October 2017 – Around the ATA

Information for Around the ATA is provided to Trap & Field by state and provincial ATA Delegates and/or their designated representatives.

Shooters and local officials: Please inform your ATA Delegate of news about shooters and clubs in your area.

Southern Zone

Alabama

Grand weather overall was very pleasant. There was a little rain, but that time of year you can expect some. At least we had no wash-outs and no cooker days. Targets were very good—some of the best I have seen there. The staff was very pleasant and worked hard to keep the program moving. Central Entry folks did a wonderful job as well. Kudos to all who put on the show.

I want to extend to our AIM shooters a thank you for representing our state. Based on how well you all did, it shows just how hard you have been practicing, and some individual shooters placed well in their divisions. Thanks, coaches, moms and dads; you all did an outstanding job. I will be looking for bigger and better next year.

I want to commend some other fine shooters, including John White IV, Larry Sexton, Tim Hall, Juston Trimback, Dan Jones, Bill Wilbourne, Bill Gregg and Terry Edmonds, who shot his first hundred straight. Fantastic job, Terry; just keep breaking them hard, and they will keep coming.

I want to thank all who made the cookout Thursday night. It is a fun time to get together and enjoy each other’s company. That is the best part of going to the Grand, meeting friends you haven’t seen for a year and making some new ones. I was lucky enough to get my 30-year attendance patch with my good friend and squadmate Murk McKee, who got his 25-year patch. Murk could not shoot this year, but he was there for moral support, and some of us needed it.

Don’t forget the Rebel Yell will be on the third weekend in October at Dixie Trap, an effective way to gain 600 targets early in the target year. Weather will be cool, and the targets will be pretty. See our ad in the September Trap & Field. Make your reservations early; we hope to see you there.

Read the Rulebook; we all need to learn it. See you at Dixie in October. Good luck and good shooting to all.

Please keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers. Without the men and women of our armed forces protecting this country, we would not be able to enjoy this great sport. When you see a soldier, thank him or her for their service.

I hope to see you all on the line somewhere soon. If you need my help or have news to report, contact me anytime at 205-410-8201 or [email protected].

Fred Jensen

ATA Delegate

 

Florida

After the first two days of Grand Preliminary Week, I thought we were in for that hot and humid Plains States weather. Not the case. The remaining days turned out to be very pleasant. Yes, we had rain one day, but for most, rain gear wasn’t necessary. I would say that the nice weather contributed to ATA and Sparta Grand records that were either broken or tied. A young Canadian trapshooter from Manitoba, Patrick Lamont, became the second ATA shooter to win all five Grand American championship crowns. Our Kay Ohye was the first to accomplish that [see The Grand That Was in this issue for details—Ed.].

We had 63 Florida trapshooters entered in the Grand database, a good number to represent our state and take home our share of awards. When you see these shooters, be sure to congratulate them for winning Grand trophies. The competition was tough, as the Grand shooter numbers were up in many events.

Our Grand American champions bringing home trophies this year: Ruth Flayderman, Theresa Bellerive, Kay Ohye (eight), Guy Long (three), Jack Schumpert (two), Matthew DeBord (two), Ken Culver (two), Bob Hutson, Bruce Burton, Dax Demena and David Lynch. Kay Ohye and Deborah Ohye-Neilson won the prestigious Parent-Child award.

DeBord was runnerup in the Federal Nostalgia Shoot this year. This is a side event with some special awards and prizes. Matthew came home with a Federal belt buckle and eight flats of Federal Premium shells. Matthew does very well in this vintage gun event, as he was champion last year. Congratulations to all for demonstrating great skills.

Volusia Co. S&T was awarded a $1,000 ATA Gun Club Grant. This grant will allow them to send shoot reports electronically to the ATA.

The Silver Dollar Open Money Shoot will be Jan. 24-28. Bill Miller, club manager, was happy to report that this shoot will have $30,000 added money. Miller advised that the program will be up on the Silver Dollar website shortly. Take a look at silverdollartrap.com, and for you snowbirds coming down, be sure to check out the hotel reservations you can make right on the Silver Dollar website. This is a shoot that you don’t want to miss, and I expect it to be an All-American Competition Factor 3 or possibly 4.

Some ATA rules news: the 18-yard handicap has a change. If you are now shooting on the 18-yard line and move back in yardage, you will not receive a reduction back to the 18-yard line.

I am available by phone, 321-427-6553, or at [email protected].

           Larry Grenevicki

           ATA Delegate

 

Georgia

I hope you all had as much fun with trapshooting in the 2017 season as I did. For me, it keeps getting better and better, even if my scores don’t. Anyway, a new year is coming, and hope springs eternal.

The John Hiter Memorial held prior to the Grand gets better every year. Kudos to Dave Hollingsworth and Sam Weil for putting on a terrific one-day shoot at the Cherokee GC. It ran like clockwork, the food was great, and the trophies were awesome. The quality of shooting was outstanding, with Gary Blair taking singles with 100 straight, Jerry Osborne III winning the doubles with 98, and Max Owen topping the handicap with 98. Jerry also won the high-over-all with an impressive 291.

Georgia participation this year at the Grand was good, with many long-timers and some first-timers. Weather almost could not have been better. I always marvel at how a shoot of this magnitude runs as smoothly and efficiently as the Grand does. If you have not experienced it, it has got to be bucket-list material. Several Georgia shooters won trophies, an accomplishment of which anyone should be proud. Boone Butler placed in the Trap & Field Handicap, as did Mike Bolling in the Blaser Handicap. Preston Lunn was junior gold runnerup in the Clever Ammunition Handicap, and Mike Reed placed third in Class A for the Clay Target Championship. Darnell Wesley placed in his yardage group in the Caesar Guerini event.

Special recognition goes to Gary Blair, who won seven trophies in the chairshooter group and placed third in the All-Around. Absolutely great shooting, Gary!

I enjoyed seeing everyone at the Georgia Hall of Fame Shoot at South River GC Sept. 9-10 as we celebrated Mike Reed’s induction. It kicked the new shooting year off right.

Rich Griffith

ATA Delegate

 

Kentucky

Well, The Grand American is over for another year—kind of sad, but we were blessed with a great time, as always. Kentucky was well represented, as usual, and Kentucky shooters performed well. Like at the Kentucky State Shoot and the Southern Zone at the Central Kentucky GC, the weather at Sparta this year was outstanding. Congratulations are in order for many Kentuckians, but the greatest is to the winner of the Grand American Handicap with the lone 100 of a very windy day: David Elder of Stanford, who bested more than 2,000 of the best trapshooters in the world competing.

A very close second, coming in with the only 99, was Kentucky sub-junior Elijah Wilson. Two other Kentuckians, Bobby Stilts Jr. and Edward Harris, came in ninth and 10th, respectively. Dustin Powell was 18-20 champion, and Kevin Williams was runnerup. Scott Plewke came in fourth in the same yardage group. Richard Wilson was the 23-24 champion, with William Staley and Allen Everett winning third and fourth places, respectively. Michael Castle was 27-yard fourth following a 95. Hunter Plewke was junior runnerup with 96; Ricky Smith was sub-vet champion.

Another Kentuckian won the Caesar Guerini Preliminary Handicap the previous day. Gerard Hoots shot a 99 and won the shootoff for event champion. Aaron Willoughby came in sixth in the event. Elder was 21-22 winner, and Mike Cole was 25-26 runnerup. Dawson Horton was sub-junior runnerup, and Vernon Anderson was senior vet third.

In the World Doubles Championship, Kentucky had two shooters place. Keith Parrott came in fifth in AA with 99 plus shootoff, and Austin Day placed fifth in C after 95.

On Thursday of Grand Week, The ATA World Clay Target Championship saw a multitude of 200s. Henry Winn broke 200, and after an extensive shootoff, placed fourth in AAA. David Walker was B runnerup with 198. Connor Richardson finished third in sub-junior with 200. Bobby Fowler finished with junior gold runnerup with 200.

In the Kubota Doubles, Keith Ditto finished third in AAA with 100. He also was the 27-yard runnerup in the previous handicap with 97, while Clayborn Hunter Jr. was sub-vet runnerup with 99. Gerald Shockley was the vet champion with 98.

In The Champion Of Champions event sponsored by Wendell August, Kentucky had only one category winner. Drew Wyatt topped sub-juniors with 100 followed by an extensive carryover.

Trey Wilburn was AAA fifth place in the class doubles. Tim Foley was Class A runnerup with 98.

In the President John Burke Handicap, Michael Castle placed sixth with 97 followed in seventh by Kevin Williams, also with 97. Dawson Horton was the sub-junior champion with 96. Hunter Plewke finished third in junior. Bobby Bilbrey was chairshooter champion.

In the Winchester Class Singles, Winn was AAA third-place finisher for 200, followed by Fowler, who was AA runnerup with 199.

During the preliminary week events, Kentucky shooters’ lights shown brightly, with Hannah Simpson, Wyatt and Connor Richardson winning trophies in Event 1; Kayley Bartlett and Robert Dyer in Event 2; Danny Ryan, Simpson and Richardson in Event 3; Wyatt and Robert Dyer in Event 4; Kayley Bartlett and Winn in Event 5; Simpson Richardson and Fowler in Event 6; Bill Stoeppel, Logan Perry, Melissa Tracy and Robert Dyer, Event 7; Kevin Gray, Bartlett and Larry Woolsey, Event 8.

In Event 9, Kentuckians suffered an unlikely thing and got shut out. In Event 10, the NRA 200 Singles, Wayne Parrott shot 200, Teddy Bilbrey shot a 197, and Robert Dyer a 200 to pace the Kentucky contingent. In Event 11, the Krieghoff Handicap, “Mr. Steady Eddie,” Aaron Willoughby, placed fifth, followed by more “Steady Eddies” Linda Cox, Richardson and newcomer Allen Everett. In Event 12, Tristan Miles came through with another win.

In Event 13, Kentuckians came through with several consistent performers: Scott Plewke, Gary Houston, Willoughby, Bartlett, Everett and Dyer, along with Bilbrey. In the Wenig Doubles, Kentucky had two trophy winners, Simpson and Dyer.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the outstanding performance of Dyer in the Blue-Gray Shoot-out at Opening Ceremonies. A representative of the Gray squad, he broke 24×25 as did Janessa Beaman, which led the Grays to a one-target victory. The shoot-out with Orange Crush targets was very entertaining to all.

Immediately following the Grand American, some Kentucky shooters went to Ohio to participate in the Cardinal Classic. Several winners emerged early, with Ray Brown Jr., Todd Cole and Richardson notching early wins. In Day 2 events, Ryan and Kevin (Tank) Polson (two-event champion) came through big. On Day 3, Tony Thomas and Bradley Jones notched impressive wins. Things slowed a bit the rest of the week, with Daniel Etler, James Molin, Brennan Kamer, Tristen Miles, Patrick Hercell and “Steady Eddies” Polson and Martha Humphrey notching wins late in the week. Tank was the AA HOA winner, and my dear friend and high chief, Todd Cole, won C.

Congratulations to all, and I’m already looking forward to a bigger and better next year.

Please forward Kentucky trapshooting news to me at [email protected]. Please be patient with me, as I know I left many deserving winners out, but hopefully I will get you next month.

Vernon R. Anderson

KTL board member

 

Mississippi

Wow, what a Grand! Eleven days of shooting with all my friends and new friends, good food and great programs. Our 23 shooters from Mississippi really represented us well. I’d like to give speical recognition to our high scores. Zeke Yeager and David Huber broke 100 in separate events, while Jim Porter shot an excellent 99 in another. We are very proud of every one of you for your participation. Be sure to follow Trap & Field’s Grand reports for Mississippi winners.

I asked Jerry Tharp, a trap chairman for Capitol GC, to tell us about the Big 50 program they have at the club. Jerry wrote:

“Trap was a booming success in the 1970s with over 100 shooters annually at our flagship tournament, the Rebel Trap Shoot. By the 1990s, the boom had gone bust. We have been rebuilding ever since. Monthly trapshoots and one or two two-day shoots a year with mediocre attendance became the norm. The ATA introduced the Big 50 program, and we decided to give it a shot.

“The Big 50 is designed for small clubs and relaxes some of the strict discipline of registered trapshoots. For example, non-ATA members can shoot alongside ATA shooters on the same squad. It reduces the registered daily target fees in half from $6 to $3 (ATA and MTA). Big 50s do restrict the number of targets daily to no more than 50 per discipline, but a 50 straight in handicap will get you a half-yard punch. At Capitol, we have adopted the shooter-friendly Big 50s and are seeing very positive results.

“Our program at Capitol is Big 50s on Thursday afternoons each week. Do the math, and you get 7,800 registered targets per shooter (52×150), good numbers for the shooters and for the club that throws the targets. Shoot Big 50s regularly, and you need not worry about minimums before the next big shoot.

“Probably the most interesting aspect is the friendly atmosphere for new shooters, who are welcome to participate. It has certainly made a difference at Capitol. We have come from the usual three required to start an event to as many as 10 on a given Thursday. Some of these new shooters are young ones just getting started. Others are older, just looking for a hobby and something to enjoy. When you take away the rigidity of the big shoots and surround new shooters, young and old, with experienced shooters in an encouraging environment, the new shooter prospers and keeps coming back. In other words, it is a win for shooters, a win for the club, and a win for registered trap.

“When it comes to administration, Big 50s score again. There is no need for a large administrative staff, no need for trophies, no added money, no need for trap help (we do it ourselves and referee as well). From our experience here at Capitol, the Big 50 is a success and does just what the ATA intended: promote our sport! Go to the ATA website and read all about it. Then try it. I think you will like it. Happy trappin’!”

A special thanks to Jerry for sharing. In closing, I’d like to invite all trapshooters to come be a part of our Mississippi trap clubs. Please feel free to contact me with any qeustions or interests.

           Lenny Sawyer

           ATA Delegate

 

South Carolina

Doug Stenback was congratulated by ATA Delegate Jim Faber on reaching the 75,000-target milestone in singles.

Doug Stenback was congratulated by ATA Delegate Jim Faber on reaching the 75,000-target milestone in singles.

The big news from the Grand is that there will be no more reductions to the 18-yard line; 19 will be the closest. If you are an 18-yard shooter, you may stay there until you get a punch. The other change involves All-American points. Points will no longer be tied to trophies; they will be tied to scores. If a number of shooters are tied with the same high score, there will be a shootoff to determine the champion. The champion will receive the most points; all the other shooters in the shootoff will receive the same amount of lesser points. The complete explanation will be available on shootata.com and published in T&F.

The Grand was good this year weather-wise. The first week was hot but not unbearable. The second week was nice as it cooled off. We had one really windy day and got caught in a driving downpour in doubles one afternoon. There were nine South Carolina shooters in attendance. To the best of my knowledge, Teresa and Randy Knight were the only trophy winners.

There were four South Carolina shooters in Ohio for the Cardinal Classic, with two trophy winners: Stan Nerkowski in 16s and Rodney Raines in doubles.

The achievement department has one entry this month: Doug Stenback reached 75,000 16-yard targets.

Remember, our Hall of Fame Shoot has been moved to Nov. 4-5 at Spartanburg with Teresa Knight as our inductee.

If you have news for this column or want to be moved to the 19- or 20-yard line, let me know at [email protected].

           Jim Faber

           ATA Delegate

 

Tennessee

Tennessee was well represented at the Grand this year, with the following shooters winning trophies: James Kelly, Jackson Smith, Savanna Brock, Caleb Clayton, Garrett Sweeney, Hunter Trull, Andrew Kobeck, Garrett Morrison, Hayden Zeigler, Jeremiah Donaldson, Dillon Tosh, Billy Clayton, Joe Dement, Garrett Bradford, Griffin Black, Chandler Hinson, Ethan Rogan, Justin Spaid, Seth Cooper, Thomas Freeman, Robert Smith, Amy Dement, Robert Terry, Donald Smith, Katie Barnett, Vernon Beasley, Hunter Morton, Hayden Jacobs, Wyatt Cooper and Ronald Biggs. Congratulations to all of the above.

Congratulations to Wylie Maness for breaking his 50,000th handicap target during the Clever Ammunition event. Wiley started back shooting this year after a 15-year break.

I am sad to report the passing of Dr. Ray Laughters, 72, on Aug. 10. The Kingsport native joined the ATA in 1991, registering a total of 263,050 targets.

A couple of larger shoots are coming up this month. After being in Florida for several years, the 19th Dixie Grand will be held Oct. 3-8 at Bostic, NC. Then two weeks later, Oct. 18-22 will be the Mountain Days Shoot at Hog Heaven GC, White Pine, TN.

Read the Rulebook, please.

Check out our website at Shootatatn.com for more info. For questions or further information, contact me at [email protected] or 731-217-9957.

Billy Cook

ATA Delegate

Southwestern Zone

Colorado

Happy fall, all. When you read this, the Grand will be in our rear-view mirror for another year. Great job by all the staff; I appreciate your hard work to put on this grand event.

As I’m looking at the results, Colorado shooters did us proud. The AIM program: Nikki Herman received an AIM academic scholarship and was junior gold lady doubles winner. Other shooters who showed us how it was done: Gregory Ferguson, Colton Arrigo, Kailey Arrigo, Shawn Hale and Michael Blosteck. The last four made up Pikes Peak Clay Busters, coming in second in junior squad A in the team competition.

The Grand winners from Colorado: what can I say, the ladies kicked butt. Stacy Rehor with 23 awards, and Janessa Beaman with seven. On the men’s side, leading with nine was Ray Stafford; Denis Bringelson, three; Scott Wall and Colton Arrigo, two; and Mike Storeim, Richard Rehor and Reid Kalsow came in with one each. Good shooting, and congratulations. A Grand trophy is something to really be proud of.

Our state team of Rehor, Mike Herman, Bringelson, Michael Wasserburger and Beaman came in sixth with a 990.

Congratulations to Sierra Wasserburger on being awarded an ATA scholarship with one of the highest grade point averages to date.

Shooting his first 100 in doubles at Pueblo S&TC was Stan Baker. Good shooting, Stan; keep it up. Don’t forget to support your local clubs in October. The following have shoots: Grand Junction, Golden, Yuma, Cactus Flats, Berthoud and Pikes Peak.

For you All-Americans, please note rule changes to the All-American points system for next year. A summary is in this issue.

In an effort to eliminate the 18-yard line in handicap, there will also be no more reductions to the 18-yard line.

Hunting season is here. I hope you are all successful; have fun and stay safe.

I would like to remind our shooters to please let me know of anything special that has happened at your shoots or in your life that you would like to share. I can be reached at [email protected].

Dan Treat

ATA Delegate

 

Louisiana

Well, the 2017 Grand American is now history, and I hope and pray that all shooters, families, friends, vendors and everyone who descended upon Sparta, IL, to participate or work to pull off this wonderful event made it back to their homes safely.

All the help up and down the trapline did a remarkable job keeping squads moving, traps throwing and scoresheets moving. It really is a sight and sound to behold, and I encourage anyone who has never made the trip to please put it on your “bucket list.” I promise you will not regret it.

This was my first visit to the Grand as a state Delegate, and I was privileged to get to meet some wonderful people, all of whom are as passionate about trapshooting as I am. I also had the opportunity to meet members of the Executive Committee and the Central Handicap Committee and quickly came to realize that this group of dedicated individuals does truly have the best interest of the ATA as their main focus.

Although Louisiana does not have a large number of registered trapshooters, we were fairly well represented with 10 shooters in attendance, several staying for the full event. Some were fortunate enough to bring some trophies back to LA.

On the local scene, most clubs are transitioning into their fall/winter patterns, as most shooters will be taking to the fields and marshes instead of the trapline. However, there are several that will continue to throw targets through the winter.

One of these is this month’s featured club, Red Chute Shotgun Sports Club, 7623 Range Road, 318-456-4582. Open: Tuesdays and Thursdays, noon to dusk; Saturdays, 9 a.m. to dusk; and Sundays, noon to dusk.

Red Chute SSC offers trap; skeet; 5-stand sporting clays; and a 14-station, 100-bird sporting clays range. DOD card holders, approved civilians and walk-in shooters are always welcome. The club hosts over 20 sanctioned trap and skeet events each year.

They place great emphasis on helping novice shooters get started. Club staff and members support numerous youth programs and organizations with shooting instruction, resulting in hundreds of kids being taught shooting basics and safety each year. They have shotguns available for rent.

RCSSC is located on Barksdale Air Force Base. Someone wanting to shoot at the club should not be intimidated by having to get access to the base. It is not difficult, and the guards are quite accustomed to shooters coming to the club.

Access is commonly by one of two ways. The first is to go to the East Gate, which is the Contractor’s Access Gate, and inform the guard that you wish to go to the gun club. The guard will direct you to park and go inside the building. You call the club at 318-456-4582 and tell them you need to be picked up at the gate. Someone will come and escort you to the club. You will have to show a driver’s license and proof of automobile insurance to get a day pass. The second is to apply for a one-year pass by filling out the paperwork at the link below and giving it to club manager Paul Williamson. Once approved, you will have to go to the base on a Monday through Thursday during business hours to get your photo and badge made. A thumbprint will be taken also.

Two things of which to be aware: do not speed, and do not bring any other weapon onto the base other than shotguns.

For base access methods or a base access one-year badge request form, go to http://louisianatrapshootingassociation.org/gunclubs/RCSSC_Access.htm.

For shoot schedules and contact information for any of the Louisiana gun clubs, please visit the LTA website www.louisianatrapshootingassociation.org/index.htm.

Doyle Brooks

ATA Delegate

 

Missouri

The 2017 Grand American is officially in the history books. I am not sure who ordered the weather this year, but they should be commended. Yes, there was some rain, and some got wet shooting, but overall I believe this was some of the best weather ever during the Grand at Sparta, IL. It takes a tremendous amount of time and effort on everyone’s part to make the largest shooting event in the world happen. I would like to extend a great big thanks to all the management, staff, sponsors, vendors and most of all, shooters who were a part of the Grand American this year.

The AIM programs just keep on growing, with more shooters competing at the AIM Grand National. Sporting clays and skeet saw the largest increase in participation, up 29% and 27% over last year. The handicap was pretty much flat compared to last year, with the doubles and singles up a little under 2%. There were 243 Missouri AIM shooters attending. Congratulations to all of the shooters who took home trophies. There were 34 scholarships totaling nearly $80,000 awarded during the AIM Grand. That is a staggering amount of money going to a very deserving group of individuals. Thank you to all sponsors and donors who made the scholarships possible. Behind every one of the AIM shooters are parents, coaches and state directors who should be commended for all their work, getting shooters to practice and shoots as well as organizing and running those shoots. Congratulations and thanks to all!

The preliminary and Grand Week attendance overall was nearly the same as last year, with 231 attending from Missouri. By my count, there were 28 shooters from Missouri who collected a total of 47 trophies in Events 1 through 24 and the Grand HOA and All-Around. I am not even going to attempt to name all of those who won trophies, as I know I will overlook someone. Look for complete coverage in the next couple of issues of T&F. Last month I mentioned a youngster from MO who completed probably the most difficult leg of his Grand Slam, which was breaking 100 from the 27-yard line, leaving the doubles as the final leg. I had the distinct pleasure to present Cody Crabtree his Grand Slam pin after breaking 100 in the Event 14 doubles during the Grand. Congratulations, Cody, and to all who won trophies or shot well enough to be in carryovers or shootoffs!

We can begin looking forward to the 2018 target year with some rule changes. In case you have not heard or read by now, there were some changes made to the handicap system. One of the most notable is beginning Sept. 1, there will no longer be reductions to the 18-yard line. The results of this change will be monitored for the next couple of years before a decision is made to make any additional changes. The new Rulebook, along with a section of changes for 2018 at the beginning, is on the ATA website.

The All-American points system also had some significant changes made that will affect shooters at tournaments that award points. You may ask, how will that affect me if I don’t shoot for AA points? In the past, in order to award points, there had to be a trophy awarded. That caused a lot of confusion for the shooter and shootoff staff. A lot of shoots awarded trophies for runnerup and third places in order to award points, and by doing may have made a shooter ineligible to shoot for a class or yardage trophy if they were eligible for a trophy in their category. Now points will be awarded by score and not by trophies. This change will most likely make more shooters eligible for AA points and lessen the confusion in determining how to classify for a shoot.

If anyone has questions about the rules changes, please give me a call or look me up at a shoot, and I will be most happy to explain any changes made. Remember, it is the shooter’s responsibility to read and understand the rules!

I look forward to an even better and more successful year in 2018 and hope you do also. If anyone has concerns or anything that they would like to have reported, please contact me at [email protected] or 816-863-9003. Keep your head on the stock and eye on the rock!

Stephen Ricketts

ATA Delegate

 

New Mexico

There were 15 shooters from NM at this year’s Grand American—that was great. I want to congratulate Mike Grady for winning AAA champ in the Clay Target Championship and Britt Dalton for his awards, including ones in Preliminary Week’s All-Around plus 1,000- and 1,500-target HOAs then Grand Week’s All-Around and HOA—plus the entire tournament’s 2,600 total! That’s good shooting. If I forgot anyone, I’m sorry.

In October Alamogordo is shooting on the 7th and 8th; Belen, the 14th and 15th; Hobbs Annual is the 20th through 22nd; and Roswell, the 28th.

If you have any news you want to report, e-mail me at [email protected].

Bob Leibel

           ATA Delegate

 

Oklahoma

As we begin a new target year, it is time to get together and schedule shoot dates. Some clubs insist on certain dates. As a result, last year we had seven weekends when no club had a shoot. Then we had a weekend when three clubs in close proximity shot. This forces shooters to choose between clubs and hurts attendance at each club. The local clubs need all the support they can get to survive. We need to work out schedules that provide this support. Please remember our local clubs are run by volunteers. Thank them for providing us a place to shoot, and offer to help where you can.

There will be a 4-H coaches class Oct. 27-28 at OTSA SP. Contact Kimberly Davis at 580-255-3674 for cost and information.

Ada’s Tuesday night fun shoot drew four squads of shooters. Josh Casteel broke 25 in singles and 24 in handicap for first place. Vickie Farmer and Lowell Leach had 45s. Steve Blackburn and I had 43s. The new graveled driveway was very nice.

Al Haws shot at and broke his 25,000th ATA singles target during the July 29 shoot at OTSA. Three more shooters reached milestones: Rick Bliss 50,000 doubles, Paul Hooper 50,000 handicap, and Gus Bradshaw 25,000 handicap.

Once again our AIM shooters excelled at the Grand AIM shoot. The Oklahoma Dusters sub-junior team won a national title. Brayden Bliss with 197, Josh Stacey 197, Jared Marshall 195, Shay Skaggs 189, and Clay Laughlin 187 totaled 965 for the win. Ashton Huffstutlar won champion in handicap and sporting clays. Clay Galbreath won junior gold in 28-gauge trap. Shooters breaking 100 straight during the AIM competition were Shelby Skaggs, Colt Quisenberg, Zane Arnold, Brayden Bliss, Josh Stacey, Jared Marshall and Collin Rindal. This was Collin’s first 100 straight, and Jared’s first 100 also. Shelby Skaggs won junior lady national champion, and Colt was junior AA champion.

Arnold, Casteel and Galbreath will attend Connor State College at Warner, OK, on shooting scholarships. Ashton will be on a shooting scholarship at Midland University in Freeman, NE. Some of these AIM shooters were able to stay over and shoot Grand events, winning trophies there also.

At the Grand this year, it was announced that Pat Stacey will be inducted into the Trapshooting Hall of Fame in 2018. Several years ago at the Missouri State Shoot, Leo Harrison suggested that I send Pat in for consideration. After much research, Pat was sent in along with 15 pages of major wins alone. Having won the Clay Target Championship two times, Pat has proven he can compete with the very best. He has been winning titles since 1993 at the Grand, Southwestern Grand and several state shoots where the competition is always high. Pat’s travels are limited, but he still earns points, placing on the All-American team every year for the last nine. Pat’s past performance and continuing success prove he deserves this great honor. Look for a complete write-up in Trap & Field and plan to attend the 2018 Hall of Fame Banquet in his honor.

Pat and son Josh both broke 100 straight shooting on the same squad in the Champion of Champions event. It is impossible to list all the winners here, and Trap & Field will do that without missing someone. I will list some of the good scores I noticed. Some of Pat’s good scores were 100, 200, 200 and 199 in singles and 100, 98, 99 and 100 in doubles. Some of Josh’s were 491×500, 100 and 197 in singles. Corbin Grybowski’s were 497×500, 100, 199, 100 and 199 in singles; 100, 98, 99 and 97 in doubles; 471×500, 98, 97 in handicap; 968×1,000 in the prelim; and overall 2,513×2,600. Robert Rimer’s were 470×500, 97, 98 and 97 in handicap and 95 in doubles. Ken Isenberg had 198 and 196 in singles; two 95s and 97 in doubles. Ken also won the gun in Event 17. Ron Bliss had 465×500 and 96 in handicap and 96, 99 and 100 in doubles. Brayden Bliss had 197 and 199 in singles and 95 in handicap. Rick Bliss had 196, 98, 97 in singles and 95, 98, 98 in doubles. Jeffrey Trayer had 198 in singles and 94 in handicap. Clay Galbreath had 99 and 96 in handicap. Clay Laughlin had 97 in handicap and 95 in doubles. Randy Farmer had 100 and 199 in singles. Vickie Farmer had 97 in handicap and won Lady I in the 20-gauge event. Billy Pierce won sub-vet in the 20-gauge event. Ricky Barnes had two 94s and 96 in handicap and won Class B in the 28-gauge event. In the Champion of Champions, Pat, Josh and Corbin broke 100s, Shelby Skaggs and Rose Shaffer broke 99s. Shelby had 198 and 99 in singles; 95 and 92 in handicap; and 97 in doubles, and earned Lady I third in the CofC. Rose won Lady II Champion of Champions. She and Rick both broke 196 in the Clay Target event, with Rick having 100 straight. Charles LeadingFox had 198 in singles and 98 and 96 in doubles. Josh Casteel had 98 in doubles and 98, 97 and 95 in handicap. Mike Whitaker had 99 and 193 in singles and 97 in handicap. Gary Nichols had 198 in singles and 98 and 96 in doubles. Ellis Toews had 96 in handicap and 197 in singles. Lyndon Shumaker had 195 in singles. David Bacon III had 97 in handicap. Ray Galli had 95 in handicap. Congratulations on all the good scores. It is evident Oklahoma shooters came to compete. Look for a complete and accurate write-up in Trap & Field.

The weather was great, and 50 Oklahoma shooters attended the Grand, with 34 of them being category shooters. Also look for revamped rules on All-American points. I think this will simplify everything. Points are no longer tied to points pins or trophies. The points will be awarded on the top several scores. A complete list of the new rules can be found on the ATA website, and in this issue of Trap & Field. It will be simple to figure points and check totals throughout the year.

One hundred Oklahoma 45th Division soldiers returned July 25 from active duty in the Ukraine. Several of our soldiers overseas lost their lives in August. Several Navy seamen lost their lives in ship collisions. On July 17 Oklahoma Highway Patrol Lt. Heath Myers lost his life in the line of duty. Several law enforcement officers across our nation lost their lives. We must support the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect us. Please keep them in your prayers.

           Tim Deister

           ATA Delegate

 

Texas

I can’t believe summer is gone. I have always heard that the older you get, the faster time passes. I guess I’m there because it seems like it was a very short summer. Maybe lots of moms are glad because the kids are back in school. I just don’t like cold weather. Oh well, it will happen whether I like it or not.

I’ve attended every Grand in Sparta, and this was the best overall weather ever—very pleasant temps and not much rain. I hope if you have never been to Sparta, you will start making plans now to go to the Grand next year. This is an amazing facility, and as only a fat man would know, there are some great eating places in and around there.

I have great news from San Angelo Claybird, which had their first registered trapshoot in five years. The club is under new management, and they are going to try having monthly registered shoots again. Please, please, please go support them, as we need all the clubs we can get. Thanks to my friend B. W. Kennedy for sending me this information.

It was a special honor for Princess and me to represent Jim Foster at his induction into the Trapshooting Hall of Fame. Jim is one of the finest gentlemen I have ever known. I just wish he could have been there for his standing ovation. His induction was a well-deserved honor.

I would also like to let any of you who don’t know, next year Gary Sherrod will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Congratulations, Gary.

I met a very nice young man at the Grand. Hunter McGlaughlin is from Maryland, but Billy Hopson told me Hunter loves Texas. I am sending him a life membership in the Texas Trapshooters Association. I certainly hope I get to see him at next year’s Grand. Hunter, keep practicing, and next year you will be outshooting Patrick.

The most misunderstood rule in the ATA Rulebook is the doubles misfire rule. The simplified version is now back on the ATA website, thanks to Lynn Gipson. Please read the Rulebook and re-read it. It’s every shooter’s responsibility to know the rules. Do your part.

I have not been able to do away with the 18- and 19-yard lines for handicap, but thanks to Terry Dean’s efforts, there will be no more reductions to the 18-yard line. It’s not what I had hoped for, but it’s a start. Thanks, Terry. Maybe next year we can do the same for the 19-yard line.

If you are an 18- or 19-yard shooter and are having trouble squadding, you can request a yardage increase. Just call me, and I’ll get it approved by our Southwestern Zone CHC member, David Rhoads.

I have made up my mind that I am not going to be so lenient on people who do not have an up-to-date average card. It’s great that the ATA has made it so easy to print one from their website, but that’s only part of the responsibility for the shooter. The Rulebook says, “You will present an up-to-date average card.” The lag time between when you print the card and when shoot reports are sent in and then posted by the ATA could be three or four weeks. If you are not posting scores to your card that have been shot and do not appear on your card, then you are breaking an ATA rule. Please don’t expect me to be a part of this. The rule book is a list of rules, not suggestions.

If you have news, please let Princess or me know. You can reach me at 806-679-6889 or [email protected].

Till next time, y’all shoot well, y’all shoot often, and y’all have a great time.

Jerry O’Connor

ATA Delegate

Western Zone

Alberta

We are back from the Grand American in Sparta with more experience but not many trophies. We had eight shooters attend this year—excellent representation for the size and distance of our province. Grand attendance was about equal to 2016, but AIM, the youth shoot prior to the Grand, was up considerably. Weather was cooler than normal and very comfortable. It was fun to watch as fellow Westerner Pat Lamont dominated championship week.

There have been an increasing number of shooters from New Zealand and Australia the last few years in Sparta, with more than 20 from Australia this year. It is now official that Australia is part of the Western Zone. They hope to start having ATA shoots in the near future—something to remember if you are planning a trip to that part of the world. New Zealand was already a member of the ATA, and registered shoots are continuing to develop there.

There were a number of rule clarifications finalized at the zone and AGM at the Grand. On a two-year trial basis, there will no longer be reductions to the 18-yard line starting in the new year. Those who are on the 18 now will stay until they earn yardage. The failure-to-fire rule in doubles has been clarified. If the first target is hit and the second is a failure to fire, the pair is repeated, with the first target established as dead.

There will also be a major revamping of the All-American points system; point pins will no longer be required. Changes are posted on the ATA website and in T&F.

Our Western Zone Shoot next year will be held July 20-22. This overlaps with our provincial tournament. This scheduling occurred because of reasons including the Grand moving forward to Aug. 1, one less weekend in July, and some overlaps with the PITA Grand. The APTA board is now considering hosting the Zone concurrently with the provincial; announcements likely will be made prior to this being published.

We are again pleased the ATA has awarded Medicine Hat a grant of $2,500 from the Gun Club Fund. These funds are generated from the Perazzi Combo tickets, which many of you have purchased. It’s nice to see some of the funds come to Alberta again. Call Harold if you want tips on filling out successful grant applications. Brandon GC, site of our 2018 Canadian, was also a grant recipient.

Congratulations to Brad Johnson and his family for putting on a very successful first registered shoot in Wainwright Aug. 26-27. Reports are that targets were great, and hospitality was even better. Brad continued his winning ways with another 200 in the singles, after winning the provincial with the same score. It was also good to see Ron McConnell again hitting his stride with a 392 to take the all-around.

If there are things you would like to see in this report, please give me a call or let me know by e-mail.

           Garry Hill

           ATA Delegate

 

Arizona

About 25 Arizonians made the long trek to Sparta for the Grand. It took Karen and me about three days of hard driving. Boy, does the country change along the way! Our numbers were small, but our influence was substantial. In fact, Art Hammer, who is a world-renowned mathematician, did a quick study of Preliminary Week. (I am continually amazed by our shooters’ expertise in all sorts of areas. Need advice on repairing a tractor, well drilling, dentistry, accounting, real estate, home building, rodeo or, as in Art’s case, nuclear power, just ask.)

Arizona had the highest cumulative average of all states with 20 or more shooters, and that includes my scores, which sure did not help. Overall we had one event champion, four category champs, five category runnerups, three category thirds, one class fourth, and one Super 500 runnerup. Please remember that Arizona had around 25 competitors out of a field of 3,000+—not too bad!

Leading the way was Canyon Ferris; no shock there. All Canyon did was win the Little Egypt Doubles outright with 100 straight, quickly followed up by another 100 in the Zoli International Doubles for junior runnerup. Then he finished the Krieghoff Handicap with 99 from 27 yards, ending as junior runnerup once more and finally slumping to 98 in the Clever Handicap, taking an additional junior crown. Another one of our great young shooters, Charlie Wachtel, beat all other juniors in the prestigious Champion of Champions event with 100 from the 16. We all know how hard the junior category is; it was the talk of the Grand.

The slightly older folks were busy, too. Jim Sharp, attending his first Grand in a number of years, was veteran runnerup in the Krieghoff Handicap and Kubota Doubles. Don Carlson took fourth place in D in the Kubota, Gerry Williams finished third in vet in the same event, and Tim Robb shot a 99 in the Doubles Championship for third place in vet.

There is one other Arizona competitor who must be mentioned, and I always feel a little funny doing so, but here goes. My wife Karen won two Lady II titles, the Downrange Doubles and the Clay Target Championship with her first 200 straight. She also notched runnerup in the Super 500 Doubles and the Wenig Doubles plus third in the Hodgdon Singles. It was a pleasant drive back.

Everyone should visit the Grand at least once. Thousands of shooters from all over the world take part, and the facility must be seen to be believed. It is impossible to visualize a 3.5-mile-long trapline without standing at one end. The weather could not have been better. The first few days were hot, although not by Arizona standards, and the rest of the time it was in the 70s and 80s. Not too windy, and just a sprinkle or two.

Very little happened at the annual ATA meeting. Our financial position is strong, and a few rules were clarified. There was also some fine-tuning of the All-American points/trophy system. Jim Jones, the Delegate from Montana and our Zone VP, was elected the new ATA President. Jim is a good guy with plenty of common sense.

The Autumn Grand is right around the corner, Nov. 1-12. Although we shoot year-round, the Autumn Grand is the unofficial kickoff to our high season. You will go a long way to find a more enjoyable shoot. The weather is usually great—shorts and T-shirts; it is one of the larger Satellite Grands, but not humongous, and you get Tucson with its wide-open background, plenty of parking, great vendors, friendly people, and a professionally run shoot. What’s not to like?

Around the state: Flagstaff held their Dead Snag Shoot Aug. 12-13. Paul Jacobs’ 98 was high in the singles opener and won him vet. Jay Alderman was second with 97, taking AA class. Next was the ’caps, where Steve Bell’s 95 was high, while Danny Treanor and Levi Franklin followed closely at 94, winning long-yardage and junior/sub-junior, respectively. Saturday finished with Alderman blowing away the field with a 98 in doubles. Jay didn’t cool off much on Sunday, either. His 93 was tops in doubles, and he lost a coin flip to Greg Holden for singles; they were tied at 98. He then took vet with a 93 in the handicap. The highlight of the shoot was Kathy Sullivan’s 97 in the ’caps, earning her a one-yard punch. Len and Kathy are back on the scene.

Upcoming in addition to the Autumn Grand, we have registered shoots at Double Adobe, Tri-State, Rio Salado and Casa Grande (season opener). Please check aztraps.com for details. See you on the line!

John Bergman

ATA Delegate

 

Utah

Vicki Skelton's many jobs at trapshoots have included cashiering, computer operations and snow-cone making.

Vicki Skelton’s many jobs at trapshoots have included cashiering, computer operations and snow-cone making.

July provided some nice opportunities to get out and enjoy our sport. Magna GC held its final registered shoot (at least at the club’s current location) and had a very good turnout. The club put up $2,000 to be split between short- and long-yardage shooters on the two handicaps. Some very tall scores were shot in all disciplines, but the highlight was when Bob Bates broke all 100 in the first handicap. Nice shooting, Bob!

Next came Spanish Fork’s marathon shoot featuring 250 pair of doubles the first day and 300 handicap the second day. Twenty-four brave souls shot at all 500 doubles, and the same number of shooters shot the 300 handicap.

The weekend of July 14-17 was the Western Zone telephonic shoot that was hosted at nine locations throughout the West. Vernal R&GC was Utah’s host site. Approximately 40 people attended there, while the overall Zone hosted around 400 shooters. Vernal shooters had a very good showing in most all events, with Scott McKinnon and Sean Hawley taking all-around and high-over-all honors, respectively.

Spanish Fork held its annual Fiesta Days, which coincides with Utah’s Days of ’47 celebration. Shooters were greeted with hot weather and good targets as well as a free steak dinner for those who stayed around Saturday evening. During the singles on Saturday, Scott Doran broke his first ever 100 straight. He went on to do it again at Golden Spike GC the following week. Congratulations, Scott.

On the same weekend as the Fiesta Days Shoot, the Overthrust GC in Evanston, WY, held a nice two-day shoot and dedicated it to Utah shooter Jimmy Duke (I featured Jimmy several articles ago). The Overthrust GC is a three-trap club 70 miles east of Salt Lake. Jimmy always does his best to attend their shoots, and he was awarded a plaque with the inscription, “Jimmy Duke Invitational, Jimmy Duke Grand Marshall, Overthrust Gun Club.” It is a special honor when a club in another state honors one of our own!

The Golden Spike GC in Brigham City held its first registered shoot in approximately four years. The club has a whole new board and did a fantastic job of running their first shoot. Club members who got Golden Spike back into throwing ATA targets are Shane Francis, president; Fred Bently, VP; and Jeff Manning. Welcome back into the fold!

My profile for the month is Vicki Skelton. Northern Utah shooters recognize Vicki as the cashier/computer operator at clubs such as Magna, Heber, Helper, Cedar City and Nephi. When I first met Vicki, she was a spectator for a few years and then a participant in the sport. Here is some very interesting information on Vicki in her own words.

“After deciding trapshooting was not a ‘spectator sport,’ I joined the ATA in 1987 and started registering targets. I was a below-average shooter in singles and handicap, but under Kenny Adamson’s tutoring, doubles was my forte, where I had the highest doubles average for women in Utah for a few years. My best year of shooting was when I was a D singles shooter, shot handicap from the 20-yard line and was a AA doubles shooter. However, due to personal issues, my interest in shooting started to wane, as did my scores. In 1993 I was hit in the right eye with a baseball and quit shooting altogether. I have been tempted but haven’t picked up a shotgun since.

“When Jim and Bev Hardy took over Magna GC around 1994, I started volunteering and helped wherever needed. Magna purchased the 3S Software in 1996 and asked if I would cashier their ATA shoots as well as the Round Robin team shoots. I have been secretary of Magna GC and on the board of directors for over 16 years. I am also serving as Magna’s delegate to the USTA.

“When the Utah State Shoot was held at Magna, I declined to put in a bid to cashier. Instead, I helped out one year in the sticky Coke wagon, and the second year I made snow cones; my feet remained green and orange for the better part of that summer. I decided maybe scorekeeping wasn’t so bad after all.

“In 2006 I was approached by Heber Gun Club and asked to do their May ATA shoot. With the exception of one year, I have been doing their shoots since.

“Helper GC asked if I would come down just to observe while they implemented a new system for their shoot in May 2011. They wanted my input in case questions arose or anything went wrong. Well, everything went wrong, and I went from observer to doing their shoots to date.

“The following target year I was asked to do Nephi’s May shoot, and with the exception of one year have been there for six years.

“Two years ago with the death of their previous scorekeeper, Cedar City was looking for someone to do their August shoot. After receiving my name with a favorable recommendation, they reached out to me, and this August will be the third year I’ve done their shoots.

“I’ve been contacted by a couple of other clubs, but unfortunately their shoot dates thus far have conflicted with other events I was committed to. All in all, my May and August months are pretty booked and somewhat hectic.

“I plan to retire from the University of Utah at the end of this year after 36 years of service (I am the manager of a research lab for the department of neurosurgery). I’m thoroughly looking forward to retiring . . . just wish the days on my retirement clock would count down as fast as the minutes.”

I for one would like to applaud Vicki for her work and dedication for helping us enjoy our sport!

           Ed Wehking

           ATA Delegate

 

Washington

The end of the target year is here as I greet you, and by the time you see this, hopefully most of us will have a good start on the 2018 average card.

I would say it has been a good year for trapshooting in Washington. Many of our shooters reached milestones this past target year, and many more registered ATA targets for the first time. The mix of seasoned ATA shooters and those new to our sport is a very encouraging sign for things to come.

I tend to reflect as the old year ends and the new year begins. I think about how we started the year in pleasant weather at Walla Walla GC last September. Then we fought wet and windy weather into the heart of the season, followed by hot weather in the summer. One thing that holds true in trapshooting is that rain or shine, cold or hot, trapshooters have a way of sticking together, sharing meals, sometimes shells, and lots of good times on the firing line. It all reminds me of what WSTA Hall of Famer Marv Hergert told me when I started shooting. He said, “If you’re ever out on the road broke down, call a trapshooter from the area you are in, and you’ll be sure to get help.”

Plans are in the works for the Northwest Grand, Camas Prairie, Inland Empire and state shoots for 2018, so stay tuned for exciting news regarding schedules in Washington for the coming year. Also be sure to take in some shoots at small clubs in Washington. These four- or five-trap clubs scattered all over offer great opportunities for registered targets and getting new shooters started. We have clubs close by in Idaho, Montana and Oregon also, and the experiences there are really fun and make our region a unique shooting area.

Next time, as our busy harvest comes to an end and we get to thinking a little more about trapshooting and the other outdoor activities our region has to offer, we hope to add more from Washington shooters’ experiences at the Grand American. Maybe we’ll be hearing about the big buck bagged by one of our shooters!

Don’t forget to take a kid or some other novice shooter to your club, and please share any of your shooting experiences to our Washington State Trapshooters Facebook page. Until next time, shoot straight and keep your powder dry.

Sean Lewis

ATA Alternate Delegate

Central Zone

Indiana

ATA Delegate Jason Barnett presented Ian Lawrence his trophies from the Evansville GC's site of the Central Zone Shoot.

ATA Delegate Jason Barnett presented Ian Lawrence his trophies from the Evansville GC’s site of the Central Zone Shoot.

Greetings, shooters! I hope everyone is enjoying a successful start to the new target year. This is a great time of year to take advantage of the mild weather and support our local Indiana gun clubs. Many are throwing Big 50s as well as weekend shoots, which are a great way to pick up a lot of targets before winter arrives; then you don’t have to scramble around trying to get in your minimum targets in the spring.

A special thanks goes out to everyone at Evansville GC for hosting an ATA Central Zone Shoot location. Each year this CZ shoot in Evansville gets better and bigger. It’s certainly one of my favorites, and I encourage everyone to attend in 2018.

I still can’t believe how great the weather was for the Grand American this year. Kudos go to Lynn Gipson, everyone on the Executive Committee, and all the many workers and volunteers who make the Grand a fantastic experience for all. Congratulations to F. Darryl Hayes, Delegate from Michigan, who is now the ATA Central Zone Vice President. I know Darryl will do a great job in this position and represent the Central Zone well.

As always, it is good to see so many Indiana shooters listed on the leader board in each event as well as so many familiar IN faces waiting their turn at shootoffs each evening. The very first day of prelim week, Chrissy Byrd put up the lone 100 straight in handicap. Then later that week in Event 11, Clarence Mason tied the high handicap score with 99 and ended up veteran champion. Indiana shooters taking home Grand American trophies this year include Byrd, Thomas Rhoads, Tom Neal, Devon Harris, Mason, David Winn, John Harden, Mike Williams, Bobby Hubble, Michael Ross, Ron Dicke, Preston Crandell, Josh Brown, C. W. Arnett, John Roussel and Michael Bowe. Congrats to each of these shooters!

Please don’t hesitate to let me know if you need anything or would like to have anything included in this monthly report for Indiana. My e-mail is [email protected].

Jason Barnett

ATA Delegate

 

Iowa

From the trophy report, many Iowa shooters took home some very nice trophies from the Kansas State Shoot. It’s always nice to see fellow Iowa shooters at other state shoots. I did run into some Iowa shooters or saw them shooting, including Terry Palmer, Joe Needham, Shelly Heitner, Dale Stockdale, Richard Sample and Larry Bumsted. This was my first trip to this tournament, and it was very well worth the drive. I must say Kansas has one of the best backgrounds and uniform trapfields from one end to another that I’ve ever seen.

I want to say thank you to all the Iowa zone directors who worked the high school shoot, which went for five days this year. As always, the state can use more folks to volunteer and help with this and many other duties that a very few men and women do to make the state shoots go so well. It’s a thankless job when these people volunteer to get a butt chewing, so please remember that when you have a suggestion for your state zone director or president.

I can be reached at 712-830-2612.

Heath Kasperbauer

           ATA Delegate

 

North Dakota

Our 2017 state shoot was one of the largest in recent history, with 186 shooters competing, 57 of whom were non-residents. I guess our non-resident trophy package offered for the first this year really helped bring in the shooters. Competition was strong, with some really good scores being recorded. In Friday’s doubles event, Pat Bosh entered his first 100 straight to win the championship. In the singles there were 13 shooters with 100 straights winning trophies (for the residents, Jason Folvag, champ; Chad Gerloff, runnerup; Mariah Knutson, Lady I; Melissa Woodworth, Lady II; Bryar Hanson, junior; and Dallas Kemmer, sub-vet; for the non-residents, Hunter Howe, champ; Dean Walker, runnerup; Jack Knaus, sub-junior; Taylor Wagner, junior gold; Pat Laib, vet; and Pat Lamont, AA). The hot shooting continued into the handicap with six 98s (Folvag, champ; Bosh, runnerup; and Ben Christian, junior for the residents; the non-residents had Lamont, champ; Richard Amundson, runnerup; and Bob Felber). Saturday’s championship singles had four 199s (Folvag, champion, and Mark Kaffar, runnerup, for the residents and Lamont, champion, and Stacy Rehor, Lady I, for the non-residents). Mark Kaffar shot his first 100 straight on the second hundred of the day. Sunday’s championship doubles had six 98s (Folvag, champ; Zack Kemmer, runnerup; Dallas Kemmer, sub-vet; Bosh and Greg Vaage, AA, for the residents and Taylor Wagner for the non-residents). The championship handicap’s top scores were squadmates Cody Tangsrud, resident champion (99), and Lamont, non-resident champion (98). The all-around and HOA awards were a real horse race between Tangsrud and Folvag, with Cody coming out on top in the all-around with 393 to Jason’s 392. The tables were turned in the HOA, with Jason on top for 979 to Cody’s 973. Lamont was high in both events for the non-residents with 394 and 980. For complete details of the shoot, please refer to the shoot report. Plan on joining the fun at the 2018 North Dakota State Shoot in Minot July 19-22.

The Grand started off just as grand for some North Dakota shooters, beginning with the AIM program. Erik Argall from Grand Forks was the overall AIM champion with 200 straight and 50 more shootoff targets. The Grand Forks Claybusters junior team was the Class A runnerup with a team total of 974. In the Clay Target Championship, Team North Dakota won first place with 997 (Brian Mohler and Tangsrud, 200; and Bosh, Chad Gerloff and Perry Weiner with 199s). Other wins from North Dakota include Weiner, Event 1 singles, AAA, 100; Event 11 handicap, third, 98; Winchester 500, AAA, 498; and Event 22 doubles, AA fourth, 99; Tangsrud, Event 13 handicap, champion, 99; Event 14 doubles, third, 100; Event 19 handicap, ninth, 98; Event 20 doubles, AAA, 100; and HOA, runnerup, 981; Bob Munson, Event 10 singles, senior vet, 199; Event 14 doubles, senior vet, 99; Event 20 doubles, senior vet third, 98; Event 21 singles, senior vet runnerup, 200; and Event 22 doubles, senior vet, 99; Brian Mohler, Winchester 500, A third, 493; and Chad Gerloff, all-around, AA third, 389. Bosh won third in the International event.

I hope your 2017 shoot year was as good as you expected, and 2018 will be better yet. See you on the line.

Tim Kaffar

ATA Delegate

 

Ohio

The 2017 Grand American was very enjoyable this year for the shooters, who experienced mild temperatures and only one day of showers. The opening ceremonies contained several events, such as the Blue-Gray Shoot-out and a great fireworks display. The Cardinal Center received second place in the White Flyer Mega Target Award during these ceremonies.

Ohio was represented with 165 shooters who classified at this year’s Grand American. Our trophy winners were Terry Bailey, Andrew Bush, Robert Caplinger, Ronald Charniga, Joseph Charnigo, Steve Corwin, Mike Dehabey, John Evick, Clyde Findley, Charles Gandert, John Gioffre, Summer Gobrecht, Tate Hedrick, Austin Jacob, Flip Jendre, Kenneth Kamnikar, Elaina McCarthy, Patrick McCarthy, Ryan Minyo, Rick Plaumann, Jeff Schlichter, Mike Smeltz, Elizabeth Ternes, John Thomas, Mary Thompson, Paul Weisgerber, Michael Wengerd, Phil Williams and Richard Zombek. In the National Team Race held on Friday of preliminary week, Ohio placed second in vet (Ronald Charniga, Craig Blank, Roger McNamer) and third in senior vet (Mike Dehabey, Clyde Findley, Louie Morgan). Charnigo was Ohio’s Grandest shooter with a score of 393 in the All-Around.

During the Central Zone meeting, I asked President John Burke if the ATA would consider moving the dates of the U.S. Open so it would not conflict with the Buckeye Open. The Buckeye is considered a major shoot and has been the same week for several years. This was the first year for the U.S. Open to be shot on these dates. This would benefit both the U.S. Open and the Buckeye Open.

During our annual meeting this year, we learned the ATA is changing how All-American points will be assigned. A new Competition Factor chart will be applied to this coming year, which will reflect the change the ATA implemented last year by reducing the required number of shooters from 600 to 450 shooters for All-American points. I would also like to congratulate Darryl Hayes on becoming the new VP from the Central Zone. Darryl attends shoots at the Cardinal Center and is always willing to help in any way possible.

The Cardinal Classic, which is held directly following the Grand American, saw a lot of campers pulling in late Saturday and all day Sunday. Several shooters headed back east to make the Cardinal Center a regular stop on the way home each year, and they are greatly appreciated.

The Cardinal Classic had 8,590 entries during the six-day shoot. There were 2,290 entries in the championship events, which gave the shoot a Comp Factor of 6. This was a great shoot, and except for Thursday’s rain, weather was extremely nice. I won’t swear to it, but I think 11 of the 15 events carried All-American points. If you are chasing All-American points, come and join us at the Cardinal Center next year.

In the championship events, the winners were as follows: singles, Ian Fleming (PA); handicap, Brandon Brooks (OH); doubles, Austin Jacob (OH); all-around, Matthew Patmore (AS); and HOA, Chris Vendel (PA).

I would like to commend the Cardinal Center for always having the grounds groomed neatly, and the targets were great, except when the wind decided to interfere, but they were still breakable. The target-setters did an excellent job, and Luke Spengler does an excellent job keeping everything running smoothly. I would also like to give a big thank you to Candy for having the scorers and loaders ready for every shoot held at the Cardinal. This past year Luke had Jake manning the three sporting clays ranges, which held more tournaments, and they are expecting to hold more this coming season.

Mr. Fishburn is trying his best to improve the facility this coming year, and I hope everyone appreciates all the things he does. Mr. Fishburn is trying to provide Ohio shooters one of the finest facilities in the country. If you happen to see him, make sure you tell him how much you appreciate everything he does for the shooting industry and the Ohio shooters.

The shoots at the Cardinal Center would not be what they are without the help of our sponsors. I would like to thank the sponsors who contribute to the shoots in Ohio. Please check out the sponsors and give them a special thanks for their support.

Also, Bob Stuart does an excellent job with everything pertaining to the computer end of things, and he does the announcements every morning or when something comes up that needs to be blasted over the PA system. I had several shooters comment on Bob’s TV system, and I have to say it is one of the best in the business.

Please remember to fill out the all-Ohio team application. You can download a copy from the OSTA website.

I will leave you with the words of a good friend of mine for whenever you take the line: “Keep your head down, follow through, and bust ’em.”

Roger McNamer

ATA Delegate

 

Wisconsin

Do you remember when you were younger and afraid to go into a porta potty when friends were around? Well, I had to use the porta and was in hurry to get to the line. When I tried to exit, the door would not open, but I could open it enough to see a Kentucky friend in the driver’s seat of his red car. His bumper was holding the door shut. I yelled, “I need to shoot!” and he backed his car up to let me out.

I arrived at the World Shooting Complex on Tuesday to shoot the entire Grand. What a magnificent place! If you have never been there to shoot or visit, please put it on your bucket list. To make this shoot happen, it takes lots of board members, office workers, volunteers, grounds and trap workers. Not to mention the vendors who pay for their spots, so that costs to us are offset. Thank you to everyone who made this happen.

My first day of shooting was not bad, but the second day went great. I do thank my friend John Pickitt for help with my doubles and singles.

Congratulations to the Wisconsin shooters who took home trophies. Some accomplishments from prelim week: Edward Borske, 100 singles, nice first Grand win; Sandra Jo Jack, 97 in doubles, a first; Brad Nagel, 98 in ’caps, very nice; Stephen Gilbertson and Victor Whalen, 98 in ’caps, sweet; Geoff Gorres, 100 in doubles, awesome; Hadyn McKeough, 99 in ’caps; Donald Chrapla, 199 in singles; Cody Milanowski, 98 in doubles; Donald Wagner, wins in the All-Around, HOA and 500 Singles; Kyle Sacia, win in the 500 Handicap; and Bill Simonar, third, 28-gauge event.

Congratulations to the Wisconsin shooters who won during Grand Week: Charles Noel, first win at the Grand; Cheryl Demulling; Sandra Jo Jack; Dwight Paulin, 200 and 199 in singles; Gary Reynolds; Wagner; Carl Bauer, 98 in ’caps; Gorres, another 100 in doubles; Steve Wolf; Charles Noel; Greg Arneson; Robert Ebbers; and Thomas Felts, 98 in ’caps. For more scores, please read results in this issue.

Hunter Knotwell, 13, shot his first 50 straight for a 98 in handicap at the Grand. Parents Nancy and Bill are so proud of him. Thank you for sharing this great shooting information, and congratulations.

Thank you to all shooters who made the 2017 year fun and successful. Remember to ask if your club needs any help with winter close-up duties. I’m looking forward to shooting in the snow with you all.

Please e-mail if you have something you want to include in my article, and most of all, smile.

Sandra Jo Jack

for ATA Delegate Kevin Doerring

Eastern Zone

Connecticut

Greetings to all. The 101st Connecticut State Shoot was a great success, and I would like to thank everyone for their attendance and hope all enjoyed the weekend. I would also like to thank the following: CTA officers and delegates who contributed their time and efforts to preparing and working over the weekend; Hartford GC, who hosted our annual shoot, and the grounds and facility were in top-notch condition; Joe Cimino and Fran MacDonald, our trophy committee; and Joyce Morris and her fantastic team cashiering and helping out above and beyond the call of duty! Congratulations to all the winners. Visit our website www.cttrap.com for the complete list, and see this issue of T&F for the report. I hope you all enjoyed the registered shoots held this summer.

Congratulations to all Connecticut shooters who made it out to the Grand American. I understand the weather was mild and comfortable. I was very disappointed not to have been able to go.

The new target year began Sept. 1, and Fairfield Co. held National Trapshooting Day Sept. 17 followed by Wolcott Sept. 24 and Pahquioque on Oct. 1. These were great opportunities to get in your target requirements early for the 2018 target year.

Rich Latouf

ATA Delegate

 

New Jersey

Our ATA Eastern Zone was held at Elysburg this year. Sixty-four Garden Staters attended, winning 23 trophies. It saw brand new shooter Angelina Moir earn two trophies in handicap and a yard and a half of real estate. Leading the trophy winners were Robert Malmstedt with four; Chris Cusamano and George Wright, three; Terry Shaffer, Emily Malone and Angelina, two; and Joe Sissano, Nickolas Padovani, James Lavelle, Gene Moir, James Shire, Duncan Stevenson and Fred McDonald with one. To see all the winners and what they won, go to www.rjstuart.com. Next year’s Zone will be July 18-22 at Cicero, NY; the 18th is being sponsored by the NYSATA.

Three days following the Zone Shoot, 20-something of us were standing on the line at the 2017 Grand American. Shooters competing in the trap portion of the AIM Championships were shooting one day after the Zone ended. Things will be different in 2018, as the ATA Eastern Zone will end July 22 and the Grand American will start Aug. 1, giving all of us some breathing room.

Weather for the Grand was great. Angelina continued on her quest, earning three yards and three trophies during the 10 days; nice going! Leading the trophy winners was Ean Taylor with four, followed by Angelina with three. Tony Pietrofitta also was a standout at the Grand, earning 1.5 yards of real estate, one trophy in 12-gauge, one in 20-gauge event and another in the 28-gauge (the latter two were special events). Winning one award were Joseph Clarke, Bryan Romanow and Thomas Clarke. To see all the winners and what events they won, go to www.shootata.com.

It was then on to Marengo, OH, for the Cardinal Classic. Twenty-one shooters from the Garden State attended. We were all shut out until Event 11, and Robert Battista posted a 99 in the 903-entry handicap. He took the sub-vet trophy and hopefully played the Lewis for the big money prize; I didn’t get a chance to ask him yet. His 99 propelled him from 24.5 to 26.5 yards; he’s knocking on the door to the back fence. Good luck getting there, and nice shooting.

Randy Cordray from Mt. Vernon, IL, won the gun raffle of the Perazzi High Tech shotgun. Thanks go to all of you who bought a ticket to support the ATA Gun Club Fund.

Langhorne Lions R&GC’s 15th annual Shoot for Sight on Nov. 5 will consist of 200 16-yard targets, door prizes, and free food and drink, all included with your entry. Historically, New Jersey shooters do well there!

On Oct. 21, Mallard TC is holding a fun shoot, including doubles and wobble. Free food to all competitors and trophies to class winners, so come on out and have some fun shooting.

The NJSTA is sponsoring the third President’s Shoot at our Pine Belt homegrounds Oct. 14-15. There are 200 singles and 100 handicap on Saturday and 50 pair of doubles, 100 singles and 100 handicap on Sunday again this year. The complete options listings are in the 2017 state program.

The 2018 target year Dixie Grand is going to be at the North Carolina homegrounds in Bostic. If you’re interested in going, go to the ATA website for details, and I would recommend pre-squadding for some of the high-volume events to assure a shooting position.

Lastly, it would be a good time to renew your membership in the ATA and your subscription to Trap & Field while you’re at it.

On a sad note, Joseph G. Scully Jr., a lifelong resident of Pompton Lakes, died Aug. 23; Joseph was 74. He was born in New Rochelle, NY, raised in Pompton Lakes, and schooled there. He was employed as a boiler technician at Kiel Oil. He was a veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard, stationed in Boston from 1961 to 1968. Joseph was an active member of the North Jersey CTC and was elected to the club’s board of directors. He is survived by his wife Wanda, children Paul and Pamela Scully, sister Margret LaPierre, two grandchildren, and nieces and nephews.

If you have an idea for an article or you have a question, I can be reached at 732-546-7910 or [email protected].

Joe Sissano

ATA Delegate

 

New York

Happy Halloween to all my friends in New York and the other states and provinces. I hope all is well with everyone. I hope everyone had a great shooting season and shot well.

I am sorry to say that we have lost two more New York State shooters. Both Ted McHugh and Gary Knoer passed away on Aug. 9.

Theodore McHugh was 82. He was president and owner of McHugh Art Studios, a stained-glass craftsman studio established in 1971. Ted was passionate about trapshooting and was a life member of the ATA and NRA. He won numerous club, state, regional and national championships. In his lifetime, Ted registered 207,300 singles, 110,475 handicap and 71,200 doubles targets. Ted joined the ATA in 1959. He served as president of Buffalo SC for many years, represented New York as ATA Delegate and served as president of the NYSATA for many years. Ted was instrumental in establishing the NYSATA homegrounds in Cicero. He also served as Eastern Zone Vice President, President and Past President. Ted was inducted into the NYSATA Hall of Fame in 1999. He was predeceased by his wife Barbara and son Ted Jr. He is survived by his daughters Patience and Kathleen, son Patrick, brothers Donald and Michael and many grandchildren. Our deepest sympathy to his family on Ted’s passing.

Gary Knoer was 51 and lived in Tonawanda. He started registering targets in 1987 and was a member of the Sheridan Transit R&GC. At the time of Gary’s passing, he had registered 25,325 singles, 4,800 handicap and 5,550 doubles targets. Our deepest sympathy to all of Gary’s family and friends.

Congratulations to Brian Luther for registering his 50,000th singles target at the A R Sportsman’s Club. Brian ran the 100 while reaching the milestone. Good going, Brian.

At the 2017 Grand American, several New Yorkers won trophies. Justin Slater was junior gold third in the Hodgdon Powder Singles; in the Trap & Field Handicap, Gerry Ostrander was senior veteran runnerup; in the MEC Shooting Sports Singles, Curt Robbins was the AA champion, event eighth in the TrapshootingUSA Handicap, and AA champion in the Sterling Cut Glass Singles; Daniel Slater was senior veteran runnerup in the Gipson-Ricketts Handicap; in the Kolar Doubles, Curt Robbins was AA runnerup; Samantha Wagner was B third in the NRA Singles; Urban Womer was sub-veteran champion in the Krieghoff 100 Handicap; Slater was junior gold runnerup in the Blaser Handicap; in the Wenig Doubles, the D runnerup was William Wallis; in the preliminary high-over-all 1,000 targets, Slater was junior gold runnerup; in the Winchester Super 500 Singles, Robbins was AA runnerup and Slater was junior gold champion; in the Class Singles, Michael Fox Jr. was AAA fifth; in the Doubles Class Championship, Don Alderson was B fifth; and in the Champion of Champions, Slater was junior gold runnerup. This was excellent shooting by these fine New York shooters.

Congratulations to former New York and now Pennsylvania resident Chris Vendel for his induction into the Trapshooting Hall of Fame. Chris was inducted on Aug. 8 at the Event Center during the Grand American. Many family members and friends were in attendance for Chris’ big day. All of us from New York offer our congratulations. Well done!

If you are planning any hunting activities this fall, remember your safety rules and please be careful out in the field. See you all soon, and good shooting. God bless.

           Dave Cichelli

           ATA Delegate

 

Ontario

Greetings from Ontario, Canada. I congratulate all Ontario shooters on their accomplishments this year. There were at least 19 Ontario shooters who attended the Grand, and many of these competed in the various Champion of Champions races. When I last checked, we have contenders for at least three of the category All-American teams. Ontario is one of 14 of the provinces and states that comprise our Eastern Zone. It is a Zone that has some great competitors, both currently and historically. As one of the ATA VPs, I am immensely proud of the accomplishments of all our Eastern Zone shooters. Well done.

For those of you who chase All-American team points, you will find that there are some significant changes in store for the new target year. All-American team points have historically followed the trophies, with add-on points for tie points and score points. It was time-consuming and sometimes difficult to quickly and accurately calculate these points. Many shooters simply waited to learn how many points they earned at a competition once Kathy Key (et al) input them. Under the new system, points will not be tied to trophies but rather to scores, making it easier and faster for all to compute and reducing the administrative work expected of the host club. Host clubs will no longer be burdened with the cost of providing trophies just to enable shooters to qualify for points. It will still be important to win the top trophy (or in the absence of a trophy, the top score) in a person’s category as top-level points are at stake, but apart from that, for the most part it is the score attained that will dictate the points earned. At the conclusion of each event, I suspect most shooters will be able to compute their points earned by a fast review of the scoreboard. You can view the new system rules on the ATA website and in this issue of T&F.

All the best for fall shooting.

Paul Shaw

ATA Eastern Zone Vice President

 

Pennsylvania

Keystone shooters brought back 103 program trophies plus several special-event laurels from Sparta this year. The Grand wouldn’t be the same without Deborah Ohye-Neilson renting a U-Haul to bring her awards (28 this year) back to PA. Among them were Preliminary HOA and All-Around, Super 500 Singles and Doubles, and championship All-Around, 1,000 HOA, and 2,600 HOA for Lady II. Borrowing some space in that U-Haul was husband Don Neilson. He brought back nine awards, including the Super 500 Singles for sub-vet. During the Class Singles, they teamed up to win the Husband-Wife trophy with 396, and Debbie also won the Parent-Child award with dad Kay Ohye for 399. Newly minted Trapshooting Hall of Fame enshrinee Chris Vendel tallied 16 awards, including 1,000 HOA, 2,600 HOA, and Super 500 Handicap for the sub-vet category. Criona Doorly added the Lady II Super 500 Handicap title to her haul of seven Grand awards.

Other PA shooters bringing back Grand hardware included Wayne Kreisl, Christian Koerbler (two), Evan Mood (three), Genevieve Davis (two), Frank Pascoe (two), Peggy Carney (four), Cody Davis (four), Donald Schaffer Jr. (two), Donna Natcher, Bethany Breighner (two), Kim Bateman, Daniel Rodgers, Ken Darroch (two), Ian Darroch, Adam Stefkovich (two), Luke Cowart (five), David Dubble, Daniel Bosso, John Manning, Robyn Bird, Douglas Worrell (two), Ian Fleming (two), Samuel Lubich, KayLynn Hamilton, Steve Huber (two) and Emerson Bornman.

The National Team Race saw Deborah Ohye-Neilson, KayLynn Hamilton and Criona Doorly capture the Lady II title for Pennsylvania. The sub-vet team of Donald Neilson, Frank Pascoe and Chris Vendel ended with runnerup honors, just three targets behind the winning team.

During the Zone races, held during the championship events, Ian Fleming blasted 200 singles targets to win the overall Champion of Champions title. Zone category champions were junior Cowart, sub-vet Vendel and Lady II Ohye-Neilson. Fleming, Vendel and Ohye-Neilson were on the winning Eastern Zone team as well. Zone doubles category winners were junior Cowart, sub-vet Ken Darroch and Lady II Genevieve Davis. Cowart was also part of the Eastern Zone champion team.

Taking his Grand performance east to Ohio were Vendel and 198 other PA shooters who attended the Cardinal Classic. Chris carted home eight awards from there, including HOA champion and sub-vet all-around. Ian Fleming won the Singles Championship, and Bethany Breighner earned the Lady I all-around award.

Thirty-two more trophies were earned by Wesley Beaver (two), Tammy Van Blargan-Hensel, Jan Kern, Connie Kern, Stephanie Wrisley, Davis, Randy Krick, Helen Siemianowski Black, Zeke Raub, Leroy Cook, Susan Owens, Brandon Deal (two), Micah Fmura (two), Sheldon Hostetter, Stephen MacNeal, Michelle Shaffer, Martin Pawlak (two), David Westwood, Robert Reese, Richard Long, Daniel Morris, Doorly, Ian Darroch, Ron Gustafson, Daniel Rodgers, Curtis Paul, Donna Natcher and Stefkovich.

Congratulations to all for their accomplishments at the Grand, Cardinal Classic and during the 2017 target year.

October still offers some nice weather for getting a jump on your 2018 targets. There are also plenty of clubs in the state that are throwing registered targets during the month. Make sure you get out and visit these before Old Man Winter makes his return. Hopefully I’ll see you at one or two.

Steve Ross Jr.

ATA Alternate Delegate

 

Rhode Island

As new Delegate representing Rhode Island, I am excited to report the outstanding performances of our state’s shooters at the Eastern Zone, Grand American and Cardinal Classic shoots.

Eastern Zone winners included John Federici, veteran doubles champion Event 3, and veteran doubles runnerup, Event 6. Greg Smith secured sub-veteran singles champion, Event 4, and seventh in the championship handicap. Ron Pedro took eighth in the Event 5 handicap, with Wayne Morris taking Class D singles champion in Event 4. In the Lady II category, Sue Smith was runnerup in the championship doubles.

During the Grand American, Rhode Island shooters started Preliminary Week with Ron Pedro blasting 99 from the back fence to secure third place in Event 5. Federici’s awards included veteran runnerup in the Super 500 Handicap, Event 5 veteran third with 97 from the 27-yard line, Gipson-Ricketts Handicap veteran champion, Rio Doubles veteran runnerup, Kubota Doubles veteran champion and HOA 1,000 veteran runnerup. Representing Rhode Island in the Champion of Champions were Pedro, posting 99; Mike Jubin, sub-veteran, breaking a perfect century; and Federici, veteran, 98. On a personal note, it was a great experience for me to post a 200 straight in the Clay Target Championship. It was my first 200 at the Grand and something I will remember for a lifetime. A special thanks to my squadmates Wayne Morris, Don Alderson, John Federici and Dave Cichelli for their encouragement and support.

During the Cardinal Classic, our Lady II champion Sue Smith was winner of Lady II in the Event 5 singles and Class C awards in Events 8 and 10. Federici secured six more awards, including vet, Event 6 doubles; vet, Event 7 handicap; eighth, Event 9 handicap; vet doubles champion in Event 14 with 100 straight; all-around veteran runnerup; and high-over-all veteran champion.

A big “well done” to all. Our small state was once again very well represented throughout the ATA shoots during the entire shooting season.

I hope to see you all shooting practice and supporting our local clubs at shoots and leagues. If there is any news or information you would like me to report, please feel free to contact me at [email protected] or on my cell, 401-474-0142.

Louis DiPrete

ATA Delegate