SSAA NSW

SSAA NSW Hay Branch Profile Established in July 1996 by members of the local Pistol Club and a group of rifle enthusiasts who were concerned at the 'Genuine Reason' provisions under the new Firearms laws, SSAA NSW Hay Branch is situated approximately 7 kms out of town on the Sidonia Road. Starting out with a membership of only 24 shooters, the Branch grew and in 1999 a 300 metre big bore rifle range was constructed, a short distance from the Hay Pistol Club, complete with 10 bays, concrete benches and a shaded roof. As most of the pistol club members were also SSAA members, building the rifle range so close to the Pistol Club was a logical decision. In 2010 with the help of dedicated members, funding was sought and a new club house was erected, complete with kitchen facilities. This was officially opened on 7 November 2010 by SSAA NSW Junior Vice President Richard Drozdowski and Shooters and Fishers Party MLC The Hon. Robert Brown. In 2008 members thought they would like to introduce shotgun shooting so we arranged our inaugural The range caters for the shooting disciplines of: 5 Stand Clay Target shoot on the existing SSAA rifle range. This shoot was dedicated to our good friend and fellow shooter John McNeill Simpson who passed away. John was one of the founding members of both the Hay Pistol Club and SSAA NSW Hay Branch Inc. In January 2009 we approached the owner of the adjoining land to try and obtain extra land to use for sporting clays. Whilst standing under a tree on the side of the road the deal was done with a hand shake. SSAA NSW purchased the 27 acres which included the pistol club making its tenure secure. With the increasing interest in shotgun shooting, and membership also growing SSAA NSW purchased an additional 46 acres from the next door neighbour. This land included the rifle range, so now SSAA NSW owned the freehold to all our shooting ranges. Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (NSW) Inc. In 2013 our two towers were erected: firstly the 50ft tower on the east side of the clubhouse in January, and the 100ft tower on the west side in May. Both towers are a fantastic asset to the shotgun ranges and will be a big draw card for visiting shooters. Rifle shooting with a 300 metre shooting range (bench rest, field rifle, military rifle and our own home grown match of "Ferals in the Distance" are the matches shot on the range). Pistol shooting with a 25 metre range with permanent target frames is set for ISSF matches and 2 x 50 metre ranges used for action match. One range is set up for Practical and Barricade events and the other range is set up with Falling Plates and Mover. We have also just purchased a range of Steel Challenge targets. Shotgun shooting with an area of approximately 73 acres to set shooting ranges for both 5 Stand and Sporting Clays with the newly erected 50 foot and 100 foot towers. For more information please visit our website: www.ssaahay.org.au or Facebook under SSAA Hay Branch Inc. and Sporting Shooters Hay 10

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