Well we made it. A total of 18 shooters braved
the chilly December weather to shoot the Alabama State Match at Heflin. The
weather was iffy to say the least but the snow turned out to be a wet rain after
all. The precipitation had ended by 8 am but was replaced by falling temps and a
cold shifting wind primarily from the North but with high humidity levels. Cold
and damp. But a bad day shooting FT is better than a good day doing most
anything else, so we pressed on.
We welcomed two new shooters, Sloan Bryan and Alan Hughes. It wasn't their first
match but was there first time with us. Both shot well in spite of the
circumstances.
We had a total of 10 lanes set up on the back course. The TDF was a 30.73 with
no wind, with wind it was a 37. The wind was a total game changer. This end of
the course is set along a gradual curve that faces a fair sized hill. The wind
was coming directly over the hill at times but had enough variance to also
travel down the valley between the shooting positions and targets. Though we
were warmly dressed, it had an effect on the shooters, dropping the wind chill
down in the 20's.
Ken Hughes was really one his A game today, dropping only three shots (I'm not
sure but I think it had something to do with his hat). The WFT shooters were all
head to head but only one tie breaker was needed for award with Brad Troyer
coming out on top. Both Eddie Horne and Doug Vinson shot well as always, winning
their classes by a wide margin.