Tarentum District Sportsmen’s Club (TDSC) held its sixth Gil Rodler Memorial four-gun shoot on Labor Day, September 7. Gil Rodler Sr. passed in 2014 at the age of 88. Gil was one of PAs best skeet shooters ever and many still remember him. Gil Rodler, Jr. and his sister Stacey Sabo attended the shoot, with Gil shooting and Stacey observing.
The weather was not bad, overcast and relatively cool most of the day, but with some rain during the mid-afternoon and then again at shoot-off time. A total of 21 different shooters participated in this 4X50 affair. HOA winners were Bryson Fox, champion (195) and Mike Wollard, runner-up (194).
Twenty-one shooters took part in the 20-gauge event that kicked off the day. Brian Fox shot a 49 and was champion, while his son Bryson took runner-up with a 48. Class first-places were Wollard (AA), Ernie Anderson (A), Paul Augustin (B), Bob Waite (C, after winning a shoot-off of 47s with Murry Gerber) and Brad King (D).
Twenty-one shooters also shot the 12-gauge. No one was perfect, but there were four 49s. Bryson Fox prevailed in the shoot-off and was champion. The other three 49s ended up as Wollard (runner-up), Tom Shields (B1) and Gary Trilli (C1). Rounding out the 12-gauge winners were Ernie Avolio (AA1), Augustin (B1), Paul Hunt (D1) and Paul McConville (E1, after he won a shoot-off of 37s with Dave Ostrosky).
McConville, a Senior Veteran who shot his first registered targets at Tarentum in 1963, remarked afterwards that it had been a while since he won a shoot-off. Paul and Gil Rodler Sr. are both in the PSSA Hall of Fame.
The 28-gauge was next up with 19 shooters, and there were two 50s. After the shoot-off, Augustin was champion and Shields runner-up. Wollard, Bryson Fox – after winning a shoot-off of 49s with Ernie Avolio – Brian Fox, Waite, and Hunt, respectively, were AA1, A1, B1, C1 and D1.
The .410 was last on the agenda, and 20 competitors shot the little gun. Wollard took the championship outright with the only 50 straight. Bryson Fox was runner-up with a 49. Class firsts went to Augustin (AA), Ernie Avolio (A), Brian Fox (B, after winning a shoot-off with Waite), John Avolio (C) and King (D).
Kudos to Jerry McCullough and Mike Rykaczewski Sr. for shoot management. Many thanks also to Josh Crofutt, Fran Kosmacki, and Mike Rykaczewski Jr. for pulling and scoring.
– Contributed by George Gleich
