News

Bathurst Rifle Club Inc. 7th April 2018, K Redding 700 yards, Championship and QVM 700yards

            It was high summer in the middle of autumn and visitors from Lithgow and Lyndhurst picked a bad day to try out the 700 yard range with weather conditions at their diabolical worst. A light breeze which started the day as a north easterly swung 180 degrees to the south west, at times even due south before finally settling as a gusty westerly. The hot dry conditions produced a mirage which joined the fluctuating breeze to set up an almost impossible set of shooting conditions.

             That is for all bar Nick Cock whose 100.07 was 8 points better than his nearest rival and confounded all who watched his mastery over the impossible. Graeme Bright although managing to stay out of the magpie ring could do no better than a pair of 46’s and even Lyndhurst’s Australian Team representative Jim Jeffery managed just  91.01. All the while the wind and mirage were chopping and changing as demoralized shooters crept off the mound with their tails between their legs. The remainder of the scores were laughable if not tragic, as magpie threes and outer two’s, even a miss or two, were the norm rather than the exception.

             F class was not immune to the chaos although Grahame Willis exercised some control and took out the Day’s Cock of the Walk with 113.4, boosting his 700 yard Championship score by an extra 5 points. This however did not stop Geoff Willis whose 111.6 qualified him for the Championship and thrust him into the lead by 11 points with just 5 rounds to go.

            Jeff Eppleston whose fishing priorities have over taken his shooting priorities is 15 points further in arrears. Adrian Holder visiting from the Lithgow Small Arms Rifle Club was surprised by the conditions but regrouped in his second stage, while fellow LSARC member Sig Sovik was not so fortunate as he stumbled badly in the foreign conditions.

            A facet that has reared its ugly head of late is the wrong target syndrome as yet another competitor suffered this embarrassment. There have been several instances that have occurred since the electronic targets have been installed side by side and the embarrassment (no names mentioned) has followed club members travelling to DRA prize meetings recently. 

            Cock won the K Redding Trophy on count back from Grahame Willis.

            The next shoot will be the Captains Trophy at 800 yards on 14th April.

Scores: 
N Cock TRA 100.07 (1/2) 100
G P Willis FSA 113.4 (8 ¼) 100
G Shepherd TRA 84.02 (12) 100
G S Willis FSA 111.6 (8 ½) 99 ½
G Bright TRA 92.04 (5 ¾) 97 ¾
J Eppleston FSA 107.5 (6) 94 ¼
J Coghill TRB 78.04 (12) 90
S Williams TRA 84.02 (4) 88
R Gibson TRB 75.02 (12) 87
C Howell FSB 92.1 (12) 86 ¾
J Jeffery (Lyn) TRA 91.01
A Holder (Lith) 110.6
S Sovik FSA (Lith) 94.0

by John Coghill