38 Canadian Brigade Group hits the target at Bisley, UK, shooting competition
August 12, 2024 - Cpl Rhett Pederson, North Saskatchewan Regiment
It was halfway through April 2024 on a parade night when the North Saskatchewan Regiment was looking for volunteers to participate in the Army Reserve Operational Shooting Competition in Bisley, United Kingdom.
Preparation was to begin at the start of May.
In total, 10 soldiers were selected to participate in Bisley: seven from the North Saskatchewan Regiment, one from 38 Combat Engineer Regiment, one from the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, and one from 10th Field Artillery Regiment. As a team we were taught by our staff to become proficient with our C7 rifles, C9 light machine guns, and our brand new C22 pistols.
In May at Canadian Forces Detachment Dundurn, we began training by focusing on marksmanship principles, short and long‑range shooting at elevated heart rates, moving targets, weapon transition drills, and how to adjust for wind, especially for longer distance shots.
In June, our team travelled to the UK where we stayed at the Macdonald Stewart Canadian Pavilion at Bisley. This house was constructed in 1897 with materials brought over from Canada and its intended purpose was to house the Dominion of Canada Rifle Association’s rifle team when competing in the annual UK National Rifle Association’s (NRA) shooting competition during the summer months.
We were greeted by British Army Major Niel Whitewick at the Canadian Pavilion. Maj Whitewick assisted the international teams with any general inquiries and showed us recorded videos from previous rifle competitions to help us prepare and take notes before each range day. Team Canada utilized these British ranges with the assistance of Maj Whitewick to prepare us for the upcoming competition.
The ranges at Bisley are impressive and vast in scope; that being said, some ranges had their setbacks. The largest range is the Century Range, built in 1890, which has an impressive 108 firing lanes stretching back to 600 yards. The downside to this range is the width of the range with regard to the wind: we had issues accounting for the strong crosswinds at the longer distances. There were other ranges that incorporated an electronic target system that could provide us with real‑time data on where shooters were placing their shots, although at times we encountered issues with the software.
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A Champions Chairs ceremony is held for the best shooters at the 2024 Bisley Shooting Competition.
Photos supplied
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Corporal Jamir Diaz of the North Saskatchewan Regiment won the top International Reserve Shooter award at the 2024 Bisley Shooting Competition.
Multiple ranges had firing trenches, which gave many of us on Team Canada a brand‑new firing position to contend with. We had to learn that shooting in a fire trench has the unintended consequence of placing our shots higher on our targets than anticipated. Another range incorporated horizontally moving targets, while other ranges incorporated timed pop‑up targets at various ranges. Overall, the ranges at Bisley were exciting to shoot at, although each one had its unique challenges.
While practising and eventually competing at these ranges, we had the opportunity to meet and visit with soldiers from the Netherlands and Oman. The Omanis were reserved and polite, and they were gracious by inviting us and the Dutch to an evening BBQ they hosted. However, during our days practising at the range and almost every evening, we Canadians bonded the most with the Dutch soldiers.
With the Dutch we shared stories, joked with one another, and eventually we were helping one another at the practice ranges by telling the shooter where they were placing their shots. The camaraderie between us and the Dutch would be hard to understate.
While we did not have the opportunity to visit with the British soldiers at the range when we were practising, we had the opportunity to visit with them during the days we competed against them.
Near the end of the competition, Team Canada hosted a BBQ where the Dutch, Omani and the British soldiers came to the Canadian Pavilion to eat, have a few drinks, and share stories of our time together at Bisley.
On our days off, we mainly travelled to London to see Buckingham Palace (along with the Canada Gate right beside the palace), the UK Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, the London Eye, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. We also had the opportunity to see the English Channel at Southampton, where the Titanic left on its maiden voyage to America in 1912. Lastly, we travelled to Winchester where we visited the 5th Battalion of The Rifles, who are the sister regiment of the North Saskatchewan Regiment.
At the end of our time in the UK, we spent roughly one week training on the range, one week competing, and one week touring the UK.
As for the Bisley competition, Team Canada placed second amongst the international teams in the UK NRA Methuen Cup and we placed second amongst the Reserve Force drop plates competition.
During the Bisley Awards Ceremony, Corporal Jamir Diaz was awarded the Top Reserve International Shooter Award. Out of the Top 50 shooters in the competition, Cpl Diaz placed 18th, Sergeant Ty Balych placed 25th, Cpl Cohen Hawreluik placed 35th, and Cpl Colby Boyer‑Chicoose placed 37th.
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Sergeant Ty Balych (left) of the North Saskatchewan Regiment exchanges rifles and poses with his British counterpart at the 2024 Bisley Shooting Competition.
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Members of 38 Canadian Brigade Group's shooting team run across the range in one of their relays at the 2024 Bisley Shooting Competition.
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