discipline. The following year under the Captaincy of Nigel Swanwick the
club continued in its progressive course and was represented on the
D.U.C.A.C. committee directly by Dave FitzPatrick and indirectly by Joe
Grant. This season saw the beginning of our now annual matches against
the Fencing Club.
In November 1984 there began the long and still unresolved saga of
exploding ammunition with a particularly notorious batch of ammunition
managing to blow the extraction clips from two of our rifles and a further
three in other clubs.
By Janurary 1985 the club decided to get some professional
coaching and on the Air Rifle field Debbie Wilson provided the expertise.
At various other times our gunsmith Dave Cooney and our ex-member
Philip Duggan have been amongst those who kindly made their knowledge
and experience available to us. By this time the club had two qualified
coaches of its own -namely Ian Elliott and Joe Corbett.
Janurary 1985 saw another of the D.U.R.C. mysteries with the first
tea chest of shells going missing the second one disappeared the following
year. In October of that year it was noted that "due to the dubious
acquisition of shooting equipment at recent shoots there may be no need to
apply to D.U.C.A.C. for equipment grants."
In 1985 D.U.R.C. hosted two separate National championships,
playing host to the Target Rifle Indoor Nationals in March, and those for
Air Rifle in May. Work began in Janurary '86 to construct our 6 yard Air
Rifle range.
The 1986 season under the Captaincy of Miss Jane Keane saw a very
large membership -in excess of 250 -and a remarkable standard of
shooting, so much so in fact that the Competition Secretary Joe Corbett
remarked in his annual report that it would be "a hard year to follow.".
In this context the standard this year must be seen as a tremendous
achievement, given that the standard of marksmanship, interest and
enthusiesm has reached an all time high.
At last year's A.G.M. constitutional provision was made to increase
the number of Range Officers from 12 to 15 in anticipation of a buisy
season ahead. In this past year D.U.R.C. has sent a team to the Scottish
Nationals and more recently to Oxford, where the team which put in a very
creditable score were narrowly defeated by an O.U.R.C. team in superb
form.
In this our Twenty Fifth year the club has really come into its own;
and things which for the past few years have been merely talked about
have finally been achieved. We have managed lately to obtain our sweat
shirts and a special commemorative badge to mark our Silver Jubilee year
has been produced.
This year's Range Officers have proven themselves game for
anything. We have shot more disciplines than ever before, -apart from our
normal Target Rifle, Sporting Rifle and Air Rifle the "Oxford Team" shot
Fullbore at Bisley and during the year one or two have tried their hand at
Shotgun (for "Sport Aid") and Pistol in England. Ent.husiesm has never ~e:en
as high and D.U.R.C. have been represented at virtually every competition
in whatever discipline over the last year. This year's motto would appear
to be "let's do it !"
Sadly this year we shall loose our hard working Treasurer Gerry (B)
Haskins -who concieved of and organised our verry successful Twenty
Fifth Anniversary Open;- which has attracted the largest entry of any
Target Rifle shoot anywhere in the country in many years. We shall also be
very sorry to see Miss Barbara Prole leave us; -She apart from serving as
an extremely competent and attractive Secretary, has been a driving force
behind many of our achievements to date and has served as an
incomparable ambassador for the club.
This year saw D.U.R.C. represented on all the National Shooting
bodies. William J. Walsh being elected Vice Chairman of the National
Association of Sporting Rifle Clubs (N.A.S.R.C.) and as a member of the
Executive Committee of the N.R.P.A.I., while Albert J. Jordan was elected