RIFLE SHOOTING.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1685, 27 February 1913, Page 6

RIFLE SHOOTING.

TRENTHAM, 1913. ENTRIES AND PROSPECTS, (By Telegraph.—Special Boporte.:.) • Trnntham, February 26. Everything augurs veil for a very ,successful opening of the Dominion Rifle Association's meeting at Trentha'm today, All day yesterday competitors were arriving in camp, and, up 1 ill a Into hour, over 350 entries had been received. This. is about' fifty inoro than Inst year, but it is expected that the total will reach 380. Host of tho entrants are rifle club men, but a fair number of territorial uniforms are to I>3 seen. Many of the Territorials had not been armed with rifles until comparatively recently, andit was only natural to assumo that entries from tho military quarter would not bo large. ■ . All arrangements for tho opening are complete, and therefore a clean start will bo made, this morning. It is always gratifying to iiee tyros at a riflo meeting, for it shows that interest in' the sport of shooting is increasing. About eighty tyros havo entered for tho New Zealand Bisley. Colonel R. .'f. Collins, Chief Executive Oflicer of the Dominion Riflo Association, who, as formerly, will control the meeting, arrived .it Trentham last night, along with other officers who are to assist. At 8.30 this morning tho competitors will fall in. at the squadding posts, when rifles will be examined and triggers tested. Colonel Collins will then address the men, and shooting is'to commence at 9 | o'clock with the loophole cover, match and rapid shooting match. .Match No. 5 [(snap shooting) will Ixs begun at 11 a.m., 'and Match 2 (vanishing target match) at 1.20 p.m. This will comprise a very fair programme for tho day. _To-day, to-morrow, and Saturday will be occupied in service and team matches, and, all being favourable, tho bolt sprits will bo entered upon on Monday. Tho i service series are optional to' men of over thirty years of age, but, Inst year, when they were compulsory to nil; competitors did not take kindly to them. However, a pleasing-rand perhaps whimsical—feature this year is that a very large percentage of : tho entrants have. decided to fire right through the servico matches. The weather conditions augur well for a practically perfect day to-day. The sky is almc6t perfectly clear, and' there is scarcely a breath of wind, but, of all ranges, Trentham is the trickiest, and anyone who to prophesy with accuracy what tho wind is going to bo like for. so brief a period as five minutes in tho future would assuredly have no honour amongst riflemen.