Winter 2002 - National Rifle Association

2002CHANNELISLANDSTOURREPORT2002by Alastair BrownIt was a great privilege to be invited to Captain the2002 NRA Team to the Channel Islands. I wouldparticularly like to thank Jonathan Holmes and IanMollan for fulfilling their team management roles ofVice-Captain and Adjutant, and of course DavidCalvert for agreeing to be Chief Coach. All teammembers shot well and toured hard, and we enjoyedmuch success. I would also like to record my thanksto Peter Sirett and Cherry Le Poidevin for theorganisation they did for us in Guernsey, and to CliffMallett for co-ordinating things for us in Jersey. Hereis team diarist Alastair Brown’s recollection of events.Rupert ClarkLMRA MatchThe NRA Team to the Channel Islands commencedits highly successful 2002 tour with a match againstthe London and Middlesex Rifle Association, whichtook place on Tuesday 28 May, at Bisley Camp. Ateam of eight plus two coaches and a reserve pair shota Queens II under NRA match conditions. Victorywent to the NRA Team, with Ian Davison and KrisCressy setting the early pace with scores of 149. Moreimportantly we were able to have a final run throughof team shooting procedure, and set our thoughts onthe task ahead. The match was followed by a fantasticdinner in the LMRA, which set us all up very nicelyfor the next day’s short drive to Poole and impendingferry journey to the other side of the English Channelto our first destination, Guernsey. Our thanks are dueto Robert Stafford and Roger Hanley for putting onthis match for us - it set us up well.On to GuernseyOn the morning of Wednesday 29 May, the team setoff in five cars, each laden to the roof with rifles, bagsand wet weather gear, including towels, for sunnyPoole, to catch the ferry to Guernsey. Following a shorttrip across the Channel, we disembarked to be met bysome of the Guernsey Rifle Association, who relievedus of all our rifles and determined to meet us at therange in two days time. This would allow us all adays rest to recover from our journey, and do a spotof essential acclimatisation.Intrepid ExplorersThe Peninsula Hotel, which was very quickly rechristenedthe ‘Portcullis’, provided perfectlyadequate accommodation for the team over thefollowing three days, including a swimming pool andeasy access to the beach, all run by enthusiastic andhelpful staff. Following a short-lived burst ofunpacking, the team re-grouped at the hotel bar todiscuss the important matter of the evening’sactivities, an event that became an essential part ofthe daily team routine henceforth. A certain amountof interest in eating out was generated, and armed witha very out-of-date copy of the Good Beer Guide from1997, a small group of six team members set outenthusiastically in search of a particular pubapproximately two miles away (we had to lie to theVice-Captain and told him it was a five minute walkin order to coax him out of the Portcullis) in which todine, leaving most of the rest of the team to commencethe first of many interesting encounters with theMaitre’d and his international team of staff. It wasduring this foray into the Guernsey wilderness thatJonathan Holmes first expressed his concern for thegeneral map-reading skills of certain team members,but after a mere half hour of brisk walking we were toarrive at Chandlers Hotel in Vale. Unfortunately, itturned out that Alastair Brown’s pre-warning phonecall to the pub staff alerting them of a wandering bandof hungry shooters had been interpreted as a hoax bythe staff, and there was apparently limited chance offood. Following a rapid flurry of smooth talking thebar-steward, and mumblings about the miles we hadtravelled especially to sample their fine bar food, wewere finally able to coax out of the kitchen some steakand ale pies and fish dishes, washed down with aperfectly adequate selection of real ales. Future‘tourees’ should note that there is a fully equippedand functioning skittles alley to the rear of the pub,which in conjunction with ample beer supplies becamehighly amusing as the evening wore on. The Vice-Captain subsequently decided to return under his ownsteam to the Portcullis, and confirmation of hissuccessful return to the hotel was only confirmed byhis presence at breakfast, as we had clearly missedhim en route in our taxi back to the hotel.Anyone for Golf?For the first full day in Guernsey - a well-deservedday off for the team already - we split off into smallergroups to pursue a variety of activities on the island.David Calvert managed to whip up some enthusiasmfor a round of golf, as six or so team membersembarked on a mammoth divot-creation exercisearound the local greenery. Other members went offto look for horse riding, and the remainder predictablyheaded straight into the main town in search ofdisposable cameras and to check out what optionswere available for the evening’s entertainment.Guernsey MeetingOn Friday 31 May, we set off early from the Portcullisfor our first day of tour shooting at Guernsey RifleRange, where we were to become once again reunitedwith our rifles and prepare for the main match againstthe island to be held the next day. Guernsey’s riflerange is set on the north-east corner of the island, andfiring is done from raised firing points, which go backto a distance of 600 yards onto targets backing ontothe sea. This means that whilst not shooting, one might71