March 30, 2013
Dear friends,
I am writing about the 73rd Black Hawk Open which, this year, will be fired on April 19, 20 and 21 at River Bend Gun Club in Dawsonville, GA. I am not writing as a Black Hawk Rifle Club officer or Black Hawk Open match official but rather as an interested BHRC member, Vice President of River Bend Gun Club and venue host of this year’s tournament.
This message is addressed to my entire smallbore prone e-mail distribution list (about 150 shooters and other interested parties) and some have probably already entered, some have likely decided not to attend and others may not even be active in smallbore prone anymore but I wanted to share this with as many people as possible.
For a variety of reasons, the leaders of BHRC decided it was time to move the Black Hawk Open venue and we at River Bend GC were delighted to be offered the opportunity to host such a prestigious tournament with so much rich history and tradition. RBGC is one of the largest (if not the largest) private gun club in the southeast with just under 1,700 members and one of the finest smallbore venues in the country. However, in preparation for the 73rd BHO, we have made it even better by expanding our Multi-purpose Range 2 (MP2) with an additional 2500 square feet to the existing 4500 square feet of paved space under insulated roof providing a convenient, pleasant and comfortable area for use by families, off-relay competitors, scoring, etc. There are two modern, clean restrooms at MP2 and two additional pairs of identical restrooms on the adjacent MP1 and Action Pistol Ranges within 100 yard of the center of MP2.
MP2 is equipped with 46 firing points under insulated cover with targets at 50 yards, 50 meters and 100 yards and wind flags on each firing point at 35 yards and 85 yards. And to top it off, David Dye has worked tirelessly for the past several months to design and build all new target frames and wind flags.
The north Georgia weather in mid-April is classically spring-like and extremely pleasant and I encourage you to plan to join us if you haven’t already decided to do so. The range capacity is 92 with two relays so we can accommodate everyone.
Friday, April 19, will include a practice session from 1:00 PM to 5:50 PM with a 60-shot metallic sight English Match fired beginning at 3:30 PM simultaneously with the practice session. The metallic sight 1600 begins at 9:00 AM on Saturday, April 20 and the Any Sight 1600 begins at 9:00 AM on Sunday, April 21.
For your convenience, I have attached PDF files containing the official match program, registration form and liability release form. These are also available at the BHRC website atwww.blackhawkrifleclub.org. Contact information for BHRC Executive Officer Walt Walter is in the attached program and all questions about the tournament, entries, etc. should be directed to him. However, please don’t hesitate to write or call me if you have questions about River Bend Gun Club, the MP2 range, directions, local accommodations, etc.
We at River Bend Gun Club are looking forward to hosting this great tradition for years to come and I hope that you will consider joining us at the RBGC inaugural. I hope to see you in three weeks.
