Colorado Rifle Club

NEWSLETTER

October 2003

Many of you are probably getting a little tired of the continued exhortations about the Club's work bond. Heaven knows I'm running out of ways to say it! But 250 members still haven't filled this years work bond. This month is your last chance to come out to the range for a club work party. Saturday October 18 and Sunday October 19, the ranges will be closed to shooting, but open for work. This club is only as good as YOU make it. If you enjoy our fine facilities, it's up to you to help build and maintain them. Even if we had the money to, we could not hire out a lot of the work that needs to be done. Take this opportunity to meet your work bond requirement on the last organized work party of 2003.

Remember, members who do not fill the required workday must pay a $100 buy-out by the end of the year, or they will be dropped from membership. Don't let that happen! Check the long list of jobs below and mark your calendars for the 18th and 19th. The club will provide and pay for all supplies used, but if possible, plan to bring your own tools, ladders, welder, etc., as we don't have enough to go around. When you arrive, check in at the ranch house first so we know what jobs are covered. The day will get started around 9:00am, but you're welcome to show up any time! Don't forget to bring your work bond verification card - the wallet sized card you received when you renewed your membership this year. Can't find yours? Go to the club website at www.crci.org , click on the work bond link and you can print a new one. Once you've completed a job, have the work party supervisor sign it, and mail the card to CRC, 6921 Oak Street, Arvada, CO 80004. (If you haven't completed a full day of work - don't send in the card yet. Keep it until you've worked the equivalent of a full day).

If you want a special job, call Larry Kelley at (303) 424-9415 in advance, so he can be sure the required materials, etc. are ready for you. If you know now that you won't be able to fill the work bond and will need to pay the $100 instead, you don't have to wait till the end of the year. Send your payment and your work bond verification card to the CRC address above. If you'd like to work, but can't make it the 18th-19th, call Marty Everitt at (303) 425-4450, or Denny Reul at (303) 238-5696 to make other arrangements.

Some special projects include:

Silhouette Range: Target stand enhancement. We are converting some of the firing lines from individual target stands to railroad rail (welded to the existing individual stands). This will facilitate a larger number of targets to be set within the same physical space. We will need a qualified welder and sufficient welding rod. Rails are already laid out by the stands that they are to be mounted on top of. We also have a number or targets that need welding in order to make them usable again.

WHIP/CHIP plantings: We need a "mechanically-inclined" person to fix the pump on the water wagon. Right now the pump shaft rotates inside the PTO collar, reducing the effectiveness. It needs cleaning and a new key installed to lock the slotted shaft to the slotted collar. We also need to water the plots on the north and south side of the road, and two people to use tree spikes to water the plots. Pull/hoe weeds adjacent to the tree plots and between the rows. Call Bastiaan Cornelissen at (303) 987-2836 for details.

Archery Range: Welding chain to the posts holding the targets in place. Find a specific spot for the parking area and remove weeds and place railroad ties to mark boundaries and park cars against. Cut weeds on the archery range. Call Bill Flynn at (303) 470-1711 for details.

Fencing: Dave John will be at CRC both Saturday October 11 and Saturday, October 18 to do work on the range fences. Meet at the maintenance shed (on the east side of the ranch house) at 9:00am, and bring leather gloves and pliers.

JOB LIST

• Complete the south fence project
• Inspect the other fences and signs, repair or replace as needed
• Clean the ranch house
• Clean all the toilets, add 150 to 200 gallons of water to each vault
• Complete the three new toilets, skilled carpenters, call Dave Lee (303) 431-4513
• Cultivate and water range trees, trees near the ranch house, and WHIP or CHIP plantings. Call Bastiaan Cornelissen (303) 987-2836
• Preventive maintenance on all machinery
• Replace lost shingles on all tuff sheds
• General cleanup: haul trash to the dump, scrap metal to junk yard (if you have a truck, please bring it, we will pay expenses)
• Build picnic shelter at clays range, skilled carpenter, call Steve Kingcade (303) 644-3523
• Wire the shed at the clays range, skilled electrician call Steve Kingcade (303) 644-3523
• Cleanup and landscape the old house site, clays range
• Locate and fix roof leak in the Stat. Office
• Add soil in front on target rails, smallbore range
• Complete interior finish of shed on schuetzen range, call Don Fabrizio (303) 424-4558
• Add pipes for intermediate targets on schuetzen range, call Don Fabrizio (303) 424-4558
• Mow fire break around buildings and ranges as needed
• Convert Farmall tractor to 12v system. Skilled electrician/mechanic
• Inventory structural steel, count, measure, describe. Call Wayne Harris (303) 431-4009
• Pistol Range work. Call Wayne Harris (303) 431-4009 or Doug Maxwell (303) 431-1420
• Highpower range work. Call Jerry Davidson (303) 986-5740 or Jim Brummerstedt (303) 772-5145.
• Silhouette range work. Call Tom Bant (303) 425-8870; Tom Funk (303) 690-5219 or Bill Stark (303) 771-4593.
• Repair silhouette range truck. Call Tom Bant (303) 425-8870 for details.

Junior Shooting

I can't be 100% sure, but it seems like we had a lot of junior shooters participating in matches and clinics this year. That's AWESOME! Our range isn't always convenient for busy families to get to, but we definitely want the trend to continue! Now that winter is coming - that doesn't mean it's time to put the guns away. There are three good, active junior clubs in the Denver metro area that have opportunities for beginners. All three offer beginning instruction - all three have some entry level equipment available to get the kids started - and all three make it possible for the kids to participate in junior tournaments. Shooters as young as eight or nine years old can take part. Girls are welcome too - and I don't hesitate to point out that some of the best young shooters in the country are girls! Shooting does take some commitment, but the team experience it offers is similar to league soccer or baseball, and you can be a shooter all your life - not just while your knee cartilage holds! Call a club near you today and give your kid a fun challenge this winter!

ARVADA RIFLE & PISTOL CLUB JUNIORS:

Coaches Keith Roberts (303) 425-6182 and Norm Austen (303) 467-9757. Location: 56th Place east of Vance on the north side of the Wadsworth Park and Ride station. Hours: Wednesday evening from 7:00pm and Saturday morning from 8:00am. In addition, they have an air rifle league for adults and kids alike on Monday evening. Fees: $50 per year plus $2 per practice to cover ammo and targets. The club takes junior shooters to matches, including the National Matches at Camp Perry and Atlanta, and provides ammo and entries for the matches.

CHERRY CREEK GUN CLUB JUNIORS:

Coach Gary Trisdale (303) 367-8733. Location: 1310 South Clinton St. Aurora. (one block north of Florida Avenue). Hours: Thursday evening from 7:00pm. Fees: $25 one time plus $3 per practice to cover targets and ammo. This group is directed toward collegiate and international shooting preparation, but there is room for all interests, including air rifle.

BOULDER RIFLE CLUB:

Coach Mitch Mooman (303) 651-0608. Location: North of Boulder on N. 26th Street. Turn north off US 36 about 1/4 mile west of J Road and go north to the end of 26th Street. Hours: Tuesday evening from 7:00pm. Fees are in line with the others. The Tuesday night group offers beginning instruction based strongly on the regular NRA junior program and postal matches. In addition this season they are starting a high power program for selected graduates of the Tuesday evening program which will get the shooters started in high power shooting, and plans to take them to some matches. Rifles and ammo will be supplied for this but first students must complete the Tuesday night smallbore program where they will learn the fundamentals of shooting and safety.

A Bit of History Part 2

In the August 2003 newsletter, CRC UIT Pistol Coordinator Douglas Maxwell submitted some research he's done on the history of the Denver Rifle Club (see our website for that article if you missed it!) In an example of 'it's-a-small-world-after-all' syndrome, I received the following email from Marvin Taylor, P.E., the Project Manager for the Environmental Remediation Branch of the Omaha Corps of Engineers. I haven't yet researched his reading recommendation, but if there's any history buffs out there that have some time and curiosity - take a look and let us know! Thanks Mr. Taylor for the information

Dear Laura Everitt,

I am working on the US Army environmental contamination influence at Camp George West. My organization has done considerable research over the last few years. Additionally The Colorado Department of Health and the EPA VII Office, likewise has also worked on various aspects of all manners of contamination at Camp George West over the past years. A complete history of a facility helps greatly in this line of work, and that is what lead me to you.

I was researching, using the Internet, the history of the Denver Rifle Club when I ran across your recent Colorado Rifle Club Newsletter (August 2003), and the article "Some History of the Denver Rifle Club" by Douglas Maxwell. Since this article answered my questions I thought I would return the favor. Thank you for NOT waiting until next month for Mr. Maxwell to write it and you to publish it.

I want to steer you and Mr. Maxwell to a very complete history of Camp George West published in September 1992. The title is "Historic Resources Survey, Camp George West, Golden, Colorado."

The publication is available from the City of Golden Planning Department, Mr. Chuck Hearn (303-384-8096). He supervised the project and is a very nice person to deal with.

The whole document is interesting reading and the background for the study and its findings are best left your own reading. I want to suggest the following pages to peruse quickly to answer some of the unresolved items from your newsletter article. Figure 2 and Table 1, located between pages 11 and 12; pages 30 and 45.

The documentation as noted throughout the publication particularly the Deed Recordings in Jefferson County offices, and Georgina Brown's book "The Shining Mountains," and others should help Mr. Maxwell nail down certain details.

Thanks again for helping me and I hope the above helps you and yours.

Marvin Taylor, P.E.,
Project Manager
Environmental Remediation Branch
Omaha Corps of Engineers

The Postman doesnt have to ring at all!

Since others are reading our newsletter on the web, why not join the trend? If you get enough mail already and want to lighten your postman's load, you can opt to not get the newsletter by mail, but read it online at our website. The fewer people we have to mail to, the more money we have to spend on shooting! If you'd like to be removed from the newsletter mailing list, please contact Bruce Benninghoff at bruce@prolynx.com. Thanks and happy surfing!

Support CSSA and Win

The Colorado State Shooting Association is launching their biggest raffle ever, to raise funds to support their mission and services, including publication of the Colorado Shooting magazine, as well as lobbying efforts to protect firearm rights in Colorado. There are two prizes in this years raffle: First prize is the Benelli M1 Tactical Super 90 Pistol Grip with Ghost Ring sites; and second prize is the Para Ordinance C-6.45 Stainless 45 ACP. Cost of tickets is $2.00 each. If you'd like to buy tickets, contact Marty Everitt at (303) 425-4450. The drawing will be held November 19th, at the Littleton Community Center. Visit the CSSA website at cssa.org for more information. Good luck!

The Winners Circle

State Championships

The 2003 International Style Outdoor Pistol Championships were held at CRC on August 23rd. The new State Champ is Steve Locatelli, whose combined scores for Free, Standard, Centerfire, and Rapidfire Pistol scores was 2147. Second place was Bob Fleming and Third was Paul Figlia. Great shooting guys. The last pistol match of 2003 will be the Risk Takers 2700 on October 5th.

The Colorado State Smallbore Prone Championships were held August 16th & 17th. It was a beautiful weekend for shooting and 26 competitors participated. Mike Snyder narrowly edged C.S. Nick Ferris to win the Grand Aggregate. The 10 member State Team (comprised of the top shooters in the Dewar Iron sight match) turned in a very respectable team score of 3962-206. We'll keep you posted as to how they faired against the rest of the country.

Of special note in this match were the junior shooters. Hotshot Greg Youngs earned Second Expert in the aggregate and was a member of the State Team. Also - new shooter Taylor Beard won First Marksman honors with a 3141-151. All the more impressive when you consider she just started shooting THIS YEAR! Coming off a great win at Camp Perry is obviously strong motivation!

Smallbore Summer League

Congratulations to the winner of this year's Smallbore Summer League, Peter Reul, with a handicapped average score of 1004! Peter has been shooting well all year, and is proof that practice does make perfect! We'll see you in the Expert Class next year Pete! (or better yet - Master class!!)

Newsletter coding by James Speed Hensinger. jhensinger5@comcast.net