National Trophy Individual Rifle Match
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| SSG Norman Anderson is congratulated by the new Ohio Adjutant General, Major General Greg Wayt, for winning the 2004 National Trophy Individual Match. General Wayt is holding the Daniel Boone Trophy plaque; Anderson is holding the M1 Garand presentation rifle featuring the gunsmithing skills of Eric Pierce, National Match Armory.
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The winds came off of Lake Erie early on the day of the National Trophy Individual Match and then the rain came from the west. The combination of these two had quite an impact on the National Trophy Individual Rifle Match at the 2004 National Rifle Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio. Off and on throughout the day, with more on than off, shooters were plagued by gusts of up to 25 mph and rain pelting them from nearly all sides. Equipment got wet, the ground was wet and shooters were soaked. Less than half way through the 50-shot event, firing was stopped because of torrential rains. Two hours later an attempt was made to restart the match, but Match Director Jim Hill and DCM Gary Anderson made the decision to halt firing for the day because by then the winds coming off of Lake Erie were so strong it was difficult to keep targets in the frames and there was a real danger of someone in the pits being injured. A valiant attempt was made to complete firing on the following afternoon, but with darkness setting in and firing clearances expiring, the match had to be called before all competitors could complete 600 yard firing. CMP rules allow for a shortened course of fire; the 2004 National Trophy Individual Match was shortened to include just 30 shots since all competitors were able to complete 200 and 300 yard firing.
Surprisingly for a match that was so plagued by high winds, rain and light problems, there were good scores posted and a new Daniel Boone Trophy winner was crowned.
A perfect score for the National Trophy Individual Match is 500-50X. While no one has ever fired such a score, winning scores are usually within a stone’s throw of this score. In 2003, Staff Sergeant Jerome Bostick, USMC fired a 496-24x to win the Daniel Boone Trophy. With the abbreviated course of fire of this year’s match, a perfect score of 300-30X was the highest that could be fired. Amidst the rain and the wind, Staff Sergeant Norman Anderson of the Army Marksmanship Unit was able to fire a score of 298-11X to best all others and earn a spot for his name on the coveted trophy. SSG Anderson received a plaque commemorating the achievement, as well as an M1 Garand presentation rifle prepared by Eric Pierce of the National Match Armory, Rendon, Texas. The Nathan Hale Trophy, an award given to the highest scoring civilian in the match, was awarded to James O’Connell of Alameda, California for his score of 296-9X. John Coggshall of Meriden, Connecticut earned the distinction of high junior competitor in the match with his score of 294-7X. For his efforts, John will have his name engraved upon the Golden Eagle Trophy.
An interesting sidelight to the National Trophy Individual Rifle Match story is the fact the match winner, SSG Norman Anderson, is a product of one of the outstanding state junior highpower programs that supports the National Matches. Anderson first competed at Camp Perry as a member of the Illinois State Rifle Association Hard Dog Juniors who received support from the CMP National Match Junior Highpower Support Program, attended the USMC Junior Rifle Clinic and competed in the Whistler Boy and National Trophy Team Matches while representing ISRA Hard Dog teams.
National Trophy Team Match
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| The USAMU (Army) Praslick Team won the National Trophy as the high overall team in the National Trophy Team Match.
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The National Trophy Team Match was held two days later, and while the wind from two days prior was still around to cause trouble, thankfully the rain had abated and the match could be conducted without a hitch. Riding high on the success of one of their members in the National Trophy Individual Match, it was the USAMU-Praslick team that walked off the range in the top spot on the leader board. Firing members SSG Norman Anderson, SGT Lance Hopper, SSG Timothy Manges, SSG Tobie Tomlinson, SFC Kyle Ward, SGT Grant Singley (former National Champion) fired an aggregate score of 2889-92X to place their name on the famous National Trophy, otherwise known as the “Dogs of War” trophy. The National Trophy was commissioned by the U. S. Congress and approved by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 when the National Matches were created. The Army Team Captain was SSG Jason St. John; their Team Coach was SSG Emil Praslick, III.
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| The six highest scoring civilian competitors in the National Trophy Team Match and the coach and captain of the winning civilian team are honored as the “National Civilian Team.” 2004 team members were: Michael Harpster, Richard Whiting, Robert Modica, Greg Hutchinson, Julie Coggshall and Paul Kerr. The Team Coach is Bruce Kraft and the Team Captain is Julian Alfonso, both from the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association - Adelson.
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Not far behind the USAMU Praslick team was the All-Guard Morgan team in second place. Their aggregate score of 2881-85X was enough to win the Hilton Trophy (the second oldest trophy in the National Trophy Collection), as the top Reserve Component Team in the National Trophy Team Match. The Soldier of Marathon Trophy (the oldest trophy in the National Trophy Collection) was awarded to the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association-Adelson team as the high civilian team in the match. Their score of 2861-73X was also enough to earn them the fourth place overall out of the 61 teams in competition. In the junior ranks, it was the North Carolina Rifle and Pistol Association team placing their name on the Minuteman Trophy as the high junior team in the match with their score of 2810-48X.
National Trophy Infantry Team “Rattle Battle” Match
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| USAMU Praslick won the Infantry Trophy as the top team in the National Trophy Infantry Team Match. Team members were: SSG Norman Anderson, SSG Michael LaRuffa, SSG Timothy Manges, SGT Grant Singley, SSG Jason St. John and SFC Kyle Ward. SGT Lance Hopper was the Team Captain and Team Coach was SSG Emil Praslick III.
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The day of the National Trophy Infantry Team Match proved to be picture perfect – a far cry from earlier in the week when ponchos and umbrellas were all that could be seen on the firing and ready lines. On Rattle Battle day, the sun was warm, the rain was gone and the wind was manageable. Yet, there was one thing eerily familiar at the end of the day…the Army Marksmanship Unit Praslick Team was at the top of the scoreboard, among its members, the National Champion SSG Norman Anderson! In an effort reminiscent of Marine Corps’ achievements in the 2003 National Rifle Matches, the USAMU team was able to take nearly every trophy they were eligible for in the 2004 National Rifle Matches. The USAMU-Praslick team fired a total score of 1385 to win the fabled Infantry Trophy.
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| The Virginia Firearm Education and Marksmanship Inc. won the Leatherneck Trophy as the high civilian team and had the second highest overall in the Infantry Team Match. Team members were: John Addair, John Boynton, Clyde Bryant, Jackie McKinney, James Russell, Gregory Spitzer. Team Captain was Claire Carlson and Team Coach was Bert Rollins.
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Forty-three points behind the USAMU team, in second place, was the Virginia Firearms Education and Marksmanship Inc. team with their score of 1342. The Virginia team was the highest placing civilian team in this match in recent memory. Massachusetts and Nebraska civilian teams won this match in 1929 and 1930; since then no civilian team has ever won this match or placed so high. The top junior team in the Infantry Team Match was the team of Wisconsin Rifle and Pistol Association Juniors with a score of 933.
For complete results of the matches above, refer to the CMP webpage at http://clubs.odcmp.com/cgi-bin/report_matchResult.cgi?matchID=346. |
