Alabama

Today is the first day of fall, and the high is 71º and the low tonight is supposed to be 49º. In Alabama that’s nice weather, but it’s not going to last long. Next week it’s back in the mid 80s!

The 2022 year has started, and now is a good time to get out to your local club and register some early targets. Make some plans to shoot at other clubs and check out different backgrounds.

Get a Rulebook and put it in your shooting bag. If any questions come up, get out the rulebook!

I hope everyone has a grateful and blessed Thanksgiving.

Joke of the month: On an advice-to-the-lovelorn radio show, one man called in and announced he had been married for 42 years. Apparently eager to include seasoned male input, the female host gushed: “Congratulations! What’s your secret?”

“Five wives,” was the response.

Word of the month: Jevver: Did you ever. “Jevver hear anything so dumb in your life?”

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

Mississippi

November is upon us, and the 2022 trapshooting year is in full swing down here in Mississippi. Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and it’s a good time for all of us to say a word of thanks to the good folks at ATA in Sparta who slug it out day in and day out making our sport the huge success it is. Together with the Executive Committee and a lot of other folks up and down the line, from the smallest gun club to the largest, there are a lot of unsung champions who make it all come together in this sport we love so much. I know it isn’t enough, but thank you, one and all, for your dedication and support of our trapshooting.

I feel a little like Little Jimmy Dickens, the country music legend who sang about being little but loud and poor but proud. Mississippi doesn’t take up much space in the records annual, nor do our members show up often on the front of Trap & Field. Just don’t count us out, though. Trap is still strong in Mississippi, and we invite all trappers to come on down and check us out. We are blessed with enough good shooting days during the winter season to keep our shoots scheduled year-round. Go to the ATA website and check the shooting schedules for Coast R&PC and Capitol GC. So if the winter shuts down your trapshooting, come on down to Mississippi, thaw out, and shoot some trap with us.

Happy Thanksgiving to all, and as always, happy trappin’!

Jerry Tharp

ATA Delegate

South Carolina

Big time congrats to Teresa Knight, All-American Lady II first team. Great shooting.

Achievement honors go to Tammie Wilkins with 25,000 singles and Sean Power with 100,000 total targets.

Our first taste of beautiful early fall weather arrived just in time for the Dixie Grand. I hope to report in upcoming issues on trophies coming home to South Carolina.

Greenville GC has been undergoing some big improvements that aren’t that apparent. A total rewiring of the trap and skeet fields and converting from coin to credit card payment system should make everything much more reliable. The downside has been a total shutdown of all the fields for a month plus. No shooting targets or the bull with your friends.

The new ATA scorecard and Rulebook online looks great. You will receive your updated scorecard every month—easy to print and ready reference. You need to download the new “shoot station” app. It provides all your scores and shooting data without having to navigate the shootata website.

At the annual Delegate meeting, there was a motion to increase the ATA daily fees by $1. The motion was defeated. The meeting was held online through Zoom, as the COVID-19 outbreak resulted in a cancellation.

The new target year has started; go shoot the Big 50s and monthly shoots near you. You can get your targets registered, so you’ll avoid shooting penalty classes at our state shoot.

Jim Faber

ATA Delegate

Tennessee

November seems like a good time to start planning on 2022 state shoots and Satellite Grands. It might be a good time to book your motel rooms or reserve your campsite. The 42nd annual Southern Grand will be March 13-20. The club will shoot 200 targets per day starting at 9 a.m., and all shooting will stop by 8 p.m.

The 2022 state shoots: Florida, March 22-27; Georgia, April 28-May 1; South Carolina, May 11-15; Mississippi, May 26-29 at Capitol GC in Jackson; Alabama, June 2-5; North Carolina, June 8-12; Tennessee AIM Shoot, June 14-15 followed by the state shoot, June 16-19; Kentucky AIM Shoot, June 28 followed by the state shoot, June 29-July 3; Virginia, June 29-July 3; West Virginia, July 6-10.

The Southern Zone Shoot will be July 14-17. Shoot locations will be Berea, KY; Bostic, NC; and the Silver Dollar at Odessa, FL. The 24th annual Dixie Grand will be Sept. 27-Oct. 2 at Bostic, NC.

Now you can get your calendar and start deciding what major shoots you want to attend next year. Hopefully by then there will be a good supply of ammo.

Next month I’ll announce the members of the state team as well as those who made the All-American team.

Read the new Rulebook, please.

Happy Thanksgiving.

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

Billy Cook

ATA Southern Zone Vice President

Arkansas

The fall season is here, and trapshooters in Arkansas have traded in orange domes and are preparing for hunting season. We have much to be thankful for this past year, and we are excited about the upcoming one. Jonesboro, in the northeast part of the state, has a new shooting complex, which will be holding ATA shoots soon. A huge thanks to all the Arkansas gun clubs who hold ATA shoots for our trapshooters around the state.

Congratulations to Chandler Brown, Kayla Workman, Katie Pryor, Julie Newsom, Jayden Dalton, Landon Chandler, Chet Orick and Luke Yagos for making the 2022 All-American teams. These young men and women have represented Arkansas well. A huge thanks to all the parents, grandparents and friends who have helped and supported them along the way.

Matthew 6:33—But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Robby Pennock

ATA Delegate

Missouri

The 2021 Missouri Fall Handicap is in the books, and what a shoot it was. After watching some of the other larger shoot attendance numbers, we were a little concerned what the attendance was going to be like. A big thanks to Graf & Sons and Fiocchi Ammo; we had shells for the shooters, which seems to be a driving factor on attendance these days. Overall shoot attendance was down slightly compared to 2019 (the 2020 shoot was the U.S. Open combined with the Fall Handicap). This year 558 shooters were classified, compared to 559 in 2019. The HOA events were up this year by nine entries, with the total entries beginning on Monday down 45. We are calling this a win in the current environment. You couldn’t ask for better weather, except for a little north wind a couple of days.

Congratulations to Dale Stockdale, the Tom Endres Singles champion posting the lone 200. Two tied for the Doubles Championship with 100s—Ian Lawrence and Richard Marshall Jr., with Ian taking the top spot and Ricky event runnerup. In the Wenig Handicap Championship, Jon Halembeck earned the high-gun trophy with 99. The HOA went to Keith Ditto, and the HAA winner was Marshall. Congratulations to all the event winners.

For those who were in attendance, you know that this was the last shoot as far as being the main spokes of the wheel for Lyndle, Bob and Jeannie. A little celebration was held on Friday evening, with dinner graciously provided by Mrs. Graf and cakes thanking the aforementioned three for their many years of service to MTA and our customers. You may still see them from time to time, at least we hope, but they have all decided to take life a little easier going forward. On behalf of the MTA Board of Directors, thanks for all you have done for MTA.

If anyone has anything they would like to have reported or has any concerns, please contact me at [email protected] or 816-863-9003.

Shoot often, shoot well and be safe!

Stephen Ricketts

           ATA Delegate

New Mexico

The 2022 season is falling into place. September in New Mexico is off to a wonderful start. The Belen annual shoot started the season with great attendance. Weekend weather was beautiful and warm. Warm enough that electricity usage was too much for the transformer. The electricity got busted like a crushed target. We lost all power. Doug Hudson saved the day by hooking up his generator and restoring the shooting day. Thank you, Doug.

Next up was Farmington’s annual shoot. The shoot went well; we all had a great time—laughing, talking and enjoying the amazing weekend. Last up for September was the Albuquerque annual, which I did not get to attend due to grandmother duties. I am confident it was a great shoot.

I would like to let all you know that the ATA will be e-mailing your average card with the ATA rulebook monthly in the future. This is in attempt to keep all shooters compliant with presenting your average card at the time of classification. Please remember to follow the information below.

“C. Rules of conduct of an ATA shooter.

Each member will be furnished a copy of these Official Trapshooting Rules, and it is assumed that the member will read and understand each rule. Members are strongly encouraged to know these Rules and abide by them for their own benefit and for the benefit of other shooters.

1. By entering the competition, every contestant agrees to accept all official decisions and to abide by these Rules.
2. It is the responsibility of all shooters to see that they are handicapped and classified properly in accordance with these Rules and/or the official program. Any errors made by the classification committee and/or the shooter must be corrected before shooting or the shooter may be subject to disqualification and may be subject to further disciplinary action.
3. When making entry at any registered shoot, shooters should produce their plastic identification card and Average Card so that names, addresses, and membership numbers are properly noted and errors in record keeping are prevented. Shooters not having a plastic card should always list their ATA number, entire name and address on entry forms.
4. The Average Card is intended to provide classification personnel at registered shoots with current data on a member’s shooting ability. Shooters not having their Average Cards up to date may be put in a higher class or otherwise penalized. The falsification of scores may lead to disciplinary action, including suspension from the ATA.”

As a reminder, the ATA would like all clubs to use one of two ways to pay for ATA fees. Please refer to the ATA webpage for the Gun Club Newsletter September 2021 for further assistance.

Samantha Rainsdon

ATA Delegate

Oklahoma

Hennessey held their last Big 50 program of the 2021 target year. Skies were partially cloudy with light winds. We welcomed new shooter Brandon (Elizabeth) Whitice, an Air Force pilot, who just started a one-year deployment at Vance Air Force Base. Sixteen shooters started the day with singles. Rose Shaffer broke 48 to win the 16s. Kevin Nanke shot a 48 to win handicap and a punch. Nine shooters closed the day with doubles, Shaffer broke 47 to win the event. Check out all the scores and pictures from the day on OSTA’s website. A huge thank you to Brandon and Elizabeth and all of our service men and women for your service!

OTSA hosted the 2021 Oklahoma 4-H state trapshoot. The event had both great weather and turnout. There were 171 senior, intermediate and junior youth shooters, representing 22 counties from across the state. When the shootoffs were done, Kenyon Bert (Oklahoma County) won the senior division, while Mason Tucker (Beckham County) was runnerup. The tide turned for the team contest. Beckham County edged out Canadian County for team bragging rights. We’re proud of these shooters! Congratulations; great shooting!

OTSA hosted the Red Earth Shoot on a very windy weekend. Saturday programmed a 500 doubles marathon, where 16 shooters stepped to the line. After being beat by the wind all day, Woody Barnes totaled a 464 to be the event champion. Class and category winners were Nathan Lemke (441, Class A), Jeff Barker (435, Class B), Johnny Wilson (436, Class C), Chris Sands (393, Class D) and Paul Hooper (422, senior vet). Sunday presented slightly better weather. Lemke won the 200-target singles event with 195. The handicap had 17 shooters, with three breaking 96. After the coin flip, Johnny Wilson won the event. Jeff Barker and Wilson each earned a half-yard punch, moving them both back to 21.5.

The highly anticipated 2022 ATA All-American teams were recently published. In total, nine Oklahomans made either the first or second team: Kya Funkhouser, open second; Patrick Stacey, open second; Shelby Skaggs, Lady I first; Dakota Sliger, sub-junior first; Christopher Diller, sub-junior second; Klayton McGee, junior first; Clay Laughlin, junior gold second; Robert Rimer, veteran first; and Ron Bliss, veteran second. It is exceptionally noteworthy to highlight Funkhouser’s accomplishment. In the current All-American open category era, Kya becomes the first female to be recognized on an  open teams. Congratulations to the All-Americans and a special congratulations to all of the Oklahomans who made it!

The parents and coaches at the Red Dirt SC are developing a strong, exciting youth shooting sports program. Their mission “is to provide a facility and resources that promote family participation and fellowship within shooting sports, principally trapshooting.” Check out their Facebook page for upcoming events, results and pictures; they are a living example of their mission.

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, 405-694-1790; e-mail [email protected]; or mail 15817 Harts Mill Rd., Edmond, OK 73013.

Kevin Nanke

ATA Delegate

Texas

We just returned home from the Zone III shoot in Iowa Park. The people there put on a great shoot. Weather was fantastic with only a little wind on Sunday afternoon. The shoot was well attended, with a 107 shooting the singles on Saturday. I enjoy going to a shoot that has lots of volunteers working their tails off. Thank y’all very much.

Another shoot we attended was the annual Monk Palmer Memorial in Post. Since we lost Monk, the 4-H program there has been hosting the shoot. You talk about volunteers; they have volunteers offering to help the volunteers. The 4-H kids can shoot, but they also are expected to work, and they do. It’s great seeing young people accepting responsibility and working so hard. Thanks to all the people who had a hand in hosting.

I do have one of those near-famous fat man “attaboys” to pass out. Matt Nicol shot his 150,000th registered target at this year’s Grand. Matt is a fine man. Congratulations. sir.

People not having an average card is still a problem. The Rulebook says that you will have an “up-to-date” average card when you classify. Until the rule changes and says you can hand me your phone with your ATA scores or Shoot Station (if that’s what you are using) then present your average card. There are many more things in the Rulebook that you need to know. At the last two shoots I attended, I got asked many questions about rules. I certainly don’t mind answering your questions, but these are things you need to know. Please take a little time and read the Rulebook.

Release pre-squadded positions you are not able to use. Notify the ATA if you are not going to accept a 1,000-target review reduction. This month’s sermon is over. Amen.

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

Arizona

They’re off, the RVs and fifth wheels from the hinterlands up north, all headed for the promised land—Arizona. You can hear their rumbling if you listen closely, the smell of Red Dot and Hoppe’s No. 9 is in the wind, and the birds are in the air, both the live kind and the White Flyer species. My daughter in Colorado has had her first September snowfall, the days are shorter, and there is a nip at night. It’s that time of the year; better get ready.

I am writing this on the first day of fall, and pre-squadding for the Autumn Grand has been open for five days. Upon first glance, there are at least 17 states and provinces (yes, provinces, hallelujah!), represented, and we should hit 40. Why do shooters from all over choose Arizona? Let’s start with the obvious—the weather. It’s your choice: heavy coats, boots and maybe double layers of gloves, or T-shirts and shorts. I brought a snow shovel with me when we moved from New York; it’s still in the same place in my garage. Next would be world-class facilities, such as Tucson, Ben Avery and Casa Grande, and some great smaller clubs. From November to March, we will have over 95 days of registered shooting, plus Big 50s and marathons. Throw in the beauty of Arizona, great food, friendly people, the right to carry, and lots of old friends . . . that is a pretty tough combination to beat. Major shoots coming up are our Hall of Fame Classic Jan. 12-16 at Ben Avery, the Spring Grand American Feb. 9-20, and our state shoot March 15-20 at Ben Avery. Don’t freeze and sneeze, don’t shiver and shake, Arizona is calling, it’s your kind of place.

Smoke and chips—Ben Avery held their “We Will Never Forget” shoot Sept. 10-12, honoring the victims of Sept. 11. It was unusually hot, even for Phoenix in the late summer, but the turnout was strong, considering. The opening singles featured four 98s, including sub-junior Alexis Fernan, Greg Holden was the high senior vet, Ken Mlynarz took Class A, and Max Peevyhouse won sub-vet. Tom Braden was tops in veteran, and Steve Bell won Class C.

Next was the handicap, and four of the highest scores were posted by senior veterans. Standing alone at the top was Jim Sharp with 94. Greg Spiczka won mid-yardage, and Jim Kidwell was high in short-yardage. Friday ended with the doubles, and Peevyhouse led the field, capturing the sub-vet crown, while Jay Alderman was high in senior vet. Holden took Class A, Don Volz topped B, and Spiczka won C.

Doubles got Saturday going, and Ken Mlynarz’s 97 was high by two birds. Mark Matthews won sub-vet, Alderman and Wayne Thompson tied for the umpteenth time in senior veteran, and Colton Hartley took junior gold. Kidwell won Class C, and Zach Abel won D.

Alderman’s 163rd 100 straight (actually, I made that number up, but he has a lot), led all in the singles. Holden, Hartley, Matthews, Kaitlin Quan and Wayne Thompson all finished one behind at 99. Saturday’s last event was the handicap. Mark Lacey was high at 96, and he took the veteran title. One behind was Hartley, earning the long-yardage crown. Next came Alexis Fernan, who won short-yardage. Senior vets had their usual logjam, with Alderman and Sharp tied at 93.

Sunday’s temperature was well over 100°, but that did not stop 22 intrepid trapshooters. There were four 99s in the singles: Alderman (senior vet), Holden (senior vet), Matthews (sub-vet) and Peevyhouse (vet). Jenna Ledbetter led the juniors, one better than Isabella Ricci at 98. The handicap closed things out, and Peevyhouse reigned supreme, followed closely by Jake Gaschet and Milt Kennedy. Everyone I talked with praised the birds and the management, both on the line and in the office. The consensus was it was a nice, albeit hot, way to start off the Ben Avery season.

Around the state—Ben Avery has a three-day shoot Nov. 19-21; Lake Havasu has Big 50s Nov. 20; Casa Grande’s season kickoff is Nov. 26-28; Double Adobe, Dec. 4-5; Lake Havasu continues with their Big 50s Dec. 4; Ben Avery, Dec. 10-12; Tri-State, Dec. 11-12; and Tucson, Dec. 18-19. Plus every Monday Casa Grande has Big 50s, and Rio Salado runs singles marathons the first Thursday every month and doubles marathons on the third Thursday. It’s going to be a great fall, winter and spring in Arizona.

See you on the line.

John Bergman

ATA Delegate

Nevada

Finally, great shooting weather is here! As I write this, everyone is preparing for what is expected to be a very fun state shoot to be held Oct. 19-24. Pre-squad numbers indicate that we are going to have a big turnout, despite the usual issues with ammo and that COVID-19 thing. Despite the heat, summer has been busy for shooters with numerous shoots held in that time frame, including Big 50s, handicap shoots and doubles marathons. Something for everyone!

The 500-target Fall Handicap, held at the Clark Co. Shooting Complex (CCSC) in Las Vegas Sept. 4-5 was a collective veni, vidi, vici for the folks from Barstow. The Barstow Wrecking Crew (BWC) showed up in force and basically won almost every trophy that was available. It was hot, and so were the BWC, as the winners list clearly shows.

In the Event 1 handicap, Barstow’s James Schooler demonstrated what was to come by posting a 94 to take long-yardage. Fellow BWC member Ed Duitsman kept the trend rolling by posting a 90 to win mid-yardage, and Mike Finney prevailed in short-yardage with 93.

Event 2 saw ex-Barstow shooter and current Vegas competitor Ken Amari shoot 95 to win the senior vet category and gain a half-yard punch. Finney matched Amari’s score and took short-yardage; Robert VanVacter (another BWC shooter) took mid-yardage with 92, and Schooler carded a 93 to take long-yardage.

The Event 3 handicap saw 27-yarder Schooler win first-place honors with a fine 97, with fellow crew member Brian Duitsman right behind, taking short-yardage with 96. Van Vacter kept the BWC pace with 94 to win mid-yardage; E. Duitsman took vet honors with 94; Deanna Schooler joined her husband in the winner’s circle, leading the combined ladies’ category with 90; and junior Jacob Ridge took his category with 89. Locals Austin Santellan and Del Swain claimed sub-junior and senior vet honors, respectively.

Event 4 saw a trading of places, with E. Duitsman leading the field with 97, which earned him a one-yard punch to 24.5. Schooler then followed up his Event 3 score with a 96, taking long-yardage. Short-yardage went to B. Duitsman with 96. Van Vacter took mid-yardage with 91 after winning the tie-breaker.

Event 5 had similar results, with the BWC posting good scores under a very hot sun. Schooler won long-yardage with 98; mid-yardage went to Van Vacter with 97; B. Duitsman took short-yardage honors with 93, winning a coin flip to break a tie with David Van Norman. Duitsman earned vet honors with 93; Greg Holden from Arizona was the senior vet winner, posting a 95; Vegas local Leticia Slinker headed the ladies’ category with 90; Brandon Barkey edged Ridge for junior honors, and Santellan rounded out the podium with the high sub-junior score.

The high-over-all was based on all 500 targets. J. Schooler was the champion with 478, with runnerup and vet winner E. Duitsman posting a 469, followed by B. Duitsman with 465, which took the short-yardage trophy. Van Vacter was close behind with 463, winning himself mid-yardage honors. Holden rounded out the top five, taking senior vet honors with 461. Long-yardage went to Wes Atkin, Slinker won ladies’, BWC member Ridge took junior honors, and Santellan won the sub-junior category. As the accompanying photo illustrates, our friends from Barstow distinguished themselves with some fine shooting. Next year they are bringing the whole squad! Thanks to the NSTA and Joe Hanley for sponsoring the shoot and kicking in added money. Thanks also to my Wyoming friends Darrell Jones and Jeff Williams for making the long trek south to attend the shoot.

On Sept. 18, 34 shooters turned out for the monthly Big 50 at the CCSC in Las Vegas. Jerry Harms and Russ Roberts shared a squad and high honors in singles, each posting a 49. The handicap saw four shooters tie, with Jeff White, Leticia Slinker, Jon Slinker and Mike Hatton posting 47s. Senior vet Bob Clawson was right behind with 46. White outpaced all doubles shooters with 47, with Barkey’s 46 earning him second place. J. Slinker took HOA honors, posting a 140, with White and Roberts on his heels, each with 139. The Big 50s continue to be well attended, and the associated Western Zone Lewis option is growing in popularity.

A new organization has formed in Las Vegas to promote registered shooting. The Vegas Trapshooters Association is hosting a Big 50 handicap the first Sunday of every month at the CCSC. The registered handicap event includes a special event and is followed by non-registered shooting games, like Annie Oakleys, miss-’n-outs and, in an homage to the old Las Vegas Gun Club, a one-shot-for-the-pot event, where shooters get one shot to break a 60-yard target going 50 mph—thrown from the adjacent field. Sorry, no shooting from the roof! Look for their shoot announcements on the NSTA website at NVTrap.com.

Finally, a late note on the 2021 Grand American. Five Nevada shooters made the trek to Sparta: Austin Santellan, his grandfather Wayne Orme, Bill Daniels, Rich Bullard Jr. and yours truly. It was hot and very humid; there was a spectacular thunder and lightning show (free!) one night that postponed the shootoffs. Kudos to the ATA for running a smooth shoot, despite being short-staffed. Delegates and even a member of the Executive Committee were seen manning scorer’s chairs to help fill in the labor gaps.

Russell Roberts

ATA Delegate

Utah

Sadly, the trapshooting season is coming to a close in Utah. During September, shoots were held in Vernal, Spanish Fork and Golden Spike. Weather for these shoots was anywhere from good to marginal. Generally this can be a great time of year to shoot.

Joe Hanley from Nevada donated a very nice belt buckle to be awarded to the high cumulative score for the Western Zone Big 50s being held at Spanish Fork. The way the event was set up was that Spanish Fork held eight Big 50s throughout the summer. To qualify for the buckle, you had to shoot at least four of the eight days and play the Western Zone options and fees. We took the best four-day totals for each shooter and presented the buckle to the high score. This program didn’t garner as much traction as I had hoped, but we did manage at least five shooters every day. Unfortunately only three shooters qualified for the buckle by shooting at least four different days. To no one’s surprise, Joe Sudbury was the winner of the buckle. Congratulations, Joe.

Ogden, Nevada State Shoot, Autumn Grand and turkey shoots; this is about all we have to look forward to in the coming months. After mid November, we are pretty well in lockdown as far as ATA shoots are concerned. With any luck, maybe the new calendar year will bring a new supply of ammo, so we can be prepared for the next year, which seems far away but will be here quite quickly.

           Ed Wehking

           ATA Western Zone Vice President

Washington

Hello again from the Washington State Trapshooting Association. We hope this finds you having a great fall and that you have a very happy Thanksgiving. I for one am thankful to have been able to take part in ATA trapshooting in 2021. It was wonderful to be back at the clubs and seeing friends who were missed due to many cancellations in 2020.

I would like to congratulate three shooters for making the All-American team with their shooting efforts in the past target year. T. J. Main has been honored as an open first team competitor. Carson Schlimmer made the junior gold second team. Dr. Laura Winkel is on the Lady II second team. Laura has been an All-American many times and a high-average leader in our state for almost as many years as she has been shooting. The accomplishments of these three are commendable, especially with the travel involved from our region to get to points shoots, let alone the challenge of acquiring shells or components to shoot the required targets. T. J., Carson and Laura, the WSTA is proud of you, and we thank you for the encouragement you give other shotgunners during your travels.

The WSTA annual directors held their annual fall meeting Oct. 30. The biggest news is that the state shoot will be held on the May dates traditionally reserved for the Inland Empire Handicap, always held at Spokane GC. It is uncertain when an Inland Empire event will be thrown again. The record heat during the 2021 WSTA Championships in June was one reason to try moving to that date a month earlier. This shoot will help fill the gap in the three-shoot “circuit,” which consisted of the Ron Hoppie Memorial at Missoula, the Inland, and Idaho state shoots. Holding our shoot at this time should be a good way to help shooters continue making the Montana, Washington and Idaho loop they have been traveling for years. Please watch the WSTA website for exact dates and site as well as for the schedule of ATA registered shoots thrown at various clubs around our state.

The 2022 target year was kicked off in September at the Colton GC, and a good time was had by all who attended. A stiff wind made the handicap event a challenging one, but our Delegate Roger Clouse was able to stay on the targets enroute to winning a WSTA handicap buckle for the second time in a row for shoots hosted at Colton. I’m sure you’ll see him wearing one of the shiny ornaments at an upcoming shoot. Congratulations, Roger.

ATA action will take a break here for a couple of months, but many clubs will be open for practice and fun shoots. The local meat shoots are good fundraisers for clubs and a good way to put those holiday hams and turkeys in your freezer for Thanksgiving and Christmas. As always, I encourage you to take some time during the off-season to take a kid or other new shooter out and introduce them to trapshooting.

Shoot straight and keep your powder dry.

Sean Lewis

WSTA Director

Wyoming

I hope everyone is doing well. Forgive me for missing last month’s article; I will try to cover everything this month.

The two big shoots for most of us in Wyoming are either the Grand or the Gun Shoot in Pocatello. There were nine Wyoming shooters who attended the Grand, and 14 who went to the Gun Shoot. The Wyoming shooters won trophies in all but three events in Pocatello.

Most of the clubs also had shoots in August. Overthrust GC had its annual Rocky Mountain Oyster Shoot. We had several accomplishments there. Lindsay McGuire shot her first 100 straight in the singles. Mark and Rhonda Dick, Albert Gastelum and Barbara Hodgson traveled across the state to attend this shoot, and in doing so they have shot at every club in Wyoming that is currently throwing registered targets. If any of you have traveled to even a few clubs, you know how far apart the clubs in Wyoming are. I would bet the list of shooters to do this is very small.

September started with a special shoot for me. Dalton Van, who passed away in 2020, had a memorial fun shoot held at the Vernal R&GC. The shoot consisted of a 100-target team event—50 singles, 25 handicap and 25 wobbles. After the team event there were lots of games, including two Annies with guns as the prizes. There were about 60 shooters in attendance. The proceeds from the shoot go toward the Dalton Van Legacy Scholarship.

After Dalton’s shoot, Vernal held its annual fall shoot. The targets were great, as always, and the weather was nice. Some sad news from the board of directors meeting is that we are losing two Wyoming clubs. Farson and Rawlins will no longer be throwing registered targets. Rawlins held its last shoot in September. There were 11 shooters in attendance. Overthrust GC held its last shoot at the end of September with 500 doubles on Saturday and 200 handicap and 100 singles on Sunday.

I hope to see some of you at the last few shoots this month.

Nico Elardi

WSTA Director

Atlantic Provinces

Hello from the Atlantic Provinces.

It was great to be back in Nova Scotia and the Highland GC over the Labour Day weekend for the 2021 Atlantic Provinces ATA Provincial Shoot. The shoot went well, despite shoot organizers having to modify the program due to Hurricane Larry. With high winds, heavy rain and the chance of thunder and lightning forecasted for much of opening day, the singles class event was canceled and the APTA Doubles moved to Day 2.

In the preliminary day events, Quebec’s Danny Boulet claimed the APTA Singles with the lone 100, while home club shooter Aubrey Spinney won the APTA Handicap with 94. The win moved Aubrey to the 22-yard line. Newfoundland’s Troy Coldwell claimed the APTA Doubles with 95.

Coldwell and Reynold d’Entremont tied for high score in the Singles Championship with 194s. After three extra rounds, Coldwell claimed the title, his 10th career win. Reynold had declared veteran and won category champion for the third year running. Jason Weaver, originally from Nova Scotia but now living in Alberta, claimed open winner.

Coldwell also won the Atlantic Provinces Doubles Championship for the 12th consecutive year. Rejean d’Entremont was runnerup, and Alberta’s Jesse Smith took open high gun.

In the Handicap Championship, Highland GC shooter Ken d’Eon claimed the championship for the second year in a row. Ken earned a yard for the win and now shoots from the 25-yard line. This earned yardage marks Ken’s third punch in the last year. Coldwell claimed runnerup, while Jason Weaver won his second top open award of the tournament. Coldwell and Weaver also earned the resident and open HAA and HOA awards.

Complete results and pictures are available on www.shootatlantic.com.

All members of the Atlantic Provinces Trapshooting Association executive committee return for another year. Doug Blades will continue to serve as treasurer, Janaya Nickerson as secretary and Coldwell as vice president. I will continue as president and ATA Delegate. New to the board this year is Jamie LeBlanc, who will join us as the ATA Alternate Delegate. Welcome aboard, Jamie.

The 2022 Atlantic Provinces ATA Provincial Shoot will be hosted by the St. John’s R&GC in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Sept. 1-4, 2022.

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

New Jersey

It is Sept. 22, the last full day of summer. I just returned from a drive through Middletown, NJ, and remnants of the horrific wind and rain event a week ago is still evident, with tree limbs stacked along the roadside, tree removal trucks dealing with the damaged trees, chipping away downed tree branches, and grinding uprooted tree stumps. A tree down the street fell and hit a transformer pole, which proceeded to impale a Volvo sedan parked underneath it. The damaged pole turned out the lights in my neighborhood for almost 24 hours. Fortunately our Generac Generated earned its keep!

The last I wrote, I had just returned from the Grand. Due to COVID issues there, the Delegates meeting in Sparta was canceled, and the ATA management team were planning a Zoom meeting for Aug. 28. Being my first Zoom experience, I managed to miss the roll call, when I was lost in cyberspace. Cheryll Pittera, the Connecticut Delegate, called me asking where the heck I was. I told her I was in a room waiting to be admitted to the meeting. Finally, with Cheryll’s help, I was able to join the meeting.

Pine Belt SC held their annual club shoot Aug. 28-29. The big winners were Jamaal Brown, capturing the member singles championship, Rangel Queiroz was the club member handicap winner, and Scott Kalnas was the member doubles champion, with Anthony Donise III capturing the member HOA award. To see all the scores, go to shootscoreboard.com.

Pine Valley TC held their club championships the following weekend, Sept. 4-5. Carlos Gomes was flawless in the 200-bird Singles Championship, carding his first 200. I was on hand competing and presenting Carlos his ATA 200 singles pin. Congratulations, Carlos, and many more. The following day he led the singles with 99, Santo Farro paced the handicap, and Scott Kalnas led the doubles. Scott also was high for the club HOA award. This year the club honored John Wilson for his untiring support of the club. As usual, Stella Farms supplied the tomatoes and white corn, both the best I’ve had this season, for the free buffet on Saturday; barbecued pig satisfied the meat eaters in the house.

The Lady Bird Shoot was held on Labor Day at Pine Valley. It was started back in the late 1990s in honor of our past matriarch “Toots” Tindall. It honors the women in our sport. In the singles event, Rachel Osterhoudt secured the champion trophy, Elena Farro was second, Lori McClure third, Holly Fellows fourth, Sophia Grant fifth, and Lianine Lenguardoru sixth. In the men’s division, Robert Jarvis won A class, Ralph Jensen B, Paul Dimeglio C and Walter Olt D. Rachel led the ladies in the handicap, with Farro second and McClure third. Mike Fishman was high in the men’s category followed by Jensen and Joe Sissano. I’m sad to report that Jensen will be moving to the Sunshine State permanently. Hopefully, he’ll be vacationing with us next summer.

It was then on to the Westy Hogans in Elysburg, PA. Sixty-one Jersey shooters were in attendance this year. Robert Malmstedt returned to his winning ways, capturing three trophies. Tom Green Sr. was right behind him, winning two, followed by Robert Battista, Zac Cucunato, Marc Invidiato and Ray Dirisio winning one. To see who won what, go to rjstuart.com.

The 36th annual Northeastern Grand American followed Sept. 14-19. Only five New Jersey shooters made it up to the Bridgeport/Cicero, NY, venue this year. Malmstedt, Robert Jarvis and George Wright each won one trophy. To see all the winners, go to the nysata.com website.

The Mallard TC in Monroe Township held their 16th annual Mallard club Singles Championship. There was a six-way tie of 96s; those in the shootoff were Chuck Gregory, Dan Fishman, Carlos Gomes, John Homan, Steve Siegert and Mike Fishman. Running 50 was Gregory, winning the title. For the list of all the winners, go to Mallardtrapclub.org.

It is turkey time, so please stop at your gun club to see when they will be having competitions for turkeys as prizes in November.

On a sad note, Tom Horenburg let me know that Alice McEntire of Bridgewater passed away Aug. 27; she was 77 years old. She was married to Robert for 54 years. Before retirement, she was credit manager at her husband’s business in Sayreville. She joined the ATA in 1985 and registered 27,300 singles, 9,800 handicap and 350 doubles targets. She enjoyed the outdoors and made numerous safaris to South Africa with her husband. She is survived by her husband; a son Robert, daughter Regina, a sister Mary Ann, and two brothers, Thomas and Richard Barbaria.

Bob Griffith let me know of the passing of George Van Riper, George had moved to Florida decades ago and would greet all the old-timers from New Jersey who visited the Silver Dollar in the winter months. George passed away three days before his 100th birthday. He registered 162,350 singles, 151,800 handicap and 19,050 doubles. George started shooting registered in 1964. He stopped registering targets only five years ago.

Bob also mentioned the passing of longtime New Jersey State Shoot supporter, John Brown of Doylestown, PA, on Sept. 15. He was 87 years old. John would come to our state shoots with his camper and three or four other Pennsylvania shooters, each with their own camper, and set up their enclave down in the corner of the field, way behind the practice trap. During his ATA career John registered more than 320,675 combined targets. I have no obituary information currently.

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

Joe Sissano

ATA Delegate

New York

Hello to everyone from New York. If you are in the field this fall doing any hunting, please be careful and remember good hunting policy and rules and gun safety rules.

The New York State ATA was informed of the passing of Suzanne Warner, 1994 New York State ATA singles champion. Please keep your thoughts and prayers for her and her family.

Another milestone at this year’s Grand American: Michael Fox Jr. completed his ATA Grand Slam by shooting 100 straight from the 27-yard line during the Blaser Handicap. Michael is one of the few shooters who has accomplished this very tough achievement. Congratulations, Michael.

The 36th Northeastern Grand American is now history. The tournament took place Sept. 14-19. Outside of Wednesday afternoon, the weather was terrific. There were 656 shooters taking part during the weekend championship events, making the shoot a Competition Factor 4 for All-American points.

Bill Wallis took the singles title with 199, and David McMasters was runnerup with 198. Deborah Ohye-Neilson was doubles champion with 98, and David Shaeffer was runnerup with 97. Joseph Kopacz was the handicap champion with 97, and Jake Levin was runnerup with 96. Finally, Levin was all-around champion with 388×400, and Ohye-Neilson was the high-over-all champion with 1,126×1,200. All trophy winners can be viewed on our web page www.nysata.com and in Trap & Field. Congratulations to all trophy winners.

The annual meeting of the New York State ATA was held Sept. 16. An updating of the state’s by-laws were presented and approved. Election of officers were held. Jim Wright remains as president of the New York State ATA. Cathy Flint remains secretary/webmaster. Cam Zuller was elected treasurer of the organization. Jonathon Karp remains as legal counsel. Robert Oswald was elected vice president of the eastern zone, and the eastern zone directors are Susan Gullotta, Vincent Barranco and Sal Schiavo. Joe Macewic was elected central zone vice president, and the central zone directors are Jeff Bell, George Hart and Jack McIlroy. Larry Daigler was elected western zone vice president, and western zone directors are Dan Tartick, Gary McKeown and Don Alderson. During the New York State Shoot in July, Travis Dann and Todd Hosbach were elected New York State Alternate Delegates, and I remain as New York State Delegate.

Our best wishes and deep appreciation must be sent out to Sam Bonetto and Mike Waschitz, who are retiring as treasurer and eastern zone director. Both of these fine gentlemen worked very hard for the New York State ATA over the years, and this fact can’t be understated. Both Sam and Mike are going to remain on the Finance Committee. Sam and Mike, thank you for all your hard work and dedication. You will be missed on the board.

Thanks must be sent out to all the setters, scorers, line personnel, Ray Greb of the Central Handicap Committee, ATA Eastern Zone Vice President Joe Sissano, Past ATA President Wayne and Joyce Morris, all others who helped and the officers and board of directors of the New York State ATA for making the 2021 Northeastern Grand American a success. Thanks for everything.

Thanks must be given to Levin from Quebec for singing the national anthems of Canada and the United States on Sunday morning during the Northeastern Grand. We had some technical difficulties and could not play the anthems over the PA system. Jake stepped in and volunteered to sing both anthems. He did a wonderful job, and what a fine voice he has. It was very much appreciated by everyone.

Some milestones that were just accomplished: Bob Wyatt shot his 25,000th singles target at Mt. Morris SC Aug. 29. Past ATA President Wayne Morris shot his 100,000th handicap target Sept. 17 at the Northeastern Grand. I shot my 100,000th doubles target Sept. 16 at the Northeastern Grand.

The dates for shoots being hosted by the New York State ATA at the homegrounds in Cicero in 2022 were announced. The 2022 Empire Grand American will be held May 18-22. The 2022 New York State Shoot will be July 5-10. The ATA Eastern Zone will be July 21-24. The 2022 Northeastern Grand is set for Sept. 13-18. We hope you all plan to attend.

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

Ontario

Greetings from Ontario, Canada.

As I write this article in late September, our trapshooting competitions in Ontario have wound down, with many of our shooters getting ready for winter league action.

Those of us who were hopeful that the U.S. border would open up for land transportation had those hopes dashed once again with yet a further closure to Oct. 21, 2021. We have come to expect this month after month. And it hurts all of us—we couldn’t compete at events like the Northeastern Grand in September nor at the Dixie Grand in early October. It impacts the venues south of the border that would ordinarily count on Canadians adding to participation numbers. When will this end?

I want to take a moment to celebrate the accomplishments of one of our young shooters. Peter Tsementzis is a well-known Ontario shooter, who is one of the best athletes we have. His son Chris told me a few years ago that he aspired to “beat his dad”—an obviously tall task. Guess what? This was not just a pipe dream. Chris won the Ontario provincial doubles championship by beating not only his dad but the whole field with 99. Then, while the Grand was being shot in Sparta, Chris competed in our Canadian Trapshooting Championship. (Our Canadian overlapped the Grand because it was so hard for Canadians to get to Sparta). During the championship singles, Chris ran his first ever registered 100 straight. He backed this up with another 100 straight for his first ever 200 and won this prestigious event with the lone perfect score.

Chris is another Ontario shooter who is on track for great accomplishments. But, as all of us know, there are always bumps in the road. Handling those bumps is just part of being a champion. Chris is well on his way, and we couldn’t be prouder of his accomplishments.

Have a good fall.

Paul Shaw

ATA Delegate

Pennsylvania

Thank you! A huge thank you to all the shooters, volunteers and employees who helped make 2021 a successful year for the PSSA and, in particular, at the Westy Hogans. There are many moving parts that are undertaken to operate and conduct events at Elysburg, and one of the main parts is line personnel. It has always been an issue come September, when most of our scorers and loaders are back in school. I can’t express my appreciation enough to those who helped score and load traps on Friday and Saturday of the Westy Hogans. With shooter participation, the Westy Hogans completed the PSSA shooting year for 2021. Attendance was down 11.6% overall, with 2,280 shooters this year compared to 2,579 in 2020. Championship attendance was down 12.1%, with 1,322 entries this year compared to 1,504 in 2020 and resulted in an All-American points factor of 5. Congratulations to our event winners: Brian Snyder, singles, with his first 200 straight; William Natcher, doubles; Steven Buenzli, handicap; Ian Darroch, HAA; Chris Vendel, HOA; and Deborah Ohye-Neilson, Lady of America. Look for the full report in Trap & Field.

The following week had a contingent of 20 PA shooters bringing home 83 awards from the Northeastern Grand in Cicero, NY. Deborah Ohye-Neilson earned the doubles and HOA championships as well as singles Event 1 champion and category HAA as part of her 10 awards for the week. Joseph Breck IV (10) and Sheldon Hostetter (10) captured category HAA and HOA titles and earned doubles Event 6 and singles Event 7 high gun, respectively. Frank Pascoe (five) earned doubles Event 3 victor right after Martin Reed earned handicap Event 2 champion. Ron Ostrowski Jr. (12) and William Ross (eight) claimed category HAA and HOA titles, Bradley Green (three) and Michael Dixon (two) won class HAA titles, and Wyatt Readler (four) and Brendan Doorly (two) earned category HOA titles. Other PA winners included Jonathan Hannahoe (three), Timothy Burnett (two), Donald Neilson (three), Criona Doorly (two), Brian Snyder, Austin Unverdorben (two), Ryan Ramsay, Wayne Kreisl and Brad Hitchcock. Congratulations to all.

As of this writing, preliminary postings for the PA state teams and All-American teams have been released. Recognition will be forthcoming next month once they become official.

Steve Ross

ATA Alternate Delegate