Monday evening
Well, I'm home (at last!)! Walked into the house at 1 pm Saturday, about 28 hours after leaving the hotel in Sohna. A long trip, all in darkness until landing at New York. The plane was very full, with larger complements of CWG people, especially from the Caribbean. The seats seemed much narrower than on the flight out, or perhaps I had enjoyed Indian food too much and for too long. I only slept fitfully during the 15 hour journey to New York. My next door neighbour was as large as I am and we both 'overflowed' our seats. There was frequent clashing of elbows! Almost the greatest relief was driving back from the airport here in a smooth limo, no traffic jams, no horns blowing, no cattle on the road and so on!! Worth every cent of the $100! I stayed up as long as possible, but was passing out well before 7pm. Now a couple of days later, I feel better, but not exactly in phase. We had delicious rare roast beef tonight, a real treat after over three weeks' of abstinence! The autumn colours are very fine, with a lot of leaves down., but more to come No hard frost yet, and the red dahlias are still in full bloom. It's good to feel the cool air, and, funnily, to get cold water out of the tap!
And, now, it's over - a quote from Kipling's "Recessional" might be appropriate at this time:
"The tumult and the shouting dies;
The Captains and the Kings depart "
I did not write any of the promised notes during the journey, the ride was too uncomfortable for any thoughts, sensible or otherwise. So, I still have my formal Jury Reports to write, as well as offering my views on the shoot as a whole. The subject of electronic targets and their use in this CWG is likely to remain emotional and controversial. All views, especially on what happened at CRPF in the last few weeks, should be voiced. IMHO, this was the most problematic major fullbore competition that I have been part of in over 50 years of shooting. There will be more on this in due course.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Thursday evening 2040 here
Just a short one for now - perhaps more later.
If you are not watching the Closing Ceremony, you should be! The military band section a few minutes ago was fabulous. I'm not at the stadium, but watching on TV at the hotel in between power cuts! Athletes just coming in, I have caught glimpses of Ian Shaw, Dave Calvert, and I think, Des Vamplew.
This was a much needed restful day. John McD left in the wee small hours; Phil H just after breakfast; Peter T in mid-morning; Cliff M and Keith B about an hour ago. So it's just me here for tonight, leaving the hotel tomorrow afternoon.
A snap from the restful afternoon, kept in company with Kingfisher that the young lady is bringing, and one from the TV of the ongoing ceremony. The photo on the left is the pool area where the Kingfisher was enjoyed.
Later - trouble with the internet connection, so this may not work. I went to the restaurant to watch the rest of the Closing. The TV is in a lower level of the bar, where smoking is allowed, but no food. I had quite a good view from above that and had dinner there. No one else seemed to be showing much interest in the events, apart from the barman with whom I had an interesting chat. A group of four came in, took a table in front of the TV and started playing bridge! Never a glance at the festivities!! I enjoyed the Scottish segment, but the Indian pop singers did not do too much for me.
I'll be leaving here today en route for Canada via New York. This will probably be my last offering until I get home on Saturday (I hope!). It's a long flight to JFK, with plenty of time to muse on these extraordinary three weeks. I expect to have some further reflections to add from Canada.
Thanks to all who have been reading this, and especially to those who have enjoyed it!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Wednesday evening
Well, it's over! The Fullbore matches finished today - the Pairs in the morning and the Individual in the afternoon. Once again, it was a clear, sunny day with a variable breeze from the right, varying from 2 to 6 or 7 minutes. Once again there were target failures and inconsistencies. These delayed matter so that the medal ceremonies were held in pitch darkness. A short power failure added to the mystical sense of the Indian occasion.
I won't comment on my Juror activities for the day, except to say that they were busy and convoluted, with our ruling yesterday being over-ruled by the higher level Jury of Appeal. Once I get out of here, I'll offer some further observations on the fairness of the shoot as it affected all shooters.
Results are on various web sites, but here is a summary. In my view, Canada should have had at least the bronze in the Pairs, but two adverse rulings on dubious series of shots meant we ended up in 6th place. In the Individual things did not go so well today.
Pairs: 1. NZ 588.59; 2. Scotland 587.45; 3. England 584.48 .... 6. Canada 574.44.
Individual: 1. Patel (ENG) 396.42; 2. Corbett (AUS) 395.40; 3. Calvert (NIR) 393.35 ..... 21 Paton (CAN) 381.30 .... 25 Vamplew (CAN) 375.30.
We had some Aussie Fizz with our dinner tonight, the last one that the six ITOs will share - we have worked very well together and are still smiling at each other!
Once I'm a bit more rested and relaxed, I'll add some further comments.
Well, it's over! The Fullbore matches finished today - the Pairs in the morning and the Individual in the afternoon. Once again, it was a clear, sunny day with a variable breeze from the right, varying from 2 to 6 or 7 minutes. Once again there were target failures and inconsistencies. These delayed matter so that the medal ceremonies were held in pitch darkness. A short power failure added to the mystical sense of the Indian occasion.
I won't comment on my Juror activities for the day, except to say that they were busy and convoluted, with our ruling yesterday being over-ruled by the higher level Jury of Appeal. Once I get out of here, I'll offer some further observations on the fairness of the shoot as it affected all shooters.
Results are on various web sites, but here is a summary. In my view, Canada should have had at least the bronze in the Pairs, but two adverse rulings on dubious series of shots meant we ended up in 6th place. In the Individual things did not go so well today.
Pairs: 1. NZ 588.59; 2. Scotland 587.45; 3. England 584.48 .... 6. Canada 574.44.
Individual: 1. Patel (ENG) 396.42; 2. Corbett (AUS) 395.40; 3. Calvert (NIR) 393.35 ..... 21 Paton (CAN) 381.30 .... 25 Vamplew (CAN) 375.30.
We had some Aussie Fizz with our dinner tonight, the last one that the six ITOs will share - we have worked very well together and are still smiling at each other!
Once I'm a bit more rested and relaxed, I'll add some further comments.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Tuesday evening.
As we, the ITOs, gathered in the bar at the hotel this evening, the general consensus was that this had been "one helluva day".
It all started so hopefully - with a clear light, a light breeze and the air not quite so warm. However, by late morning, we were in deep trouble. Targets started to fail in increasing numbers, going down like ninepins or like the maple leaves now coming down in the Fall in Canada.
To cut a long story short, we ended up having to fire a partial third relay to catch up on the legacy of target breakdowns and shooters' protests. We finally got away from the range, in pitch darkness, just before 7 pm, getting back here after 8 pm, and immediately taking those life saving swigs of Kingfisher beer. The drive back was relatively uneventful - we had our normal police escort (not the Bren gun) who got us through the heavy traffic without too many heart-stopping moments. The staff at the hotel thought that this might be our last night, so they gave us a special drink and dessert. We could hardly tell them that we'll all be back tomorrow!
It took a little while to sort out the day's results, and there may still be protests in the morning. However, this is where things are now.
Pairs: 1. Australia 446-48; 2. New Zealand 445.45; 3. Canada 444.42; 4. Scotland 443.40; 5. Wales 442.43; 6. England 442.40. All very close, and with 15 (we hope) rounds at 1000 (we hope) yards tomorrow, much may happen.
Individual: 1. Jim Corbett, AUS, 326.37; 2. Geoff Grenfell, AUS, 326.28; 3. David Calvert NIR, 325.34; 4. Petrus Haasbroek, RSA, 325.29; 5. Mike Collings, NZ, 325.27; 6. Ross McQuillan, NIR, 324.31. Jim Paton slipped a little today and is now 13th with 321.30. Des Vamplew, still paying for that very expensive cross-fire, is 30th with 308.27.
Tomorrow, all being well, will see the final stages of the Pairs and Individual, followed by the presentation of medals.
Last night, after I'd packed it in, Des sent me his comments on Monday. I'll paste them into yesterday's notes. Nothing from him tonight yet, so I'll add what comes tomorrow.
As we, the ITOs, gathered in the bar at the hotel this evening, the general consensus was that this had been "one helluva day".
It all started so hopefully - with a clear light, a light breeze and the air not quite so warm. However, by late morning, we were in deep trouble. Targets started to fail in increasing numbers, going down like ninepins or like the maple leaves now coming down in the Fall in Canada.
To cut a long story short, we ended up having to fire a partial third relay to catch up on the legacy of target breakdowns and shooters' protests. We finally got away from the range, in pitch darkness, just before 7 pm, getting back here after 8 pm, and immediately taking those life saving swigs of Kingfisher beer. The drive back was relatively uneventful - we had our normal police escort (not the Bren gun) who got us through the heavy traffic without too many heart-stopping moments. The staff at the hotel thought that this might be our last night, so they gave us a special drink and dessert. We could hardly tell them that we'll all be back tomorrow!
It took a little while to sort out the day's results, and there may still be protests in the morning. However, this is where things are now.
Pairs: 1. Australia 446-48; 2. New Zealand 445.45; 3. Canada 444.42; 4. Scotland 443.40; 5. Wales 442.43; 6. England 442.40. All very close, and with 15 (we hope) rounds at 1000 (we hope) yards tomorrow, much may happen.
Individual: 1. Jim Corbett, AUS, 326.37; 2. Geoff Grenfell, AUS, 326.28; 3. David Calvert NIR, 325.34; 4. Petrus Haasbroek, RSA, 325.29; 5. Mike Collings, NZ, 325.27; 6. Ross McQuillan, NIR, 324.31. Jim Paton slipped a little today and is now 13th with 321.30. Des Vamplew, still paying for that very expensive cross-fire, is 30th with 308.27.
Tomorrow, all being well, will see the final stages of the Pairs and Individual, followed by the presentation of medals.
Last night, after I'd packed it in, Des sent me his comments on Monday. I'll paste them into yesterday's notes. Nothing from him tonight yet, so I'll add what comes tomorrow.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Monday evening.
It was another warm but relatively clear day, with a breeze from the right. Things went rather more smoothly than yesterday. There were suspicions that some of the target troubles have been due to electrical voltage surges and intermittent power cuts. A little late perhaps, but now most of the sensitive gadgets have been hooked up to non-interruptible power supplies, and the whole range run on an independent generator. In some organisations, white smoke is the desirable sign of success - here, we are reassured when thick black smoke emerges just to the right of the range.
Our traffic adventures continue. Last night the first car, with three passengers in the back, hit a good bump pretty so that all three rose to the roof of the car with Peter Turner's head turning on the interior light.
This morning, with our police escort leading, the road around one of the many "diversions" between Sohna and Gurgaon had been partially blocked off to prevent traffic crossing it during road surfacing. That did not both the police who simply three aside the barriers and we carried, followed by a large swarm of, no doubt, grateful tuk-tuks, motor cycles, large trucks and cars. Tonight, Phil and I did not have our bren gun toting police escort, but we were not ambushed and go back to the hotel late but safely.
A further quick word on traffic - sorry, but when you are experiencing the chaos twice a day, it becomes important. There are many speed humps, called "speed breakers", more correct would be "suspension breakers". Most of these are obviously put in by the municipality, but others seem to be privately installed by home-owners on their own bit of road. In place of a hump, many place large rocks in the road around which traffic has to crawl, and of course there are the myriad potholes and broken up road surfaces all the way. Car repair places must do a roaring trade, but I don't think many cars can last very long. The roads are also littered with broken down trucks, often without a wheel or two, with the axles precariously propped up on rocks. . The dual carriageways, divided highways, are interesting. Mostly the traffic, which drives on the left here, follows the correct road lanes. But if things get a bit busy, people simply move into the opposing lane and by the blowing of horns and flashing of lights bull their way through. Our police like doing this, giving them a chance to use their sirens and blue lights. There seems to be few rules of the road for motorcycles or bullock carts, while trucks loaded with rocks are not to be trifled with.
There was also shooting today, all at 600 yards!
First the Pairs, with the standings after 600 yards:. 1. Canada 299.31; 2 .Scotland 299.27; 3. Wales 297.34; 4. New Zealand 297.36; 5. South Africa 297.30; 6 Australia 296.37
Then two 600 yard shoots for the Individual. The leaders are: 1. Gaz Morris, Wales, 255.30; 2. James Corbett, Australia, 254.30; 3. Robert Oxford, Wales, 254.28; 4. Petrus Haasbroek, South Africa, 254.25; 5. David Calvert, Northern Ireland, 253.29; 6. Angus McLeod, Scotland, 253.25; 7. Mike Collings, New Zealand, 253.24; 8. Daniel Richardson, Jersey, 252.27; 9. Jim Paton, Canada, 252.26; 10. Ross McQuillan, Northern Ireland, 252.24. Des Vamplew is in 29th place with 245.26. His 'lost' shot yesterday was established as a cross-fire, a very expensive miss.
Tomorrow is at 900 yards - Pairs 2 & 15 in the morning, Individual the same in the afternoon. Then there will just be the final 1000 yard day on Wednesday. It is said that there will be live TV coverage, so do badger your local TV stations to get it on.
Des' notes from Monday:
"Monday was an interesting day on the range. We were exposed to about the same conditions as yesterday with the wind being more of a factor. The flags were blowing most of the day with strength and angle changes occurring on a regular basis. The scores were lower today reflecting the trickier conditions. The winds also helped to make for another clear day so the visibility of the aiming mark was a bonus. Jim and I both went clean again in the 600 yard Pairs match so we are down 1 point after the three short ranges. Scotland also had perfect scores so we are still tied with them with a 4 point lead in the V count. There is now a 2 point separation between us and the next couple of teams that are down 3 points. In the individual matches Jim dropped 3 points today, shooting a 34 and 48. As mentioned, the conditions were trickier today so those scores pretty well reflect the averages on the range. I had the same scores. I received the results of the jury's decision on the protest Sandy put in yesterday regarding one of my shots not registering. It looks like I did cross fire and have lost 5 points. Ouch. That result puts me way down the short range aggregate so will try and make it up during the next couple of days when we shoot at the longer ranges. The aggregate will be completely different after tomorrow night if the winds continue to play a factor as they did today. Jim and I discussed the missed shot last night and realized it was picked up on the target we had just finished shooting the pairs match on, so it makes sense how I could line up on that target after listwning to Jim telling me to "shoot on target 10" for 15 minutes. Not a good excuse but there have been more than a few cross fires during the last couple of days. The targets are closer together on this range compared to the spacing between targets back home and the number boards are below the targets rather than above as found on traditional CF ranges. Depending on where you are positioned on the firing point the number boards may not line up with your target so you are constantly double checking that your lined up on your target. Signing off until tomorrow."
It was another warm but relatively clear day, with a breeze from the right. Things went rather more smoothly than yesterday. There were suspicions that some of the target troubles have been due to electrical voltage surges and intermittent power cuts. A little late perhaps, but now most of the sensitive gadgets have been hooked up to non-interruptible power supplies, and the whole range run on an independent generator. In some organisations, white smoke is the desirable sign of success - here, we are reassured when thick black smoke emerges just to the right of the range.
Our traffic adventures continue. Last night the first car, with three passengers in the back, hit a good bump pretty so that all three rose to the roof of the car with Peter Turner's head turning on the interior light.
This morning, with our police escort leading, the road around one of the many "diversions" between Sohna and Gurgaon had been partially blocked off to prevent traffic crossing it during road surfacing. That did not both the police who simply three aside the barriers and we carried, followed by a large swarm of, no doubt, grateful tuk-tuks, motor cycles, large trucks and cars. Tonight, Phil and I did not have our bren gun toting police escort, but we were not ambushed and go back to the hotel late but safely.
A further quick word on traffic - sorry, but when you are experiencing the chaos twice a day, it becomes important. There are many speed humps, called "speed breakers", more correct would be "suspension breakers". Most of these are obviously put in by the municipality, but others seem to be privately installed by home-owners on their own bit of road. In place of a hump, many place large rocks in the road around which traffic has to crawl, and of course there are the myriad potholes and broken up road surfaces all the way. Car repair places must do a roaring trade, but I don't think many cars can last very long. The roads are also littered with broken down trucks, often without a wheel or two, with the axles precariously propped up on rocks. . The dual carriageways, divided highways, are interesting. Mostly the traffic, which drives on the left here, follows the correct road lanes. But if things get a bit busy, people simply move into the opposing lane and by the blowing of horns and flashing of lights bull their way through. Our police like doing this, giving them a chance to use their sirens and blue lights. There seems to be few rules of the road for motorcycles or bullock carts, while trucks loaded with rocks are not to be trifled with.
There was also shooting today, all at 600 yards!
First the Pairs, with the standings after 600 yards:. 1. Canada 299.31; 2 .Scotland 299.27; 3. Wales 297.34; 4. New Zealand 297.36; 5. South Africa 297.30; 6 Australia 296.37
Then two 600 yard shoots for the Individual. The leaders are: 1. Gaz Morris, Wales, 255.30; 2. James Corbett, Australia, 254.30; 3. Robert Oxford, Wales, 254.28; 4. Petrus Haasbroek, South Africa, 254.25; 5. David Calvert, Northern Ireland, 253.29; 6. Angus McLeod, Scotland, 253.25; 7. Mike Collings, New Zealand, 253.24; 8. Daniel Richardson, Jersey, 252.27; 9. Jim Paton, Canada, 252.26; 10. Ross McQuillan, Northern Ireland, 252.24. Des Vamplew is in 29th place with 245.26. His 'lost' shot yesterday was established as a cross-fire, a very expensive miss.
Tomorrow is at 900 yards - Pairs 2 & 15 in the morning, Individual the same in the afternoon. Then there will just be the final 1000 yard day on Wednesday. It is said that there will be live TV coverage, so do badger your local TV stations to get it on.
Des' notes from Monday:
"Monday was an interesting day on the range. We were exposed to about the same conditions as yesterday with the wind being more of a factor. The flags were blowing most of the day with strength and angle changes occurring on a regular basis. The scores were lower today reflecting the trickier conditions. The winds also helped to make for another clear day so the visibility of the aiming mark was a bonus. Jim and I both went clean again in the 600 yard Pairs match so we are down 1 point after the three short ranges. Scotland also had perfect scores so we are still tied with them with a 4 point lead in the V count. There is now a 2 point separation between us and the next couple of teams that are down 3 points. In the individual matches Jim dropped 3 points today, shooting a 34 and 48. As mentioned, the conditions were trickier today so those scores pretty well reflect the averages on the range. I had the same scores. I received the results of the jury's decision on the protest Sandy put in yesterday regarding one of my shots not registering. It looks like I did cross fire and have lost 5 points. Ouch. That result puts me way down the short range aggregate so will try and make it up during the next couple of days when we shoot at the longer ranges. The aggregate will be completely different after tomorrow night if the winds continue to play a factor as they did today. Jim and I discussed the missed shot last night and realized it was picked up on the target we had just finished shooting the pairs match on, so it makes sense how I could line up on that target after listwning to Jim telling me to "shoot on target 10" for 15 minutes. Not a good excuse but there have been more than a few cross fires during the last couple of days. The targets are closer together on this range compared to the spacing between targets back home and the number boards are below the targets rather than above as found on traditional CF ranges. Depending on where you are positioned on the firing point the number boards may not line up with your target so you are constantly double checking that your lined up on your target. Signing off until tomorrow."
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Sunday evening
This was, by far, the least hazy day so far. There was an almost clear sky, and tonight we were treated to a display of stars and a little slip of a moon. But, along with the better light, there was an increased breeze from the right which caused its own problems, both for shooters and for the targets. There were intermittent failures, caused by electrical interruptions and by whatever mystical processes govern the behaviour of electronic target systems. We had to shift shooters around, as targets became unreliable, but good or bad behaviour was a transient thing. The ROs, aided and abetted by the Jury members, had a challenging time.
The intermediate results are on the Delhi 2010 web site - I know because I have just looked at it - and probably at Sius Ascor as well. It was a mixed day for Canada as you will see, and on which Des may comment later.
Pairs, after 500 yards:
1. Canada 199.21; 2. Scotland 199.16; 3. South Africa 198.20; 4. New Zealand 198.18. So far, so good!
Individual:
1. David Calvert (NIR) 170.19; 2. Gaz Morris (WAL) 170.19; 3. Jim Paton (CAN) 170.18; 4. Jim Corbett (AUS) 169.20. Des Vamplew was credited with a miss at 500 yards and currently stands 1t 163.20. His appeal will be dealt with tomorrow.
Tomorrow will be the same course of fire, all at 600 yards. The weather forecast is for more of the same - sunny, warm and no rain.
Just before we were leaving the range. Mr. Dhillon introduced us to this group of young ladies. They are all models and will be the medal and flag bearers at the last day on Wednesday. There is a magnificent new chair in which the winner will be carried off the range in traditional style. And that terrific CRPF Band will be with us again, starting a 1000 mile journey tomorrow to be back in time.
For our return from the range to the hotel, Phil and I again had our police escort with the Bren gun. The police love using their siren and flashing lights, but our driver was a lot less frenetic than last night!
Des has tonight sent me the following:
"The first day of competition on Saturday went well. I think Jim Thompson and Phil Harrison are pleased with how the program ran. They and the rest of the staff that includes Cliff Mallett of Jersey, Chief Range Officer John McDiarmid from Queensland, Australia and his Range Officer's Peter Turner from the UK and Canada's own Keith Bornn, have done a fantastic job of making sure this match goes off successfully. There are so many layers of detail they have to check and double check when using the electonic target systems. The extreme conditions don't stop them from having smiles and positive attitudes that are infectious on all the shooters.
Today we shoot three matches at 500. Again we start with the Pairs and then a Queen's 1 seven round course of fire followed by a Queen's 2 ten round match. The second relay shooters from yeterday fire first today so I will be shooting first. We don't change our routine for the Pairs match. Jim will start that off. Sandy collects our ammo for the day and weighs each round to make sure they are consistent.
Jim went clean in the two individual 300 yds matches, so he's off to a great start. I have more work ahead of me, as I dropped one in each match, one of them a 49.9v. As mentioned, there's no room for margin on this bullseye. The two I lost were very close to the line.
We're on our way back in the bus after Day 2 of competitions. The conditions were completely different from what we have seen since being here. The winds were blowing today so you were judging the conditions more from the strength and angle of the flags rather than relying on the mirage. The windier conditions cleared away the pollution so it was much easier to see the targets.
Both Jim and I went clean in the Pairs match. The provisional results were posted before we left so we have now moved into first place with a 4 v lead over Scotland. South Africa and New Zealand are down two points.
In the individual matches, Jim went clean again and has not dropped a point yet in the 4 matches to date. He's moved into second place based om a good V count. Sandy has put a protest in on my behalf as one of my shots did not register and was given a miss. I was awarded a provisional shot after bringing it to the RO's attention so I either went clean today or may lose 5 points. We'll see what the jury comes back with tomorrow.
Signing off for Sunday."
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Friday evening.
[my apologies for this being a day late, but there was no internet connection from the hotel last night, and we are still 'blocked' from the range]
This was the last day of the practice period. Attendance was quite small, since,clearly, most teams felt they had done enough.
Tomorrow the serious business gets under way. The format is a little unusual for a Commonwealth Games in that all shoots at one distance will be fired on the same day. Everything on Saturday will be at 300 yards, with 500 yards on Sunday and so on. So, starting in the morning, the Pairs will fire 2ss & 10 each, followed by the Individual 2ss & 7 plus 2ss & 10.
I think I've commented before on the large labour squad that shifts targets. They did a good job over the lunch break today. The target frames are very solid wood and heavy. The gang marches down the range and work very hard. Peter Turner, one of the ROs, has expropriated a motor cycle and roars up and down the range supervising the target machinations.
We did a further extensive calibration of the targets this afternoon and we are now confident that, as far as possible, all is set for a good and fair competition.
Apart from that, the day was uneventful. It was a little less hazy - there were actually some shadows cast by the sun, and down range visibility was much better. There should not be problems at 300-500-600, but it would be a good thing if the smoggy air was to clear bit before the 900 and 1000 next week.
We were privileged this evening in that our police escort had a Bren gun mounted on their jeep. They didn't use it to clear the traffic, although they must have been tempted. They were a bit aggressive in passing other vehicles and nearly forced our car driver into a head-on collision with a large truck loaded with rocks. There must have been all of an inch to spare.
I'm not sure how the India CWG web site will present running results, but do take a look at it http://www.cwgdelhi2010.com/ In addition, Sius Ascor www.sius.com also post competition results quite quickly. I'm not at all sure what the CBC or other Canadian media will do. Probably not much for shooting!
Saturday evening.
It seems as if contact has been re-established.
Today was the first day of competition, with everything at 300 yards. First the Pairs (2 & 10 each), then two rounds of individual (2 & 7 and 2 & 10). All went pretty well, apart from one target that apparently failed towards the end, necessitating a move and partial re-shoot. There were not too many other problems, and they got less as the day wore on. Most involve the procedures for conversion of sighters and shooting in pairs in the electronic system. The shooters are learning and our excellent group of ROs is teaching them. The last detail was almost a pleasure.
But it was a long day and everyone was tired tonight. Not too tired however for the most important cocktail hour before dinner. Last night, in recognition of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Liu Xiaobo, we had gone to the Chinese restaurant at the hotel - not a great meal. Back to Indian tonight and much better! Phil Harrison and I were delayed leaving the range and I think that our drive felt he should make up for lost time. We kept on telling him that we'd prefer to arrive alive more slowly rather than more quickly in a coffin. We had no police escort, so no Bren gun to impress the traffic and/or to keep our driver under control.
Tomorrow is all at 500 yards, same programme as today.
There are results both at the Delhi 2010 and Sius Ascor web sites. You have to search a little, but they are there! I couldn't see anything on Symaptico or the CBC - shame on them! These are early days yet, but here are some snippets:
Pairs: South Africa 100.15, Scotland 100.7, Guernsey 99.11, Canada 99.9.
Individual: Seven scores of 85, headed by Gaz Morris (Wales), Jim Corbett (AUS) and David Calvert (NIR). Jim paton lies 5th on 85.10, and Des Vamplew 12th on 83.12.
Finally Des Vamplew has sent me the following from the Canadian Team perspective. He promises more!
"Jim and I have been training for 10 days now with Sandy keeping a watchful eye out for us. Today will be the first day of competition. I'm sitting on the bus on the way out to the range right now. It is a one and a half hour ride both ways with 90 percent of it through the city during both rush hours. Delhi has a population of over 20 million. The security and co-ordination to get us out there is incredible, the bus doesn't stop once. They have a dedicated lane for CWG vehicles. Usually 6 police cars escort us, sirens going all the time and there are police at every corner or round about. The back up of traffic at the intersections waiting for us to go by is quite extensive sometimes. It gets a little hairy watching the bus move through the traffic if your sitting up front. There may be a dedicated lane but the drivers will use it every chance they can. Sometimes you'll see 3 cars trying to jam into the same lane, beside each other as they pass cars on either side. There are also a lot of motor cycles on the roads however the driver is the only one who needs to wear a helmet so you'll see motorcycles loaded up with a family of 4 with only the father wearing a helmet. There are 100,000 traffic deaths a year in Delhi. I wonder why.
The athletes village is now hopping, there is a community feel, people are into their routines, almost like the way Bisley turns into a mini city for two weeks each summer. The organizers have done a good job supporting athletes and making everyone feel welcome. They have an area called the zone where you find shops, internet services (which is busy all the time), a bar, disco, hair salon, along with a large bowl shaped stage and seating area that offers different types of music each night for athletes to enjoy, giving them a chance to hang out. Our routine would usually see us at the range until 4pm, getting back to the village around 5:30/6pm. We would then stop in at the bar to have a Kingfisher beer and to do a de-brief and discuss things we'd want to concentrate on for the next day. Some of the other shooters on the Canadian team would join us. Now almost all of them are there waiting for us at the end of the day. Jim will say once we get off the bus and have gone through village security , "well I think we need to continue our research at the Kingfisher Institute" and Sandy would say " we can never stop learning" and off we'd go. You'll usually only see shooters or lawn bowlers in the bar. Most of the athletes in the village are not eligible to go in because the legal drinking age in Delhi is 25. They are very strict enforcing that rule. Thank goodness I turned 26 last month.
The village includes 28 apartment buildings of which Canada has 2. Each has 7 floors with 4 apartments on each. The apartment includes 3 bedrooms with a bathroom, along with a communal kitchen, living room/dining room area and a large flat screened TV. Everything is done in marble. Jim and I are sharing the apartment with two shot gunners (a father and son duo) and a couple of pistol shooters. Everyone gets along. After dinner we'll sit around and watch some of the other events on TV as we all learn more about each others sport. The meals are better than many anticipated. The contractor is the same Australian firm that supplied the meals at the Brisbane CWG's. They are going to great lengths to make sure folks are not getting Delhi Belly, for instance the water bottles are all washed before going out on the floor because of previous handling. The dining hall is very large and offers stations that include different foods from around the world, including: pasta, tandouri, oriental, African, Asian, vegetarian and western. It's open 24 hours a day.
We're arriving at the range now so will report back at the end of the day. It was an interesting day. All shooting was done at 300 yds. We started it off by shooting the Pairs match. Jim and I dropped one point. Two teams went clean and there were about 6 that dropped one. Sorry to be so vague but I'm not paying to much attention to the board at this stage. It's still very early. Jim and I have spent well over half of our training time coaching each other. There are a lot of different variations of Pairs shooting being shot by the 21 teams in attendance. (there were 19 in Brisbane). Most have one shooter complete the whole match while his partner coaches him while laying beside the firer and there are a few that shoot together alternating after each shot. We have used the string system. Jim shoots first and I follow. You have to read your score off the TV monitor that is located at each position. We lift the monitor up onto Sandy's shooting seat (it's a perfect fit) and use my small fold-up stool, sit beside Jim and coach him in the same manner we coach back home. We are the only team using this style. We turn the sights for each other. We have had some very good results coaching each other and have communicated well to put a good system in place. Sandy has been very good making suggestions on how we can save time here and there. He is always thinking outside the box. We have cut the transition time down quite a bit so we're not feeling rushed. The Pairs relays are 32 minutes for both shooters to fire 10 on score at 300, 500 and 600. The time goes up to 45 minutes at the long ranges. Mirage plays a big factor on this range as subtle changes occur for almost every shot. When the flags are moving, something is happening. The whole range is baffled on both sides so there isn't as much wind as you'd normally see but it can be tricky especially when you move back to 900 and 1,000. We are using the ICFRA target so there is not a lot of margin for error on that target. We have also spent a least half our training time at the longer ranges because that is where the matches will be won or lost. The other reason we have practised more at the longs is because of the visibility. The pollution is so bad that you can literally hardly see the target. A couple of days it was so bad you couldn't see the number board for your target so you are not only trying to find the aiming mark in a cloud but are also trying to make sure you don't cross fire. Most days the visibility goes from bad to worse. I usually use a 3.9 insert with an eagle eye, here I am using a 4.5 to 4.7 depending on how bad it is. Jim says it was even worse when he was here in April. The range had not been seeded yet so when the wind blew there was the added dust to contend with besides the smog. That along will change the dynamics of the competition later in the week.
More tomorrow."
[my apologies for this being a day late, but there was no internet connection from the hotel last night, and we are still 'blocked' from the range]
This was the last day of the practice period. Attendance was quite small, since,clearly, most teams felt they had done enough.
Tomorrow the serious business gets under way. The format is a little unusual for a Commonwealth Games in that all shoots at one distance will be fired on the same day. Everything on Saturday will be at 300 yards, with 500 yards on Sunday and so on. So, starting in the morning, the Pairs will fire 2ss & 10 each, followed by the Individual 2ss & 7 plus 2ss & 10.
I think I've commented before on the large labour squad that shifts targets. They did a good job over the lunch break today. The target frames are very solid wood and heavy. The gang marches down the range and work very hard. Peter Turner, one of the ROs, has expropriated a motor cycle and roars up and down the range supervising the target machinations.
We did a further extensive calibration of the targets this afternoon and we are now confident that, as far as possible, all is set for a good and fair competition.
Apart from that, the day was uneventful. It was a little less hazy - there were actually some shadows cast by the sun, and down range visibility was much better. There should not be problems at 300-500-600, but it would be a good thing if the smoggy air was to clear bit before the 900 and 1000 next week.
We were privileged this evening in that our police escort had a Bren gun mounted on their jeep. They didn't use it to clear the traffic, although they must have been tempted. They were a bit aggressive in passing other vehicles and nearly forced our car driver into a head-on collision with a large truck loaded with rocks. There must have been all of an inch to spare.
I'm not sure how the India CWG web site will present running results, but do take a look at it http://www.cwgdelhi2010.com/ In addition, Sius Ascor www.sius.com also post competition results quite quickly. I'm not at all sure what the CBC or other Canadian media will do. Probably not much for shooting!
Saturday evening.
It seems as if contact has been re-established.
Today was the first day of competition, with everything at 300 yards. First the Pairs (2 & 10 each), then two rounds of individual (2 & 7 and 2 & 10). All went pretty well, apart from one target that apparently failed towards the end, necessitating a move and partial re-shoot. There were not too many other problems, and they got less as the day wore on. Most involve the procedures for conversion of sighters and shooting in pairs in the electronic system. The shooters are learning and our excellent group of ROs is teaching them. The last detail was almost a pleasure.
But it was a long day and everyone was tired tonight. Not too tired however for the most important cocktail hour before dinner. Last night, in recognition of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Liu Xiaobo, we had gone to the Chinese restaurant at the hotel - not a great meal. Back to Indian tonight and much better! Phil Harrison and I were delayed leaving the range and I think that our drive felt he should make up for lost time. We kept on telling him that we'd prefer to arrive alive more slowly rather than more quickly in a coffin. We had no police escort, so no Bren gun to impress the traffic and/or to keep our driver under control.
Tomorrow is all at 500 yards, same programme as today.
There are results both at the Delhi 2010 and Sius Ascor web sites. You have to search a little, but they are there! I couldn't see anything on Symaptico or the CBC - shame on them! These are early days yet, but here are some snippets:
Pairs: South Africa 100.15, Scotland 100.7, Guernsey 99.11, Canada 99.9.
Individual: Seven scores of 85, headed by Gaz Morris (Wales), Jim Corbett (AUS) and David Calvert (NIR). Jim paton lies 5th on 85.10, and Des Vamplew 12th on 83.12.
Finally Des Vamplew has sent me the following from the Canadian Team perspective. He promises more!
"Jim and I have been training for 10 days now with Sandy keeping a watchful eye out for us. Today will be the first day of competition. I'm sitting on the bus on the way out to the range right now. It is a one and a half hour ride both ways with 90 percent of it through the city during both rush hours. Delhi has a population of over 20 million. The security and co-ordination to get us out there is incredible, the bus doesn't stop once. They have a dedicated lane for CWG vehicles. Usually 6 police cars escort us, sirens going all the time and there are police at every corner or round about. The back up of traffic at the intersections waiting for us to go by is quite extensive sometimes. It gets a little hairy watching the bus move through the traffic if your sitting up front. There may be a dedicated lane but the drivers will use it every chance they can. Sometimes you'll see 3 cars trying to jam into the same lane, beside each other as they pass cars on either side. There are also a lot of motor cycles on the roads however the driver is the only one who needs to wear a helmet so you'll see motorcycles loaded up with a family of 4 with only the father wearing a helmet. There are 100,000 traffic deaths a year in Delhi. I wonder why.
The athletes village is now hopping, there is a community feel, people are into their routines, almost like the way Bisley turns into a mini city for two weeks each summer. The organizers have done a good job supporting athletes and making everyone feel welcome. They have an area called the zone where you find shops, internet services (which is busy all the time), a bar, disco, hair salon, along with a large bowl shaped stage and seating area that offers different types of music each night for athletes to enjoy, giving them a chance to hang out. Our routine would usually see us at the range until 4pm, getting back to the village around 5:30/6pm. We would then stop in at the bar to have a Kingfisher beer and to do a de-brief and discuss things we'd want to concentrate on for the next day. Some of the other shooters on the Canadian team would join us. Now almost all of them are there waiting for us at the end of the day. Jim will say once we get off the bus and have gone through village security , "well I think we need to continue our research at the Kingfisher Institute" and Sandy would say " we can never stop learning" and off we'd go. You'll usually only see shooters or lawn bowlers in the bar. Most of the athletes in the village are not eligible to go in because the legal drinking age in Delhi is 25. They are very strict enforcing that rule. Thank goodness I turned 26 last month.
The village includes 28 apartment buildings of which Canada has 2. Each has 7 floors with 4 apartments on each. The apartment includes 3 bedrooms with a bathroom, along with a communal kitchen, living room/dining room area and a large flat screened TV. Everything is done in marble. Jim and I are sharing the apartment with two shot gunners (a father and son duo) and a couple of pistol shooters. Everyone gets along. After dinner we'll sit around and watch some of the other events on TV as we all learn more about each others sport. The meals are better than many anticipated. The contractor is the same Australian firm that supplied the meals at the Brisbane CWG's. They are going to great lengths to make sure folks are not getting Delhi Belly, for instance the water bottles are all washed before going out on the floor because of previous handling. The dining hall is very large and offers stations that include different foods from around the world, including: pasta, tandouri, oriental, African, Asian, vegetarian and western. It's open 24 hours a day.
We're arriving at the range now so will report back at the end of the day. It was an interesting day. All shooting was done at 300 yds. We started it off by shooting the Pairs match. Jim and I dropped one point. Two teams went clean and there were about 6 that dropped one. Sorry to be so vague but I'm not paying to much attention to the board at this stage. It's still very early. Jim and I have spent well over half of our training time coaching each other. There are a lot of different variations of Pairs shooting being shot by the 21 teams in attendance. (there were 19 in Brisbane). Most have one shooter complete the whole match while his partner coaches him while laying beside the firer and there are a few that shoot together alternating after each shot. We have used the string system. Jim shoots first and I follow. You have to read your score off the TV monitor that is located at each position. We lift the monitor up onto Sandy's shooting seat (it's a perfect fit) and use my small fold-up stool, sit beside Jim and coach him in the same manner we coach back home. We are the only team using this style. We turn the sights for each other. We have had some very good results coaching each other and have communicated well to put a good system in place. Sandy has been very good making suggestions on how we can save time here and there. He is always thinking outside the box. We have cut the transition time down quite a bit so we're not feeling rushed. The Pairs relays are 32 minutes for both shooters to fire 10 on score at 300, 500 and 600. The time goes up to 45 minutes at the long ranges. Mirage plays a big factor on this range as subtle changes occur for almost every shot. When the flags are moving, something is happening. The whole range is baffled on both sides so there isn't as much wind as you'd normally see but it can be tricky especially when you move back to 900 and 1,000. We are using the ICFRA target so there is not a lot of margin for error on that target. We have also spent a least half our training time at the longer ranges because that is where the matches will be won or lost. The other reason we have practised more at the longs is because of the visibility. The pollution is so bad that you can literally hardly see the target. A couple of days it was so bad you couldn't see the number board for your target so you are not only trying to find the aiming mark in a cloud but are also trying to make sure you don't cross fire. Most days the visibility goes from bad to worse. I usually use a 3.9 insert with an eagle eye, here I am using a 4.5 to 4.7 depending on how bad it is. Jim says it was even worse when he was here in April. The range had not been seeded yet so when the wind blew there was the added dust to contend with besides the smog. That along will change the dynamics of the competition later in the week.
More tomorrow."
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