Day 1 – Some Like it Hot (and Humid)

Having encountered a large amount of black tape, when sealing up their rifle boxes, the team then encountered a large amount of red tape during the course of their journey to Canada.

The coach arrived promptly at crack of dawn and members of GBRT 2016 loaded themselves and their baggage onto it. After a traffic-free journey to Heathrow, things began to slow down, when the process of getting rifles and oversized team bags through check-in and customs began. Seasoned tourists seated themselves with a good book to read, whilst newer caps refused to let their excitement be tempered by airport bureaucracy.

Eventually, with a slightly smaller amount of time to spare than the Captain would have liked, the team found themselves on the right side of security, with all rifles having cleared customs. Rory MacLeod and his bag did pique the interest of the UK Border Force officer, who, thanks to Rory and a considerable amount of swabbing, is now much better informed about what role the spotting scope plays in a shooter’s equipment.

After boarding, the plane suffered a slight delay, which allowed team members to discover that the selection of on board films available left a lot to be desired. However, thirty minutes after our scheduled departure time, with the diarist having chosen the cheerful war biopic “13 Hours” to get him in the mood for the trip, we took off. The flight was largely uneventful, with most team members choosing to pass the time by exchanging shooting stories, indulging in obscure French-Canadian cinema, snoozing or, in James Mehta’s case, disturbing the two fellow shooters in his row, through frequent leg stretches and bathroom trips.

A brief nine hours later, we touched down in Vancouver and, as we disembarked, were given a taster of the beautiful scenery, for which this part of the world is famous. All luggage was quickly retrieved from the carousel and then, for old time’s sake, the Captain and FAC holder Chris Hockley, spent forty-five minutes getting the rifles through Canadian customs. Somewhat surprisingly, with the rifles having survived the nearly five thousand miles between London and Vancouver, the biggest risk to their safety came in the form of our Adjutant, Stephen Penrose. Stephen, eager to collect his hire vehicle, wheeled the trolley, containing all the rifles, a little too vigorously. This resulted in a “hard stop” against an (in?)conveniently placed railing, with only the quick reactions of other team members preventing a cascade of rifles onto the floor.

Hire cars were collected, sat navs were programmed and/or map-readers wished they had paid more attention during their Duke of Edinburgh navigation exercises at school. Our convoy left Vancouver and, unfortunately, coincided with rush hour, which meant that the journey to Chilliwack was a rather stop-start affair. The diarist’s vehicle, confident that their prior preparation of a Google Maps route would see them arrive well-ahead of the rest of the team, chose to take a detour to the local mall. There, they stocked up on essential supplies, such as water and local sim cards, in order to stay hydrated and in touch, keeping eager followers of the team’s progress updated, even whilst on the range.

At the mall, team doctor, Graham Nelson, also decided to bring some of his bedside manner to the tour, by stocking up on lollipops. Each day, a “good” and “bad” lollipop is to be awarded to team members, for exemplary and not so exemplary conduct, respectively. The results of these awards (where appropriate) will be included in future diary entries.

The mall trip having taken slightly longer than anticipated, the diarist’s vehicle actually ended up being the last to arrive at the hotel, which is to be our home for the duration of our stay in Chilliwack. The delightfully appointed “Best Western Rainbow Country Inn” (what good hotel doesn’t have an atrium that is also a greenhouse?), welcomed us with open arms and the first of many team meetings was held in its bar. Afterwards, team members retired to unpack, have some dinner, try to work out what the time is/should be and get some rest, before heading to Chilliwack range for the first time tomorrow, when we also look forward to welcoming team members Colin Skellett and Ian Ashworth, who are flying out from the UK.

The weather in Chilliwack promises 93% humidity and temperatures of up to 29 degrees Celsius (85 Fahrenheit, in old money) – ideal conditions to don layer upon layer of shooting kit and lie down in the sun for hours at a time (see hydration point above).

Lollipop awards (Day 1):

Good – David Calvert, for remaining serenely calm for the entire duration of the trip from London to Vancouver.

Bad – the diarist, for failing to unblock his credit card, prior to travel, and therefore having to scrounge off various team members for the whole of the first day.