My local black powder club hosted their first black powder competition on Sunday. The club was founded late last year, and most of the members are newbies to black powder. It was about time that Bergen – Norway's second largest city – got their first real black powder club.

The attendance was very good: only one of nine members was absent, and we also recruited a new member. If this trend continues we will get a lot of fun in Bergen in the years ahead.

Being a Norwegian Black Powder Union/MLAIC affiliated club we shoot the official MLAIC events: handguns at 25 metres and the long arms at 100 metres – including the national events for black powder cartridge rifle and pistol. Next time we'll shoot the 50 m events as well. I know MLAIC is a muzzleloading organisation, but if MLAIC seeks to recruit new members, a black powder cartridge competition might be a good idea. Almost every shooter participated in the black powder cartridge events, but once they are hooked they want to shoot muzzleloaders.

During the handgun shooting the weather was fortunately dry, but when we moved to the rifle shooting we got real western Norwegian black powder weather (for those wondering: that kind of weather is wet – also known as minié weather!).

I scored 89 points in Minié original, which is one point above the Norwegian record. But, since the competition wasn't adopted by the Norwegian Black Powder Union it won't count. I wish it will rain during the Europeans Zone Championships in Finland as well!

Smith & Wesson – the black powder cartridge pistol event.

Original Remington New Army converted to .32 cal cartridge.

Scoring the targets.

Mariette – here a Colt 1860 Army in action.

A 12 mm Remington rolling block

From the black powder cartridge event. Many shoot original Norwegian or Swedish Remington rolling blocks, while others shoot replicas.

An original Winchester.

Me shooting Minié original with my P-1856 Tower Enfield.

Results

Smith & Wesson (black powder cartridge revolver)
1. Øyvind Flatnes (R) 82 points
2. Ronny Birkeland (O) 79 points
3. Tor Kristian Holst (O) 77 points
4. Magnar Svendsen (O) 31 points

Mariette (replica percussion revolver)
1. Øyvind Flatnes 86 points
2. Per Stensland 73 points
3. Jan Erik Rognaldsen 61 points
4. Bjarte Ervik 15 points

Kuchenreuter replica (percussion pistol)
1. Magnar Svendsen 8 points

Remington (black powder cartridge rifle)
1. Øyvind Flatnes (R) 92 points
2. Jan Erik Rognaldsen (O) 60 points
3. Bjarte Ervik (O) 50 points
4. Thorbjørn Holst (R) 35 points
5. Tor Kristian Holst (O) 12 points

Minié original (military rifle musket)
1. Øyvind Flatnes 89 points

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Øyvind F. - forum admin
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