Photo; Kenneth Evans shows Jack Foster and Mernice Alkire and old photo of the U.S.Army Marksmanship Unit in which they served together from 1969 to 1973 at the reunion Sunday. They traveled from places as far away as Alaska and American Samoa just to see their lingtilme Army pals and discuss the love of their life, shooting, a sport many of them feel is unjustly under the gun from critics. "It was worth the trip," said John Foster, a retired lieutenant colonel from Bozeman, MT. "you get to see a lot of people you knew back then." Foster is one of 390 who returned to Ft.Benning this past weekend for the USAMU's 40th reunion. Every five years the marksmanship unit meets at Ft.Benning to remember old times and see old friends. "I spent 20 years here, so I have a lot of memories," Foster said while feasting on a plate of Georgia barbecue Sunday afternoon. Next to Foster sat his buddy Mernice Alkire of Mesa, AZ, who served in the unit during the late '60s - early '70s. The two have kept in touch since their days in the marksmanship unit. "We spend most of our time talking about what we used to do and how we always did it better," Alkire said. Foster remembers practicing 5-7 hours, eating dinner and returning to an indoor range for another 3-4 hours of practice. "You did it because you wanted to excel," he said. Those accepted into the unit were serious about shooting, Alkire said. "Anybody who was here was the best of the best." Foster was the 1961 world champion of moving target shooting and the 1974 300-meter free rifle world champion. "You don't ever stop," Foster said. "It's a lifetime sport." Shooting was so important to Foster and Alkire they married women who are also shooters. "It's not just a part of our life. It is our life," Foster said. His 23-year-old daughter Jean Foster competed in the shooting competition at this summer's Olympics. "My wife's even competed in a couple of world championships," Foster said. Continues with the bad wrap shooting has gotten. "Because of the politics of this century, the sport is not growing." During the reunion the unit named its headquarters Sharpe Hall in honor of its first commander, the late Col.Thomas J.Sharpe II. Sharpe formed the unit and led the 1964 U.S.Olympic Shooting Team to the winning of several medals. Besides Foster, four former shooters were also inducted into the USMU Hall of Fame. They included: the late Lt.Col.Tommy G. Pool,a shooter who was a member of three world record-setting teams; Lt.Col.Lones W. Wigger,the unit's greatest international rifleman; M-Sgt.Loyd Crow; and Col.Jeremiah McKenzie.