I was watching some airgun related item on YouTube, which ended, and before I could select something else, coverage of a World FT Shoot came on. Now I don't shoot FT (or HFT for that matter) but I was amazed by the distances that existed between barrels and scopes; some looked as if I could get the palm of my hand in there, upright, and then some! Consequently I noticed that cheek pieces are wound right up on what appear to be huge posts, to enable the eye to address the scope. Now I was always told that the scope should be as close to the centre line of the barrel as possible, so why these huge gaps on FT rigs, and is it the same in HFT? It seems to have nothing to do with the size of the objective lens, as high mounts seem to be mounted on high platforms mounted on the guns' scope rails. Forgive me if this is a stupid question, as I have no experience of either discipline.