About 20 male and female shooters gathered at Balclutha Deerstalker’s association clubrooms heard most shooting tragedies were caused by hunters’ failure to observe rule 4 of the Firearms Code: Identify your target.
The Baden McNab Memorial Firearms and Hunter Safety workshop was led by veteran firearms instructor Stewart Murray, assisted by Lyndon McNab, using resources developed by police firearms authorities.
‘‘‘Identify your target’ means you must be in absolutely no doubt that what you are about to aim at is exactly what you think and hope it is,’’ Mr Murray said.
The instructors stressed the importance of remaining calm and patient.
‘‘You might not be able to see the whole of the deer all at once in close bush,’’ Mr McNab said.
‘‘So for me, ‘identify your target’ means watching long enough to see its definite parts ... moving and behaving naturally. That’ll also mean you get a clean, humane kill.
If your opportunity to shoot vanishes while you’re still figuring out whether you’re 100% sure, you should actually feel good about yourself, for having the right attitude and discipline.’’
Making sure firearms were not loaded unless in a state of active stalking or hunting was the second key message.
The programme also covered general outdoor sense and safety, equipment including location technology and tourniquets, and information for newcomers to hunting and shooting such as permits, culture and ethics, storage and transport.
More information is available on the New Zealand Police and Firearms Safety Authority websites.
