On Sunday 1st September Simon and I attended the Yorkshire Championship and Open Rifle Meeting at The Burnell Range, Knowsthorpe, Leeds. After gaining entry visas into West Yorkshire on the M62 we met up in the car park, which was a shock as neither knew the other was attending. Simon reckons he had visited the Range before, though decades ago as a junior.
The Range is very pleasant, buried in an industrial estate but surrounded on all four sides by trees. It boasts permanent 100yd and 50m ranges. An unusual ‘feature’ is that there are no wind-flags in place before 25m out from the firing points, posing a challenge when it's a bit breezy.
In addition to two huge shipping containers for storing range equipment, the Range boasts a permanent canteen hut, and a scorers and administration hut. Car parking is a tad tight, and the range is accessed through a dirt track running from one of the estate roads.
The firing points are enclosed in a long concrete/breeze-block and corrugated-roof structure.
25 shooters attended, of which 17 took part in the ‘Confined’ competition, open only to those resident in North, South and West Yorkshire, plus some associated clubs like Staveley in Derbyshire. There was a substantial amount of silverware to-be-won, and quite a bit available for those shooting in the Open competitions. Simon and I were the only ones from the west side of the The Pennines. We knew we were in a different world; the canteens favourite offering was a slice of cake accompanied with a slice of cheese (Wensleydale cheese to be precise).
There were six cards to-be-shot, three at 50m and the same number at 100 yards. The weather during the morning was quite benign, but in the afternoon it became squally, with rising winds. Simon shot well at 50m (Competition 1) and won a lovely trophy called the ‘B.S.A. Cup’;
He also gained a second in the overall aggregate, with medals and money for both awards.
I won a trophy called ’The Ladies Cup’ for winning Competition 2 in Class C at my trusty 100 yards. It’s considerably smaller than the B.S.A Cup!
Plus medals for Competition 2 and second in the (somewhat sparsely-attended) aggregate. Both of us found the afternoon details to be a lot more challenging, with the unpredictable wind.
We weren’t able to bring the trophies home - they cost too much for the Association to insure, but names and clubs will be inscribed; Appleton for Simon and mine with Cheadle.
Other than Simon the only other competitor I recognised was Nick Lock from Airborough. He regularly attends Appleton Open Shoots.
One more Appleton member next year will allow us to compete in the All-Comers 3-person team competition, won this year by Staveley for the 50m event, and Easingold for the 100 yards.