This was the best day of the trip so far! First day off in 19 days! (including the week before leaving). you know what they say, the worst day shooting is better than the best day working.

My Friend from the internet Fullbore (competitive rifle shooter's) List invited me to their clubs' Interclub League match. This was the last match of the season. There were at least 100 shooters!! Every one of whom, except me, spoke Afrikaans first. There was one black shooter. They opened the match with announcements and a prayer. There were two visitors announced, this guy from Arizona and a guy from Australia!

My host brought spares of everything, so I was able to shoot as an individual, my score did not count since it was a team league match, which is good, since my score wouldn't've counted for much!! With borrowed equipment everything is shaped different and awkward, in addition, I had a coach turning my sight knobs since that's the way they do things in team matches. She was an 18 year old girl!, more on her later. There were quite a few teen-agers and even a van from a high school to bring them. South Africa has not yet developed the intolerance of this minority that the US has.

The match was held at the Wonderboom Club range near the town of Wonderboom north of Pretoria. My host is a member of the Pretoria Oos (east) club and those two clubs plus others were competing against each other. We shot at 900m and 800m this day.

After the match, we all retreated to the club house, where beer and hard liquor and sodas were sold and served, there was also a barbeque for those who brought meat. lots of folks took the time to talk to me, nearly everyone wanted to know if I'm coming back for the Palma matchs in april 99. I'd sure like to!

They had an award ceremony since this was the last match of the year. Lots of people got awards, my "coach" from earlier won Best Junior of the year, interestingly enuf, I could understand that complete phrase, it sounded a lot like Den Beste Junior von den Jahre in Afrikaans, in which all communications was conducted.

The range is shared by other groups and after our shoot was over, a bunch of military cadets and their mentors went out to the line, when they got back and started cleaning their R4 rifles, I had to walk over and watch, I struck up a conversation with a guy who had to be a career seargent (the people who really run the military) and he suggested that one of the other military guys take me back to the firing line, so with an R4 and 2 magazines of 5.56 off we went. 

The R4 is a kalashnikov variant (almost a Galil), it was blatently obvious when all those cadets stripped them for cleaning. But the Tube thru which the piston travels is different (no upper hand guard either. The forend is plastic, the butt a side folder, there is a bipod and there is a sight on the cover at the very rear. The bolt, carrier, action, etc are nearly identical to the AK. The R4 is in 5.56 mm NATO, same as our M16. The seargent said he felt the AK is even better than the R4!

Anyway, I got to shoot it at 100m both semi auto and full auto, full auto is nearly worthless for anything but making noise. Once I figured out that it hits about a foot high at 100m, I could knock those 10" plated down one after the other.

It was neat to try, but I'll take a AR-15 (or whatever colt is calling them these days) any day!

We drove around, looking for the historic, ancient tree the town is named after, then ate in, of all places, McDonalds. There was a birthday party in progress there, about a billion mostly black but a few colored and white kids, faces painted by a clown, but it could just as easily been in the US.

> South African National Rifle Association home page with info on the 99 Palma match, etc.