Weekly Review 27/08/2016
Weekly Review 27/08/2016
Bathurst Rifle Club Inc 27th August 2016 W & J Brown Shield 900 yards
The rescheduled 900 yard last range of the W & J Brown Shield was held on Saturday in very pleasant weather conditions; bright sun, little wind but a strong mirage to upset the equilibrium.
Early conditions were quite readable, but as the day wore on gremlins got into the system and scores plummeted. At the start of the second stage conditions suddenly turned upside down with quick wind strength and directional variations resulting in some very unusual results from the very best in the club.
When you get outer two's from Australian team members you know that the conditions are unusual to say the least. There was a bright side with Graeme Bright and Jeff Eppleston making everyone look like novices. Bright, returning from his Brisbane trip where he contested the QRA State Championships shot a 99.06, streets ahead of his nearest competitor.
Eppleston's Brisbane sojourn saw him win the State Championship in FTR class, this after two Queens Prize wins in F Standard class in recent years. Eppleston's win in Brisbane sets him up for selection in the Australian team to Canada to contest the 2017 World FTR championships. Using the lightweight bipod, his prize for his Queensland win, Eppleston held a tight group to record 117.6/120 despite the difficult conditions.
Aside from Bright and Eppleston there were some good efforts in the first stage but the second stage was almost universally dismal. Nick Cock 49.04, Steve Williams and Gordon Shepherd with 48.03 each and Grahame Willis 57.4, all performed creditably but their second stages were very disappointing as the breeze and mirage toyed with them. Williams was the exception scrabbling to a repeat 48 with one centre bull's eye.
Dennis Lavelle again performed best of the B grade group although he couldn't avoid a couple of magpie three's in his second stage. John Coghill and Ron Gibson each collected more than a sugar bag full of magpies with an occasional outer two thrown in.
It was a similar story for the F class contingent with Willis holding it together for just half of the shoot. Ben Wright had a forgettable experience and Matt Allen and Colin Howell continued their difficult initiation.
The last shoot before the shutdown is a 300 yard Diggers Cup round next Saturday.
Scores:
G Bright TRA 99.06 (2 ¾) 100
J Eppleston FTR 117.6 (7 ¾) 100
G Shepherd TRA 94.06 (6 ¾) 100
S Williams TRA 96.04 (4 ¼) 100
J Coghill TRB 85.03 (12) 97
N Cock TRA 95.05 (1 ½) 96 ½
D Lavelle TRB 88.03 (7 ¾) 95 ¾
G P Willis FSA 106.5 (8) 95
R Gibson TRB 77.0 (12) 89
B Wright FSB 93.0 (12) 87 ½
M Allen FSB 104.4; C Howell FSB 98.4
by John Coghill
Posted in Weekly Roundup on Aug 30, 2016