April 2026 (2) - Flipbook - Page 21
A Girl’s
Place
is on the
Firing
Line!!
By Bev Sleaford RN
Editor’s Note:
We are absolutely thrilled to introduce
Bev Sleaford as the newest contributor to
ModernBPCRShooter.
“The journey of a thousand rounds
begins with one impulsive purchase of
a Sharps Ri昀氀e.”~ Bev Sleaford
Ok, so it may not be one of the
most quoted lines in history,
and it may lack the elegance
born of a historical 昀椀ction
writer, but it rings true just the
same. At least, for me anyway.
Every person who has stepped
into the world of shooting has
their own unique story, each
journey speci昀椀c and carefully
curated to who they are. Mine
is no di昀昀erent. It just happens
to begin with a part that probably should’ve shown up in the
middle….
God bless Black Powder!
I started as a scorekeeper for the
now World-Famous Matthew
Quigley Bu昀昀alo Ri昀氀e Match in
(I believe) 2007. My mother
had been a scorekeeper for the
match for a number of years by
this time and she was tasked
with acquiring a few new bodies
to join in the ranks. The match
was growing year after year, and
it became necessary to increase
the number of scorekeepers
available to accommodate the
expanding volume of shooters. I
didn’t have a prayer.
My compliance was expected
by default, you don’t say ‘no’
to your mother. So, I quickly
learned the procedures, armed
myself with multiple pencils and
a mediocre pair of ear plugs,
and stepped willingly into a role
that would unknowingly change
my life forever. For fourteen
years I was nothing more than
a scorekeeper in the world of
black powder, and I loved that
for me. I began to crave the
warm summer breeze scented
slightly of sulfur and the camaraderie that accompanied it. I
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