BATHURST Rifle Club Shooters approached Saturdays’ 600 yard J Sibera Trophy shoot with some trepidation based on Friday night’s evil weather.
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The strong winds continued Saturday afternoon.
The results were evident in below average scores as the wind gusts caused the directional flags to dance wildly on the flag poles.
Some even shot in rain squalls as drenching drizzle swept across the range on several occasions.
The first stage high score was a 47 by both Nick Cock and Graeme Bright with Steve Williams close by at 46 with centre bull’s eyes at a premium.
Gordon Shepherd and John Coghill both struggled but surprisingly Shepherd topped the centre bull’s eye count with three centres.
The F-class group did even worse than the target shooters with the top score being a 53.2 by Grahame Willis before, late arrival, Geoff Willis shot a 56.4.
Jeff Eppleston was swamped by the wind, shooting just one super centre and one centre bull’s eye in his 50.1
Little improvement in the second stage despite the first stage practice.
Bright did post a 50% centre count but generally the conditions continued to dominate all shooters.
Coghill saw out the final rain squall with a hard fought 45.02 before the wind moderated.
Williams 49.04 and Geoff Willis 59.3 took advantage of the lighter conditions to post scores which assured them of Cock of the Walk honours in A grade and F-class.
Colin Howell, first experience of such conditions stuck with it even with rain squall swept through during the second stage.
He stuck with it better than his coach and finished with 90.1 for the day.
Grahame Willis by reason of his excellent 300 yard and 500 yard scores took out the J Sibera Trophy.
The final trophy for 2016 starts next week with the 700 yard first range of the W & J Brown Shield
Scores: S Williams TRA 95.06 (5 ¼) 100; J Coghill TRB 87.03 (12) 99; G S Willis FSA 115.7 (2 ½) 98; G Bright TRA 94.06 (3 ¼) 97 ¼; G P Willis FSA 107.3 (6 ¼) 94 ½; N Cock TRA 93.05 (1) 94; G Shepherd TRA 87.06 (7) 94; J Eppleston FSA 104.2 (3) 89 ¼; C Howell FSB 90.1: