To the layman, shooting a rifle seems a difficult but straightforward task.

The shooter only needs to hold the loaded rifle still, peering down the barrel toward the sight. Of course, it takes a steady hand to keep the sight and the target in line, but the task seems simple to describe, if not to perform.

But what if the tiny point obscures the target?

“The front sight on that gun is just a dot. It covers the 100-yard bull’s-eye,” said Ron McBride of Urbandale, who competed Sunday in the black powder rifle division of the Iowa Games shooting competition at the Ames Izaak Walton League Park.

McBride said shooters could adjust to that difficulty by slowly moving the sight toward the bull’s-eye and trying to center it.

In the black powder rifle division, shooters aim and take five shots at targets mounted on cardboard from three distance — 25, 50 and 100 yards. Participants can earn up to 50 points at each distance.

Still air and a cloudy sky Sunday made for ideal shooting conditions, said Sue Gordon of Jewell.

Gordon, who said she has been shooting for about 20 years, said wind and even sunlight can create problems when a shooter uses lightweight projectiles and needs pinpoint accuracy.

Bronze medal winner Steve Umphress of Clive said a good round from 50 yards out keeps the bullet holes within a three-inch radius.

Umphress said his competition took about four hours to complete, although much of that time was spent cleaning and loading his musket.

Although it was his first time in the shooting event at the Iowa Games, Umphress stated the explanation for his success at the “stand and shoot” event.

“Practice, practice,” he said.

Shots rang out all over the park Saturday and Sunday — the black powder rifle event is one of 14 different shooting styles that took place in the Iowa Games. There were 81 entry divisions for the different events and age groups.