American Shooters Turn Lead Into Gold at World Muzzle Loadin

[Mike OTDP]

The fourteen muzzle-loading shooters of the United States International Muzzle-Loading Team turned lead bullets and shot into gold, silver and bronze medals at the 23rd World Muzzle Loading Championships, held 11-16 August 2008 in Adelaide, Australia. 205 competitors, representing seventeen nations, vied for honors with a wide variety of muzzle-loading arms, ranging from the matchlock muskets of the 1600s to the sophisticated percussion target rifles and pistols of the 19th century. Both original antiques and modern replica guns are used, competing in different divisions.

Top honors were taken by Dr. Michael Arnette, whose score of 93 in the original division of the “Lamarmora” 50-meter offhand percussion rifle-musket event not only won the gold, but set a new world record in the process. Arnette took the same gun to the 100-meter line for the “Minie” prone match, shooting well enough to help a team of Arnette, Allan Godshalk, Gary Crawford, Frank Kapper, and Tony Ulisse take 3rd place in the “Grand Prix de Versailles”, an aggregate for military longarms that is often considered the overall world team championship. Arnette also shared the bronze medal in the “Gustav Adolph” team event for original flintlock muskets with Gary Crawford and Allen Godshalk. And to top it off, Arnette’s performance in the replica division of the “Pennsylvania” 50-meter flintlock rifle event was good enough for 4th place.

An equally spectacular performance was turned in by Harry Sparks, who took both gold and bronze in individual shotgun events. Sparks started off with a 3rd-place finish in the original division of the “Manton” flintlock shotgun event, then followed by winning a dramatic shootoff to take gold in the original division of the “Lorenzoni” percussion shotgun event.

Nor were the other American shooters idle. The team of Gary Crawford, Donna Crawford, and Tom Warabak clinched the silver in the “Nobunaga” 50-meter offhand matchlock event, continuing a long American tradition of strength with the oldest of firearms. And on the 100-meter range, the team of Frank Kapper, Martyn Robinson, and Gerald Schultze won bronze in the “Lucca” prone flintlock rifle match.

Other notable performances by American competitors included:
Donna Crawford – 8th place in the original division of the “Tanegashima” offhand matchlock match.
Gary Crawford – 6th in the original division of the “Miquelet” smoothbore flintlock musket event.
Allan Godshalk – 5th in the replica division of the “Minie” prone rifle-musket match.
Michael McDaniel – 7th place in the original division of the “Kuchenreuter” percussion pistol match, 12th place in the “Mariette” reproduction revolver event against a field of 79 competitors, the most for any event at the 23rd World Championship.
Bob Patterson – 7th place in the replica division of the “Miquelet” event.
Bob Pence – 4th place in the replica division of the “Manton” flintlock shotgun match.
Jesse Penwell – 4th place in the “Soper” youth offhand rifle event, 5th in the “Ferris” youth prone rifle event.
Tom Warabak – 5th place in the original division of the “Tanzutsu” matchlock pistol match, 7th in the original division of the “Hizadai” kneeling matchlock event, 8th in the original division of the “Cominazzo” flintlock duelling pistol event.
Tony Ulisse – 5th place in the original division of the “Lamaramora” offhand rifle-musket event.

The World Muzzle Loading Championships are held under the auspices of the Muzzle Loading Associations International Committee, world governing body for competition with muzzle-loading firearms. World Championships are held biennially, with Pacific and European Zone Championships in the off years. The 24th World Championships will be held in Portugal in August 2010.

The United States International Muzzle Loading Team website is www.usimlt.org
The Muzzle Loading Associations International Committee website is www.mlaic.org
The web site for the 23rd World Championships is www.ssaasa.org.au/wmlc-new.htm