2014 CAFTA National
Canadian National Field Target Association Championship
Hosted by the Port Colborne Field Target Club on July 19th & 20th, 2014
Match Report by Tim MacSweyn The 2014 CAFTA Nationals is in the books and even some wet weather could not dampen the high spirits of those that participated. We had a shooter from BC, one Quebec, three from the Ottawa area and two from NY State, so the “Nationals” in the title of the event is becoming a better descriptor. The match difficulty was a little up as most assume this match will be tough. Using only the distance and hit zone size, the Red Course calculated out at 34.5T and the White Course at 33.3T, giving a fair balance between the courses. There were lots of small hit zones, but also a good number of full zones out near 50 yards and beyond. Most had competed in the Nationals at least once, but for a half dozen of the shooters, it was their first Nationals event.
We had a perfect day for set-up and sight-in on Friday, with sunny skies and a mild breeze. Quite a few took advantage of the time to sight-in and get some practice in as well. We had supper at Minor’s Fisheries, which has become an annual highlight, even though we were lined up out the door. I think we will put an order together and phone it in early for next year. Many went back to the clubhouse to do more shooting or socialize and a number of people camped out and to be serenaded by the coyotes during the night.
Saturday morning started out with drizzle and that is how it went for most of the shooting. The forest canopy probably filtered out over 50% of the rain, leaving it somewhat wet but most seemed not overly affected by it. The fun factor was evident and lots of laughter could be heard the whole time. There were some good races going on by the end of the day as you can see by the Saturday scores that are starred on the results chart.
Sunday started out cloudy, with no rain and very slowly cleared as the day progressed. By the time all the shooting was done, the sun was shining brightly. Some shot consistent with their first day, while others improved or struggled. Three that were ahead after day one ended up winning their class and two had to come from behind to win their class. The difficulty did take a toll, with the top score in the event being 106/120 in the non-hunter classes and 180/240 in the hunter classes. This also led to something that rarely happens in the larger matches, no shoot-offs. This may not be quite as exciting, but it does get you to the food and awards sooner.
The shooting was all over by 1:30PM and the food arrived at 2:15 PM, giving many an opportunity to pack up their guns and shooting gear. The match awards were presented after we finished eating and then three rounds of drawing names for the free prize table took place. Many recouped their match fee and more with the prizes they were able to select. The final event was the drawing of the winning ticket for the Gamo Dynamax PCP rifle that Air Gun Source donated to the event. Only one individual bought two tickets for the draw and didn’t the second ticket that he bought get pulled as the winner. Congratulations to Chris, who went home even happier than he always does from every shooting event he attends.
I would like to thank all that attended the match from all over the country and from the US. Thanks to my wife, Angie, who helped in so many ways on the lead up to the match, during and after. Thanks to Deb and Janis for their help during the match and at meals. Thanks to the guys that did a super job setting up targets for a tough, but balanced course. Thanks to the guys that camped for looking after the place and having the sight-in targets ready to go each morning. Thanks to Sylvain and Brian’s wives for guarding the clubhouse while we were out shooting. Things meshed quite well because of the number of people willing to chip in.
Thanks to the Burlington FT Club, Port Colborne FT Club, Marshall, Dean and Air Gun Source for donating some great items to the Prize table. A lot of nice items were distributed to the participants.
I hope many are making plans to return to the Nationals next year and the date will be published very soon. Next up is the very first Ontario Provincial Championships to be hosted by the Ottawa FT Club on September 13th. I look forward to seeing lots of friends there and making some new friends
Keep those rigs and yourself in top shooting shape for whatever is next for you.
Hosted by the Port Colborne Field Target Club on July 19th & 20th, 2014
Match Report by Tim MacSweyn The 2014 CAFTA Nationals is in the books and even some wet weather could not dampen the high spirits of those that participated. We had a shooter from BC, one Quebec, three from the Ottawa area and two from NY State, so the “Nationals” in the title of the event is becoming a better descriptor. The match difficulty was a little up as most assume this match will be tough. Using only the distance and hit zone size, the Red Course calculated out at 34.5T and the White Course at 33.3T, giving a fair balance between the courses. There were lots of small hit zones, but also a good number of full zones out near 50 yards and beyond. Most had competed in the Nationals at least once, but for a half dozen of the shooters, it was their first Nationals event.
We had a perfect day for set-up and sight-in on Friday, with sunny skies and a mild breeze. Quite a few took advantage of the time to sight-in and get some practice in as well. We had supper at Minor’s Fisheries, which has become an annual highlight, even though we were lined up out the door. I think we will put an order together and phone it in early for next year. Many went back to the clubhouse to do more shooting or socialize and a number of people camped out and to be serenaded by the coyotes during the night.
Saturday morning started out with drizzle and that is how it went for most of the shooting. The forest canopy probably filtered out over 50% of the rain, leaving it somewhat wet but most seemed not overly affected by it. The fun factor was evident and lots of laughter could be heard the whole time. There were some good races going on by the end of the day as you can see by the Saturday scores that are starred on the results chart.
Sunday started out cloudy, with no rain and very slowly cleared as the day progressed. By the time all the shooting was done, the sun was shining brightly. Some shot consistent with their first day, while others improved or struggled. Three that were ahead after day one ended up winning their class and two had to come from behind to win their class. The difficulty did take a toll, with the top score in the event being 106/120 in the non-hunter classes and 180/240 in the hunter classes. This also led to something that rarely happens in the larger matches, no shoot-offs. This may not be quite as exciting, but it does get you to the food and awards sooner.
The shooting was all over by 1:30PM and the food arrived at 2:15 PM, giving many an opportunity to pack up their guns and shooting gear. The match awards were presented after we finished eating and then three rounds of drawing names for the free prize table took place. Many recouped their match fee and more with the prizes they were able to select. The final event was the drawing of the winning ticket for the Gamo Dynamax PCP rifle that Air Gun Source donated to the event. Only one individual bought two tickets for the draw and didn’t the second ticket that he bought get pulled as the winner. Congratulations to Chris, who went home even happier than he always does from every shooting event he attends.
I would like to thank all that attended the match from all over the country and from the US. Thanks to my wife, Angie, who helped in so many ways on the lead up to the match, during and after. Thanks to Deb and Janis for their help during the match and at meals. Thanks to the guys that did a super job setting up targets for a tough, but balanced course. Thanks to the guys that camped for looking after the place and having the sight-in targets ready to go each morning. Thanks to Sylvain and Brian’s wives for guarding the clubhouse while we were out shooting. Things meshed quite well because of the number of people willing to chip in.
Thanks to the Burlington FT Club, Port Colborne FT Club, Marshall, Dean and Air Gun Source for donating some great items to the Prize table. A lot of nice items were distributed to the participants.
I hope many are making plans to return to the Nationals next year and the date will be published very soon. Next up is the very first Ontario Provincial Championships to be hosted by the Ottawa FT Club on September 13th. I look forward to seeing lots of friends there and making some new friends
Keep those rigs and yourself in top shooting shape for whatever is next for you.