West Atholl Rifle Club

2012

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Club Results for 8th April

18 members and 3 visiting shooters turned out for the first club shoot of the 2012 season on a cold, dull Easter Day. A vicious squall in the second half of 500 did not help those shooting at the time. There was not much wind, but what there was proved rapidly changing and not always easy to read, so possibles in TR were as common as vegetarian tigers. In F Class, Grant Taylor had   an excellent 75v14 at 400. In TR/F Paul Crosbie had an excellent 75v14 at 400 and a superb 75v15 at 600; Mike Barton had 75v6 at 600, Peter Burbridge a commendable 75v11 at 600 and probationary member John Milner 75v8 at 500.

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Club Results for 15th April

Thirteen (fool)hardy souls turned out to face a bitterly cold northeast wind for the first Club long range shoot of the season. The wind was fresh, occasionally strong, changing quickly, not easy to read and seemed to cause disproportionate elevation changes. In TR, possibles were not even on the horizon, inners were more common than V bulls, nobody avoided a magpie at each distance and half a dozen outers made an appearance. Under such conditions Paul Crosbie's highly commendable TR/F 98v11 at 900 and Peter Burbridge's even more commendable TR/F 97v13 at 1000 were remarkable achievements all the more remarkable in Peter's case as he was using a 223.

Three MR shooters joined us at 1000. Their original plan to move back to 1100 had no takers after the cold had taken hold.

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Club Results for 17th June

Despite the recent dreadful weather 14 members enjoyed what must have been the most benign all-day conditions on Jubilee Range for a very long time: minimal wind and not a drop of rain. Minimal wind meant maximal midges, who turned up in large numbers with reinforcements and mercenaries. Even that had its benefits: as the vice-chairman said, if you were being eaten alive you needed no windage; if the wind got up to disperse the midges, you should put on half a minute.

In such conditions possibles were ten-a-penny but special mention must go to Paul Crosbie and Peter Burbridge. Paul had the highest TR/F score with 200v32. Peter made a real mess of shot 14 at 900 to give him only 100v19 at the distance, and was second to Paul at 200v30 for the day- but Peter was using 90 grain Berger BTs in 223 to Paul's 155 grain Berger in 308....... but on the other hand the 308s have a lower BC.

Particular thanks to Paul Crosbie for standing in as duty member at short notice and for making everything run so eficiently-so much so that WARC members could leave by lunch time, leaving the range to Match Rifle shooters who made good use of the calm conditions to test and chronograph loads.

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Club Results for 8th July

Nine members enjoyed a relaxed shoot on a dry day with enough wind to make it interesting. Shooting at 400 yds on a 300 metre ISSF target display proved challenging as usual. Kenny MacDonald was the clear TR winner. Peter Burbridge took the TR/F trophy by one point in 600. Thanks to all who helped set up and close down.

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Club Results for 12th August

For once the newspapers would have been correct if they had produced their usual description of "the crack of rifles across the grouse moors on the Glorious Twelfth" as 16 members turned out on a dull, windy but dry day hoping to shoot 400, 500 and 600 yds. But we were delayed by target problems which were eventually solved by Pete Dingle's expertise. Before shooting started at 1-30 it was agreed we would shoot only at 400, some shooting 2+15 once, others shooting that twice on the understanding that their better score would count. Many thanks to everyone for their forebearance and for help mounting a new target and closing down.

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Club Results for 2nd September

Sixteen members, three Guests and two visiting shooters started the day at 500 in clouds of midges, The wind soon rose to disperse them (midges, that is). Although mostly light the wind was rapidly changing with occasional short sharp gusts which caught out a few. We then shot 600, with TR and F class shooting an extra five rounds to make 2+ 20 for the postal match v Perth Australia, and finished the day in brilliant sunshine at 400.

Star performance of the day was Tim Kidner's possible for the whole day, the only other TR possible being Richard Scott's 75v10 at 500.

In TR/F Paul Crosbie had 75 at all three distances, Peter Burbridge had the same at 400 and 600, Mike Barton had 75 at 400 and 500. Guest tyro K Nangle had possibles at 400 and 600 and another guest tyro, F Bell, had one at 600. Well done!

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Club Murray Cup Results 16th September

26 members turned out to shoot the Murray cup competition, the last WARC event of the season. We began in still conditions and hordes of midges, but after the first detail the wind got up and proved intermittently very tricky, especially at 900. Experience showed, and the contest was close, only two points separating the top four places in TR. After 400, 500 and 600 Tim Kidner was leading John Potter by three points, having had possibles at 400 and 600; but at 900 John put in a superb 74v12 in tricky conditions to Tim's 71v3, leaving them equal on points with John taking the trophy by 4 V's. Despite the conditions there were 7 possibles in TR/F including one by Angus Keiller, a young probationary member. Paul Sandie won the F class trophy, for the second consecutive year, by a good margin.