Comments on the classification shoot

Title

Language

English

Year

1939

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

s 'THE MARKSMAN July, 1939 COMMENTS ON THE CLASS/FICA TJON SHOOT By G~ TRINIDAD Before anything can be written or said about this course, sincere appreciation and gratitude must be given to Mr. Felix Cortes whose untiring efforts in the shooting game have made the N.R.P.A. adopt ·his suggestion about the "Classification Shoot." I believe that he wrote an article about this course in the Annual Program of Shoots for 1939. I shall quote Dictionary meaning of our two courses:"Classification" -Systematically forming into a class or distrL buting into groups or proper categories. "Qualification" -State of being qualified or any acquirement which fits a person for a place. An act of ascertaining. You will 'clearly see that although there might be some other meanfng between the two courses defined, it is shown that both shoots have but one aim and that is to find the proper quality or class where a member should stand in his shooting. Thi§ aim was duplicated in the program and only tends to confuse the already confused standing of "Tyros." I sincerely believe that the whole course should be careftilly re_ vised for our 1940 program, as it is the most delicate of all shoots as fully 90% of our active members fall under the category of "Tyros.'1 AL though the "Classification Shoot" is a little better than the "Qualification Shoot" because it off e.rs a medal for the high man compared with the Qualification Diploma, yet we cannot see what good it will do to have the two courses fired especially when you hit an Intermediate classification on one and an expert qualification on the other. Rather confus_ ing ain't it? In what category will the range officer put them? A better program of shoots should be adopted wherein competition courses for Tyro "A", Intermediate, Sharpshooter and Medalist classes should be carried as part of the· Annual Program. I think it will promote better shooting as it will be on the competitiv8 basis. At present it is based on the whim of the shooter who is at liberty to shoat the course anytime. Shooting alone and against competition is not the same and l am sure that a good score made alone will not be forthcoming in open July, 1939 THE MARKSMAN 9 competition. So far our 1939 shooting schedule is more or less patterned for the experts only or with the "Open to All" annotation which practically gives the underdog every chance to participate but never a chance to win except in the Tyro, Handicap or Turkey shoots. Shooting like any other sport affects the human accuracy due to inactiveness, lack of practice, old age or unsound physical condition. Another thing is also true-we have old shooters in our club who through no fault of theirs have never made the grade with the champions but ~an hold their own if properly put in their class. We can even assume that he is top man in his class and will beat anybody in the course. We can make restrictions on hi_s winning two or three times which will automatically put him in class with the higher ups thus eliminating the proba.. bility of his taking advantage of his superiority in any given class of shoots except the Championship. We can also adopt rules wherein a top man can be reverted back to the Intermediate or Sharpshooter class especially when he has laid off shooting. I wish to emphasize before hand that I am not making this article as a means to eliminate the present barrier over my head as I am classed as a medalist man. I wish only to cite my personal· ease to show that a top man can also be a tyro man not in the sense of his having a medal but on grounds of his shootiD,g ability which counts most. Several years ago I got interested in shooting and the first opportunity I had for competition was in the "Newspapermen's Shoot". I won first prize and eversince I was called a medalist and have to shoot with Messrs. Cortes, Alberto, Kalaw and other top men. At present we still conduct ·a "Newspapermen's Shoot" but I wonder whether the N.R.P.A. wiU accept the first prize winner as a Tyro even taking into consideration that the shoot was a restricted one and did not allow other shooters to compete~ In the shooting game we find.many kinds of people, some shoot because they happen to be Police Officers and are required by rule to do so, some do it for fun, some for business and others for sports. In our club every member is doing his shooting for the pure sport and love of it and never for financial or personal reasons. In this, a real sportsman who knows his due bounds in shooting will not attempt to match his skill with ~mother whom he knows has the edge over ·him. He usually withdraws from. the game in acknowledgement of his comrades' better skill. Now if this defect is remedied, I believe we will have a new crop of shooting men·ifr.ou~ club. Everaince my f~ther died th'ree ye·ars ago, I have visited the range only twice and held a target gm~ only once. Can you still insist that I should shoot with the top men or shalJ I have to begin from 10 THE MARKSMAN July, 1939 scratch again? True that I have the fundamentals but I will be rusty and then I will also be shooting with rusty fellows so what harm can I make? Shooting is not an exact science like mathematics where two and two put together give four. We use mathematics only in adding our scores. We can shoot a good card today and suddenly flop the ne~t and then make fair the succeeding day but never can a shooter maintain the same score day in and day out. I want to see the shooter who can contradict me as I want him to shoot a good card or a poor one and maintain that same score everytime he shoots. Then maybe he can convince me that there is such thing as an exact science in shooting~ ---x--The distinguished pistolmen of Iloilo who represented the Iloilo Rifle Association in the last Inter Club Com.petition heJd in Cebu on April ao and May 1st, 1939. From left to right: Jose Pejuan, Mariano Nava, Jr., Claudio Lopez and Marcelo Pejuan. MONTILLA TROPH_Y WINNERS: . This i~ the ~trong pistol contingent of the Cebu Gun Club that won· the beautiful Gil Montilla Trophy on March 26, 19~9. Sitting from. left to right: S. A villanosa and Lt. H. C •. PacaJ\a~ Standing, same order, .Judge T. Arnoco, Dr .. D. Recio, T. Erquero and S. Farol.

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