GBRT : Canada 2011

Visibility as we drove out of Halifax this morning was no more than 200 metres – drivers were being careful. Thoughts of “will we be able to start 300 metres at 0830?” sprang to mind. About 5 minutes before reaching the range, the fog burned off and we finished the drive in glorious sunshine.

Insect repellant was liberally applied on arrival, some bomber sized mozzies around! With the sun finally putting in a real appearance, the water on the range meant the vans could have driven on the resultant mirage.

Our first real day of competition. A warm, muggy morning with “mizzle” was the order of the day on the way to the range. Total entry for the Nova Scotia meeting this year has been restricted to 42 shooters and we are a team of 20. The morning's course of fire was 2 sighters and 10 to count at 300 and 500 metres. A good thing. 300 metres was about as far as we could see. Didn't seem to matter, with virtually no wind, scores were high. 13 possibles were recorded, with 12 being from the team. I feel I must note that the Captain was one of those, accompanied by 1 V bull, but don't mention that I have put that in the diary!

The team followed one of our Nova Scotian hosts to the lock up where our rifles had been stored and thence the forty five minute drive up to the range. We had all been shopping the day before and one of the vans carried victuals for the whole team to have breakfast and lunch on the range.

Bull Meadow range goes back to eight hundred metres and faces North East. It was constructed by members of the Nova Scotia R.A. in 2004 and cut out of the predominantly pinewood forests common in the province. They have seven nicely balanced, cantilever targets. We were advised that the prevailing wind is from about eight o'clock, though today's shooting saw light airs mainly from the right and pretty much in our faces.

After arriving yesterday evening, today was the first chance for the team to explore Halifax. After a leisurely breakfast at “Smithy’s” across the road, the team headed into the town in small groups.

Most  headed to the seafront to see the harbour and find good bars and restaurants in which to enjoy our evening meals. One well-known Scot on the team was particularly keen to find a bar called the “Lower Deck”, which he had been to last time he was in Nova Scotia when Brown Bess muskets were still in use by the garrison of the Citadel. Much to his delight the bar was still there, fortunately for those with him at the time, he didn’t go on stage to sing “Flower of Scotland” as had been the case last time.

The team managed to pack most of the kit needed for the (nearly) three week tour last night. Bulging cabin bags and even more corpulent hold bags seemed to leave little floor space in the Surrey dining room overnight.

Rifles were divvied up into rifle boxes, foam replaced by mats in many cases, all stored in the armoury overnight.

0700 this morning was the agreed time to convene for breakfast. We were near enough thereabouts.
T'was not long before the aroma of the Captain's sizzling bacon permeated the dining room. Butties for all to fortify us for the anticipated journey to Heathrow and the expected interminable wait while checking in team kit, ammunition and negotiating rifle export with customs.