Imperial meeting F Class

[ovenpaa]

I fancy having a go at some of the Imperial meeting F Class. Great, I can do it on line as well...just one small problem.

What do I enter, every time I look I get more and more confused so can someone point me in the right direction. Which are the good F Open ones to start with please?

[IainWR]

Hi

Without wishing to steal an effers answer:

Remember that F-class started as an offshoot of TR. As a result, the F-class guys shoot (nearly) the same set of competitions as the TR guys. If you want to come to the Meeting in F-class, great.

The first thing to decide is how much time you can spare. Ideally you could turn up on Saturday 9 July, shoot the Match Rifle meeting in F-class until Wed 13, take Thu 14 Jul off to sort life out, and shoot the TR Meeting in F-class from Fri 15 to Fri 22 Jul. Total about 32 competitions and about 500-600 rounds.

But if you have, like most of us, nothing like that amount of time, you could shoot just the TR Meeting, or just the Grand Aggregate (16-21 Jul), or just the Queens (20 and 22 Jul) or any of several other combinations. For more info, email karen@nra.org.uk and if she can't answer she will pass it to someone who can, which might well be me.

Second, you need accommodation. I assume you are not a Bisley regular or a member of any of the on-site clubs. Assuming that tents aren't your thing, can you borrow a touring caravan or a campervan? Hundreds of people do exactly that for the time they need on Bisley. It's not a good campsite but it does work. Alternatively contact Amanda Vaughan at NSC Bisley (accommodation@nra.org.uk) and ask what options are available.

To get the detail of the rules, read the NRA Handbook (Colloquially known as the Bisley Bible). You can buy a copy from the NRA for £8.50, or you can read and download it from the NRA website free. Go to Downloads / all and it's the top item.

Any more info please ask. We would be delighted to have a new competitor at the Meeting.

Iain
XO NRA Shooting Committee

[rox]

What do I enter, every time I look I get more and more confused so can someone point me in the right direction. Which are the good F Open ones to start with please?

Here's a brief summary of the TR phase of the meeting, hurriedly from memory.

A typical day involves one short range distance in the morning session, another in the afternoon, and one long range shoot at some point during the day (simple logistics of Stickledown capacity being half that of Century requiring a full day for everyone to shoot). 1st Friday (15 Jul), Mid Saturday, Mid Sunday and 2nd Monday follow the 'typical day' format. Tuesday has just one shoot, the 1st stage of the St George's (2+15 at 300x) in the morning, with county and other team matches in the afternoon (or a chance to spend some time on McQueen). Wednesday is the 1st stage of the Queen's prize (2+7 at 300x, 500x & 600x, taking all day), plus a 900 yard shoot. Thursday morning is the Prince of Wales (2+15 at 600x) which brings the Grand Agg to a close, then there are more team matches, 2nd and third stages, and additional shoots up to the of the Queen's final on Saturday afternoon. There are various extra shoots (non-Grand) that you can enter in the unlikely event you don't progress to the second or third stages of the staged competitions (Queen's, George's, Donaldson Memorial).

Before the Grand Agg starts there's one 'Pre Grand' shoot at each distance. Actually, depending on your squadding you could end up shooting your first Grand shoot, the Telegraph at 500x, just before the last pre-grand shoot (the Lovell at 1000x); the important part is that you'll get an opportunity to shoot each distance before shooting that distance in a Grand Agg competition. For those of us shooting issued ammo that allows competitors to obtain good elevations with the meeting ammo (there are usually several batches in use, but although new batches will be encountered as the meeting progresses there is usually very little variation with the current commercial offering). Pre grand shoots also allow everyone to get back into the swing of the squadded individual competitions (or to pick it up if new to the format).

If you can spare the time I would recommend shooting the pre-grand events (starting 15th July) and the Grand itself, and allow time to enjoy the team matches and finals, whether as a competitor or a spectator. If you can really spare the time then the shoot the MR events as well. Remember, your 'Tyro' status is like your virginity – you only get one chance to lose it, and you want to blow it in style.

I have some meeting guides for newcomers that I can probably dig up – pm me if interested. It;s easy to get the hang of it, and people will be extremely helpful. We could even arrange a shoot sometime to act as meeting preparation, to run through practicalities of finding your target, conduct of shooting etc.

Hope this is useful.

...

[ovenpaa]

Iain and Rox - thank you for your replies, I will go back and have a look again and see what I can realistically fit in. I would like to try and shoot alongside MR shooters as I am intrigued to know more about the discipline and check the potential opposition out at the same time.

Rox a pre meeting shoot would be good as a warm up and to make sure I don't over step the mark in any areas, I have a Bisley Bible that I have skimmed through many times but with a meeting of this magnitude it would be nice to know I am not going to step on any toes or break any rules. To date all I have shot at Bisley is McQueen.

[karen]

Hiya

Theres some info for first timers at http://www.nra.org.uk/common/asp/compet ... p?site=NRA

Love

Karen

[karen]

Oh and Iain is the second guy from the front in the photo

Love

Karen