Wallace Pistol Challenge Tests Shooting Skills on WFF Ranges

By DAVID RAINER, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Get ready to test your pistol shooting skills at the John H. Wallace Jr. Pistol Challenge, a shooting competition held by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources' (ADCNR) Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries (WFF) Division. But don't hesitate; the first events are being held this Saturday, October 17, at Swan Creek Wildlife Management Area (WMA) Range in north Alabama and Upper Delta WMA Shooting Range in southwest Alabama.

The other scheduled shoots are October 24 at Cahaba WMA Shooting Range and November 7 at Barbour WMA Shooting Range. Each event is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Visit www.outdooralabama.com/PistolChallenge for more information and a list of rules or call the WFF Shooting Sports Unit at 334-242-3922. Participants must have a license that includes use of shooting ranges, either a hunting license, resident fishing license, wildlife heritage license or WMA license.

The competition is named in honor of Alabama's first Game and Fish Commissioner, John H. Wallace Jr. Wallace, who served from 1907 to 1920, championed "conservation through education." He emphasized ethical sportsmanship, public awareness and game limits alongside strict statutory enforcement. In Wallace's first year, Alabama appointed its first official state game wardens, laying the foundation for modern natural resource law enforcement.

Colonel Michael Weathers, WFF Chief of Enforcement, said shooting sports continue to grow across the nation, and WFF supports that growth with top-notch shooting ranges, firearms classes and shooting competitions.

"Competition shooting across America has been growing at a frantic pace for years now," Weathers said. "We saw this as an opportunity to get them to come to our public ranges and compete in an interesting handgun match across the state at multiple ranges on different dates. We thought it would be a great opportunity to get those competitive shooters on our ranges and see what we have to offer for a very competitive price.

"It was very, very successful last year with a lot of competitors. The interest is high. We are running it a little later this year because of the weather. Last year, it was prohibitively hot, so we moved it later to hopefully get some cooler weather."

The competition is designed to test speed and precision under simple, standardized conditions. Shooters will be on a 25-yard range with a bullseye target. Shooters will fire 10 shots per round for three rounds with a 300 as a perfect score. Shooters may take up to 60 seconds between rounds. In the event of a tie for the state championship, the shooter with the fastest overall time wins.

Weathers said the pistol challenge attracts a wide range of shooters in terms of skill and experience.

"From the feedback last year and people I've personally talked to, a lot of our competitors use our ranges fairly routinely," he said. "And, we literally had people get registered and come to the competition as a first-time shooter at our ranges. They really didn't realize how nice our facilities are. Particularly talking about Swan Creek and Cahaba, those were seen as real, sort of undiscovered resources in the state.

"The folks I've spoken with are very complimentary of our staffed ranges and the facilities in general. They are really nice ranges, and for the cost of what it takes to shoot on them, it's an absolute bargain. It's essentially only the cost of a license. If you are a resident, it could be a hunting, fishing or wildlife heritage license. If you're a non-resident, it's a WMA license. The licenses are relatively cheap and allow you to shoot on any of our 13 public shooting ranges and the 20 archery parks across the state for a year.

"There's absolutely no better value in the shooting sports world. Anywhere in the state you go, you have a range or facility relatively close."