Tamworth Peel Valley Rifle club president Peter Barnier (left) and club member Dick Letchford setting up new targets for the 20th Annual Service Rifle Shoot. Photo: Geoff O’Neill 131012GOC02
PETER Barnier is good at setting up targets but even better at hitting them.
The Tamworth farmer has won many major shoots across the country and, while he’s one of the best shooters around, he’s also president of the Tamworth and Peel Valley Rifle Club.
That means he might run the shoots but it also means he gets in and helps out setting up the club range to make it it neat, tidy and functional as possible.
Especially for big shoots like this weekend’s 20th Annual Service Rifle Shoot.
Target repairs, mowing, you name it – it comes with the shooting territory.
“It’s a busy weekend, Saturday and Sunday,” he said.
“We’ve got most of the work done at our working bees the last few weekends.”
He said the Services Rifle Shoot starts around 8am Saturday and runs both days with the various divisions.
He’s been shooting”pretty well all my life”.
“I’ve won a few things,” the modest shooter said.
“It’s been good to me too. They are a good bunch of blokes out there.”
He said changes in rifles used over the years had been dramatic and he reckons the change in targets, also, has made the sport more challenging.