Rhode Island Revolver & Rifle Association

2015 State Outdoor Pistol Championship

The Rhode Island Rifle and Revolver 2015 State Outdoor Pistol Championship

Rich Sirois

October 10th and 11th of 2015 was a beautiful New England autumn weekend for the match blessed with sunny skies, temperatures in the 60's, and a light breeze. The 21 competitors from Southern New England and New Hampshire who competed in the 2015 The Rhode Island Rifle and Revolver State Outdoor Pistol Championship couldn't ask for a better pair of days to spend on the Cumberland Beagle Club range.

The tournament was a traditional 2700, three 900 points aggregates; shot with 22 caliber rim fire, centerfire, and 45 caliber pistols. Each match consisted of a National Match Course (NMC), and 20 shots each slow, timed, and rapid fire.

Don Norris came out of the gate at a gallop winning the slow, timed, and NMC and went into the final 20 shots rapid with a five point led on Robert Doran. Doran was undeterred by the difference and hammered out a 198-8X in rapid fire to close the point difference and scrape by Norris by an X for the rim fire win, 875-35 to 875-34X.

His confidence not shaken by Doran's performance, Norris went ahead and won the slow, NMC, and timed stages of the center fire but surrendered the rapid stage to Doran once again. It was a minor distraction as his 863-32X was 29 points ahead of his nearest competitor.

Going into the last match with the 45 caliber pistol Expert Bobby Walsh out Xed Norris to take the slow fire stage with a 185-5X. The rest of the day belonged to Norris who swept the remaining matches top post a 2611-107X to win the crown. Second in the aggregate was Robert Doran with a 2552-78X and Walsh with third with a 2508-67X.

Guy Bowers was top Expert followed by Moe Brakat. David Tennenbaum was the high Sharpshooter and Susan Newkirk topped the Marksman.

The Civilian Marksmanship Program's Service Pistol Excellence In Competition (EIC) match was shot by 18 Shooters of which 12 were Non-Distinguished and eligible for 'Leg' Points. Distinguished Pistol Shot Don Norris won the match with 276-4X and was awarded the Governor's Cup. Bobby Walsh posted a 264-5X to earn his Leg Points and earn his Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge.

The NRA Distinguished Revolver match was won by Robert Doran with a score of 270-5X, who outshot 12 shooters.

A third Distinguished EIC match was shot this year to earn points for the new CMP .22 Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge. The match is a NMC shot with a 22 caliber pistol with metallic sights. A twist on the traditional NMC is that the timed and rapid fire courses are shot with the pistol held at a 45 degree angle until the targets turn. As with service Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge the top 10% of shooters are awarded points towards the 22 Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge. With 20 shooters participating in the match two Legs were awarded with John Francis in first, with a 278-4X, just ahead of second place Robert Doran with a 275-6X. These are the first points won be each man.

With addition it was it was a challenge to complete the match before the sun set behind the trees. Over the winter a discussion of possibly moving the match to September to both avoid a conflict with Columbus Day and to insure adequate daylight.

The sponsors wish to thank the Cumberland Beagle Club for hosting the tournament. A tip of ten hat to the Ocean State Pistol League, the Rhode Island Revolver and Rifle Association, the National Rifle Association, and the Civilian Marksmanship Program for its support. The match staff of Steve Hogan and Richard Benoit made for smooth running event well appreciated by the competitors.

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Rhode Island Revolver & Rifle Association

2015 State Outdoor Pistol Championship