National.Rifle.Association.Journal.TruePDF-Spring.2016.pdf

(15296 KB) Pobierz
NATIONAL RIFLE
JOURNAL
£4.25
£4.25
ASSOCIATION
Spring 2016 – Volume XCV No. 1
CSR
IN FOCUS
FIND A NEW PLACE
TO SHOOT THIS YEAR
CLU B CALL
WHAT THE NRA WAS
LIKE IN THE 1920S
BETWE E N
TH E WARS
RANGE REVIEW
B I S L EY A N D B EY O N D
SHOOTING AT 1,600 YARDS IN WALES
ESSENTIAL CAMP WORKS
REGIONAL ROUNDUP
DISCIPLINE REPORTS TARGET SHOTGUN FESTIVAL FOUR-WAY GUN TEST
2
www.nra.org.uk
NatioNal Rifle
Spring 2016 – XCV No. 1
4 INTRODUCTION
Chief executive Andrew Mercer
welcomes in a new year
associatioN
42 TRAINING
Interested in building your skills? Check
out our 2016 training programmes here
6 NEWS
Bisley targets go electric, the latest
legislative changes and more
44 REGIONAL UPDATE
News from NRA clubs near you
47 CLUB CALL
8 PRIZE BOOTY
Four gun reviews in one – the NRA
Handgun and Shotgun League 2015 prizes
Clubs from around the
country put in the spotlight
53 OBITUARIES
13 TARGET SHOTGUN FESTIVAL
James Harris reports from one
of the best attended events to date
Tributes to John Gwynne Powell,
Bill Cowsley and Terry Muldoon
57 NOTICES
18 CSR WINTER LEAGUE
Front cover:
Katheryn Snow
Cover photo by Lee Bowditch
Managing editor:
Colin Fallon
Sub-editors:
Jessica Hanson, Kate Puttick
Graphic design:
Jessica Riley
Advertising sales:
Callum Madden
Operations director:
James Folkard
Assistant publisher:
Ruth Burgess
Publisher:
Wes Stanton
Contributors:
Christopher Bunch, Alex
Cargill-Thompson, Peter Cottrell, Nic
Couldrey, Jonathan Dellar, Neil Francis,
James Harris, Raf Jah, Martin Liversage,
Mik Maksimovic, Katia Malcaus Cooper,
John Morgan-Hosey, Nick Parrish, Ian
Shirra-Gibb, Richard Wells, Paul Wolpe
Stock photography by Lee Bowditch,
Matt Limb and James Marchington
NRA chief executive:
Andrew Mercer
Chairman:
John Webster
Address:
National Rifle Association, Bisley,
Brookwood, Surrey GU24 0PB
T:
01483 797777
F:
01483 797285
W:
www.nra.org.uk
The NRA Journal is published on behalf
of the National Rifle Association by Blaze
Publishing Limited.
Address:
Lawrence House, Morrell
Street, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire,
CV32 5SZ.
T:
01926 339808
F:
01926 470400
E:
edit@blazepublishing.co.uk
© Blaze Publishing Limited, 2016
All rights reserved. Editorial matter, pictures
and text may not be reproduced without
permission. Views expressed are not
necessarily those
of the National Rifle
Association.
John Morgan-Hosey gives his highlights
from the seasonal competition
Essential news and notices for
shooters of all disciplines
61 RESULTS
21 BISLEY HISTORY
Chris Bunch brings the latest in his
series on the hallowed shooting centre
Catch up with competition
results from the past few months
62 MARKSMAN’S CALENDAR
27 HISTORIC CSR
A yearly competition that gives historic
firearms an airing in the modern day
Events and competitions
to fill your diary with in 2016
64 TRADE MEMBERS
30 SHOOTING THE MILE
Deep in the Welsh hills, Raf Jah sets his
sights on a truly long-range goal
All the NRA-affiliated trade members
66 MESSAGE 10
A chat with Jane Messer, the first
ever female Palma team captain
32 SPOTTER SCRUTINY
Nick Parrish delivers his verdict on the
Swarovski STR80 spotting scope
35 HEAD OF RANGE SERVICES
An update on the works and renovations
going on around Bisley
21
38 MEET THE REPS
Our newly and not-so-newly elected
reps tell us what’s in store for 2016
30
National Rifle Association
3
Welcome
| Chief Executive
Chief Executive Andrew Mercer welcomes the first
Journal
of 2016
with good news on building work and membership numbers
Spring forward
T
he first few months of 2016 have seen a great deal
of effort expended on range improvements and
communication.
Bisley Camp is slowly starting to show the fruits of two
years’ hard work and not insubstantial investment. In many
ways improving the estate is like painting the Forth Bridge –
the task is never completed and we rarely have the chance to
look back and savour recent improvements.
Upgrading roads and car parking will be a major focus over
the next couple of months; the rapidly growing demand for
the ranges is showing up many areas of poor construction.
Hobson’s Way (leading to Short Siberia range) is a good
example; contractors are cutting back the edging tree line to
help dry out the road surface ahead of remodelling the road
later this month.
The tender for Bullet Lodge has attracted a great deal of
interest with 14 firm enquiries and viewings. We took the
lodge back in hand from the previous tenant before Christmas,
substantially upgraded the building, and have offered a new
21 year lease. It is pleasing to note that there remains good
demand for quality refurbished accommodation on camp;
we will offer two new leases for new lodges on similar
terms later this year.
Cheylesmore Range, which has been substantially
refurbished over the past nine months, is now available for
hire. Our shooters will now benefit from centrally heated
range-side club facilities, new toilets, and new turning targets.
The range recently hosted an NRA Guest Day and the option
to retreat to a warm and welcoming area for a coffee between
shooting was appreciated.
NRA membership continues to grow at a steady rate which
brings its own challenges. The month of February yielded 117
new membership applications, a new record since we started
tracking the statistics a couple of years ago. On the other hand,
I had expected a tidal wave of applications in response to the
‘Free Membership for Under 21s’ promotion but to date this
has been but a trickle. I hope the recent improvements to cadet
rifle and ammunition transport regulations will encourage both
more cadet shooting and take up of free NRA membership.
Feeding the hungry beast that is social media is a continuing
challenge; thankfully we have much news to spread and find
Facebook an increasingly important vehicle for effective and
timely communication. The statistics are fascinating; we
have over 7,000 ‘likes’ and in the busiest weeks we ‘reach’
over 60,000 individuals. The response to individual postings
is confusing; recent posts included a Civilian Service Rifle
Winter League date (2,400 reached), cadet transport update
www.nra.org.uk
In many ways improving the estate
is like painting the Forth Bridge
– the task is never completed
(10,400), Butt Zero upgrading works (1,200) and additional
1200-yard shooting dates (700).
The Range Office has just seen a flurry of new recruits;
they will be charged with improving our handling of the
thousands of bookings received each year. Again the statistics
are illuminating; our new online range booking service has
received 14,600 individual bookings in the first six months.
Greater effort will also be made out on the ranges; I am
keen to ensure that all our shooters are properly qualified as
competent, or supervised, when shooting on our increasingly
busy ranges.
Work to address the potentially damaging effects of both
the EU Firearms Directive and the recently announced
Policing and Crime Bill continues. There is, on careful
analysis, the potential in both cases for unintended (and
perhaps at times intended) damaging consequences for
the decent and responsible shooting community. Working
in conjunction with our colleagues in the British Shooting
Sports Council gives us the best chance of positive influence
on this issue.
4
National Rifle Association
5

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika:

Zgłoś jeśli naruszono regulamin