Shooting championship starts Monday

When police draw their weapons and start shooting, it’s usually a good idea to take cover or, better yet, to get out of the area. On the other hand, as years of silver-screen dramas have proven, close-quarters armed combat has an enduring appeal for some spectators.

Shooting enthusiasts who enjoy fast-paced combat scenarios, complete with the smell of cordite and gun oil, have an opportunity next week to watch some of the nation’s best professional gunslingers shoot it out for top honors in Albuquerque at the National Rifle Association’s National Police Shooting Championships.

Essentially a quick-draw competition, the championship shooting match is set to begin Monday at Albuquerque’s Shooting Range Park.

An estimated 400 police officers from around the United States, along with a few cops from overseas and a few private-security shooters, are expected to contend for top honors in the annual competition.

Competitive combat shooting starts today with practice for a regional competition Friday and Saturday. The city of Albuquerque and the Albuquerque Police Department are sponsoring the regional shoot-out.

The top guns start shooting Sunday with a practice day for the NRA sponsored national competition, which continues through Thursday.

Exhibition three-gun tactical events are also scheduled Sunday. In those events, competitors advancing through a combat range use handguns, rifles and shotguns to shoot from various positions at surprise targets.

Competitive matches are shot from a firing line. Shooting from standing, kneeling, sitting and prone positions, competitors wait with holstered weapons until a target appears, anywhere from a few feet to 50 yards out.

Matches require shooters to fire at target sequences lasting anywhere from a few seconds to about 21/2 minutes.

Scoring is based on accuracy.

For the national competition, shooters each get 150 shots in both revolver and semi-automatic events. Each shot can be worth 10 points, depending on accuracy.

Hitting an “X” in the very center of the target nets a point in another column, serving as a tie breaker for otherwise even scores.

Other events include off-duty sidearm competitions and shotgun-shooting showdowns.

The NRA also added two team events this year, in which two- and four-officer teams compete with semi-automatic handguns

The reigning champion, Mississippi Highway Patrol Lt. Philip Hemphill, last year scored 2988-197X out of a possible 3000-300X.

U.S. Border Patrol Agent Gina Hernandez, took the top women’s honor with a score of 2950-159X.

Retired Border Patrol agent Capt. Ronald Busch of Chama is currently the top ranking New Mexican winner. With a score of 2910-128X, he cinched the top spot for retirees over the age of 61.

The national championship traces its history back to 1962. Held since 1989 in Jackson, Miss., the national championship was moved to Albuquerque’s newly remodeled shooting range in 2006. A $1.4 million range remodel, paid for by city and state funding, attracted the NRA event to New Mexico, an NRA spokesman said.

The deadline for entering the regional match is today at 4 p.m. National competitors must earn their place with a regional victory.

Eye and hearing protection is required for shooters and for spectators, according to an NRA spokesman.

Police officers who are NRA members and are interested in the regional match can contact Fowler Johnston of the Albuquerque Police Department at 505-620-6342. For more information, visit www.nrahq.org/law/competitions/competitions.asp.

Contact David Collins at dcollins@sfnewmexican.com.

IF YOU GO

What: Regional and national police shooting championships
Where: Shooting Range Park, 16001 Shooting Range Access Road, Albuquerque
When: Regionals — practice from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Thursday; competitions beginning at 9 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
Nationals — practice from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday. Tactical events begin at 10 a.m., competition begins at 7:30 a.m. Monday and 8 a.m. on Tuesday through Thursday.
Directions: From Interstate 40, take exit 149 — the Paseo del Vulcan ramp. Turn right at the stop sign and go north about four miles. Turn left onto Shooting Range Road. It’s another three miles to the park.