2006 SSAA National Lever Action Championships
30 September to 1 October 2006
With the short notice given for the relocation of the 2006 National Lever Action Championships to SSAA Brisbane, Queensland, special thanks most go to all those shooters who made the effort and travelled to the shoot. The competition was held over the weekend of the 30th September and the 1st October 2006. From the first target shot it could be seen that it was going to be a close competition.
The first competition on the calendar was the National Rimfire with a total of 34 competitors lining up for a chance at the title and a medal. Halfway through the competition, there were only 6 points separating the first seven shooters. It was still close going into the last two targets and at eh end there was only 3 points separating the top four shooters. The ladies contest was a bit more even to start with and through the course of the competition the lead changed several times and at the end, only 3 points separated first and second.
| National Rimfire | |||||||||
| Open | Ladies | ||||||||
| 1 | Steve Nicholas | SA | 468.3 | 1 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 386.1 | ||
| 2 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 467.3 | 2 | Karen Cross | NSW | 383.1 | ||
| 3 | David McCarthy | SA | 466.4 | 3 | Sue Knapp | WA | 369.4 | ||
| AAA Grade | AA Grade | ||||||||
| 1 | Steve Nicholas | SA | 468.3 | 1 | Rod Shannon | Qld | 458.4 | ||
| 2 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 467.3 | 2 | Kevin Barrington | ACT | 449.4 | ||
| 3 | David McCarthy | SA | 466.4 | 3 | Gordon Robertson | Qld | 446.3 | ||
| A Grade | B Grade | ||||||||
| 1 | Allan MacDonald | Qld | 405 | 1 | Robert Shannon | Qld | 433.2 | ||
| 2 | Richard Cains | Tas | 400 | 2 | Richard Watson | NSW | 398.1 | ||
| 3 | Karen Cross | NSW | 383.1 | 3 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 386.1 | ||
| C Grade | Juniors | ||||||||
| 1 | Alex Buchanan | Qld | 358 | 1 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 119 | ||
| 2 | Peter Kenneally | ACT | 337.3 | ||||||
| 3 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 119 | ||||||
All the old calibre lever action rifles were brought out for the next competition. This was the National Classic Calibre event with 30 competitors fronting the firing line for the chance to be the National Classic Calibre Champion. There was a rush right from the start with a few competitors in with a chance, but as the shoot progressed a clear leader in Dave McCarthy was emerging. A couple of the other competitors tried to make up the gap but Dave kept his cool and his scores reasonable for each target which in the end gave a 23 point buffer over second place. Again the ladies competition was more evenly contested with Sue Knapp managing to keep up the pace and win by 20 points from her nearest rival.
| National Classic Calibre | |||||||||
| Open | Ladies | ||||||||
| 1 | Dave McCarthy | SA | 293.3 | 1 | Sue Knapp | WA | 174.1 | ||
| 2 | Rowan Hughes | Qld | 270.6 | 2 | Karen Cross | NSW | 154.2 | ||
| 3 | Kevin Barrington | ACT | 263.4 | 3 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 115.1 | ||
| AAA Grade | AA Grade | ||||||||
| 1 | Dave McCarthy | SA | 293.3 | 1 | Bill McCarthy | SA | 252.5 | ||
| 2 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 245.5 | ||||||
| A Grade | B Grade | ||||||||
| 1 | Rowan Hughes | Qld | 270.6 | 1 | Richard Cains | Tas | 236.2 | ||
| 2 | Kevin Barrington | ACT | 263.4 | 2 | Mike Sheldon | Qld | 233.2 | ||
| 3 | Greg Buchanan | Qld | 259.2 | 3 | Rod Bullen | Qld | 231.1 | ||
| C Grade | Juniors | ||||||||
| 1 | Det Stolpe | SA | 226.5 | 1 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 17 | ||
| 2 | Glen Loveday | Qld | 222.1 | ||||||
| 3 | Mark Whiting | Qld | 218.1 | ||||||
The next day saw the start of the National Centrefire event with 34 competitors lining up for the honours. After the first 2 targets, there were approximately 5 of the shooters making a good start. Over the next 6 targets the competition opened up with a clear leader emerging but with several shooters in a close tussle for the minor places. The last two targets were shot and David McCarthy took it out by 17 points with only 5 points separating the next three shooters. The ladies competition was a bit more interesting for the first stages with the winner being decided over the last two targets as well. Hazel Bozic managed to take this out by a margin of 2 points.
| National Centrefire | |||||||||
| Open | Ladies | ||||||||
| 1 | David McCarthy | SA | 460.1 | 1 | Hazel Bozic | Qld | 376.2 | ||
| 2 | Norm Coon | WA | 443.7 | 2 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 374.3 | ||
| 3 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 441.13 | 3 | Karen Cross | NSW | 365.4 | ||
| AAA Grade | AA Grade | ||||||||
| 1 | David McCarthy | SA | 460.1 | 1 | Norm Coon | WA | 443.7 | ||
| 2 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 441.13 | 2 | Kevin Barrington | ACT | 436.3 | ||
| 3 | Steve Nicholas | SA | 438.7 | 3 | Greg Buchanan | Qld | 431.3 | ||
| A Grade | B Grade | ||||||||
| 1 | Jim Ellis | NSW | 427.5 | 1 | Rod Bullen | Qld | 407.3 | ||
| 2 | Richard Cains | Tas | 389.1 | 2 | Mike Sheldon | Qld | 398.1 | ||
| 3 | Hazel Bozic | Qld | 376.2 | 3 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 374.3 | ||
| C Grade | Juniors | ||||||||
| 1 | Alex Buchanan | Qld | 357.1 | 1 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 90 | ||
| 2 | Peter Kenneally | ACT | 284.2 | ||||||
| 3 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 90 | ||||||
When the scorers were totalling the final scores and working out the 2- and 3-Gun results, the national team’s event was conducted. The teams are made up of four shooters with each member shooting one target each, and then each target for the team added together.
| National 2-Gun | National 3-Gun | |||||||
| Open | Open | |||||||
| 1 | David McCarthy | SA | 926.14 | 1 | David McCarthy | SA | 1219.17 | |
| 2 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 908.16 | 2 | Don Chesworth | NSW | 1153.21 | |
| 3 | Steve Nicholas | SA | 906.10 | 3 | Kevin Barrington | ACT | 1148.11 | |
| Ladies | Ladies | |||||||
| 1 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 760.4 | 1 | Karen Cross | NSW | 902.7 | |
| 2 | Karen Cross | NSW | 748.5 | 2 | Sue Knapp | WA | 889.9 | |
| 3 | Hazel Bozic | Qld | 726.2 | 3 | Rhonda Cains | Tas | 875.5 | |
| Juniors | Juniors | |||||||
| 1 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 209 | 1 | Kylie Loveday | Qld | 226 | |
| National Team | ||
| 1 | South Australia | 189.3 |
| 2 | Queensland | 184.3 |
| 3 | New South Wales | 169.1 |
| 4 | Australian Capital Territory | 169 |
| 5 | Tasmania | 153.4 |
| 6 | Western Australia | 134.3 |
The National 2-Gun is the competition of the scores from the National Rimfire and Centrefire competitions, with the National Classic Calibre scores added to this to decide the National 3-Gun.
The winner of the National Champions Jacket, for the sixth year in a row, was David McCarthy from South Australia. Thanks must be given to Winchester Australia, Rebel Gun Works, Qld Gun Exchange and all the other business’ for their generous support in donating prizes to go with the National medals.
On behalf of all the competitors thanks must be given to Ted Hancox and all the hard working volunteers for their time and effort; and the work carried out before, during and after the actual shooting. Without these hard working people, competitions such as the Nationals would not be the success that they are.
The 2007 SSAA National Lever Action Championships will be held in Queensland at the SSAA Sunshine Coast’s Davidson Range and I hope to see you all there.
by Don Ruwoldt
National Lever Action chairman