KUWAIT CITY, Sept 16: “Presence of mind” was what  was needed Tuesday night at the Mayadeen Shooting Range in Subhan when the Filipino Action Shooting Team (FAST) came up with another Fun Shooting Competition. Dave B. showed that he had all that was required and even more as he finished on top of the event after shrugging off competition from other shooters, especially Lambert Bernardo who finished second. This event was supported by Gen. Ahmed Al Saleem and sponsored by Western Union Money Transfer. All the competitors were required to  use a CZ 75, 9mm pistol with 10 stationary targets to be tackled and condition 3  being applied- -magazine not inserted and the event guided by 2008 IPSC rules.

All the competitors were required to be seated on a chair in the center of the arena and upon an audible signal the shooter needed  to grab a gun lying on a table,  insert the magazine and shoot at 2 objects from  a distance of 10 meters in double tap, although the freestyle mode was used by  most of the shooters, starting  comfortably from the left side where 3 targets were posted at 10 meters behind a fence. They were then required to move toward the middle targets were they needed to engage  2 objects placed below 2 targets. They were initially required to shoot from  behind a fence but from  a distance of 5 meters along with 1 middle target that had a barrier. Some of the shooters found   this situation  quite “confusing or deceiving” and as a result a  number of the competitors  failed to engage these  objects.  

Meanwhile, the last 2 targets were located at a  distance of 7 meters and the competitors were  required  to engage these  through a tyre from a  prone, kneeling or any other position which  the competitor found  comfortable.  The result of these tough rules saw a new name on top of the lists this week as Dave B. acquired the highest honor when displayed some real class and collected 16 Alpha, 2 Charlie and missed one shot in  30.55 seconds that saw  him walk  home with a 2.520 point average.

Lambert Bernardo,  who has enjoyed a good run recently and was the best for the last 2 weeks,  finished  2nd best this week when he gathered a 2.365 point average through 8 Alpha, 6 Charlie and 6 Delta in a time  of 27.05 seconds.
Nestor Castillo joined the “Tough 3” when he appeared  to be in his best form and quick on his feet when he completed the course in 37.40 seconds and while hitting  15 Alpha, 1 Bravo, 3 Charlie and missing a shot that gave him a 2.219 point average.
Meanwhile, Mr. C came out like a raging bull this week to prove that he is not slow on his feet to finish the quest in  39.62 seconds and this speed  did not at any point affect his keen eye for  the target when he collected  10 Alpha, 8 Charlie and 2 Delta that saw him comfortably seated in 4th place with a 1.915 point average.
FAST Auditor Ali Aligaen hung on in the “Magical 5”, after donning    ready and wear comfortable joggers and knee pads since he was  aware that every week there is  a creative scenario and he would require the right equipment  to be  competitive. The move seemed to pay off as  Aligaen managed to acquire 11 Alpha, 12 Charlie, 3 Delta and missed 2 in  30.44 seconds that gave him a  1.616 average point.

On the other hand, it was not a good night for Orly Ancheta when he consumed 51.90 seconds due to a “jammed” gun. In spite of this problem he  still came up with a 0.847 point average consisting  of 9 Alpha, 5 Charlie, 4 Delta and 2 missed  shots.
Newcomer Arnold proved that he is not new to the game when he accomplished a 0.790 point average based on  8 Alpha, 8 Charlie 3 Delta and 1 missed   shot although it took him quite sometime to finish — 72.09 seconds.
Amin Ahmed Amin did not appear  to be in his best shape when he placed 2nd from the bottom of the table after  he gathered a 0.724 point average  thru 7 Alpha, 5 Charlie, 5 Delta and 3 missed  shots  in 34.57 seconds.
FAST Treasurer, Chito Lamigo did not go home empty handed when he gained a  .120 point average composed of 7 Alpha, 3 Charlie, 5 Charlie and 5 missed   shots in 41.64 seconds.    
There were number of competitors  who failed to acquire any points,  namely Jojo Arciaga and Jerry, and the result showed that    they need to work on their precision and speed although they were able to complete the course smoothly without any procedural  errors.

Another newcomer Larry Carson failed to change the magazine while going through the course and collected  a number of procedural errors while Raja Sulaiman seem to be “baffled” by the rules and shot 4 times at  the middle target and there were no bullets left to engage  the last few targets resulting in him failing  to collect any points. On the other hand, there was another special participation of one first class range officers Eric Ragma. He  also took part in the event although his scores were not counted  and came up once again with flying colors. He  compiled a 4.031 point average based on  14 Alpha, 1 Bravo and 5 Charlie and running  like a bullet   he finished the course  in 21.83 seconds.  According, to Ragma the course was  quite deceptive  that resulted in  a lot of excess shooting at the  two top objects  of  the center target. Although the best shots were  counted the extra shots were  considered as “missed” and this   spoilt the scores of some of the competors.

More fascinating scenarios are  expected again next week when FAST arranges another “tricky” course of fire that tests the wits, accuracy and speed of gunslingers. FAST organizers would like to thank their sponsor Vangie Gernale and Marimel Labastida from Western Union Money Transfer. FAST officials, with the support of Gen. Ahmed Al Saleem, would like to invite everyone to their weekly “Fun Shoot” on Tuesday from 2000-2300 hours. For details contact: Butch Alinea-99816563 and FAST Adviser Manny Cornelio- 6673-7298.

By Jose Gabriel
Special to the Arab Times