TargetTalk

Robin it's the first and I doubt it will be the last not to leave any legacy with regards to the shooting sports.

robf wrote:
It would be also possible to get an EFP for +6ft-lb rifles as well.

True but that just makes some of the paperwork aspects easier. Not having one doesn't stop you going anywhere it just makes the process more straight forward because the gun and its serial number are on a sheet of paper. For ISSF stuff I took the gun log that we'd sent to the organisers and the (German) police didn't even want to see our EFP's. Team GB who hadn't got that paperwork had to rummage through everything and produce individual EFP's.

Anyway, I'm in danger of going too far off topic....

Rob.

Richard H wrote:Robin it's the first and I doubt it will be the last not to leave any legacy with regards to the shooting sports.

Unfortunately the shooting legacy from most Olympics has proved to be a millstone.

Yes I agree the only real successful venue has really been Munich. Yes there's still Bejing too but hey it operates under an entirely different set of rules. Most shooters have no idea the cost to run and operate a facility thevsize that is required for the Olympics. I guess Sydney is still around too.

Richard H wrote:...I guess Sydney is still around too.

Oh yes! There for my weekly 'fix'

How is the Sydney range doing? Who runs it?

How about some recent pictures of the Sydney range, Spencer?

Freepistol wrote:How about some recent pictures of the Sydney range, Spencer?

Which bit/s?
It is basically unchanged since 2000 other than the removel of the 'Olympic overlay' bits but the Finals Hall targetry has been recently updated and now has 3 x 25m sets for RFP Finals and a 10/25/50m ballistics range was added a few years back.

a short video is available at http://www.shootingcentre.nsw.gov.au/vi ... erview.wmv

That's a good one, Spencer, thanks. I was wondering what the 50M, 25M, and 10M pistol ranges look like. We only have a few ranges in PA that are as high class as yours and none with electronic targets. I think Palmyra is working on it.

One of the reasons given for the slow growth of shooting compared to golf in the early 80s was the quality of the facilities. How many ranges have pools and spas?

How many shooters want to pay $5000, $10000 , $20000 or more a year for membership? Most clubs I know have a hard time getting people to pay $200 a year for memberships. When they do then they'll get country club like facilities, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Freepistol wrote:...How many ranges have pools and spas?

apart from Beijing?

Richard H wrote:How many shooters want to pay $5000, $10000 , $20000 or more a year for membership? Most clubs I know have a hard time getting people to pay $200 a year for memberships. When they do then they'll get country club like facilities, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

One of the great dis-services we (including me) did during the boom inflation decades was keep our fees down - if we had kept fees increasing at the inflation rate paralleling almost everything else we could now provide top-notch facilities. What were club and competition fees as a proportion of wages in the 60s, 70s and 80s: and what are they now?

Dear shooting friends all over the world,

this is so mad, but it is also a great chance for our beloved sport.

Let's buy all tickets for our children and for our young shooters. Let's fill the tribunes of the shooting events next year in London with children and young people from all over the world.

I believe, this is the right answer for this nonsense and a great signal, a good demonstration and a strong sign for the reputation of our sport.


Best wishes from Germany and sorry for my bad English

Frank

FrankD wrote:Let's buy all tickets for our children and for our young shooters. Let's fill the tribunes of the shooting events next year in London with children and young people from all over the world.

Great idea Frank but I'm afraid you're too late; the shooting is sold out (barring ticket returns).

There were some great comments by the British Olympic Association in a newspaper article yesterday:-

The British Olympic Association said the shooting competition at the Olympic Games was not only inspirational but sent positive messages of non-violence, respect and friendship.

“The London 2012 Olympic Games is an opportunity for high performance shooting athletes to showcase their skill and talent in a controlled and safe environment,” a BOA spokeswoman said.

”Shooting athletes believe in the Olympic values and can, as role models, pass on the positive message of non-violence, respect and friendship. As such we believe the Ticketshare programme is an excellent opportunity for the future generation of Olympic shooting hopefuls to be inspired by today’s Olympians.”

The BOA comment is both diplomatic and refreshingly clear, without kicking any shins. Well done.

Alexander

As an update, Kate Hoey MP has written an article, which points the finger at either useless journalists or a rogue staffer in LOCOG with an anti-gun agenda. Apparently neither Boris Johnson, nor the LOCOG Press Officers or Head of Ticketshare* knew about this alleged ban on shooting tickets.

For our American readers, Kate Hoey is a Labour MP for a London constituency. However, she born and raised in County Antrim, Northern Ireland to farming parents and has never been afraid to rebel against the party line on matters such as the Iraq war, the handgun ban or the ban on hunting with dogs.
She wrote an excellent article a few years ago about a project where she took a group of inner city schoolchildren to a country estate for some clay pigeon shooting, with amazing (although to a shooter, unsurprising) results in terms of instilling some discipline in the children and teaching them firearms safety.

Despite her party affiliations, she's one of the best friends shooting has in the UK.

Thanks, Hemmers, it's good to see there are some people writing about shooting with a positive viewpoint in the UK.

Hoey's article is very good; her weak dementi however sounds not credible. It a typical case of: "I am glad we fixed it immediately, and (!) it has never happened, and nobody thus wants to be responsible."

Without the media and reaction, the ban would still be in place; now that they saw they could not get away with it, there is weaselling and denial. Expectably. But the end result is good.

Alexander

It's funny how the light makes the rats scatter.

Since the denials first appeared I have been waiting for The Evening Standard, the newspaper that initiated the story, to defend its report.

They have a history of fiercely defending themselves if they have any evidence but, unless I've missed it, there hasn't been a peep from them.

Too many big names have set themselves up to be knocked down for there to have been any truth in the original story.

Nobody is "knocked down" in England for being anti-gun or displaying anti-gun activities, least of all a big name. The reverse demands a lot more courage.

The present expectable denials and dementis are as flimsy as they can get; and as shooters we should all thank the journalists for their early warning, not scold them.