FMRNRAPistolManager

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I wish all of you good luck, the NRA finally did it...

Clive & every other competitor that went above & beyond to support & promote the shooting sports, appreciate the support...

https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2018/12/21/longtime-bianchi-cup-protest-chairman-clive-whelan-passes-away/

All, I am saddened to learn of the death of my friend & colleague Clive Whelan. Clive was a Champion of the competitive shooting sports not just in Australia but world wide. His knowledge & experience was e, he cared so much about the people and friends he made over the years. My life is better for having known him. Rest with the Angels my friend...

All, As you all know I happily departed the NRA Competitions Division, I have severed all ties to the NRA & I will not answer calls or emails from them in any way. To be honest I would like to completely cut ties with the Bianchi Cup but, because of my friendship with most of the competitors & John Bianchi, it has been difficult for me to not read these comments and not respond. Even though there are people on here that write negative comments about me & censor my comments I still feel an attachment to this great Championship. What was once the fastest growing Pistol Championship in the World, is now being laid to waste away to history. Knowing what I know about management of the Cup, until the NRA gives control of the Championship back to the Bianchi Cup Coordinator, it will not succeed. Every dollar received from sponsors 2007 - 2014 was given to competitors in some way either cash or product. Every item donated was given to competitors and or range staff. We coordinated press invitations, in 2014, we had sponsors contacting us to donate, we had press contacting us to attend & cover the event. This is when the decline started, sponsorship was turned over to NRA Marketing, Press was turned over to Media Relations, the Cup lost a lot of sponsorship opportunities because sponsors were not called back unless they were giving cash, press agencies were not called back. Damien Orsinger, Beth Martin & I were told we could NOT speak with any press or sponsors about the Cup, all information would be passed on and followed up by Marketing & Media, that did not happen. The only reason the 2014 Cup did not decline is because it was still climbing in every way, and no one was aware of the dismantling. Even though the Prize table was not what it should have been, the NRA did not mess with the cash payouts. 2015 was the real beginning of the decline, evident in every way. The NRA should give full control of the Championship to the the Bianchi Cup Coordinator; Beth Martin (if she still wants it), send apology letters to every competitor, range staff, sponsor & media representative who was attached to the Championship prior to 2015. If not, it will continue to die, the people in charge of it now have not taken ownership of it, they do not understand the history or the impact on the shooting sports. I would also suggest that anyone attached to the Cup write to Wayne LaPierre, apparently everything else is being ignored. If this was a business a lot of people would have lost their jobs, after all is said & done it is Membership money that controls everything. Good luck to all of you... Tom...

Thank you...

Anyone know where to get an RMR mount for a Kimber 1911 Pro Carry II

Thank you sir, I am happy to hear someone appreciated the efforts, as you can tell above there are some competitors that had and still have a personal agenda. They are not concerned about the sport or the growth of it, just awards and titles that are watered down with the lack of competition. I was extremely proud to see the involvement and growth of NRA Action Pistol in the Kansas City area. Northern Virginia (Burke), not so much, Fairfax Rod & Gun is almost in the NRA's backyard, no NRA AP matches, even when the NRA ran NRA AP matches at the NRA Range, the attendance was minimal and could not justify the time & effort. God speed to all of you, I miss the camaraderie but not the petty BS.

It is going...& I have gone...

It's a hard pill to swallow, big expense, low payout, the NRA continues to disregard the NRA Action Pistol Competitor, the ship is now steered by another new, non-experienced manager with little or no control over how the sport can grow. When the control to continue the growth & success was taken from the NRA Pistol Department, the Bianchi Cup & the Sport has decreased & will continue to do so. Major sponsors have left & will not return unless it's beneficial to them. With all that said, travel safely, shoot straight, maybe we will cross paths again some day. Tom...

All, First of all I wish all of of you happiness & the best of health. As normal based on my previous responses to comments pertaining to NRA Pistol competition (Bianchi Cup), I have had not (1) ONE response, if my ego was involved, I would be extremely upset, since its not, I find it very sad not (1) one of you would even comment on my response. Number one: NRA Action Pistol ranks very low on the number of NRA members that actually pull triggers, the Director of Law Enforcement Activities - Glen Hoyer promoted his program & his employees, he has a program that continues to shrink, but he actually tries to make it grow, his staff currently has the authority to solicit sponsors and supporters. In 2012 everyone at the NRA in Fairfax was jealous of the success of NRA Action Pistol & they were looking how to ride the success train. Mike Krei (Director of Competitions) understood this & realized the impact for the Competitions Division, he stopped all interference from NRA money raisers which let the Bianchi Cup grow to where is was in 2013-14. The NRA Bianchi Cup was on the fast track to worldwide coverage, what happened next is a shame. The NRA decided to remove some top level personnel and they added Kyle Weaver & Dennis Willing to the mix, (Kyle has since been fired & replaced, Dennis just retired) if any of you think it was a demotion, I am sorry they are both sitting at home enjoying membership money). I have moved on from the NRA for various reasons, I have nothing to lose so I am going to write what my mind suggests & what my eyes have seen, not for my benefit but hopefully the benefit of members, especially if they are members. The Pistol Department needs a leader, right now it does not have one, when I resigned Dennis Willing locked down the Pistol Department Manager position, he did this for a few reasons; Damien Orsinger was not qualified & he he did not want anyone questioning his decisions. I agree that Damien was not qualified, his reputation & job performance was sub-par from year one. On the other hand Damien did whatever Dennis wanted, that is where we are are today, The Pistol & Action Pistol Committees NEED new members, most of the people on the committees are there because the NRA Board need to put them somewhere.. Dwight Van Horn is not a friend of NRA Action Pistol, all of you saw what he allowed to happen in 2016. The NRA Action Pistol Committee is one of the rare committees that controls the program it oversees, any changes that were made in 2016 to now was approved by Dwight and his cronies. There are members on the side on Action Pistol & Pistol Committees but they are few, I would recommend Brian Zins, Greg Davis, Tim Pawol & Don Golembieski, I was always impressed by Joe DeBergalis, but his recent appointment to the NRA Senior Staff makes me question my resolve. Here is the bottom line, the NRA as it is stand today, is NOT a supporter of the Bianchi Cup & or any Pistol Competition, the(NRA Action & Pistol Committees) need to be replaced and filled with competitors that compete or have supported that type competition. Not people that want to be on the NRA Board. I worked faithfully for the NRA for 7 plus years, I was the only Manager that was accredited with growth of a National Championship, I was a recipient of the NRA President's Award 2 years in a row. This all changed when Dennis Willing & Kyle Weaver came into the Pistol Competitions arena, sponsorship was given to a new department at the NRA, Dennis made himself Match Director of all Pistol National Championships, sponsorships dropped, attendance and all media coverage dropped. The NRA to this day has NOT received (1) one letter disagreeing with the way the NRA is going. Based on the comments on my post, this is extremely clear. They certainly never received a letter about my job performance or the lack of. Unless all of you competitors (Action Pistol & Pistol) come together to grow the sport, it will surely die, the NRA does not care, it is a money issue to them. They are more than happy to take the money from Sig Sauer & who ever is left and give you pennies,

All, As previosly listed, NRA AP already has a Division like this, Open Modified, the classified competitors in the Division is already low that is why it was removed from the National Championship. The NRA Competitions Division has so many other problems to fix, trying to grasp straws is not going to work. I do like that they are asking competitors, that is a sure sign that Dennis Willing is gone. In my mind, this is what the NRA Competition needs to do: 1. Make Beth Martin the National Pistol Manager, she is more than qualified and will look after the sport & the competitors. 2. Give sponsorship back to the Pistol Department, this should include Bianchi & Camp Perry, the NRA is only soliciting cash sponsors, so they can distribute the money to the General Fund & give 5% to Woody Arenas, he is NOT motivated to help the competitors in any way, only himself. 3. Give Media solicitation back to the Pistol Department, if you want anything to grow it needs coverage, media is not going to show up unless they are invited, you want sponsors, you have to have media. 4. Change the members of the Action Pistol & Pistol Committee's immediately, make them competitors, not people that want to be NRA Board Members or President of the NRA. The majority of the current committee members let Dennis Willing destroy the Pistol Department & the Bianchi Cup, they are NOT your friends. If the new Director really wants to help the pistol department & the shooting sport, he will listen to the competitors, Cole is a good guy but he has a lot of wounds to heal that Dennis Willing created. I wish all of you luck, you are going to need it & its a shame its that way. Tom...

Coatesy, Enjoy your fire, I wish I was with you, maybe someday the Mrs & I will make it back to your beautiful Country. You are so right, Damien never really cared about doing a good job, he did what he was forced to do & only when his back was against the wall. Great guy, no motivation to succeed, the NRA promoted that work ethic anyway. Unfortunately this year, the sponsors will be lower than ever, the support from the NRA will be minimal & poor Beth Martin will be running the show by herself with everyone judging her for something that is NOT her fault. She was restricted by DW from speaking with other employees about the Cup, she has nothing to do with sponsorship or soliciting media, she was handed the keys with little notice. I will tell you that Beth will work tirelessly, she is a great organiser with an outstanding work ethic, that is why I hired her. Beth surpassed Daien on every level is a few short months of working with us. Leaving her in the snake pit was my only regret about leaving the NRA. Next, you have a dedicated staff at the range that will ensure the rounds go down range safely. Someone will win the Cup, and there will be several others that will win Divisions & Categories. The Cup is running on pure reputation, its time is limited, from where I sit now, knowing what I know from 2007-2015, it will be a very difficult task to bring it back to where it was before DW. I wish everyone got luck & good camaraderie, I miss my friends but not the backstabbing & undermining, that unfortunately still exists in Fairfax & Columbia. Tom...

Both Dennis & Damien were asked to leave, they are not the only ones, the NRA will be cutting costs in every way, this will mean staffing that are sub-par, they don't like or feel they no longer need 1st. Dennis has stated on the Bullseye List that he resigned, that like many other things he said is not accurate, call his office & see if you can talk to him, he wont be back... http://www.bullseyeforum.net/t7263-resignation

Mike, With all due respect, are you a Bianchi Cup competitor, this thread is for that community. As the original poster, if truth is bitter, harsh & the language I used offends you, I apologize. Many Bianchi Cup competitors have witnessed the downturn in their sport, I feel the need to tell the truth, not hide in an office & hope they wont notice the difference. It's not personal or mean spirited as you implied, I no longer am involved, these competitors were lied to, and mislead, but not by me. Good luck to you & your fellow USPSA competitors

Tom. In a perfect world, how would you set up the Bianchi Cup that would provide a good balance between the competitors on a budget and the sponsored shooters? Secondly, can you envision the Bianchi Cup being taken away from the NRA and going with another organization that would promote the shooting sports? That would be a hard one to figure out, I would not want to figure that one out without a lot of help from competitors that compete in all disciplines, the recent problem with the NRA mindset is they are not concerned about the competitors or the range staff. Personally, in the last 3 years I was there, I was never asked, not once what I thought about changing the Bianchi Cup, Camp Perry or any other Pistol related competition, I was told THEY were changing it, THEY were taking over sponsorship. It was the current leadership that never set a championship, never requested suggestions from competitors or sponsors, the Bianchi Cup was the fastest growing NRA shooting sport, it had more sponsorship & press coverage than every other championship combined. THEY certainly know better than all of us I wish all of you the best of luck for 2016, I will be extremely surprised if the on-line entry is working on 1 January 2016. But, I am sure the NRA is not concerned, it doesn't effect them, only you.

All, As most of you know I no longer have anything to do with the success or demise of the Bianchi Cup or any of the NRA Pistol Shooting Sports. I resigned for several reasons, 1 of them is the NRA leadership, Kyle Weaver & Dennis Willing do not show any concern for the competitors that shoot this sport in the field. Number 1 - Kyle is not a competitive pistol shooter & will never be one, it's difficult & he has no interest in getting better, so he is far from interested in supporting this sport, and is concerned about what it costs. Dennis Willing is an empty suit with a 5 year contract, they cant get rid of him and must put up with his lack of knowledge and more importantly the lack of support of the pistol competition community. I disagreed with both of them & carefully planned my exit to better suit me & my family. The NRA is NOT your friend, they only are interested in any funding they can receive and any positive press they will receive from the Pro Shooters. Be prepared for 2016, Damien Orsinger has the 2016 Bianchi Cup, this will be a first for him. Everything he touches turns bad, he has no clue how to run this Championship & never has, NRA management has covered for this guy since he has been there, he is a yes man & will do what ever Dennis tells him to do. As a competitor you will feel it... Before you sign up to compete, check the Program, there will be less prizes than in 2015, and my guess is the Awards Ceremony will be reduced with only Awards, NO CASH, NO GIFT Bags. I was told to cater to the top shooters, give them free entries and free tickets to the banquet, as they were the important competitors. I would not do it, as I know the majority of the competitors that shoot NRA AP are NOT the top shooters. The minor sponsors will not be recognized, or contacted, like this year they will only solicit cash sponsors. It's sad, its not about them, its about the sport, the people that lose are those of you that practice & shoot at your local clubs. The bottom line, the NRA ( with Dennis' help) are destroying competitions. Make no mistake anyone on the Committee of any power is a Board Member, they are going to do what Kyle Weaver wants him to do, not what is the best for the sport. This is the same for Camp Perry, High Power, Small Bore & Collegiate, there is not one staff member left that is looking out for the competitor that supports the NRA. I wish you all luck, you will need it... Tom Hughes - Former NRA Pistol Manager

Thanks Coatesy...

I would love to make it back to NZ one day, hell even to a location where I may be able to see my friends. That will probably not happen though. I wish all of you the best of luck, with the current Director of NRA Competitions you are going to need it...

The sad part about this whole thing is they don't care what the competitors want, it does not matter in the last 3 years, the Director of Competitions is smarter than all of you & everyone else, his opinion is what matters, if you go against it or disagree in any way you will be labeled a trouble maker. I am interested to see what will happen next, the spin has got to happen, or they will let the chips fall where they may. The Pistol Shooting Sports & the Competitors will pay the price. NRA Competitions will lose nothing. There is a lot going on behind the scenes, I do not believe anyone in the Pistol Department has the ability to change what is going to happen next.

Oh, ok. Chris She is now eligible for National Records, the AP Committee changed it in 2013. Hopefully someone in Competitions realizes it.

I disagree, the NRA Pistol Program is very hit or miss with communication. They have a twitter channel that is updated rarely. They used to use the John Bianchi facebook profile but that hasn't been updated in two years, and is a profile rather than a proper page (which means it is limited by friend requests). They have a NRA Competitive Shooting Page but rarely has any Bianchi related information. If they aren't going to be here, IMO they need a dedicated NRA Action Pistol Facebook page or well updated site, that highlights recognized matches and clubs. I will tell you from experience, the Competitions Division under Dennis Willing is a totally different place, there is no one running Social Media, we were instructed to shut down all Facebook & Twitter activity. They are a rudderless ship...

All, I wanted to let all of you know I resigned my position as the NRA National Pistol Manager at the NRA. I resigned for several reasons, some of those you will experience at the Bianchi Cup later this month. I wish all of you the best of luck, it has been an honor to work with all of you. Tom Hughes Former NRA Pistol Manager 2/2007 - 5/2015