tonykharper
Well-known member
The Bill Calfee I knew (part4)
When I finally got Bill to build Tack Driver I was over the moon. It shot like a house on fire.
Eley was in its heyday of producing quality ammo and matches were scheduled everywhere. I would just pick a place and go shoot a match nearly every weekend.
But then I started to think I had to win every match I shot. It became an obsession. I also learned that shooting a Calfee rifle came with a cost.
Calfee rifles were considered the top of the line, the Ferrari of RFBR rifles. If you showed up with one you better win or you would never hear the end of it.
We Americans have always pulled for the underdog. We liked Fords rather than Ferraris. We want Chevys instead of Mercedes. Show up with a fancy Calfee rifle and you had a target on your back.
Also, during this time Teams were popular. Team Calfee, Team Peightal, etc. etc. Tee shirts were made with these names on them as well as stickers for decorating your gear. All this did is further identify you and what camp you were in. Since Team Calfee represented the high end it became popular for others to take pride in being at the other end.
That is when the term “Turd Guns” was made popular. If someone with any gun from any “team” beat a Calfee shooter it was said “hell he couldn't even beat my turd gun”. I never quite understood the logic but that is the way it went.
Bill being Bill, decided to call his shooters “CYankees” (Calfee Yankees). This was to identify with the New York Yankee ball club. The New York Yankees were disliked by all other teams because they had the largest fan base, the best coaches, the best players, and the most money. Or at least others thought they did.
It was hard being a CYankee. For this Tennessee boy it was hard being any kind of Yankee.
I recall one ARA National in particular. It was Sunday and three cards to go. I was in the running. After the first two cards it was between Todd Wooten and me. (assuming neither of us would screw up).
Todd Wooten is a great shooter; He has won about everything one can win shooting RFBR and he is tough as nails. With all that, I had to shoot my last target first.
Makes a big difference on how you close. He knew what he had to shoot to win. He pulled out all the stops and went for broke. Nearly everyone at the match, over 100 people, knew exactly what was happening and about 90 percent of them were pulling for Todd. Hell, I would have been pulling for Todd if I didn’t want to win so bad.
As it turned out I won by the smallest of margins. I was shooting TDX. I won my first outdoor ARA National shooting Tack Driver.
They didn’t lynch me, but I felt many wanted to. We all knew what a big deal Bill would make out of the win. I just wish I could have talked Bill into attending some of the matches. But it was not to be. Bill didn’t feel comfortable in a crowd so he would never come.
Think I’ll call this part 4. More to come.
TKH
When I finally got Bill to build Tack Driver I was over the moon. It shot like a house on fire.
Eley was in its heyday of producing quality ammo and matches were scheduled everywhere. I would just pick a place and go shoot a match nearly every weekend.
But then I started to think I had to win every match I shot. It became an obsession. I also learned that shooting a Calfee rifle came with a cost.
Calfee rifles were considered the top of the line, the Ferrari of RFBR rifles. If you showed up with one you better win or you would never hear the end of it.
We Americans have always pulled for the underdog. We liked Fords rather than Ferraris. We want Chevys instead of Mercedes. Show up with a fancy Calfee rifle and you had a target on your back.
Also, during this time Teams were popular. Team Calfee, Team Peightal, etc. etc. Tee shirts were made with these names on them as well as stickers for decorating your gear. All this did is further identify you and what camp you were in. Since Team Calfee represented the high end it became popular for others to take pride in being at the other end.
That is when the term “Turd Guns” was made popular. If someone with any gun from any “team” beat a Calfee shooter it was said “hell he couldn't even beat my turd gun”. I never quite understood the logic but that is the way it went.
Bill being Bill, decided to call his shooters “CYankees” (Calfee Yankees). This was to identify with the New York Yankee ball club. The New York Yankees were disliked by all other teams because they had the largest fan base, the best coaches, the best players, and the most money. Or at least others thought they did.
It was hard being a CYankee. For this Tennessee boy it was hard being any kind of Yankee.
I recall one ARA National in particular. It was Sunday and three cards to go. I was in the running. After the first two cards it was between Todd Wooten and me. (assuming neither of us would screw up).
Todd Wooten is a great shooter; He has won about everything one can win shooting RFBR and he is tough as nails. With all that, I had to shoot my last target first.
Makes a big difference on how you close. He knew what he had to shoot to win. He pulled out all the stops and went for broke. Nearly everyone at the match, over 100 people, knew exactly what was happening and about 90 percent of them were pulling for Todd. Hell, I would have been pulling for Todd if I didn’t want to win so bad.
As it turned out I won by the smallest of margins. I was shooting TDX. I won my first outdoor ARA National shooting Tack Driver.
They didn’t lynch me, but I felt many wanted to. We all knew what a big deal Bill would make out of the win. I just wish I could have talked Bill into attending some of the matches. But it was not to be. Bill didn’t feel comfortable in a crowd so he would never come.
Think I’ll call this part 4. More to come.
TKH
