Re: The Nationals Survey e-mail
Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2016 2:49 pm
WTF is going on?
Subject: Competitions Division to move CLA to Ridgeway
Hi Glenda
I have compiled a two page factors sheet about what Competitions Division is attempting to do with National Matches, not just the Cowboy Lever Action Nationals.
Thought you might like to see it and maybe encourage interested competitors help Kirk Bryan ( [email protected] ) gather some letters from competitors that oppose moving to Ridgeway. And/or send a copy of same letter to Kyle Weaver ( [email protected] ).
The Silhouette Committee Meeting November 4, 2016 at NRA headquarters is when these letters are needed and to be in Kirk's hand so they have to be sent before November 1st.
As ever, Zack
Factors Sheet
Moving Nationals to Eastern U.S.
October 24, 2016
Dennis Willing is putting together the details with Ridgeway Club to move all Silhouette Shooting there on an annual alternating basis between Ridgeway and Raton or other prospective location west. Ridgway's President Fred Keilbowich and Ken Haupricht have met personally with he and NRA staff about this and will meet again in Fairfax soon to iron out details. Essentially to eventually transfer responsibility for the National Match to Ridgeway Rifle Club and out of Competitions Division.
Changes and expansion at Ridgeway will have to happen for lever gun to work there, especially on the 200 yard distance, which Fred K. has committed to make happen.
It seems inadvisable to move a National Championship Lever Gun Championship to a Range that does not have the facilities to hold such a match in place and has not held such a match previously but mostly reviewing the results of moving Hunter Pistol Silhouette from Raton to Pennsylvania we see an outcome that must not be overlooked.
Dennis Willing and Ridgeway also want to move the BPCR Target Rifle Nationals east and are planning to propose Reade Range as the venue. It is already established that there are only two suitable ranges physically capable of holding this National BPCR Target Championships as they currently are and they are Ben Avery Phoenix and Tubb at Raton. With Ben Avery Phoenix unsuitable May-October. Tubb Range unavailable or unsuitable October-April.
Reade gets considerable rain July-August and 90+ degree days with 90% humidity is a common occurrence and is a very high heat index.
Reade range is fairly isolated in a low population area, it is in a reclaimed strip mine on top of a mountain. It has 25 firing points and maximum capacity for long range would be 48 shooters. It would require a considerable outlay for targets and equipment just to prepare for the match and volunteer personnel would have to be recruited. The additional negatives are numerous.
The 1,000 yard firing line is 2/3rds covered and there are no facilities and no water or electric. Only limited unsuitable dry camping would be available at the range.
Reade Range is not suitable to hold the BPTR National Championship Match.
Dennis Willing made it clear in 2012 to the Black Powder Target Rifle shooters that it was his opinion that it is up to the competitive shooters to increase participation in the National Matches with 50 competitors as a baseline minimum. This sounds very much like Competitions Division exonerating itself from future failures in attendance at national matches by transferring responsibility for failure to the competitors.
Then in October 2015 Dennis Willing made it clear at the Black Powder Committee Meeting that he wanted Black Powder Target moved out of Competitions Division to be taken over and run by another entity while he and Barry Ranney were courting match directors east and west to hold east and west national matches with a conglomerate national match to determine the overall winner which by the way has not taken place as advertised in 2016.
So why is Dennis Willing doing this? A visit to history is instructive here as to previous results.
Here is a first hand report about what happens when you move the National Matches out of the Whittington Center where Cowboy Lever Action is presently and move it around the country:
From a match director/competitor: Our numbers in Cowboy Lever Action (CLA) have been strong since The Whittington Center (W/C) started holding The National Championships for cowboy lever action silhouette; started with 135 and keeps going up to 170+. The size of the W/C range for rifle caliber cowboy holds us to a limit of 240 shooters and we haven't reached that so far. Moving CLA out of the Whittington Center will kill it and NRA knows it. The problems with Barry Ranney have been addressed and participant numbers should increase soon.
From a match director/competitor: When NRA moved hunter pistol silhouette nationals from W/C to Bradford, PA in the 1990's they were every other year at W/C and then up in Bradford, PA. First couple years people from the west flew to Bradford to shoot nationals. Then people realized they could wait one year and not shoot, not fly with guns, not spend a lot of money to travel to the other coast, so the numbers started falling off in attendance. The last years of nationals for hunter pistol were held in Austin, Dallas, Bradford, back to Austin and for 8 years hunter pistol nationals were not held at W/C then the last year of nationals they came back to W/C. All the hunter pistol shooters I know from the west coast had quit shooting it and went into other shooting games. We had 38 shooters at W/C which were the numbers they'd been having in Austin, Dallas, Bradford. Of that 38, 20 of them were juniors from Texas. 38 shooters does not make a nationals match according to the NRA so hunter pistol has gone the way of the DoDo bird. NRA intentionally and knowingly killed Hunter Pistol Silhouette and now they are moving to kill CLA by moving it to Ridgeway.
So what's next on the Competitions Divisions kill list? Looks like silhouette and Black Powder Cartridge.
This also is an obvious move to relocate national championship matches away from the NRA Whittington Center and put them at club ranges. Another move to absolve Competitions Division from competitive shooting success and transfer it to competitors and match directors. Yes, we the shooters understand what is going on, but, does the NRA Board know and do they approve? That is the question that must be addressed before the rogue Competitions Division destroys what is left of competitive shooting after four years of Dennis Willing trying to disengage competitions division from the activity.
The NRA Board of Directors needs to think about a National Championship at The Whittington Center as one would think of Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Move Mardi Gras out of New Orleans and it ceases to be Mardi Gras. Move the Nationals for CLA or any other National Championship out of The NRA Whittington Center and it ceases to be a National Championship Match. You can call it a National Match but it's not and won't be a match for long if history is any teacher.
George Z. Taylor
NRA Life, Benefactor and Patron Member
Subject: Competitions Division to move CLA to Ridgeway
Hi Glenda
I have compiled a two page factors sheet about what Competitions Division is attempting to do with National Matches, not just the Cowboy Lever Action Nationals.
Thought you might like to see it and maybe encourage interested competitors help Kirk Bryan ( [email protected] ) gather some letters from competitors that oppose moving to Ridgeway. And/or send a copy of same letter to Kyle Weaver ( [email protected] ).
The Silhouette Committee Meeting November 4, 2016 at NRA headquarters is when these letters are needed and to be in Kirk's hand so they have to be sent before November 1st.
As ever, Zack
Factors Sheet
Moving Nationals to Eastern U.S.
October 24, 2016
Dennis Willing is putting together the details with Ridgeway Club to move all Silhouette Shooting there on an annual alternating basis between Ridgeway and Raton or other prospective location west. Ridgway's President Fred Keilbowich and Ken Haupricht have met personally with he and NRA staff about this and will meet again in Fairfax soon to iron out details. Essentially to eventually transfer responsibility for the National Match to Ridgeway Rifle Club and out of Competitions Division.
Changes and expansion at Ridgeway will have to happen for lever gun to work there, especially on the 200 yard distance, which Fred K. has committed to make happen.
It seems inadvisable to move a National Championship Lever Gun Championship to a Range that does not have the facilities to hold such a match in place and has not held such a match previously but mostly reviewing the results of moving Hunter Pistol Silhouette from Raton to Pennsylvania we see an outcome that must not be overlooked.
Dennis Willing and Ridgeway also want to move the BPCR Target Rifle Nationals east and are planning to propose Reade Range as the venue. It is already established that there are only two suitable ranges physically capable of holding this National BPCR Target Championships as they currently are and they are Ben Avery Phoenix and Tubb at Raton. With Ben Avery Phoenix unsuitable May-October. Tubb Range unavailable or unsuitable October-April.
Reade gets considerable rain July-August and 90+ degree days with 90% humidity is a common occurrence and is a very high heat index.
Reade range is fairly isolated in a low population area, it is in a reclaimed strip mine on top of a mountain. It has 25 firing points and maximum capacity for long range would be 48 shooters. It would require a considerable outlay for targets and equipment just to prepare for the match and volunteer personnel would have to be recruited. The additional negatives are numerous.
The 1,000 yard firing line is 2/3rds covered and there are no facilities and no water or electric. Only limited unsuitable dry camping would be available at the range.
Reade Range is not suitable to hold the BPTR National Championship Match.
Dennis Willing made it clear in 2012 to the Black Powder Target Rifle shooters that it was his opinion that it is up to the competitive shooters to increase participation in the National Matches with 50 competitors as a baseline minimum. This sounds very much like Competitions Division exonerating itself from future failures in attendance at national matches by transferring responsibility for failure to the competitors.
Then in October 2015 Dennis Willing made it clear at the Black Powder Committee Meeting that he wanted Black Powder Target moved out of Competitions Division to be taken over and run by another entity while he and Barry Ranney were courting match directors east and west to hold east and west national matches with a conglomerate national match to determine the overall winner which by the way has not taken place as advertised in 2016.
So why is Dennis Willing doing this? A visit to history is instructive here as to previous results.
Here is a first hand report about what happens when you move the National Matches out of the Whittington Center where Cowboy Lever Action is presently and move it around the country:
From a match director/competitor: Our numbers in Cowboy Lever Action (CLA) have been strong since The Whittington Center (W/C) started holding The National Championships for cowboy lever action silhouette; started with 135 and keeps going up to 170+. The size of the W/C range for rifle caliber cowboy holds us to a limit of 240 shooters and we haven't reached that so far. Moving CLA out of the Whittington Center will kill it and NRA knows it. The problems with Barry Ranney have been addressed and participant numbers should increase soon.
From a match director/competitor: When NRA moved hunter pistol silhouette nationals from W/C to Bradford, PA in the 1990's they were every other year at W/C and then up in Bradford, PA. First couple years people from the west flew to Bradford to shoot nationals. Then people realized they could wait one year and not shoot, not fly with guns, not spend a lot of money to travel to the other coast, so the numbers started falling off in attendance. The last years of nationals for hunter pistol were held in Austin, Dallas, Bradford, back to Austin and for 8 years hunter pistol nationals were not held at W/C then the last year of nationals they came back to W/C. All the hunter pistol shooters I know from the west coast had quit shooting it and went into other shooting games. We had 38 shooters at W/C which were the numbers they'd been having in Austin, Dallas, Bradford. Of that 38, 20 of them were juniors from Texas. 38 shooters does not make a nationals match according to the NRA so hunter pistol has gone the way of the DoDo bird. NRA intentionally and knowingly killed Hunter Pistol Silhouette and now they are moving to kill CLA by moving it to Ridgeway.
So what's next on the Competitions Divisions kill list? Looks like silhouette and Black Powder Cartridge.
This also is an obvious move to relocate national championship matches away from the NRA Whittington Center and put them at club ranges. Another move to absolve Competitions Division from competitive shooting success and transfer it to competitors and match directors. Yes, we the shooters understand what is going on, but, does the NRA Board know and do they approve? That is the question that must be addressed before the rogue Competitions Division destroys what is left of competitive shooting after four years of Dennis Willing trying to disengage competitions division from the activity.
The NRA Board of Directors needs to think about a National Championship at The Whittington Center as one would think of Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Move Mardi Gras out of New Orleans and it ceases to be Mardi Gras. Move the Nationals for CLA or any other National Championship out of The NRA Whittington Center and it ceases to be a National Championship Match. You can call it a National Match but it's not and won't be a match for long if history is any teacher.
George Z. Taylor
NRA Life, Benefactor and Patron Member
Last time I crossed the Miss. River, I brought all my stuff back with me caus I didn't want to cross it again.