Atlantic Provinces

Hello from the Atlantic Provinces.

To all gun club managers: Do you know that the ATA provides all active clubs with five complimentary memberships for first-time members? It’s a great way to attract new shooters to ATA registered shooting. If you haven’t received yours for this year, contact me or the ATA for more information.

I still have a few tickets left for this year’s ATA Gun Club Raffle. Tickets are $20 for a chance to win a Kolar Regal Trap Combo. All proceeds support the ATA Gun Club Fund, which provides funding through an application process to active ATA gun clubs that are undergoing upgrades and improvements. It’s a fantastic program that the St. John’s R&GC in St. John’s, NL, has benefited from. The grants received to date have helped fund their multi-year Trap Improvement Project, which included the replacement of two traphouses and three trap walkways. The club’s fourth walkway will be replaced this summer. Please support the ATA Gun Club Raffle with the purchase of a ticket or two!

The shoot program for the 2022 Atlantic Provinces ATA Provincial Shoot is now available on www.shootata.com. This year’s shoot will return to St. John’s, NL, and the St. John’s R&GC Sept. 1-4. If you need ammunition for the shoot, see the instructions in the shoot program and on www.shootatlantic.com on how to place an order. If you’re traveling to attend this year’s shoot and need a rental car, reserve one ASAP, as there’s a local shortage of rental vehicles. We also have a few new sponsors for this year’s shoot. Have a look through the program and support the sponsors that support us where you can.

The Canadian Trapshooting Association (CTA) has announced that they will be re-introducing the CTA All-Star Teams that recognizes Canada’s top trapshooters. Congratulations to the 2021 team members. The 2022 Canadian Trapshooting Championship is being held in Calgary, AB, at the Calgary FC June 29-July 3. Visit www.shootcanada.ca for all the details on the CTA All-Stars and for a shoot program.

For more information on the Atlantic Provinces Trapshooting Association, feel free to contact me at [email protected] or visit shootatlantic.com.

Andrea Bassan

ATA Delegate

Massachusetts

As I put this article together on March 20, it is starting to feel more like spring. I would like to remind all members to please have your ATA membership dues and your MATA dues paid for the 2022 target year. Check your average card; have your singles and doubles up to date along with your correct yardage. This will help get you through quickly at the classification table. The target requirement for 2022 in order to make the 2023 State Team will be 2,000 singles,1,500 handicap and 1,000 doubles targets, plus you must shoot all events of the two championship days (Saturday and Sunday) during the 2022 state shoot.

All of our clubs have their shoot dates set for 2022. Our state shoot was finalized, and the dates will be June 9-12 at Minuteman SC. There will be 1,100 targets available. Our Labor Day Shoot was also nailed down; the date will be Sept. 4 at North Leominster R&GC.

All this information should be available on the MATA website.

I would like to congratulate the following shooters for making the 2022 State Team: Robert Nihtila Jr., .9579; Michelle Archambeault, .9103; Jacob Pappas, .9095; Nancy Patterson, .9033; Richard Nihtila, .9008; Robert Platt Jr., .8998; Bruce Murphy, .8913; Robert Scott, .8871; Michael Lombardy, .8854; Paul Donovan, .8821; Ed Archambeault, .8809; Christopher Monterotti, .8795; Steven Lavanchy, .8752; Vincent Farrell Jr., .8704; Roman Barrett, .8667.

Robert Nihtila Jr. was high in singles with .9919; handicap, .9165; doubles, .9654; and all-around, .9579.

I would also like to recognize three of our shooters for making the 2022 All-American team: Robert Nihtila Jr., open second; Nancy Patterson, Lady I second; and Roman Barrett, sub-junior second.

I am sorry to report the loss of four of our shooters: Frank Iadarola, 88 years old from Douglas passed away Dec. 1, 2021 surrounded by his loving family. Prior to retirement, Frank owned and operated Milford Heating and Cooling and FAL Mechanical. Frank was a life member of the ATA and won many awards throughout the U.S. in his shooting career, traveling with his best friend Dick Hewett. Frank shot registered targets from 1989 to 2017 and had shot 116,500 singles, 93,250 handicap and 68,600 doubles for a total of 278,350 targets. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family; he will be greatly missed.

Ed Flanagan, age 84, of Billerica passed Jan. 27 surrounded by loved ones and his faithful hunting dog. Ed enlisted in the United States Navy and served his country for four years on active duty. He retired at the young age of 55 to pursue his true passion, the outdoors. In the hunting and fishing circles of new England, he was a living legend. He was also a competitive shotgunner who competed in trap, skeet and sporting clays, Ed shot trap from 2007 to 2018 and had registered 3,900 singles, 4,600 handicap and 1,900 doubles. Our sincere condolences to his wife Angela and daughter Ann Marie.

Robert Lawless Jr. passed away Jan. 31 at the age of 73. Bob was born in Whitinsville, raised in Uxbridge and lived in North Oxford for 20 years. Bob and his wife Rose enjoyed competing in archery and the shooting sports. I first met Bob in 1985 at Singletary R&GC, where he was squadding shooters for handicap, and he was good at it. For many years, he volunteered his time at several clubs to do the handicap squadding. Bob started shooting registered trap targets in 1972 and shot until 2008 with totals of 21,200 singles, 18,850 handicap and 8,800 doubles for a total of 48,850 targets . Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Rose and family. He will be missed at the classification table.

Clayton Dill passed away Jan. 14 at 82 years of age. Clayton and his wife Pat (who also shot trap) lived for many years in Harwich and over the years could be found at shoots all around New England. Clayton and Pat moved to Florida and the Silver Dollar SC and started working for the club. He was known throughout the trapshooting community and was featured in the November 2021 issue of Trap & Field Magazine. Clayton started shooting registered trap in 1982 and shot until 2015. He had registered 124,425 singles, 41,600 handicap and 4,400 doubles for a total of 170,425 targets. Our condolences and prayers to his wife, family and friends.

If you have any questions, comments or conerns that I can help with, I can be reached at 413-586-0428, (cell) 413-687-7703 or [email protected].

Remember to have fun.

Dave Russell

ATA Delegate

New Jersey

Well, it is March 24, and I was re-reading my March contribution to Trap & Field, and my hope back then for a de-escalation in Ukraine seems to be a fairy tale. Putin has caused the Russian people at home to live with more sanctions from the West. Death and destruction reigns down on the inhabitants of Ukraine who remain, by Putin led “Mother Russia.” There is no telling what Putin’s plans are for Eastern Europe and countries in the former Soviet Empire and the effects on NATO and the United States. Time will tell.

The weather here in New Jersey is slowly creeping out of the winter doldrums, with the return to Daylight Savings Time in the eastern part of the country, mornings are darker for now and the evenings are brighter, and for us, that means more target shooting.

Rick Batesko, president of the Ground Swiper club in Lacey Township, reported they had initially scheduled their Shamrock Shoot for March 12-13 and because of the poor weather forecast for that weekend, canceled and rescheduled it for March 19-20. Fortunately for them, the weather front forecast for the 19th was quicker than the weather folks thought, and the front moved through the area while everyone was asleep. The 200 Shamrock Singles on Saturday had four class winners: A, Carlos Gomes; B, Rangel Queiroz; C, Michael Chiarella; and D, Rich Mueller. The St. Patrick’s Day Doubles on Sunday had four class winners: A, Rick Batesko; B, Pat Shulack Jr.; C, Richard Pappas; and D, Michael Chiarella. The Leprechaun Fun Handicap had four winners; first was Rich Pappas, second was Zac Cucunato, third was Pat Shulack Sr., and fourth was Michael Fishman.

The Southern Grand just finished at the Silver Dollar in Odessa, FL. Nine shooters from New Jersey made the trek down south. Bob Jarvis, a founding member of the “Bob Squad” of South Jersey fame, came down to shoot. Bob won five trophies, including a 199 in Saturday’s Singles Championship, securing the sub-veteran trophy with the 199 outright.

As mentioned last month, the annual Youth Shoot will be held this year at Pine Valley on May 7. There will be $4,500 in prize money given away.

Pine Belt will be having a State Shoot Warm-up on May 22; they will be throwing 400 targets (100 singles, 200 handicap and 50 pair of doubles). I talked to Jeff Slimm, and he indicated that the singles would be shot between the two handicap events. So it would be handicap, singles, handicap then doubles. The following Friday, May 27, starts the Delaware State Shoot, which is held again this year at Pine Belt, and runs through Memorial Day, May 30. The following Thursday, June 2 starts the 125th New Jersey State Shoot, which runs through June 5.

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

Joe Sissano

ATA Delegate

Ontario

Greetings from Ontario, Canada

As I write this article in late March, the snow has almost disappeared in most areas of southern Ontario, although temperatures are still on the cool side. Trap clubs are prepping for early spring matches. One of our most experienced registered event organizers, Bill Malcolm, has kindly volunteered his time and talent to get several clubs ready to host registered events. This is greatly appreciated and will add more clubs to our inventory of options for our shooters.

Even with ammunition shortages, many trapshooters are looking to break a lot of clays this year. They have been under COVID lockdowns for far too long. We are even getting our Ontario competitors south of the border to tournaments.

With any luck, this could be a long overdue banner year for registered trapshooting.

Paul Shaw

ATA Delegate

New York

Hello to everyone from New York. I hope everyone is starting to shoot registered ATA targets and plans on getting out there and doing plenty of registered shooting. I know that I plan to.

The officers and directors of the New York State ATA would like to offer our congratulations to Becki Logan of Richburg R&GC for becoming Trap & Field’s 2021 female Rookie of the Year, as published in the February issue of Trap & Field. Becki started registering targets in the 2021 target year at Springwater R&GC on Sept. 20, 2020. During the target year, Becki shot at 4,700 singles, 4,300 handicap and 3,600 doubles targets and ended the year on the 23-yard line. Becki’s composite average was .8580, which placed her fifth on the ladies’ first team for New York State. Becki ended the year at Mt. Morris SC on Aug. 29, 2021 by shooting a 94 in singles, 92 in handicap and 88 in doubles. This is a tremendous accomplishment by Becki. Good going, Becki, and congratulations.

For everyone’s information, Barb Rosowski of Allied SC of western New York and a life member of the ATA reached out to me in an e-mail asking for help from shooters in regards to a critical issue facing the club. Barb wrote: “Allied Sportsmen’s Club of western New York had an urgent meeting regarding our relationship with our neighbor to our north. He is trying to remove our shooting hours and is threatening to sue us over lead he claims is falling on his property. We have been forced to consider a shot curtain to hopefully end this dispute. Allied Sportsmen’s Club is in need of donations from the trapshooting community to help pay an estimated cost of $100,000.” Barb is asking for donations from shooters to help her club, and anyone who has knowledge of grants to let Barb know. You can e-mail Barb at [email protected] if you would like to help. Please, shooters, we can’t afford to lose a shooting club. A loss of a shooting club is a loss for all. Please help.

The Southern Grand American was held at the Silver Dollar in Florida March 13-20. Forty-two New York shooters attended the tournament. Trophy winners from New York were: Sunday’s Preliminary Handicap, Jim Fellows Jr., third place, and Marilyn Lehrfeld, Lady II runner-up; Monday’s handicap, Michael Fox Jr., high gun, David McMasters third place and Lehrfeld, Lady II runnerup; Monday’s doubles, McMasters, A; Tuesday’s doubles, Heidi Womer, Lady I runnerup; Singles Class Championship, Heidi Womer, Lady I; Wednesday’s handicap, Heidi Womer, Lady I runnerup; Urban Womer, veteran, James Flint, sub-veteran; and Fox, fifth place; Thursday’s handicap, Fox, sixth place; Thursday’s doubles, Heidi Womer, Lady I runnerup, and Joshua Buchiere, AA; Doubles Class Championship, Fox, AA; Friday’s handicap, Fox, 10th place; Singles Championship, Flint, AA runnerup, and Jeffrey Ravella, B; Doubles Championship, Fox, champion; Handicap Championship, McMasters, third place; all-around, Fox, AAA; and high-over-all, Fox, champion; McMasters, A; and Buchiere, B. This was excellent shooting by these fine New York shooters.

Remember that the first shoot to be held in 2022 at our homegrounds in Cicero, NY, will be the Empire Grand American May 18-22. All of us on the Board of Directors of the New York State ATA hope you all plan on attending.

If anyone would like to have something written in one of these articles, please contact me at [email protected] or phone me at 585-519-9543. Please stay healthy, safe and in good spirits. Please be strong. May God bless you all.

Dave Cichelli

ATA Delegate

Pennsylvania

The May flowers are in bloom, as is the 2022 target year. As I write this at the end of March, we had 65 Pennsylvania shooters attend the Southern Grand at the Silver Dollar in Florida. Deborah Ohye-Neilson (10) and Joseph Breck IV (seven) led the contingent with capturing category HOA awards and Deborah taking the category HAA as well. Richard Milbert (four) and Nicholas Wertz (two) earned category HAA titles to round out our cumulative trophy winners. Other Pennsylvania winners include: Donald Neilson Jr. (two), Roger Shallenberger, John Solt, Pat Geiser (two), Tom Fewer (two), Brian James (two), Robert Morgan, Mike Ondisco, Richard Daily Sr., Nicole Hood, Thomas Hood, Edward Bayer (two), Wayne Kriesl, Elmer Ebling, Brandon Hood, Jeffrey Fenton (two) and Joyce Marsh.

We had 26 shooters stay the following week for the Florida State Shoot, with 11 of them winning 29 awards. Roy Emerick started off the week by capturing the Preliminary Handicap top award, while Ohye-Neilson (10) and Evan Wirth (six) captured category HAA and HOA and Jonathan Hannahoe (three) earned category HOA. Pennsylvania’s other winners were: Brian James, John Spangler, Geiser, Neilson, Bruce Rex, Bruce Schmidt (two) and Jacob Bonser (two).Congratulations to all of our shooters during their visit to Florida.

By the time you read this article, many of the off-season tasks have already taken place at Elysburg. With a little help from Mother Nature, several of our outdoor projects will be completed at the homegrounds before the Keystone Open. The Executive Committee wants to ensure that projects are communicated with our shooters and updates are posted periodically on the PSSA Facebook page as well as www.pssashotgunning.org. Be sure to keep an eye out for those updates.

There are some additions to the programs this year with opportunities to win an E-Z-GO SX4 golf car at the state shoot, a Browning CXT with Negrini hard case at the Summer Championships, multiple flats of shells at the Pennsylvania Grand, and thanks to some generous donors, a $10,000 “Bash for Cash”at this year’s Westy Hogans as well as the immensely popular Krieghoff Challenge on Krieghoff Friday of the state shoot. Good luck, shooters, and I hope you enjoy the 2022 PSSA shooting season.

           Steve Ross

           ATA Alternate Delegate

Alabama

Spring has sprung here in Alabama! I hope everyone is getting out and doing some shooting and registering targets.

The Alabama State Trapshoot will be held June 2–5 at the Dixie TC in Mathews. I know Bill and Becky have already started getting everything ready. Camping spots are going fast, so if you need one, contact Bill at 334-399-7996.

Please get a new rulebook and read it.

Joke of the month: A woman walked into the kitchen to find her husband stalking around with a flyswatter. “What are you doing?” she asked. “Hunting flies,” he responded. “Oh! Killing any?” she asked. “Yep, three males, two females,” he replied. Intrigued, she asked, “How can you tell them apart?” “Easy,” he responded. “Three were on a beer can, and two were on the phone.”

Word of the month: Hard—To secure employment. “Ah didn’t get that job. They hard somebody else.”

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 them for their service.

If you need my help or have news to report, contact me at [email protected].

Wayne Sartwell

ATA Delegate

Florida

Hello, all, from the most Southern, Northern state!

I am Mike Reynolds, and I am the new Florida ATA Delegate. My wife Denise and I are native Floridians and very proud of it!

First, I want to thank Thomas Harrington for his past service as Delegate. He is one of the most knowledgeable persons of ATA rules that I know, and he has a deep passion for the ATA.

I will try to keep all of you informed and entertained with what’s going on in Florida. I want to especially recognize shooters and clubs in this column. I invite you to contact me with any info. My e-mail is [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you.

Silver Dollar SC held tournaments every weekend from January through March, and shoot reports have been published in T&F. The season culminated with the Southern Satellite Grand and Florida State Shoot, which were well attended. Complete results of those two shoots are in this issue.

Thanks for the opportunity to serve!

Mike Reynolds

ATA Delegate

Mississippi

Yes, it’s hard to believe that spring has sprung, and it is hot enough to fry your grease out, as my grandmother would say. It is also hard to believe that we are eight months into the current target year, but we are. The good news, of course, is that there is a lot more trapshooting to go before we pack up and take off for the Grand. I hope you are planning to go this year. I hope you are also planning to shoot some more Mississippi trapshoots before you go.

It’s time for Mississippi trapshooting to shine. The Mississippi State Trapshoot is this month, and we hope your plans are set to join us. If not, time is running out, so act now, get on Presquad and get your accommodations set for your attendance. It’s a 1,000-target program that starts on Thursday, May 26 and ends on Sunday, May 29. Our state shoot is a product of the Mississippi Trapshooting Association and Capitol GC. We hope to see you there.

In the mid-Mississippi area, Capitol GC also continues to offer weekly Big 50s on Thursdays. Coupled with Capitol’s first Saturday, monthly shoots, our trap community has ample opportunities to register plenty of high-quality, first-rate trap targets. Y’all come! By the way, a word about Big 50s is in order. I can think of no better way to introduce a friend to trapshooting than to invite him or her to an afternoon of Big 50s. The Big 50 rules are designed such that ATA members can shoot on the same squad with non-ATA members. It’s a great way to break in a new shooter. Who knows? You might just start someone on a long and happy journey into the world of trapshooting.

How about a last chance trapshoot before the Grand? Capitol GC offers just such a shoot. The Rebel Trapshoot is scheduled for July 9-10. It’s a 600-target program over Saturday and Sunday. The Rebel at Capitol is one our premier, flagship shoots. You won’t want to miss it. If you’re talking about fun in the sun, this is the one. Hot! Hot! Hot! It’s a money shoot—no trophies. Come on down!

Lest you think I have forgotten to mention our Gulf Coast trappers, I haven’t. I always like to talk about Coast R&PC and their trapshooting venue. Not only is it a great place to shoot, but it also offers some of the best hospitality anywhere. Its proximity to the Gulf waters for a trip to the beach and as good seafood as you can find anywhere are hard to beat. If you want to join in on some good trapshooting, Coast R&PC offers a trapshooting league and third Saturday, monthly trapshoots. Call Brian Harmon, 228-249-6803, for details.

Finally the Mississippi Trapshooting Association is committed to trapshooting excellence in all aspects. The promotion of Mississippi trapshooting is our No. 1 goal, and we invite your comments and suggestions to help us make it better. Happy trappin’!

Jerry Tharp

ATA Delegate

North Carolina

After a long, cold, rainy winter, the 2022 trap season in North Carolina started out with a bang at the Southern Grand American at the Silver Dollar SC in Odessa, FL. There was a good representation from North Carolina, led off by our own native sons, Hunter and Jeff Galloway. Jeff and his dad Hunter went one-two in the No. 2 Preliminary Handicap, with Jeff winning and Hunter finishing second. To the best of my knowledge and a bit of research, this is the first time a father-son duo has taken first and second in a major handicap event. Congratulations to you both on great shooting and a hard-earned win!

Kudos are in order for Tyler Cox as well. Tyler made the 27-yard line at the Southern Grand by breaking 96 and winning junior gold in the Preliminary Handicap race. Class B HAA went to our own Greg High, who also shot well in the doubles with a 95 to take senior vet!

Other NC shooters present were Tiffany Decker, Brad Barnett, Josh and Shane Platt, Marty Hill, Bill Howe, George Brown, Kenny Cox, Jim Hughes, Freddy Redmon, Kim and Doug McKinney and yours truly.

By the time this is published, our Hall of Fame Shoot will have ended, so please plan for the NC State Shoot at the Bostic homegrounds June 8- 12. I hope to see you there! The ATA Southern Zone Shoot, July 14-17, will be held at the Bostic homegrounds as well.

Bob Schultz

ATA Delegate

South Carolina

Trap season has started; I’m just back from the Southern Grand in Florida. Weather was decent. normal Florida winds, several days worse than others. I wore shorts every day, nippy in the morning but warmed up. Wednesday was forecast rain all day, but we got our shooting in without a drop. South Carolina had 11 shooters in attendance.

In the achievement department, David Daily has reached 25,000 doubles.

By the time you read this, our Hall of Fame Shoot will be history. Make sure to reserve May 11-15 for our state shoot; hope to see you there. Our delicious fish dinner will be provided.

Keep Rodney Raines on your prayer list. He’s had some serious health issues. Where would we be without the great trophies he buys for our shoot and the “Rodney remarks” that he lays on you.

See you at our state shoot.

Jim Faber

ATA Delegate

Tennessee

The Southern Zone has two state shoots and a couple of other tournaments that have been an annual tradition dating back to the 1960s.

The South Carolina State Shoot is May 11-15 at Spartanburg GC in Pacolet, SC. The Mississippi State Shoot is May 26-29 at Capitol GC in Jackson, MS.

Nashville GC is hosting the Music City Shoot May 21-22. Saturday’s program is 200 singles and 100 handicap, and Sunday’s program is 100 singles, 100 handicap and 100 doubles.

The same weekend the Midsouth Open will be held in Memphis. Saturday’s program is 200 singles, and Sunday’s program is 200 handicap and 100 doubles with some nice belt buckles given for trophies.

In spite of the increase in cost of fuel as well as the lack of ammo, the Southern Grand attendance was down only slightly. Twenty-five Tennesseans attended the shoot, with eight bringing home trophies: Jacob Duren, Emma Mathews, Alan Loveless, Colton Phillips, Tyler Honnold, Brady Duren, Mitchel Loveless and David Pearson.

I’m sorry to report the loss of another Tennessee shooter. Sherman Mays, 78, of Manchester passed away Feb. 28. The life member was active from 1996 to 2019, registering 17,300 singles, 11,300 handicap and 9,200 doubles. Sherman was a founding member as well as skeet and trap coach for the Coffee Co. Clay Busters and manager of the Highland Rim SC. He was also an author, having written two gun books. My condolences to his many friends and family.

Read the new rulebook, please.

For more info, check out our website shootatatn.com. You can reach me at [email protected].

Billy Cook

ATA Southern Zone Vice President

Arkansas

We have had good turnouts at many of the shoots that have been going on around the state. Be sure to check the ASTF shoot calendar on our website for the latest ATA events available, and don’t forget the Arkansas State Shoot beginning June 22; we would love to have you.

Congratulations to our Arkansas All-American shooters: Chandler Brown, Kayla Workman, Katie Pryor, Julie Newsom, Jayden Dalton, Landon Chandler, Chet Orick and Luke Yagos. Great shooting!

1 Peter 3:12 KJV—For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.

Robby Pennock

ATA Delegate

Missouri

The unofficial start to registered shoots in the Show Me State begins with the Team Shoot at the MTA in Linn Creek, followed by the first registered shoot of the year. More often than not, weather seems to hamper the attendance of the registered shoot. This year we had pretty good weather for both days, with 17 teams entered in the team race Saturday. The KC Shooters (Mark Moser, Randy Stitt, Stephen Ricketts, Kent Frost and Hughie Coleman) took the top place in Division 1. RC Construction (Richard Craven, Del Wimmer, William Schmidt, David Smith and Larry Prior) took the Division 2 trophy. The Division 3 winning team was Lucky Charms (Tom Reichert, Bill O’Hanlon, Gary Kimbel, Jed Lamping and Nick Belker). The Mudslingers (Jacob Mudd, Jake Henry, Timothy Mudd, Kenny Mudd and Tyler Mudd) captured the Division 4 trophy. Thanks to Randy Buhr for his work putting this together. It’s always a good time to get the rust knocked off with a little competitive shooting to get back in the groove.

This looks to be another challenging year for shooting, with the soaring prices of everything as well as the ammo situation. Just about every gun club around the country has had to make the tough decision to raise target prices. It’s not an easy job sitting on a board of directors these days, looking at all of the increases in all areas of operations. Please keep in mind that no one in the shooting sports wants to see a reduction in attendance due to escalating costs, but at some point, it is necessary to increase prices to keep the doors open.

On behalf of the MTA board, I would like to congratulate Tom Edlin of Platte City as the 2022 Hall of Fame inductee. Please join us on Friday evening, May 20, to congratulate him during the state meeting held at the MTA clubhouse. I will see you at the Missouri State Shoot if not before then. If anyone has anything they would like to have reported on or has any concerns, please contact me at [email protected] or 816-863-9003. Proverbs 11:3—The integrity of the upright will guide them, But the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.

Shoot often, shoot well and be safe!

Stephen Ricketts

           ATA Delegate

New Mexico

Summertime is almost here. Summer means happy times and shooters walking the line. Between the coming months, from June to August, will bring us great and magical memories.

On a serious note, one big conversation has been around that shoot software. The ATA has posted some options on the website. NMSTA is looking into the software options available to us. If anyone has any ideas, please share with our officers and directors.

Roadrunner TC had a great March shoot attendance. This shoot was one of the many clubs that participated in a high school tournament that collectively had approximately 100 young shooters participate.

As a reminder, the New Mexico State Shoot will be May 17-22 at the NRA Whittington Center. New Mexico has two sites for the ATA Southwestern Zone July 15-17, which are Albuquerque TC at Albuquerque and  Southwestern Shotgunners Club at Silver City.

           Samantha Rainsdon

           ATA Delegate

Oklahoma

Wednesday night Big 50s at Bartlesville SC have concluded for the season. The winners were: HOA: Justin Cavett. Singles: Billy Pierce, high gun; Jack Murphy, A; Mike Shaw, B; Paul Long, C; Joel Keene, D. Doubles: Kurt Pendleton, A; Carl Brown, B. Handicap: Rob Martin, winner; Pete Wedlin, runnerup;. Angie Cavett, Lady II; Brady Rucker, junior; Congratulations to all of the Bartlesville Big 50s shooters.

Ten very determined shooters took the line at Shawnee on March 6 with extremely strong winds. Singles results were: Mike Grove, winner, 94; Caston Lackey, B, 76; Gary Bristol, C, 90; Matt McElhannon, D, 88; Zoe Traylor, sub-junior, 87; Tim Mount, sub-vet, 83; Brody McElhannon, novice, 79. The wind got stronger for doubles. Matt McElhannon and George Wise shared doubles honors with a 52.

OTSA hosted the two-day March Madness event March 12-13. Each day had a good turnout with 31 shooters on Saturday and 26 on Sunday. Full results can be viewed on the OTSA website. A few highlights: Nathan Lemke won singles both days with 98 and 97. On Saturday Richard Coit topped the handicap with 93, and Jeff Barker paced the doubles with 89. On Sunday Cashlin Smith won handicap with 96 and earned a half-yard punch. Nathan Lemke was high in doubles with 86. A quick shout-out to Kaden Waldrop (sub-junior) for shooting a 50 straight on Sunday to win Class B singles with 96.

Hennessey Powder & String TR has certainly earned a huge call-out this month. Their volunteers have worked extremely hard on range improvements. They have poured new concrete walks, backfilled and compacted stone on their second trap, and added voice calls to both ranges. There are several great pictures of their range improvements on the OTSA website under the “More” link. On March 20, 23 singles and 22 handicap shooters experienced their hard work and gusty winds that lasted all day. Joel Johnson shot a 96 to win the singles. Class winners were: Billy Pierce, A, 94; Levi McGee, B, 90; George Wise, D, 94. Paul Hooper ran ahead of the crowd in handicap with 90 to win, earning a half-yard punch back to the 23-yard line. Rob Martin won over Levi McGee with a tie of 85 in short-yardage. Joel Johnson shot 83 and won middle-yardage, and Billy Pierce shot 83 to win long-yardage. In addition to the range improvements, Hennessey served a nice meal of chili, casseroles, cornbread and dessert. All went away full, tired and mostly happy.

Congratulations to Kya Funkhouser for surpassing 25,000 registered singles targets.

On a personal note, at the January OTSA board meeting, I notified the board that I would not be continuing as ATA Delegate after this shooting year. When I volunteered for the Delegate position, I succeeded Tim Deister, who had represented Oklahoma for many years, and I wasn’t totally for sure what to expect. Nine months later and several bumps along the way, I can say representing Oklahoma has been a great opportunity to learn, to make new friendships, and to promote trapshooting. It has been an honor and privilege to represent Oklahomans at the ATA. I am not leaving immediately. I will be around through the ATA Southwestern Zone shoot in July and will help transition with our new Delegate.

Oklahomans, if you have any shooting news (new shooters, club improvements), accomplishments (100 straights, 50 straights), Milestones (100,000, 50,000 and 25,000 target achievements), and/or shoot scores, including singles, handicap and doubles winners, please send them to me. You can reach me by cell at 405-694-1790 or e-mail [email protected].

Kevin Nanke

ATA Delegate

Texas

We only have two Texas zone shoots left for this target year. The Zone IV Shoot will be hosted by the Waco T&SC May 20-22. The last zone shoot will be the Zone I Shoot June 17-19. This shoot will hosted by the Amarillo GC. Both of these will be great shoots to attend, as they are both run by volunteers. The people at both clubs work very hard to put on a great shoot and try to make sure you have a good time.

While you are adding shoots to your calendar, you might as well add the Texas State Shoot to it. It will be at the National SC in San Antonio. Dates for the shoot are July 5-10. Royce and his crew always host a very well-run shoot. You don’t have to take my word for it; just show up and see for yourself.

I have one of those nearly world famous “fatman attaboys” to tell you about. Joe Altom has now registered 250,000 targets. And by the way, he did break it. Congratulations to a super guy. Thanks for letting me know.

When you make your plans to attend the three shoots I mentioned above, I just want you to know I will be there to do the classification. This is your warning to have an up-to-date average card. I do still have my poop list (Elissa won’t let me say the other word in the magazine). You never get off that list, and you sure don’t want the third time on the list. The third strike will be when you don’t like me (if you ever did) very much. It’s not my rule; it is a rule that is in the official ATA rulebook. That’s the book that everyone thinks they will just let someone else read, and they can tell them about the rules if there is something they need to know.

Time for preaching. I’m kind of like the old country preacher. As long as you keep putting money in the collection plate, I’m gonna keep preaching. My preaching will be about the rulebook (and it don’t matter whether you put money in the plate or not, I’m gonna keep preaching). It’s very important that you know the rules. Are going to hell if you don’t read the rulebook? I doubt it, but you should read it anyway. Sermon is over; you may leave the building.

I don’t think many people read my article anymore. I don’t have many comments on it. The only time I have comments is when I forget to write it. I really figured most of you would be happier when I don’t write it. Oh well, I’ll keep preaching, and y’all keep putting shells in the collection bag.

If you have news, please let Princess or me know about it, so I can include it in these senseless ramblings. As always, you can snail mail to 907 S. Main St. in Hereford, TX 79045. You can e-mail me at [email protected] or just call me at 806-679-6889.

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

Jerry O’Connor

ATA Delegate

Arizona

The state shoot: This time my predictions actually came true. The weather was near perfect with shorts and T-shirts in style. Ben Avery really had their act together with great targets and plenty of help on the fields. The women of 2 Lazy 2 were more than efficient, and there were buckles, buckles and buckles. Attendance was off by 16 shooters compared to 2021, but there were 16 more Arizona competitors. The usual ratio is two out-of-state shooters for every one from Arizona; this year it was much closer to 50-50. I believe that this is a direct result from lingering COVID restrictions (not in Arizona), the ammo shortage and the high price of fuel. All told, 35 states and provinces were represented.

The annual meeting was held Saturday morning prior to shooting, under the direction of Karen Bergman, ASTA president. Karen was reelected as a northern zone director, Ron Ballou was reelected in the southern zone, and Kaitlin Quan was elected in the central zone to replace Tiger Volz, who was stepping down. Don’t worry; Tiger will still be around and will remain as the First Alternate Delegate. John Bergman was reelected as ATA Delegate. He also presented the Rookie of the Year buckle to Jenna Ledbetter and listed her accomplishments. Questions and observations were then taken from the floor. Nathanial Pizinger suggested that out-of-state targets not be counted toward State Team qualifications, all State Team members must shoot at the state shoot, and that trophies for team members be enhanced. Jim Copsey requested that requirements for the State Team be tightened. It was agreed that both be taken under advisement by the board. Don Williamson mentioned that he was very impressed by the improvements at Ben Avery and thanked the staff and shoot managers, 2 Lazy 2, for their efforts.

After the completion of the singles, the new Board of Directors met. Greg Holden was elected president; Karen Bergman will revert to vice president, and both Steve Bell and Jesse Zamora will remain in their present positions of treasurer and secretary, respectively. It is my opinion that this is an excellent board; I know how hard working and dedicated all are.

How about some results: Things started off well for Arizona shooters. In the Memorial Singles, Event 1, Mark Matthews tied for high gun and AA leader with 99 but lost out in the carryover. David Landwerlen, who had a terrific shoot, also had a 99, and his 50 straight in the carryover gave him the Class A trophy. Bill Simons also shot 99 and won C in the first round of the carryover. Sophie Nostrom—you will see her name a lot—won Lady I, and Karen Bergman tied for Lady II but fell one short the next day. Max Peevyhouse had the same problem in veteran.

Sophie then took Lady I again in the Ben Avery Handicap. Wyatt Pizinger of the famous Pizinger brothers won sub-junior; this, folks, is a 6’10” sub-junior, and Wayne Thompson topped senior veterans. Now guess who won the Lady I doubles? I won’t tell you, but the initials are SN. Another star of the show was Gerry Williams. He topped all of the senior veterans. Speaking of Gerry, he had the only 100 straight in Wednesday’s Saguaro Singles. Greg Holden and Tim Robb tied for AA, with Greg winning the carryover. Landwerlen and Steve Smoot were tied in A, with Greg squeezing out Steve by one on Thursday. Sub-juniors Eli Angel and Jackson Link also tied, and Eli was the carryover winner. Bob Dobbs won C, John Owenby D, and Gabriella Romero was the junior champ. Keep your eye on Gabriella; she is getting better and better. Mark Matthews topped all sub-veterans, Nostrom took the Lady I crown, as did Karen Bergman in Lady II, and another one of our terrific sub-juniors, Alexis Fernan, beat back all of the competition.

Some now familiar names and a few newbies were winners in the Agave Handicap. Nathanial Pizinger, the other half of the famous Pizinger brothers, won 19-21; Bell, our overworked and underpaid ASTA treasurer, took 22-24; Darvin Thomas beat everyone else in 25-26, and Williams stood alone on top at 27 yards. Romero and Nostrom won junior and Lady I, and Tiger reigned in Lady II. Fernan was high in sub-junior as was Tim Robb in senior vet. Steve Haynes defeated Curtis Bietz in a shootoff for sub-vet. Veteran was won by Randy Wegerski.

There was one carryover in the Jumping Cholla Doubles, and that was won by Volz over Karen Bergman on a forfeit. The Nostrom family did very well, father Jeff won AA and Sophie won Lady I. Max Peevyhouse took A, Mark Matthews B, Don Archibald C, and Gerald Meyer D. Category winners were Nathanial Pizinger, junior; Haynes, sub-vet; Wyatt Pizinger, sub-junior; Jim Copsey, veteran; and Williams, senior vet.

Thursday started with the class doubles, and Robb and Bruce Hobbs tied for AA. Walter Allen won Class A. Former Rookie of the Year and coach of the Phantom Sure Shots, Greg Spiczka, won B, Thompson was high in C, and Bell took D. Nathanial Pizinger was the top junior; Sophie continued her reign of terror in Lady I; Volz won Lady II; Richard Goerlich bested all sub-vets, I think he has been in that category for the past 10 years; Wyatt Pizinger topped all sub-juniors; Copsey won veteran, and Jim Sharp was high in the always tough senior vet category.

The Golden Barrel Singles had two 100 straights: Don Williamson and Britt Dalton. Britt won AA in the carryover. There were three other carryovers: Fred Frazier topped Ken Mlynarz and Landwerlen in A; Thomas bested Copsey, Max Peevyhouse and Walter Allen in veteran; and Mark Harrison defeated Bob Dobbs in B. James Polkabla of the Polkabla clan won C, and Wegerski took D—keep watching for Randy’s name.

In the Ocotillo Handicap, two Polkablas triumphed: David in 19-21 and David Jr. in junior gold. Frazier won 22-24, Art Hammer did his arithmetic and took 25-26, and Dalton was high at 27 yards. Nostrom was at the top of Lady I, Cliff Pattern won sub-veteran, Fernan was the high sub-junior, Sharp won senior vet, and Steve Stella took veteran.

The Prickly Pear Doubles was Event 10, and Vince Bianco was the AA winner. Williamson won A, and Frazier won B. Thompson took C and Art Hammer D. Some of the usual suspects showed up in the categories, Wyatt Pizinger won sub-junior, and Nathanial P. junior. Nostrom topped Lady I, Karen Bergman Lady II; Copsey veteran, and Robb senior veteran. There was one carryover, with Goerlich nosing out Mark Matthews in sub-veteran. The class singles had one 100 straight, and that earned Thomas the veteran award. There was a five-way tie in senior vet, with Robb emerging as the winner. Isabella Ricci topped a tough bunch of juniors. David Polkabla took junior gold, Nostrom won Lady I, Denise Shute started her remarkable run by winning Lady II, Goerlich was the high sub-veteran, and Link bested all other sub-juniors.

There were 176 entries in the Preliminary Handicap, and Darryl Garber topped the Arizona field while winning sub-veteran. David Polkabla triumphed in 19-21, Casey Crawford won 22-24, as did Haynes at 25-26. Greg Cobb beat all other 27-yard shooters. Gabriella R. was the high junior, and David Polkabla Jr. took junior gold. Sophie won Lady I, and Tiger and Denise tied in Lady II, with Denise winning the carryover. Wyatt Pizinger took sub-junior, and his Prescott shooting partner, George Miller, won in the always competitive senior veteran field.

Now it was crunch time, the Singles Championship, and a few new names were sprinkled in. Landwerlen is a most familiar name, however, and his 199 earned him the the state singles title! Dalton was the runnerup. Scott Skaggs took AA, Crawford A, Darryl Garber B, Zach Abel C, and Michael Jarvis D. Romero won junior, Fernan sub-junior, and Nicklaus Spurlin was the high gun in junior gold. Nostrom won Lady I, Shute continued her streak in Lady II, Goerlich is the sub-vet winner, Bianco’s 198 earned the veteran prize, and Meyer was back at his winning ways and won senior veteran.

Sunday’s Doubles Championship featured two longtime squadmates shooting off against each other for the championship. Both Robb and Copsey finished with 98s on a breezy day. Tim prevailed, winning a title he has enjoyed many times. Jim then became the top veteran. Runnerup was Ft. Mohave’s Mike Petrisco, also known as the Big Palooka. Scott Skaggs won AA, Landwerlen took A, Darryl Goen B, Douglas Moore C, and sub-junior Link is the D winner. Romero is our junior victor. Colton Hartley won junior gold; welcome back, Colton. Quan nosed out Nostrom by one for Lady I, and Shute continued her rampage by winning Lady II. Bietz is the sub-veteran victor, and I thought that Curtis only shot handicap. Thompson is our senior veteran winner, and Aiden Bejarano won in the very competitive sub-junior category.

And now the finale—Wegerski capped off a fine shoot by becoming the Arizona state handicap champion, and he did it in style. His 97 was two birds higher than Robb, who became the senior veteran winner. Tim, I should note, was at top form throughout the entire shoot. Dalton was runnerup, followed by Greg Cobbs in third, Link, Jonathan Rue, and Michael Jarvis. Romero won junior, and Hartley junior gold. Jillian Skaggs took Lady I, and in Lady II, Shute completed her sweep of championships. Congratulations, Denise! Tom Krolick won sub-veteran, Bejarano became the sub-junior after a shootoff with Fernan. Both will be heard from again, and Stella was top veteran.

Robb won the all-around with Dalton second and Landwerlen third. In the high-over-all, Nostrom finished first by five birds. I did a search of past winners, and Sophie is the first lady to top the Arizona HOA. She is a wonderful addition to our Arizona trapshooting family.

Speaking on behalf of all Arizona trapshooters, I would like to thank all those at Ben Avery who made this shoot possible. Your diligence and hard work was most evident. The same is true of the ASTA Board of Directors.

Please excuse the length of this article. I know that at times it must seem like a laundry list, but I believe all winners at our state championship deserve recognition. I will catch up with some of the local shoots in the next issue.

Around the state: Tri-State has a two-day shoot May 21-22; Tucson has their monthly shoot May 22; Pleasant Valley continues their summer season May 27-29; Casa Grande has a shoot on June 4, and Flagstaff opens June 11-12. Don’t forget Big 50s at Casa Grande every Monday and on the first Monday of the month, Rio Salado has a singles marathon and on the third Thursday, a doubles marathon.

See you on the line.

John Bergman

ATA Delegate

California

Let me catch everyone up with what is going on in California. With most areas winding down for the winter season, there is a very popular large shoot taking place in Arizona, the Autumn Grand.

This shoot has a fairly significant turnout of California shooters, and the weather is pretty nice in the desert. California outpaced all states, aside from Arizona, with California bringing 78 shooters. There were a handful of shooters out of California that were consistently on the leaderboard during the pre-week and the main week both, including Dave Womack, Ray Thomas, Bill Sandborg, Ethan Prescott, Wyatt Quick and Valerie Jones. Congratulations to all, and thank you to all who attended from California.

The Spring Grand in Tucson, AZ, also concluded in February. Our California shooters enjoy this shoot as well and outpaced all states with the largest attendance with 102 shooters.

During the Preliminary Spring Grand, David Womack was on fire right out of the gate, shooting a 96 and winning veteran in the Event 3 doubles. In the Event 4 doubles, Dave does it again shooting a 94 and besting five other veteran shooters.

Ray Thomas won veteran in the Event 8 handicap, shooting a 96 from the 27-yard line.

Junior winner Wyatt Quick shot a 98 in the Event 11 doubles. Wyatt followed that up in the Event 12 handicap, winning junior with a 92 from the 26-yard line.

During the Spring Grand, Class C shooter Ron Schaeffer got into it for a five-way tie shooting a 97 in the Event 13 singles. Quick won junior with an easy 100 straight.

The Event 14 handicap netted Ethan Prescott a junior win with 97 from the 25-yard line.

The Event 15 singles put Schaefer back in a four-way tie with 97. Sub-junior Isle Scheidel won her category with a 99. Prescott shot a cool 100 and won junior.

The Event 16 handicap put 2 California juniors tied with 94s, and Quick won with a 22 over Tyler Cassara’s 21.

In the Event 17 doubles Prescott won C class with a 92. Veteran Jimmy Heller shot a 98 for his win. Quick tied for junior with a 96 and won with a 50 in shootoff.

The Event 18 handicap saw 19-21-yard shooter Bailey Szeto break 93 and 23 in shootoff for the yardage win. Ilse Scheidel wonsub-junior with 95. Jacob Ridge topped juniors with 97.

The Singles Class Championship placed AAA shooters Gary Bonetti and Chayton Vega in an eight-way tie, all shooting 100 straights. However, neither came out victorious. James Schooler was in a AA shootoff, with five others shooting 100 straight, but the win eluded him as well. Brian Alquist won Class B outright, shooting 100 straight. Lori Clodt won Lady II runnerup, shooting a 97. Our two juniors, Prescott and Quick, both shot 100 straight, and Ethan took the win in shootoff. Junior gold runnerup is Nathan Vizzo with 99.

The Doubles Class Championship placed Michael Ramsey as the Class C winner, shooting a 90 against three others, and Michael won in shootoff. Audric Scheidel won junior with 98, and Quick was runnerup with 96.

In the Doubles Championship, Brian Alquist was Class B winner with 94, and Prescott was runnerup with 94, only to be bested by Brian in shootoff by one target. Quick shot a 96 for junior runnerup.

In the Caesar Guerini Prelim Handicap, Deanna Schooler earned Lady I runnerup with 96. Robert Phelps earned senior veteran runnerup with 96. Junior shooters With 97, Audric Scheidel took the junior win, and Ridge was runnerup with 95.

In the Singles Championship, Nathan Vizzo was Class B runnerup, and Travis Bille was Class D runnerup. Isle Scheidel and Cory Walker were sub-junior and junior runnerups, respectively.

In the Handicap Championship, Megan Stout was in the dance for Lady I, however, defeated in shootoff. Lori Clodt won Lady II with 98.

Other notable moments go out to junior Jacob Ridge for obtaining his 27-yard pin as well as Ron Hammond shooting his first 100 straight and earning his Thunderbird.

Congratulations to all the shooters who attended. Thank you for continuing to support the sport.

Chayton Vega

ATA Delegate

Nevada

Nine Nevada shooters made the trip to Phoenix’s Ben Avery CTC for the Arizona State Shoot March 15-20. In the Event 5 handicap, Nick Yurasek broke 96 to earn a half-yard punch to 19.5 yards. In the Event 11 Singles Class Championship, Tina Shigemura shot a 98 to take Lady II honors. Clayton Philipp broke 97, Jon and Leticia Slinker both shot 96, senior vet Del Swain posted a 95, and Jeff White and Yurasek stayed in the 90s with a 92 and 90, respectively. In the Event 12 handicap, Shigemura broke 91 to take Lady II honors. In the Event 14 championship doubles, Shigemura posted an 88 to tie Edie Baker (MT) for out-of-state Lady II honors. Shigemura prevailed in a one-round shootoff for the out-of-state buckle. In the all-around, Shigemura completed a fine shoot by posting a 363 to take the out-of-state Lady II trophy. Nice shooting! Also in Sunday’s Event 15 ’caps, 27-yarder J. Slinker shot a 92, which put him in a shootoff. After one round, Jon took the buckle for sixth place non-resident. Not to be outdone, L. Slinker posted an 86 and took Lady I out-of-state honors. Overall, the group represented Nevada well, and it is great to see people getting out and traveling to shoots.

Farther South, Rich Bullard made the long trip to the Silver Dollar SC in Odessa, FL, for the annual Southern Satellite Grand held March 13-20. The Dollar is known to be a difficult place to break a good score, and this was Rich’s inaugural visit to the facility. With many of the best shooters in the country competing, Rich shot a 382 in the HAA, which was good for a top 20 finish, and his 949 in the HOA put him in the top 15. Attendance at this year’s shoot reached 500 for some events, so Rich’s performance was worthy of his AAA status.

I’d like to take this opportunity to wish NSTA board member and longtime ATA shooter Jerry Harms a speedy recovery from his recent health issues. Get well and get back to shooting!

Upcoming shoots for May include the Big 50 on May 7 and the Spring Handicap tournament, scheduled for May 21-22. The summer Doubles Marathon (500 dubs!) is on for June 4, with a Big 50 on June 11. Be sure and put the July 15-17 Western Zone shoot on your calendar. All the listed events are scheduled for the Clark Co. SC in Las Vegas.

Until next time, shoot well and often.

Russell Roberts

ATA Delegate

New Zealand

Our annual memorial for Ross Card, who got ATA shooting started in New Zealand, was held Feb. 5 at Thames CTC. Sadly Ross’s wife Mary passed away April 25, 2021, and unfortunately the family was unable to attend this year. Mary had attended a number of years to present the trophy, giving that she kindly had made and presented to the New Zealand ATA. Mary was also a very generous donor to the shoot each year. The NZ ATA owes her a huge thanks for all her generosity, but not forgetting, without Ross we may not have ATA shooting in New Zealand. After attending a number of ATA events in the U.S. and getting fired up on the ATA style of shooting, it was through his efforts that ATA shooting was started in New Zealand. We are proud to host this event each year in his memory.

Thames turned on a great day of weather with just with a few passing clouds and a reasonably constant light breeze that helped cool what would have been and even hotter summer day. The breeze was just enough to occasionally flatten or raise a target. We are fortunate to be able to hold our events at such a nice facility with a great background. The grounds were in their usual great condition, thanks to the Thames crew.

A big thanks to all those who helped during the day, Wayne Merrie helping set up as well as running the office, Graeme Williams helping with target-setting as well and a big thanks to all the competitors refereeing, scoring and loading traps and helping to clean up at the end of the day. Again a big thanks to everyone. We ran two fields, shooting 50 targets per field.

Our resident five-star chef Nola was away attending a birthday party, so we had to rely on the local bakery or bring your own for lunch. Dave Cundy and Merrie kindly helped open the bar for refreshments.

The NZ ATA provided $800 in added money to the prize pool.

Winners were: A, Wayne Merrie, 191; runnerup, Paul Basten, 188. B, Grant Russel, 189; runnerup, Rob Anderson, 185; third, Williams, 181. C, Dave Kahlenberg, 173; runnerup, Cundy 162; third, John Wynn Steer, 160; fourth, Lynn Needham, 147.

The ATA would like to welcome Dave and Oksana Kahlenberg as recent new and lifetime members.

Our March 12 shoot was one of our regular program days with 100 singles, 100 handicap and 50 pair of doubles.

We had a great day of mild early autumn weather—clear skies, no wind and the great Thames background in the morning with some light cloud cover in the afternoon and just enough breeze to drift the occasional target.

Thanks to the Thames crew for providing the grounds in their usual superb condition.

Thanks to Dale Speedy for coming in early to mark the lanes for handicap yardages and Cundy for helping with target setting A big thanks to Williams for modifying our target-setting pole to make the job easier for holding it on the different level fields. Thanks to all those who helped referee and score as well as loading traps and helping with clean-up at the end of the day; it’s very much appreciated. Also a big thanks to Merrie for helping run the office.

Nola wasn’t available to spoil us with one of her lunches, but we look forward to one at our next shoot.

We ran three classes in singles and doubles—A, B and C, per ATA rules.

Winners included:

Singles—A, Merrie, 99. B, Rob Anderson, 95; runnerup, Steve Pearson, 94; third, Gordon Tucker, 90. C, Dave Kahlenberg, 92; runnerup, Dale Speedy, 90; third, Greg Nicholl, 89.

Handicap—winner, Pearson, 95; runnerup, Dave Kahlenberg, 91; third, Mike Hirtzel and Rob Anderson, 88.

Doubles—A, Merrie, 90. B, Pearson, 87; runnerup, Anderson, 82. C, winner, Dave Kahlenberg and Hirtzel, 80; third, Shane Ward, 79. HOA, Pearson, 276.

Again a big thank you to our shoot sponsors: the NZ ATA; ATA in the U.S.; White Flyer Targets; Thames CTC; Ron Thomassen Logging; Independent Transport Parts, who also supply Inox and LANOX fine lubricants and cleaners, target products for Falcon Ammunition; and www.newzealandhuntingadventures.com.

           Paul Basten

           ATA Delegate

Utah

While I write this, I can say the trapshooting season in Utah is finally coming into focus. Purgatory has a shoot the last weekend in March. Then it is off to the races! Ogden, Golden Spike and Spanish Fork all have shoots in April.

A couple of the warm states are having large shoots as I speak. The Arizona State Shoot just ended, as did the Southern Grand. Next is the Florida State Shoot. I am not sure if any Utah shooters will venture as far as Florida, but I saw that a lot of Utah folks were at the Arizona State Shoot.

This is the perfect time to plan your yearly shooting schedule. Normally I wouldn’t add this caveat, but you may want to add a Plan B to your schedule. It doesn’t appear that ammo is getting any easier to find, and when you do find it, it is very expensive (as is everything else).

Let’s talk about practicing without actually shooting, a very good way to save money.

One good exercise is to do gun mounts at home, 100 a day. I like to do mounts in groups of 10, rest a few minutes, and go again. I make sure they are perfect mounts. If I miss one mount, I do another one.

Use visualization as actual shooting practice. This can be the most productive, yet is probably the hardest to do. Find a nice relaxing chair in the house, away from people, pets, phones or any other disturbances. Close your eyes and almost go into self-hypnosis. Visualize your starting post and shoot a complete round of trap, 25 targets. Once you learn to do this, go for a full 100. This can take as long as actually shooting a complete event. One of the harder things is “don’t miss.” This sounds easy, but believe it or not, the brain sometimes makes you miss a mental target, just like it makes you miss a real one. Picture soot-balling the targets, smell the gun powder, shoot in the wind, rain and heat. Don’t be surprised if you fall asleep doing this exercise. It can be very relaxing. This is where your spouse, parents, child or whoever accuses you of doing nothing! Smile and go with the flow.

Don’t forget the Kolar Gun Club Raffle. I have plenty of tickets and can get more. All proceeds go toward gun club improvements throughout the trapshooting community. Here is how it works: each ticket costs $20, or six for $100. Any money the ATA has left over (after purchasing the gun to be given away at the Grand) is split evenly among the five Zones. The Zone Vice President reviews applications from gun clubs in his/her Zone and awards the money to the lucky gun club(s). My advice to gun clubs submitting applications is to be realistic in what you ask for. If you ask for anything over $5,000, you probably won’t get it. In your application, make sure you discuss matching funds, whether it be hard cash or membership labor. You can’t win a new Kolar if you don’t buy a ticket.

Don’t forget the free AIM and ATA memberships the ATA gives away to brand new (first-time) members. Each gun club that throws registered targets gets five of each. If a club needs more, feel free to ask; you will get them.

Next month I will have some shoot results to discuss. Until then, start practicing and planning.

           Ed Wehking

           ATA Western Zone Vice President

 

Washington

Spring is here, and we are into the heart of our ATA target year in Washington. I hope you have all had a chance to get to some of the shoots to enjoy the hospitality of the clubs here in the state.

The Camas Prairie Handicap was well attended. Some brisk March winds made targets a little challenging at Walla Walla, but that is to be expected in March. We were right back at the Walla Walla GC a couple of weeks later for the Northwest Grand, and we would like to thank the club there for taking on this shoot and keeping the tradition of this shoot going. There were a lot of new shooters, especially youth, at both competitions, and that is always great to see. Chuck Ray brought a group of kids from Ephrata, the “Dust Devils”, and they are getting to be very recognized for their clay breaking prowess at shoots all over Washington. Some shooters start later in life, but their milestones are no less important. Larry Garrett of Endicott has been traveling the circuit for a few years now and improving his scores consistently, including his first registered 50 straight at the Camas. Having a spouse, step-daughter, son-in-law and two grandkids shooting as well proves this sport to be a family affair.

We will be packing up for the state shoot about the time you read this, and we’ve had plenty of opportunities by now to get tuned up for a shot at those state title trophies. It is a yearlong endeavor to plan and put on the WSTA Championship, and I would like to thank President Will Johnson for his planning and guidance. New board members Jim Pelissier Jr.and Rod Hubner will have some experience behind them, and the tired feet from four days of walking the length of the grounds during the shoot. Erin Bauer has once again put in the long hours of putting together the program and has done a commendable job. Thank you to all who help to put together a state shoot. Remember, as a resident of Washington, this is your shoot, and we hope you enjoy the four-day run. It doesn’t happen without you, the trapshooter.

One obvious and unavoidable topic of discussion in all of the clubhouses has been the cost involved to play our game. The expenses have grown beyond the entry fees and shell costs, as fuel prices have steadily risen. I mentioned in a previous letter how the individual could save through reloading, etc., but I should add that filling a car full of shooters, or a van, whatever you have, and carpooling can be a lot of fun. I’ve had a lot of good times traveling across our state with three or four other shooters. The stories are always great, even if the truth behind the tale gets stretched a little. Some friendly ribbing is always involved, and I personally like to take the others in the rig down a road they’ve never traveled to make them wonder if we are lost. Load up a group of friends and head out. You’ll always find the trip to be memorable.

Now, what can your club do to make sure you come out in the black from your efforts? There are several things. Volunteers scoring and loading traps. Turning off voice calls as shooters rotate posts to keep targets from flying errantly, and some simple trap maintenance all help. Good springs in your machines, along with some proper adjustments to the field and sanding of throwing arms will cut down on the number of targets used to set the traps for competition. A couple of screws to install the new brushes that protect the targets and hold them in place can work wonders to lessen breakage. Shooters remember great target presentations and are apt to come back. We who are visiting a club can always find a way to help while we are there also. Simple things make for a great shooting experience.

Take someone out and introduce them to trapshooting every chance you get and let them see some of what it takes to make it happen. Once we have them hooked on shotgunnin’ they will be happy to help!

Shoot straight and keep your powder dry.

Sean Lewis

WSTA Director