From: "Peter Sarony", [EMAIL PROTECTED]
So as not to re-invent the wheel, perhaps US
contributors could tell us the formats of US televised
shooting competitions?
Has anyone any experience of asking the BBC or other
TV companies about this?
Has anyone any experience of asking British shooting
associations about this?
Regards
Norman Bassett
drakenfels.org
--
Picking up on this and an earlier thread suggesting a more visually dynamic
shooting discipline utilising mountain bikes... I am delighted to tell you
that It has been done, and with considerable satisfaction and success
according to the feedback from competitors, participants and onlookers at
the time.
I conceived the 'BIKEATHLON' as it became known, as an extension of
full-bore 'PR' shooting back in the mid 80's when mountain bikes were fast
becoming popular. It was always described as a summer version of the winter
Olympics Biathlon, where instead of skis the all-terrain mountain bikes were
employed, and rather than small bore at clay discs, we used full-bore rifles
at appropriately extended distances from 200 to 1000 yards (or Metres where
appropriate). The shooting challenges also varied and included an
identification shoot stage at 300 yds/m which occurred around half way into
the timed course, after various positional shooting had been completed at an
earlier stop off range along the course. The ID stage included each
competitor at the start line (Outside the Running Deer range at Bisley) and
on the start of the watch for them, being shown for up to 30 secs (they
could depart at any time earlier they felt they had memorised them) 2
confusingly similar geometric symbols representing their particular shoot
targets at the 300 stage. They would cycle off with rifle empty and slung
accross their back, up the humps at the rear of 1000 yds on Stickledown and
around to the first 200 yds five positional stage on what used to be Shorts
range (2 from standing, 2 kneeling or squatting, 2 sitting, 2 prone, 2
freestyle from the weak shoulder at a Fig 11 type target). After proving
clear to the RO, the competitor would remount and speed off around the site,
accross the rear of the 300M sheds to the 300 yds point on Century where a
backer displayed 10 fig 12c sized targets pasted up, each identified by a
geometric symbol. Using, if desired, a spotting scope provided on the point,
the competior would endeavour to identify their 2 shoot targets and engage
each with 5 rounds. A similar procedure would ensue and the next stop off
was at the extreme end of Century for a 600 yard shoot on a static fig 11
with a hand held fig 12 that would appear if and when the fig 11 was first
hit. If struck the fig 12 would traverse to and fro accross the face of the
static fig 11, shoot throughs counting on both! This was for a total of a
further 10 rounds. After proving clear again, the shooter would have to
cycle at speed all the way back to the clock tower, and down onto a selected
1000 yd point, there to engage his 1000 yds target with a further 10 rounds.
All that remained, after being cleared by that RO, was for the final dash
down the hill to the start/finish line to stop the watch for his particular
run,on crossing the line. Scores were factored to the time taken to complete
the practice. (I believe the fastest time reccorded was around 11 minutes
but the highest score logged was with a time of around 12 minutes!) One
further element was that each competitor was started at 90 second intervals
(could be varied according to a reasonable par time for the course). If a
chasing competitor overtook an earlier one to his firing point, the earlier
one would be KO'd and retired. This can and, where appropriate, should be
configured as a 'Handicap Chase', with those of varying ages or abilities
starting at the appropriate running order to stand a chance against the
fitter or faster brethren.
We put this event on at the London Practical Shooting Club, originally as
the Muddy Fox shoot, as we had managed to get the loan of a bevy of their
bikes for the first two events. A few had broken on these courses and they
became reluctant to loan them again. Rather than be defeated we ran the
Muddy Fox course in the next PR Championship, albeit somewhat abbreviated in
distance and content, but on foot! The Kona distributor obliged on another
accasion with the loan of bikes and we ran the event again, this time as a
full stand alone Meeting in 1990 as THE BIKEATHLON.
It is certainly capable of being extended to an even longer practice,
especially if one covered the extremes of Bisley, through the woodland
between Century and Short Siberia at one extreme, and at the other, along
the path and through the woodland link to Pirbright ranges, via their
assault course if necessary and on to the furthest of their ranges,
Pirbright No1 600 yard converted gallery range with fig 11 and fig 12
electric targets. That is what I had in mind, but it all takes a great deal
of time and effort to organise and run, and would have to be done very
precisely and professionally. I believe these days it would not be necessary
to provide the mountain bikes as so many have them now, it would be up to
clubs and competitors, military units and police constabularies etc to
provide their own bikes for their team members, assuming of course that they
would be allowed to play!
It is certainly dynamic and very visual. As with marathons etc, it lends
itself to cameras mounted on motorbikes or cars, following the competitors.
Sponsorship should not be a problem in terms of the potential and the use of
logos on competitors bikes and jerseys etc., in addition to the potential
for sponsors banners to be set out along the route to define the path. There
are a huge number of mountain bikers of all ages. All they would need is to
start shooting and to learn, practice and hone their practical marksmanship
skills. Conversely, those established shooters with the appropriate
marksmanship skills would simply in the main, need to get fit and hone their
skills and their bodies in mountain biking on all terrains. The relevant
magazines and media around the free world both for cycling and shooting
should cover the discipline, and hey - ho! perhaps the pubic and the media
would begin to see us for what we are, sportspersons interested in physical
and mental fitness plus marksmanship, and a threat to no-one.
If anyone seriously wishes to pursue this, please let me know and we will
put it all together again. We are furtunate in having as our club's Public
Relations officer, Maurice Kanareck, who has many years as a documentary
film and video maker and a lifetime's experience with TV producers and
broadcasters.. He is a realist and a dedicated multi discipline shooter.
One video he produced for the LPSC on Practical Rifle won a BAFTA award, and
his TV presence and voice-overs are excellent.
Regards,
Peter Sarony.
--
I thought the summer version of Biathalon was running with a rifle, but
bikes is easier!
Steve.
Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org
List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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