Dave, you are so right, time really does fly. Do you realize it has been 37 or 38 years since you and I started competing in the inter provincial rifle competitions, and of course loading our own shells. One of the major competitors was Herb, the park warden for Wells Gray Park. I wonder if you remember him?
When I think of reloading for competitions, I can't help but think of him. At the evening social get togther he would sit at a picnic table around the cooling barbique and the campfire and reload his ammo for the next day's shoot. He used a little Lyman 310 tong tool, with some kind of a scoop for measuring and getting the powder in the cases.
I have heard it said that when one is reloading, he/she should concentrate on what they are doing and have no other distractions. I guess Herb had never heard of this. He was a super great story teller. And all the while he reloaded he would tell stories, usually about something to do with the park, always with an unusual and unexpected ending. A crowd of at least 50 people would sit silently, totally engrossed in his stories!
The next day his ammunition would perform flawlessly.
Here he is pictured letting my youngest son use his rifle and coaching him to
finishing in first place in the peewee division. Only the peewee division could rest the rifle, everyone else had to shoot without resting the rifle. The peewees did shoot to the regular 300 yards, though.
Dark Alley Dan, who is also on these threads, shot in that class, too. Except, sorry Dan, but I just have to say it, he concentrated more on the girls in the shooting division than he did on his shooting!
Not that old to me either Bruce, but you know, when you started reloading before the majority of the posters on here were born, old is a relative thing! I can remember buying old surplus H4895 and H4831 repackaged from bulk in paper bags. I think I paid around 75 cents a pound for it that way. I have a box of 30-30 ammo here [Dominion] that has a price tag on it for $2.49. I'll bet they still go bang! too. Regards, Dave.
