Monday, December 13, 2004
Rama: Coming full circle
By Karlon N. Rama
stage five
SPORT shooters and gun enthusiasts representing the various gun clubs in Cebu yesterday trooped to the expansive Cebu Pistol and Rifle Association (CPRA) firing range in Lapu-Lapu City to attend a different kind of match.
The shooters, numbering around 60, participated in a charity event organized by the local Philippine Practical Shooting Association (PPSA) chapter to fund a feeding program.
It was the organization’s way of saying thanks for a successful year and, perhaps, an expression of hope for an even better year ahead.
Manuel Tan, PPSA area director, said the charity event drew out the biggest proponents of the shooting sport and, because of the strong turnout and support from the local shooting community, may become an annual activity.
Proceeds of the shoot will be turned over to the intended beneficiary on Thursday. The name of the beneficiary is withheld upon request.
The match began early yesterday morning and closed at around 2 p.m.
The PPSA local area has a lot to be thankful for a shooting community that just keeps moving on despite certain government restrictions that organizing events for a higher cause only seems fit to come full circle.
In the national front, the PPSA also keeps earning international acclaim.
AUSTRALASIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS. In the recent Australasian Championships, which closed last Nov. 29 in Bali, Indonesia, at least five Filipino shooters made it in the top 10 of their respective categories.
Stephen Hinojales, Michael Ku and JJ Racaza landed third, fifth and seventh in the Open Division, while Philip Chua and Mary Grace Tan each took second-place finishes in the Revolver Category and the Ladies Open Division match, respectively.
Filipino shooters also earned top spots in the special divisions with Kenneth Agustin landing fourth in the Junior Open Division, Roland Tan emerging champion in the Senior Open Division, and Reynaldo Ganaban landing second in the Senior Standard Division match.
Filipino international range master Chepit Dulay oversaw the pistol event, while fellow Pinoy Myro Lopez managed the shotgun competition.
International range officers Vin Lava, of the Cebu-based Casey Gun Club, together with Norman Doromal, Ganaban and Rudy Marcelo of the Kampilan Executive Sports Club Inc., also based in Cebu, handled stages in the match.
For more details, log on to www.ipsc.org and www.ipscindonesia.com.
DRILLS. Here’s a fairly easy drill developed by Todd Louise Green guaranteed to improve your shooting. The drill will empty your ammo box pretty fast but, so long as you do your part, you are guaranteed to be a better shooter as you leave the firing range.
Practice this only on the range, where there’s a safety officer on duty, and on the premise that speed, something that every sport shooter aspires, develops naturally after accuracy.
The procedure is as follows:
With a felt marker, draw and shade a 3x5-inch square unto the center of an IPSC metric or classic target and place the target 15 feet (five yards) downrange.
With your firearm, let loose six shots slowly into the designated spot from the firing line.
If you are using a 9mm double action-single action pistol or a revolver, fire shots number one, three, and five with the hammer down and shots two, four, and six with the hammer up.
Try to get all six shots onto the designated spot.
If you miss, try again and shoot slower this time. Work on getting a perfect sight picture and straight back smooth trigger pull. Keep shooting six shot strings at the given distance until you can get six for six.
Once you can score all hits at that range, move the target back another three feet and repeat.
If you have any misses, slow down and work on sight alignment and trigger press. If you get all hits, place the target another three feet away until you reach the backstop.
Green said the average shooter can reach 15 yards hitting the 3x5-inch spot every single time on demand with a few hours of practice.
(knrama(at)sunstar(dot)com(dot)ph)
(December 13, 2004 issue)
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