Deerstalkers on the mound

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32234, 28 February 1970, Page 9

Deerstalkers on the mound

COMPETITORS in the New Zealand Deerstalkers’ Association’s annual rifle shooting championship at Kaituna today and tomorrow will have cause to reflect on the great advances made in the format of the title meeting in a short space of time. Originally the sport was confined to deerstalkers hunting in the mountains. The steady increase in members fostered a desire to arrange competitions in an organised range shoot, and in 1955 a foundation member of the North Canterbury branch, Mr J. Wilkinson, presented a trophy to be shot for over 100 and 200 yards. Firing positions most used in hunting activities were adopted and only hunting rifles were used.

This competition, the forerunner of the present day national shoot, was conducted under a postal shoot system. Every branch competing forwarded its winner to the national secretary, and the highest scorer became the national champion. Remits in 1960 urged that a national rifle shoot be held on the one range, where all competitors would shoot under the same conditions. At Wellington in 1962 the first actual national shoot took place, the top scorer in each of about 30 branches being present. Modest facilities, however, forced the association

to ask the army, and rifle clubs, for the use of their ranges. But the steady increase in branches, which now number 57, and the progress of deerstalking as a whole in New Zealand, has seen new types of targets being introduced on the association’s own ranges. A feature of tne Deerstalkers’ Association competitions is the running boar target, which was introduced to the national shoot four years ago. This is an Olympic-type target, and it travels a distance of 10 metres at about five seconds exposure. Deerstalkers now assist in rifle shooting administration and many sports-

men take part in both forms of shooting. As this trend develops, the ranks of the deerstalkers might produce shooters worthy of Olympic Games nomination. Answer To Correspondent: GUN SHY.—The rifle which will be used next year by M. G. Gordon (Hastings), who won his third Ballinger Belt title at the National Rifle Association's annual shoot at Trentham last week-end. is a 7.62 model. The reference to it as a 7.62 is the military usage for what is in layman’s terms the high-powered .308 rifle. This is rapidly replacing the older .303 model for most major shooting competitions.