SHOOTING AT TRENTHAM

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 51, 1 March 1930, Page 11

SHOOTING AT TRENTHAM

FINE WEATHER CONTINUES

SHORT UANCtE MATCHES

(By Our Special Reporter.) TEENTHAM, This Day. Excellent progress is being made with rho matches at the NaHonal Biflo • -Association's meeting, duo in a large ;. measure to. the favourable conditions • which have so far obtained on the ;•/'-ranges. The fine'spell of weather is 'making the stay in camp pleasant, and ".. everything indicates that this year's meeting should be one of the most ■'•successful yet-;held by tho N.B.A. ;: ■ The first. Belt match, tho Marl- :; ' • borough, a short-range match, was fired '■' yesterday afternoon, and when tie - competitor^, went down on to the 'mounds to^ay and continued the Belt : -<- inatchos conditions were most favour-. -■able. To-day's programme started off with tho Auckland match (ten shotsat each 300 yds and 500 yds), and was followed by the Canterbury match (ten (ten shots at each 500 yds and 000 yds). Should the programme run to schedule to-day—and there appears. to bo no reason why it should not-four of the yen Beltmatcbes will have beon.^ posed of. "As this is only the thrfd ,day of. tho meeting tho progress made can be regarded as very satisfactory. The main factor contributing to the ■flisD--tcH with1 which the matches have '".ffniSio -off h»s been the alteration. •in the programme. Although there :were actually more matches tins year.: .before the Belt series, there "a greater ■; ■ number of single-ran^ match^ fl ™th -'the result that,the statistical start.has :.. been enabled to proceed with its work "^^iS 1!0^ matches which .re trough, Auckland, Wellington, and Cinterburri' The winner holds tne S3: S for one year and receives a gold medal presented by the B.S.A. Company. ■ SOME DIFFICULTIES. -the weather .Has been of ,:;thc besVthis has presented, many-diffi-culties to the competitors^ m the last div or so Tor instance, the wind yes .:£&£ though very ■-.sometimes blew from different -O-ixea i;"S it was no uncommon sight kbit's sn» ?n other parts there would be a calm, and a Ye competitors had no andica- ' tion how long the particular little l le Le they wire concerned with would S or when a calm would be broken ■■ lv a nasty puffl which -would probably - 'carry the next shot into the 'mag -wth a consequent loss''of .points, they ■found themselves tip against roallj IrK conditions. On the two ranges inS the Sommervillc and the Seddon , conditions varied considerably and to a comparatively large extent on each raXogng with the modern rifle j. > scientific business, and though a man may use his aperture sight and be help■'•cd considerably by his wind-gauge, his -success., wilt'depend, on a blending of ■ the'&ft of .h£;f gadgets- and his. own "■■ iudement.-'ln' Service shooting, aperture sights/ainV slings are not permittetd "Wind" and ''mirage" are ' knotty subjects for discussion . among rifle shooting experts, and the correction of faults they cause, together with the not-to-be-forgotten "elevation, is a subiect for deep mathematical study. Broadly, speaking, the effect of wind is . controlled".by the wind-gauge, and if a '^wind is.blowing from a-.certain quar-5-tor the rifleman judges its strength "minutes" (which the man an the ■ street would probably call degrees, for they are markings on a scale), and auiusts his gauge accordingly. The success of his first two shots which he may use for sighting purposes, enables him to cheek his calculations, but even •-then he may have to alter his scale as rhis" shooting progresses. Yesterday, •what riflemen call a "rocking" wind was causing a lot of trouble, and on one range the correction for the wind ran from 9 to 4 left, and on the other ranee 10 to dead-in (which is similar to from 10 to nil). Quite apart from that, the wind was inconsistent, and the reading of the gauge at one time would not liold good perhaps only a few minutes ; piIOULIAEITIES OF MIBAGE. . ;' Mirage, 3 'which becomes bad for some when hot air rises off the range, is - used by others to judge the wind allowance for each shot. Practically every shot has seen a mirage, and many have cursed it on a very hot and steamy day when it ha 3 made the ■bull's-eye appear to wobble. With the aid of a telescope, which is altered slightly, in focus, it is possible to de^ • toct the air movement when mirage is showing on any part of the range, and the marksman may judge how to shoot accordingly. It is possible to learn to Ttse mirage with ease and confidence 'when the flags are blowing all ways at ' once. ;.■.■■■