Blackpowder shoot and state rendezvous

The 2015 Alaska Territorial Blackpowder Shoot is over and the scores are in the books. As I expected, my three state records in the blackpowder cartridge rifle category are history. In fact, new records were set in all four of the blackpowder cartridge matches and the resulting aggregate. My congratulations go to Pat Reed, a national-class shooter, who now holds four of the records; and to Mike DeLand, who holds the fifth record.

My shoulder was bothering me and I ended up only shooting one match – not even a full aggregate. However, and I’m still shaking my head over this one, I ended up with two medals as a result of that one match.

Go figure!

I thought the four-day shoot was a great success. While not the highest shooter count ever, still, around thirty shooters were registered. Several of these shooters were children and grandchildren of the adult shooters present. I didn’t count noses, but this may have been one of the better turnouts of young shooters in some time.

That’s always encouraging!

There were some new faces and some new match winners also. Folks from Anchor Point and Delta Junction made the trip to participate. There may have been one or two from Fairbanks as well. Most of the usual crowd from the Mat-Su and Anchorage were also represented.

A few more regulars would have been participating if not for the overlap of scheduled blackpowder events happening. The Alaska State Rendezvous began last Sunday evening at Ft. Wick outside Talkeetna. Several of the regular territorial shooters were involved in the planning and set-up of the state rendezvous and were not free to shoot the territorial matches.

The State Rendezvous runs through Sunday. The participants dress in period clothing and most camp in “primitive” tents and shelters similar to the types of tents and shelters used by our frontier ancestors 150-200 years ago. The public is welcome to visit the event and watch the activities in this “living history” recreation of frontier life.

I’ve visited the state rendezvous at Ft. Wick a couple of times over the years but I’m not a regular participant. While joining the activities would be fun, I’m getting too old to enjoy sleeping on the wet ground in a leaking tent, wrapped in a blanket, during a thunderstorm. I’ve also come to appreciate modern amenities like indoor plumbing and running water, especially where I’m not the one running for the water! However, as my uncle used to say,”What ever floats your boat!” Go for it guys and gals!

I’m hoping to visit the site before the rendezvous is over. That visit will probably be Saturday after I attend the annual meeting and open house being held at the Upper Susitna Shooters Association. The activities commence at 10 a.m. at the shooting range located at Mile 94 of the Parks Highway. Non-members are encouraged to attend and see what facilities are available for shooting. I suspect this is as much a new member recruitment activity as it is an annual picnic. Free hot dogs and hamburgers will be served and there will be free 22 rimfire ammo for the kids to use under adult supervision on the various ranges.

Activities will break at noon when the annual membership meeting is scheduled, running until around 1 p.m. if all goes as expected. The fun and games will begin again after the meeting and continue until the range closes at 6 p.m.. If you have an interest, drive up and partake of the festivities. The shooting sports have always been a family activity with fun for everyone.

There’s yet another shooting event scheduled for Saturday. The Alaska Chapter of the Safari Club International is hosting a Summer Fun Shoot at Grouse Ridge Shooting Facility north of Wasilla starting at 10 a.m.. Folks interested in shooting are urged to arrive by 9 a.m. to form shooting teams. Early registration is also encouraged to have a chance at winning over $750 in prizes to be given away. The registration cost to shoot, including lunch, is $80; lunch only is $25; shoot only costs $55. These are all per person fees.

If you’re up to the challenge, you can shoot blackpowder, a modern rifle, and participate in shotgun shooting activities all in the same day, but only if you drive really fast! Personally, I’ll probably end up not shooting but merely observing the various shooting activities. That’s fun too!