18th August 2019
Sunday – A comparatively late start by normal standards – with the buses rolling from the hotel at 07:45. In their wisdom, the DCRA had allocated today as a 300 yard day, with just three shoots which, as you can probably guess, were all at 300 yards, with three ‘relays’ (details) per competition. The other change this year is that all competitions are at 300 yards – previously they were 300 meters but due to various reasons this has been changed this year.
The Tilton was first with 15 counting shots and the team pushed in some decent scores in light but variable winds with five scoring the highest possible 75 with Tom Smith top gun on 75.11
That was it for the morning, so an early lunch beckoned and the team retired to our plush classroom for pastrami and swiss cheese sandwiches with Pizza flavour crisps! (OK, there were some bods that had something healthy but I cant remember what it was – probably involved hummus and yoghurt).
Then back to Range Alpha for the first half of the MacDougall – (its shot at 300 and 500 yards – but the 500 yards will be tomorrow). England managed 7 hps of 50, with David Nuthall highest on 50.7. Last match was the first half of the Norman Beckett (shot at 300yds and 800 yds, with 800 yds ).
During the match the weather started to get really humid, with heavy clouds starting to roll in from the South. It became obvious it was going to rain, despite the positive thoughts trying to force back the inevitable. The disappearance of the trees in the distance indicated the severity of the incoming deluge.
The slow shooters on Relay 2 got a healthy dose of the first drops, but share a thought for those in the third relay, waiting with all their kit in the open. When it rains in Canada it really rains – stairods does not really do it justice; think of something more biblical, and then double it.
Relay 3 was not started – instead the Chief Range Officer decided to wait to see if the rain was a temporary shower (all you had to do was look south to see this was unlikely)
After ten minutes everything (and I mean everything) not under some substantial waterproof covering was soaked, including Saxon’s waterproof boots – filled up by the rain draining down his legs. At this point the CRO decided the markers and targets couldn’t handle it and delayed the final relay by thirty minutes – enough time to ensure that wasn’t already wet would have a fair chance to do so.
Thirty minutes later some very bedraggled shooters kicked off and to their credit managed to get most of the rounds in the right place.
End result of the Beckett was 8 hps of 50 from England with Jemima Hince with 50.8
Top England scorer of the day was Jeremy Tuck with 174.18 ex 175.35
So ended the days shooting but not the day. In the evening the team, together with the Welsh team entertained the Athelings at the Hotel with the youngsters enjoying a swim in the pool, joined involuntarily by some of the Welsh team courtesy of Smithy and Pongo.
This was followed by 28 extra-large pizzas and fizzy drinks, scoffed and guzzled with gusto!
Some long-suffering drivers took the Athelings back to camp via an aborted attempt to find Walmart. Some of the remaining team members amused themselves by creating the “Leaning tower of Pizza” out of the empty pizza boxes before Turbo spectacularly flattened them with a belly dive. And so ended another day!