Viale Pits Construction Continues on Schedule - Nearly 70 percent of construction on the new Viale Range berm and pits is complete and the project is still on course for its June completion deadline. Pylons are in place, concrete has been poured, and dirt is being replaced to backfill the berm. Reconstruction began last September on Viale Range’s badly degraded berm and pits. Also the target carriers which been in place since the range was first established in 1907 are being updated. The project is scheduled to be completed prior to the start of the 2006 National Matches.

2006 Eastern Region JROTC Air Rifle Championship - On February 9th-11th 213 individuals and teams representing 58 different Army, Marine Corps and Navy JROTC units went shoulder-to-shoulder in the 2006 Eastern Region JROTC Air Rifle Championships. The three-in-one match determined Army, Marine Corps and Navy JROTC team and individual champions for their Eastern Regions as well as who from each service would advance from the Eastern Region to the National JROTC Air Rifle Championship in March.

CMP Presents $190,000 Check to Ohio National Guard - The Civilian Marksmanship Program presented a $190,000 check to the Ohio National Guard Adjutant General’s Department on 3 February. The check was the CMP’s contribution towards the completion of a new recreational vehicle park that the Ohio Guard is constructing at Camp Perry. The 40-space RV park is scheduled to be completed in time for 2006 National Matches competitors to utilize for their RVs or trailers while they are at Camp Perry. The park is part of a Camp Perry long range plan that calls for replacing and upgrading competitor housing.

CMP Hires Camp Riflery Manager - The CMP is proud to announce the hiring of Jeff Williams as its new Camp Riflery Manager. CMP Director Gary Anderson said, “we consider this a major step forward in our efforts to strengthen, improve and expand our Camp Riflery Program.” The CMP is developing a comprehensive Camp Riflery Program that offers instructor training courses and training curriculum for camp riflery instructors and counselors. The CMP program is designed to serve summer camps that offer marksmanship as part of their program as well as to assist other camps in getting new riflery programs started.

A First for North Carolina - Not only is Thurman Horner a Distinguished Rifleman, the North Carolina native holds the honor of being the first civilian to earn the Badge in the Tar Heel State. Born and raised in Oxford, North Carolina, Horner’s first exposure to shooting sports came at the age of 11 when he started shooting .22 cal rifles. In 1944 he joined the NRA as a junior, and the following year he enlisted in the Marine Corps. Once in the Marines, Horner earned an extra five dollars a month for his expert qualification with a service rifle, but that was the extent of his marksmanship career until he attended his first competition at Camp Perry, OH in 1964.

The CMP Rifle Instruction Guide - It was over three years in the works but the CMP Rifle Instruction Guide is finally completed. This instruction manual designed for rifle shooters and coaches is a collected series by the Director of the Civilian Marksmanship Program, Gary Anderson. The series originally appeared in the CMP’s Newsletter for Coaches and Junior Marksmen, On the Mark formerly JSCN News, in a series of columns titled Instructor’s Notebook, Teaching Rifle Marksmanship. These articles were addressed directly to instructors and coaches of three-position rifle shooters. This material has now been adapted for a wider audience to include junior and adult shooters in addition to coaches and instructors.

Snow Shoot Matches Provide Shooters an Escape from Cabin Fever - For some shooters, winter is considered the off-season. For others the snowy ranges present an opportunity for a unique annual match. This was the case at the Southern Michigan Gun Club in Kalamazoo, Michigan who just hosted their sixth annual Snow Shoot, a CMP M1 Garand, Springfield, and Vintage Military Rifle Match. “When we started it was really just an excuse to shoot in the middle of winter,” said John Hughes, who was one of the six participants in the club’s inaugural Snow Shoot in 2001. “It was not very formal the first year, it was just a few of us in our period uniforms, shooting vintage rifles,” said Hughes.

CMP North Store Draws in an Array of Visitors - During the National Matches competitors from all across the country flood the CMP North store in search of M1 Garand rifles and other CMP memorabilia before they make their journey home. But it is not only the summer that attracts crowds to Camp Perry, throughout the year the CMP store averages over 200 customers a week. Of those visitors, over half live outside the State of Ohio.

Selected Anschütz Rifles Now Available through CMP Affiliate Rifle Sales - The CMP recently concluded a new agreement that will add selected Anschütz rifles to its Affiliate Rifle Sales Program. Now, target rifles made by the famed German arms maker that are especially suitable as club and team rifles and for new and intermediate level shooters can be purchased from the CMP at special club prices. For the first time, the CMP now offers a smallbore target rifle other than the government surplus target rifles that it sold previously.