2017 National Pistol Championship

by CR10X 6/14/2017, 6:08 am

Dear Shooters and Competitors:

Once again, the time has come for the NRA National Pistol Championship at Camp Perry, Ohio. I realize there has been much er, discussion and the voicing of many concerns, opinion, options and proposals concerning the scheduling and location of the National Match (CMP) and the National Pistol Championship (NRA) over the past year. With all due respect to everyone's opinion, no matter what happens, we as the shooters and competitors, will eventually determine the outcome. Not by our suggestions or recommendations or any "brilliant and innovative ideas" but by our participation. At this time, the shooting sports may be dividing itself into different groups based individual desires or plans. We, as the shooters and competitors, need to continue to support the sport as best we can with respect to all shooters as well as our own opinions, to the betterment of us all. No one else is going to do it for us. OK, enough said about that, on to the reason for this post.

We, the shooters and competitors, gather together annually to participate, shoot and compete in a way that few other sports can. No selection matches, regional playoffs, qualifying or other requirements. Shooters can just sign up, get there and compete against the best in the sport. No matter what else, this is an important distinction for our sport.

Along with the open participation for competition, the location that has hosted this event for over one hundred years also sets this match apart from the rest. Camp Perry is unique among the options for shooting as well. While other bases have closed "public use" of range facilities, this one has remained available. Shooting under the same conditions as our predecessors may be uncomfortable or unusual to some, but it does provide the backdrop for the test of competing, not just shooting.

If we change, then we will change. But the history, spirit and honor that is Camp Perry will remain there. If we move to another location, it will have to create its own history, just like Camp Perry had to when the matches moved there.

I used to post the attached every year or so, but have not done so recently. I received a letter from a fellow shooter that reminded me of why we go to the nationals. We go not just to compete, but to meet old friends, make new ones, watch some history being made and sometimes just to relive the past. Sometimes when we get there, we find some old friends will not be making the trip again. But sometimes when we get there, we find new friends.

So, no matter the outcome or where we wind up; just remember its our memories that make the difference.

Respectfully Yours,

Cecil Rhodes

by **willnewton** 6/14/2017, 10:03 am

Downloading to MS Word = Yuck.
Direct delivery = Yeah!

CR10X wrote:
Camp Perry

Welcome to Camp Perry. My silent guard towers and stately flags are there as your honor guard to greet you. My history is rich with tradition, honor and celebration. I do my duty to help guard your nation. My grassy fields, humble huts and silent berms await you.

If you are a visitor, please walk my streets and note the names from our country’s proud past. Read the names of ships that sailed by canvas and the strength of men. Note the names of my ranges and tell the stories of those brave men that did not return. Listen to the quiet in the chapel and the whisper of the wind under the trees. Walk the streets of commerce and mingle with the crowds. The silent names upon my trophies are there for you to say aloud one more time, and so remember their achievements. I am here for your pleasure. Please cherish your memories of me and the time spent here. You will leave your footsteps upon my ground.

If you are a shooter, you will stand upon my back and know the joy of shooting, alone or with your friends. My targets await you. Standing in line, silently, they are there for you. Twenty-five, Fifty, Two-hundred, Three-hundred, Six-hundred or One thousand yards, they set the boundaries of your world. They will record your efforts, silently and without judgment. You will smell the smoke, hear the roar of the cannon and see the colors rise each morning. You can say you were here and remember your time with me when you are old and gray. You will return to your home with stories and pictures and memories of me and leave your footsteps upon my ground.

If you are a competitor, I await you most of all. My sunny sky can become blistering heat, my gentle winds can be gales of terror, my cooling rain can become a torrential deluge, my green field can be a quagmire of mud. I will be the ultimate test of your ability, training and desire. You have chosen to compete, against yourself above all others, here between the land, the water and the sky. I am here for your challenge and when you are done you will also leave with stories and pictures and memories. You will leave your footsteps upon my ground. But unlike the others, you will take with you the knowledge that you came, you shot and you competed with all your heart and soul. You, among all that come, have the potential to walk upon my stage, put your name upon my trophies and set the goals ever higher.

My price for this is great. A part of your heart and soul will remain, to be held in honor with those that came before and will come after, guarded behind my gates and silent towers. And you, you will be forever destined to return each summer, if only in your dreams.
Cecil Rhodes © 2008

by ak41 6/14/2017, 10:21 am

Cecil, thanks for your post and attachment. Well written and SO TRUE! My first time there was 2003, and every year since. Always amazed me how the feeling of coming "home" engulfs me when I pull into the entrance.
Al

by Neil H 6/14/2017, 12:46 pm

Well said Cecil,

There is a lot of History at Camp Perry and anyone that has ever gone there knows the feeling that you have described.

It is easy to get caught up in the politics of shooting these days, but going to Camp Perry is not about politics it's about shooting. Shooting there is the ultimate challenge, not just because of the history but because of Camp Perry's own soul. It challenges us every year to overcome the wind, rain, mud, heat, boaters, range stoppage (did I mention MUD) and that doesn't include our own self imposed pressures.

Camp Perry is about meeting new friends, seeing old friends and remembering the friends that can't make it anymore.

If the Bullseye shooting changes then so be it. If the National Championship location changes, then it changes. Just remember it will take another hundred years for new location to have it's own spirit like Camp Perry.

Camp Perry is and experience that all shooters should try to make.

See you there my Friends.

Neil Hays
(Charles Hays on the print outs)

by JayhawkNavy02 6/14/2017, 9:49 pm

I'll be there again as well! Look forward to seeing old faces!

by bogierich 6/15/2017, 1:18 pm

Myself, my assistant coach, our army of junior pistol shooters and a smattering of helpful parents will also be decending on Camp Perry once again this year. Looking forward to once again, emblazoning ourselves into the history of Camp Perry's traditions--especially being from New Jersey. See you all there.

by suzcarter 6/19/2017, 4:06 pm

Thank you Cecil! This is beautiful!

As someone who started at Camp Perry as a volunteer for several years (at 11 years old), who then came back as a competitor, this touched me. This is why we return. I will not make the trip this year, but I will come back.

by ted.carter.568 6/27/2017, 11:02 pm

Well said Cecil. I began my Camp Perry adventure in 1979 as a young Midshipman and returned as often as the Navy would let me. This year will be my first as a volunteer, and I look forward to experiencing Perry from a different perspective.

by CR10X 6/28/2017, 5:28 am

Thank you all for the comments. I'm headed to Canton and Perry again this year. Hope everyone that's traveling has a safe trip. Thanks to all the volunteers (they will really be needed this year.) For those that can't make it, I wish you good shooting too and maybe we'll see you all next year.

CR

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