those 3 for almost 20 years. I fully agree that maximum height was a necessary addition to the rules. We have seen all kinds of standing height improvised bipods. Now nobody will suffer from not knowing what height of bipods to take or make for a match.

TFB: And which was the worst stage for you?

Raine: I could speculate I lost the overall win on stage 9. I estimated the window heights and chose a wrong tactic for that. Only a rifle can give you such a feeling of desperation when your sights will just not settle on the target. That will not happen with a pistol, let alone with a shotgun or PCC.

TFB: What do you think of the electronic Kongsberg targets? Are they the future for larger competitions, or would you prefer some other targets?

Raine: Yes, electronic targets are making long-distance target reading much faster. Auto-resetting steel has been in use for many years in IPSC matches. Falling steel is so much better than calling hits, which depends on the range officer calling speed also. Electronic targets give an opportunity for great long distance stages with less stage personnel. Short distances still need old-fashioned paper and patches.

TFB: How’s your hearing after all these years of shooting some of the loudest guns? And how do you protect it?

Raine: Unfortunately my hearing has gone bad, and I have loud full time tinnitus. I struggle to hear the timer beep if the pitch is high or if the range officer is too far away. This should be considered when selecting timers for stages. Fair for all means, something that all would hear. Low frequency and loud beep is the way to go. I have used double protection for many years already.

TFB: Apart from shooting, can you please describe how you trained for the World Shoot?

Raine: I do some daily exercise to keep my joints, especially aching shoulders moving. I have to admit, I have always focused too much on shooting and too little on other sports. Daily laptop work takes the majority of my time. Re-loading, gun tuning and teaching take their share. So, whatever time is left, I rather use it for running with the gun than without.

Practical shooting is and should remain a skill sport more than a fitness sport where you can never substitute bad gunning by good running. Biathlon is the other way round, while the basic principle of time and accuracy are the key elements.

Practicing in general is a very hard job. You only learn through frustration. It is hard to go to the range to do something you are not good at. Yet, that is exactly what you need to do to move forward. Eventually, it will pay off.

TFB: What did you do to prepare yourself for the Rifle World Shoot, and was it something that specifically helped you during the competition?

Raine: As usual, I worked on my rifle to make it run smoothly and reliably. I had a long break in serious rifle shooting since the 2019 World Shoot. I shot 5 matches abroad prior to the Rifle World Shoot in Finland now. I learned important lessons in all of them, both shooting-wise and regarding technical gear on the rifle. Watching others in a squad helped, and I learned from shooters much younger than myself. The big theme was to make the rifle lighter than what I used to have.

TFB: In your opinion, which are the three top components to be able to win a big shooting championship?

Raine: Skill, gear and mental capacity. The last one is the hardest to learn. Regardless of skill level, a shooter with a competitive mind goes through hardships during the match. How to control one’s disappointment on a stage, and prevent further damage on the next one is the key. Likewise, you can never be satisfied and too happy about your performance, as that leads to sloppy concentration on the next stage. Just stay cool no matter what! Easier said than done.

TFB: How many shots per year do you shoot?

Raine: A majority of my shots are with .22LR. In a good year I shoot 60000+ rounds, and not so good is around 40000. This year I shot about 33000 .22LR rifle rounds indoors during the winter, and 19000 .223 rounds outside once the snow melted. Now I am almost entirely on a 9mm PCC, but will go back indoors soon. I will just change my Kahles scope into a red dot in my .22LR rifle. Pistols and shotguns are just collecting dust. I do not dry fire. No time for that after maximizing my live firing. Dry fire is best for perfecting jerk free triggering as there is no recoil effect, especially good for pistols. Just remember to hold the gun as if it had recoiled so as not to get surprises when live firing.

TFB: Can you recommend some efficient shooting drills for our readers?

Raine: A well-balanced match has all the shooting components needed. Some components are more common than others. Say, one stage with a forced weak shoulder, a couple of stages with forced moving backwards, some stages with a chance to shoot on the move, etc. The majority of the shots are off-hand, and naturally, rifle shooting should include plenty of prone position for long distances. Practice all those in the right proportions. That means mostly off-hand, secondly prone, etc. Keep the focus on accuracy. Without points, even the best time does not help anyone.

TFB: I understand that you help the Finnish Shooting Association and spend some time training and coaching other Finns. Can you tell us more about this and their success?

Raine: I have had the pleasure to teach young talents deeper into the sport. The RWS project lasted for 4 years. I also coached a pistol and a shotgun for some who went to the relevant World Championships, but the main focus was the rifle all the time. I had 6 great talents, 4 of them ladies, who learned through frustration and sometimes shed tears, but never gave up! I love them all. In the end, all showed outstanding shooting, and 3 of the 6 were awarded personal world championship medals.

TFB: I find shooting on the move with a rifle very difficult. Do you master the technique, and how do you do it?

Raine: I can fully agree on the difficulty! I did pretty bad on one of the shoot-on-the-move stages on the first day in Area 4, so I cannot say I mastered it... While moving sideways there is a tendency to miss towards the direction of the movement. One has to decide whether to shoot double taps taking the lead, or shoot slower aimed shots. Keep your knees bent. The lower and softer you move the less the gun jumps up and down.

TFB: I’m not sure I dare to ask in public like this, but you saw me shoot at least a few of the 30 stages. How terrible was I? What should I do to improve, or am I beyond help?

Raine: Hahaha! Seniority brings physical limitations to movements, so your learning curve may have evened out from its steepest. But let’s not forget that most of the shooting skill is technique and hand-eye coordination, not physical strength. I am definitely still learning, so why not you also?

TFB: This World Shoot saw a new record number of competitors, over 840 people. What more can be done to keep practical rifle shooting growing as a sport?

Raine: I am very happy about this trend. Politically, the first thing is to keep our AR-15s available. Secondly, we need ranges. Rifle is the hardest of all disciplines and also the most expensive to practice. Mini Rifle is an easy way to start and cheap to shoot. IPSC Mini Rifle rules have been made so that it imitates real rifle shooting with relatively long distances with bullet drop, wind challenges, scopes, bipods, etc. One can learn 80% of the needed skills with a mini rifle. Recoil control and long-distance need a real rifle caliber to master.

PCC is purposely different with no magnification and shorter shooting distances. Even stand-alone PCC matches should not imitate rifle shooting. Difference between disciplines is important to keep all guns interesting and to avoid cannibalization within the sport.

TFB: I’m biased, but I personally think practical shooting would be very exciting to watch on TV. Do you think that IPSC will eventually make it to the Olympics?

Raine: I hope so, but also see some opposition. I do not even know what discipline would be the best for that. IPSC is now a member of GAISF, Global Association of International Sports Federations, which is an important step towards the Olympics. We need to bring the sport more towards sport and revise the IPSC Constitution regarding some original purposes. We do not need to have the “practical” in our mind anymore, but just shoot stages as stages. Nobody thinks the Olympic javelin had once a military purpose, so why should we think such?

TFB: Do you hunt as well? What rifle and caliber do you use?

Raine: Yes I do. I have two Steyr Scout rifles, with Jeff Cooper logos on the side. It is a unique rifle, very light and short with integral bipods. I do not agree with Cooper’s scout scope principle, though. That just simply does not work in real life, so I have changed scopes for something traditional. I use .308 for birds, deer, wild boar and a peculiar caliber .376 Steyr, specifically developed for the Scout rifle for moose and on rare African visits if ever I get a chance for that again. It kicks like a mule, but I tamed it with a silencer.

TFB: Do you have any special guns in your collection?

Raine: I have a Suomi sub-machine gun. I had a semi-auto converted one, licensed as a 9mm rifle but the latest gun law change meant the police canceled my permit. Now I have only a de-activated one. That is better than nothing. My grandfather carried one at the war with Russia, so I need to have one as well. Another one of his tools was a Lahti L-39 20 mm anti-tank gun. Unfortunately, I do not have one.

TFB: Which is your next major competition? Will we be seeing you at the next IPSC PCC and Rimfire World Shoot in 2025?

Raine: Yes, PCC World Shoot is my next goal. I will do my best to win the title in the 4th discipline. I will let the youngsters run faster and would settle happily with a senior win. That is going to be hard enough for a 55-year-old gunner, Mamma Mia time runs!

That match is going to be very interesting. There are many winner candidates in all continents who have never competed against each other before. PCC draws new shooters from rifle, shotgun and pistol disciplines. Now, PCC is the easiest of them all, but that easiness of shooting is deceiving. It means you must be super-fast to succeed.

It is also a Mini Rifle championship at the same time. That means some targets will be different for the two disciplines. Most likely the stages are close to the same. We will see what the Czech Republic can do.

TFB: Tell us about your sponsors and how they help you?

Raine: I have excellent sponsors behind me, truly the best there are: Lapua, Beretta, JP Rifles, Kahles, DED, Spuhr, Viranomainen and Osuva. All are good at communication and developing their products towards victory.

I am excited and looking forward to participating in the PCC US Nationals this October. It is an example of JP Rifles helping me out by making a special JP-5 for me, for the match. I cut my own gun barrel to the minimum European length of 300 mm (11.8”), so it no longer fulfills the U.S. minimum of 16”. So, JP provides a gun for the match.

For more TFB Interviews please check some of the previous ones:

• TFB Interview: Kyle Litzie - World Champion - IPSC Rifle World Shoot 2024
• TFB Interview: Eirik Larsen (Team HK) - IPSC Rifle World Shoot 2024
• TFB Interview: Keith Garcia - IPSC Rifle World Shoot 2024
• TFB Interview: IPSC Shooter - Teemu Rintala (2016)