By Sarah Madussi

The Northwestern Ontario Police Pistol Club hosted the Ontario Provincial Police Pistol Combat Championships July 15 and 16 with more than 30 participants setting up on the range in Barclay.

The PPC is a marksman competition for current and retired police officers and military officers as well as civilian shooters, with six disciplines including revolvers, semi-automatics and snub nose handguns.The marksmen are given a certain number of rounds to shoot in a specific time limit according to the discipline they are competiting in.

Local resident and civilian member, Roly Miles, ranked number one in the country has been a competitor in the PPC for just three years and has already made a name for himself on the world stage.While he is ranked a top grand master shooter in Canada, he says the local competitors really helped him get started.

“It’s a new sport to me, it’s exciting. I picked it up fairly easily I?guess and through a lot of hard work and dedication. Talking to some of the competitors, everyone is more than helpful to give you tips and loan you equipment. It’s a phenomenal sport to get involved in.”

Miles is now taking the next step in the sport as he heads to the world championships in Stockholm, Sweden in just a few weeks.He says he’ll be taking in every match that he can before heading to the worlds.

Local residents are not the only ones taking advantage of the Dryden range, however. Claude Colabossier, a retired Winnipeg police officer has been competing in the PPC for over 30 years and says the facilities and organization in Dryden are top-notch.

“The service is great, the range is excellent and the work they put into the range is fabulous and they run a top-notch range.”

The championships were run by members of the NWOPPC and members and participants were served barbecued lunches by the Dryden Army Cadets on both days.This is the second time  the NWOPPC has hosted the PPC provincial championships in Dryden.