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Being a charity, it's been a real challenge, and a great triumph that we've got through to the millennium. The gun wheels are exchanged with the limber wheels. I am also surprised to discover that a third of the team are officers. Rivalry was intense between the Oggies (Devonport), Pompey (Portsmouth) and the Wafus (the Navy nickname for the early pioneers of the 'wet and ******* useless' Fleet Air Arm). This year Devonport broke the world record when they recorded a near faultless run of 2 minutes 40.43. The guns and limbers of a four-gun battery were taken over a four-foot wall in the arena at Islington. The spirit of the Royal Tournament has not died either. HMS Gannet's win in 1997 took the trophy to Scotland for the first time. The competition simulates the drill which would have been undertaken to bring a naval field gun into action during the march to Ladysmith. Most of the tournament's 10-strong permanent staff now face redundancy. Why hasn't it been banned on health-and-safety grounds? The Naval Brigade transported guns over difficult terrain and brought them into action against the Boers. A film clip of this evolution survives from the period [1] (requires Real Player) which was filmed by Alfred J West for his popular 'Our Navy' [2] film presentations in the early 1900s. 'It is, simply, the greatest team-building discipline there is. The crews are awarded 2 points for a win, 1 and a half for a tie, 1 for a defeat, and 0 for a disqualification or a run taking over 4 minutes to complete. The winning crew in 1907 was HMS Cambridge, the gunnery school in Plymouth. The "Command" format, negotiating walls and a chasm, was held annually at the Royal . The Interport Field Gun competition was established in 1907 and was a highlight of the Royal Tournament until the Last Run in 1999. Before the First World War the competition was moved from the RN Barracks to Whale Island where it continued until 1973, the following year it transferred to HMS Collingwood, its famously large parade ground reputed to have once held as many as 8,000 ratings is the perfect setting for the event. The Royal Navy's command field gun competition was a contest between teams from three Royal Navy commands, in which teams of sailors compete to transport a field gun and its equipment over and through a series of obstacles in the shortest time. The record for the fastest run at the Royal Tournament was set by Devonport in 1999, the competition's final year, with 80.86 seconds for the "Run Out", 58.65 seconds for the "Run Back" and 20.92 seconds for the "Run Home", an aggregate of 2 minutes, 40.43 seconds.[4]. 'If you won, you got a parade through the streets, a civic reception and all that. ), - 1948 - 1957 - 1970 - 1975 - 1981 - 1984 - 1986 - 1987 - 1997 -. Later as Commander Scott he was instrumental in conceiving the idea of field gun competitions, the first as early as 1900. Crews from Portsmouth, Devonport, Chatham and Fleet Air Arm competed at The Court until 1960 when the Chatham Crew withdrew from the competition. The British forces were quickly overwhelmed and forced back to the towns of Mafeking, Kimberley and Ladysmith, which were then besieged. 5. "I would have hoped that the Ministry of Defence would take it on (financially), but I do understand when the Chief of Defence Staff decides they need an arena where they can display new equipment. The Aggregate Time Challenge Cup is awarded to the crew who has the lowest aggregate official time over the 16 competition runs; the record is held by Devonport at 39 minutes 20.34 and the trophy is now held by Devonport.