March - April 2001
FWSSC Preparations Made To Merge With FWSSC, Inc.
Carol
Shelton
The leadership of
your club has determined that it would be in the best interest of the club
to obtain a Texas non-profit corporate charter and continue with the
operation of our club's activities under the umbrella of protection that a
corporation will allow us under Texas law.
Toward this end, a
Texas non-profit corporate charter has been obtained known as the Fort
Wolters Shooting Sports Club, Inc. Organizers of the corporation are Dick
Curry, Dorcia Meador and Carol Shelton, who are also the initial Board of
Directors for the corporation As Moss in control of the new
corporation, they have adopted a form of bylaws and have authorized
a merger with our unincorporated club to the extent that all of our
current members will be afforded membership in the new corporate
organization through the expiration of their current dues, and all
honorary members of our old organization will also be recognized as
honorary members of the new corporate club.
The primary
advantage of this type of organization has is affording protection
from individual liability for club members, officers and directors of the
organization. Attached to this issue is a copy of the bylaws of the new
corporation which have been adopted and which will be the governing bylaws
after the merger. These bylaws are subject to amendment and modification
in the future just as our old club bylaws have been.
The Board desires
to have a vote by the membership on the merger with this corporate entity
to occur at the annual meeting in May, with a projected June I activation
date of the dub going forward under the new corporate umbrella. Please
review the enclosed bylaws and be prepared to vote on the merger issue at
the annual meeting. The corporation has adopted resolutions that will
appoint all of the directors and officers that are elected at the annual
meeting of our club as officers and directors of the new corporate
organization. Your participation and involvement in the election of
officers and directors and voting on the merger is encouraged.
The Board of
Directors voted in the March 10, 2001 regular board meeting to recommend
that the merger be approved.
LOST SHOOTER OF THE MONTH
Shawn George
Our LOST SHOOTER this month was brought to my
attention by a reader of the first lost shooter column. Lost shooter Danny
West hasn't been seen for so long that I had forgotten he existed. I think
Danny began shooting Highpower about the same time I did, which was in the
early 1990's. Danny was always fun to have around. He had a good
personality and a quick wit, one of those guys that could keep you
laughing for hours.
Danny shot a M-1A and you could count on seeing
him nearly every weekend at the old Ft. Worth Rifle and Pistol
Club. Danny had a fu‑manchu mustache, weighed about 200 plus pounds
and was around 6' tall He reminded me a little of David Crosby (Crosby,
Stills,Nash & Young) the rock singer, only with a rifle instead of a
guitar.
Danny was fond of practicing 200 yard
sifting rapid fire using a deer silhouette target. I used to imagine how
Danny looked in the woods on opening day, sitting under a tree on his
shooting mat, slung into his rifle overlooking a deer feeder. Now I know
why Danny tagged out on opening day each year. I think before Danny
disappeared he had traded in his M1-A for an AR-15. Now that I think about
it, he had mentioned taking up varmint hunting.
If anyone knows the whereabouts of Danny
West, please contact the club at fwssc@cs.com. As always, your comments
will be kept in strict confidence. Any suggestions on other lost shooters
would be greatly appreciated.
A BRIEF LOOK AT MODERN DAY BLACK POWDER CARTRIDGE
RIFLE GUNS
Dwayne Peterson
Those of us who shoot B.P.C.R. do it mostly for
the Love of these old guns and the "Romance"?? connected with
diem. Basically the old guns come in several variety's Sharps, Remington
Rolling Blocks and Trapdoor Springfields. There were many more than these,
but on the buffalo range, these were the top three.
You get on down the page of history and you get
into the target rifles used on the great old time ranges of the world.
Some of the rifles used were Sharps, Remington Rolling Block, Ballard,
Winchester Hi‑Wall and many others, both foreign and domestic. Some
great, some near great and some not so great. You may have noticed I did
not mention Trapdoors in the target rifles. (Call me if you would like
more on that 1-817-866-2418.)
Anyhow, modem day B.P.C.R. has it's roots in
several styles of shooting. One is what most of us call Creedmore Shooting
(named after The Creedmore Range in New York State) around the late 1800's
to very early 1900's. This is shot at ranges of 800 yds. 900 yds. and 1000
yds.
The second is NRA midrange, which is very similar
to United States Marine Corps rifle courses. From the 1960's back to the
early 1900's. This is shot at 200, 300, and 600 yds.
The third and most popular is Black Powder
Cartridge Rifle Silhouette. This is a combination of Metallic Silhouette
and Buffalo Hunters style of shooting. It is set up to accommodate the
modem day Buffalo Gun, both original and reproduction, with reproductions
being the most common.
In all these styles of shooting we use sights
comparable to what was available between 1868 and 1900. They are mostly
Vernier Tang sights on the back and globe front sights with inserts for
the front. No sights are allowed to have click adjustments for windage or
elevation, strictly scaled graduations.
The rules that B.P.C.R. Silhouette is shot at is
different than regular Highpower Silhouette in that the chicken is shot
off hand at 200 meters. The pig is shot at 300 meters off cross-sticks
either prone or sitting with prone being the most popular. The turkey is
at 400 meters and the ram at 500 meters, both using cross-sticks.
Black Powder is the only propellant allowed in
silhouette while in the Midrange and Creedmore Matches you can use up to
20% smokeless for fouling reducer. The Bullets that we use are cast with
plain bases (no gas checks allowed) though most of us use an over powder
wad of vegetable fiber or low density polyethylene, milk cartons and
various other materials. This serves as a semi-gas check and bore scraper.
The bullets weigh between 500 to 560 grs. for the 45 cal., between 390 to
420 grs. for the 40 cal. and the Big 50" go from 600 to 735 grs. The
Black Powder of choice for most of us is either Goex Cartridge or Goex 2F.
There are other powders available that are used with varying degrees of
success.
Like I said, this is a short history of B.P.C.R.
Until next time.
Winter At Wolters
Anita Dickason
It is a cold, crystal clear morning. The eastern
sky is a blaze of orange and yellow as the sun is just making an
appearance. Clouds drifting high overhead are turned a puffy pink from the
sun's spreading rays. A light overnight frost lay white and sparkling on
the grass. We entered through the range gate, deer were grazing on one of
the firing lines. At the sound of our approach, heads turned to look.
Their ears flicked up and forward. Leaping and running with an effortless
grace, they were gone.
As I walked toward the firing line flagpole, I
hesitated for a moment. As I stand with the red and yellow wind flag
cradled in my arms, it is so still and quiet, not a hint of wind stirred
the air. I feel completely isolated from the barrage of city sounds. One
by one, up go the rest of the wind flags. Then the red flag to show that
the range is now in use. More cars begin to arrive and the sound of
friendly voices and laughter are heard. Old friends greeting old friends
and welcoming the new. The smell of coffee fills the air. Bits of
conversation are overheard as talk centers around the one interest that
draws us all to this time and place.
It is time for relay assignments and the
activities of the day to begin. Shooters begin bringing their gear to the
line. Rifles, mats, spotting scopes, shooting stools, all tools of our
sport. The crack of the first shot cuts through the air with a clear and
crisp sound, as we each attempt to achieve the elusive perfect shot. The
air begins to warm and the wind starts stirring. The flags, which have
hung limply, begin to rise just ever so slightly. As we move further back,
the flags now flutter, and whip from side to side. Once again, the
infamous Ft. Wolters winds test the marksmanship of those who dare to
defy. All to soon, the last shot is fired. The gear is stowed. Shots that
went awry and changing wind conditions became part of what could have been
achieved as we discuss the day's shoot. And how many wish "if I
could just have that one shot to do over again".
The results are announced and there are handshakes
and pats on the back for the day's winners. Quiet begins to fall as one by
one competitors begin to leave. I again stand on the firing line with a
red and yellow wind flag cradled in my arms. The air is warmer now, and
the wind gently brushes my skin. Overhead a hawk slowly circles. I know
the deer wait our departure. Once more I feel that deep sense of
contentment. For this is more than just a day at the range. It is an
experience that cannot be duplicated. We have enjoyed this place and now
we turn it back, unharmed and undamaged, to nature and its inhabitants.
There is new meaning to the old phrase "stopping to smell the roses
along the way". It is a legacy we must all safeguard so that those
that follow will also be thankful for the chance to "stop along the
way.
|