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« on: November 08, 2024, 08:15:49 PM »
Hello everyone, I am pleased to bring some exciting news to you today as I introduce a new bench rest association here in Canada, the Southern Alberta Bench Rest Association, SABRA. This is going to be a lengthy post, but I hope you will take the time to read it through, and that you are excited about this development as well.
There has been discussion of starting a group like this for approximately two years now, in early October several of us met in Lethbridge to have the first meeting and get the ball rolling. We have been in discussion with members and leadership of the BRSC and are happy to have their support and look forward to working together.
Who are we?
A simple association has been established, it consists of seven members, all of whom are local to Lethbridge and most of whom are BRSC members and active competitors. The three-member executive is:
Tony Jansma, chair. Email: chair.sabra@gmail'dot'com
Tony began shooting the Lethbridge BR for score league 8 years ago. Many of those years he included his three daughters and one son, many hours at the reloading bench for multiple shooters and guns resulted in several awards for him and the kids over the years. The past few years have seen Tony fall deep down the BR rabbit hole, he now owns several competition guns and recently a rail gun. This past year saw Tony starting to travel to matches in Canada and the U.S.
Kelly Norgard, secretary. Email: secretary.sabra@gmail'dot'com
Several years of hunter and hunter varmint class in the Lethbridge score league led to the purchase of a LV competition rifle and everything that goes with it. Kelly has attended matches at Rosebud for two years and looks forward to attending matches in other provinces.
Madeline Balla, treasurer. Email: treasurer.sabra@gmail'dot'com
Madeline has been the organizer of the Lethbridge BR score league and the Frank Leffingwell Memorial match for many years in Lethbridge. One of her many roles for the Lethbridge Fish and Game Association has been that of treasurer, the role she eagerly accepted for the new SABRA group as well.
The remaining four members are long time, active members of the LFGA, and active competitors and members with BRSC, they are eager to get this new chapter started. They are Dean Weger, Dave Fisher, Tim Janzen, and Dwayne Rogness.
The SABRA group has two primary goals; promote and grow BR shooting in Southern Alberta, and bring a new range into the rotation, a place where sanctioned matches can be held. We feel there are people in Southern Alberta that could get excited and interested in BR shooting if they gain some exposure to what we do.
The original thought was that the Lethbridge range would be the host location for SABRA, we have not entirely closed the door on that possibility, but after having a tour of the MD of Taber Sport Shooting Complex, the decision was quickly made to pursue this as our likely location. A meeting with the promotional coordinator of the Taber range proved to be very promising, the Taber range is less than 10 years old, and they are excited at the opportunity to be involved and host matches. It is an ideal range setup, very well constructed, and they have expressed an eagerness to work with us on any changes that might be needed for adequate target holders, cleaning benches, and reloading facilities.
I am almost finished, hang in there!
We have several goals for the coming year, some of them have financial considerations and limitations, while others are dependent on the coordination of time, materials, and work. A simplified version of what we hope to accomplish this year is:
-Build a portable target and backer system.
-Build cleaning benches at the Taber range.
-Hold a small 1-day match to test everything.
-Host a sanctioned group match.
One of the main talking points in the past two years has been that of the backer system that is needed to host group matches. Last year BRSC purchased a ShotMarker system (digital target). They have tested it, as have we in Lethbridge, the consensus is that this system can act as a backer for a registered match.
Thanks to generous donations from the BRSC executive and an active member, several SABRA board members, and the Southern Alberta Rifleman?s Association (SARA), we have already ordered four ShotMarker systems. This will allow us to have sixteen shooters per relay, which works with the number of benches in both Taber and Lethbridge. We are in the early stages of designing a frame that is both sturdy and portable.
Another big expense we are facing is the purchase of an enclosed trailer that can act as transportation and storage for the target boards.
Other immediate needs include raw materials for the target boards and frames, as well as welding and constructing possibly.
Here is where you come in, if you would like to support us and help with any of these goals, we would love to hear from you!
Several people have expressed interest in helping with the expenses, we are most grateful, and anything will help. A bank account has been set up in the name of the association, EMT donations can be accepted as direct deposit. All donations and expenses will be monitored by the executive and approved by the board. The email address for donations is: treasurer.sabra@gmail'dot'com . (you need to correct the 'dot' to . )
If you have materials that might be useful in constructing target frames, or a great idea on how to design them, let us know.
If you want to help with some work party days, we can certainly let you know the when and where.
We hope you are all as excited about this as we are, if you have any questions or suggestions, please let us know.
Thank you,
SABRA
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Would love to add another March scope to the fleet someday, and a 1K gift card would be a big help! Much thanks to Doug for this donation!
