Day 6 – Nothing to Declare…Except that Bad Shot

With most team members having managed to pack their bags the night before, GBRT had their final dalliance with the waffle machine, before heading out to the range, for the last time, in order to compete in the International Match against teams from Canada (British Columbia) and the USA (Washington).

In stark contrast to the previous days’ weather, the team found themselves unable to see the mountains, which usually provide a backdrop to the range, due to low cloud. This cloud produced intermittent rain for the duration of the match and also meant that wind conditions were much calmer, with the odd gust blowing through.

With such little wind, it was essential that all of the team fired straight shots, especially on the tight ICFRA target faces, which have been in use for the duration of the BCRA meeting. This objective was achieved at 300 metres, where GBRT went clean. The US team, however, dropped 8 points and the Canadian team dropped 16 points.

Falling back to 500 metres, GBRT’s scorecards remained unsullied by inners and, again, they went clean. The opposition performed slightly better at this range, with the US only dropping 3 points and the Canadians only dropping 1 point.

At 600 metres, however, GBRT decided to show that they were human after all and allowed 7 points to slip away, partly due to the wind, which had begun to fishtail. The US dropped 4 points at this distance and the Canadians dropped 10 points.

Despite improving performances from the strong US and Canadian teams, over the course of the match, GBRT’s impressive shooting led them to victory. The final scores were:

1st – GBRT – 1193.136
2nd – USA – 1185.132
3rd – Canada – 1173.119

GBRT’s score ended up being only three points shy of the record score for this course of fire on ICFRA targets (1196).

After prize giving, the BCRA provided all teams with a sumptuous lunch on the range and our thanks go to the BCRA for all their hard work in putting on an excellent few days of shooting.

Post-lunch, GBRT returned to collect baggage from the hotel, refuel vehicles and begin the 3 hour drive down to Puyallup, crossing the US border in the process. The crossing was surprisingly stress-free and, after filling in various forms at US Customs, the team entered the country. The rest of the drive down to Puyallup, via Seattle, gave the team a glimpse of a politically united and very scenic portion of America. Signs flashed by for places with names such as Chuckanut and, before we knew it, we had arrived at another Best Western hotel, which is to be the team’s base for the next few days of down time.

Current plans are to explore Seattle and also the Mt Rainier National Park. The diarist notes that Mt Rainier last erupted in 1894 but hopes that, for numerous reasons, he has nothing further to report on this matter!

Lollipop awards (Day 6):

Good – Angus McLeod, for top scoring in the International Match, with 150.23.

Bad – the Captain, for arriving late to his own team meeting, which he had, on multiple occasions, insisted that people be on time for.