I don’t remember exactly how long ago this took place, but I definitely recall the event and some of the subsequent results.
There is a 3 hole club in Kittrell, NC known as the Charlie Brown Gun Club. This is a nice, well maintained facility. CBGC throws a very good target and a lot of very high scores have been shot there.
One of the traphouses was in need of upgrading, the roof stuck out the front too far. I’m guessing it was result of transitioning to the current Pat Traps in use today. Target clearance.
Soooo to address this issue, instead of hiring it done, or at least getting someone familiar with this type of thing, our hero Charles C Brown Jr himself located a cement saw and set out to trim the offending section of the roof.
Now, picture the cartoon(s) we’ve all seen with the guy cutting off a tree branch while sitting on the part being cut off. Got the visual?
Well, Charlie commences to cutting and is actually making good progress until the chunk he’s standing on falls off. The cement piece, the saw, and Charlie fall to the ground. Fortunately Charlie had presence of mind to fling the saw away from himself. Unfortunately, Charlie suffered a broken foot from the ordeal. His foot is casted and Dr. orders to keep weight off of it.
Inside of the next few weeks, there is typical 300 target registered event scheduled at Old Hickory in Rocky Mount.
To the surprise of many of us Charlie shows up. He’s not just there to visit either, he’s there to compete. Charlie has been one of the BIG DOGs in the game for several by many years. His idea of competing is winning. He didn’t show up looking for sympathy (he didn’t get any as you’ll soon see). He had a plan to get out there and break a score.
Charlie had acquired a “pushy”. A four wheeled walker that has an integral seat. This is the same unit he uses today to continue in the game.
He had modified this thing by adding shell box holders and a section for hauling “other” shooting necessities.
Charlie signed up to shoot the singles with myself and John Miller. I was set to lead off, Charlie on post 3 and John on Post 5.
His intended technique was to park his “pushy” on a post, stand behind it and put his left knee on the seat. This actually worked pretty well for him as far as being stable enough to shoot safely and break targets.
What quickly became apparent after completion of the first 5 targets was that with its configuration at that time, moving station to station with his gun and sundry accessories was that Sir Charles was going to need assistance moving post to post. (he has since added additional modifications to be completely self sufficient in making these moves)
So, the routine for the three of us became shoot a post, drag Charlie, shoot a post, drag Charlie. Etc. Now, neither John nor I minded providing the help. We were simply happy to have Charlie shooting with us and were willing to do whatever was needed to accommodate.
The scores that day are irrelevant (don’t recall who shot what). What mattered to us is that we were able to enjoy each other’s company on the trapfield, make light of what could certainly have been a tragedy, and, it created a memory and an opportunity to tell another story.
See you next time wherever it is. Travel Safe! Dan