Clay Target Nation

The official magazine of the National Skeet Shooting Association and the National Sporting Clays Association

Buckeye Classic

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HOA Champion – Jack Grehan

Skeet shooting is back in full swing at Wright-Patterson Rod & Gun Club. The club, located in Dayton, Ohio, overlooks the Huffman Prairie Flying Field where the Wright Brothers perfected their controlled, powered flight ability. Just beyond the open field is Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. While shooting, you may get a flyover from a C-17 Globemaster and other aircraft. With nothing but blue skies, this gun club has one of the best backgrounds you can find. The fields are lined with trees just beyond station 4 on all five fields, providing ample shade on stations 3,4, and 5 during the hot summer days. This contributes to an enjoyable experience while shooting great targets thrown by Promatic machines.

The Buckeye Challenge, dating back to the 90s, is one of the club’s annual shooting events scheduled in the summer, adding to its appeal. While participation has dwindled in the past few years, the Wright Flyers Skeet Association is enthusiastic to bring back its shine! At this year’s event on July 29-31, the shoot boasted 27 12-gauge shooters and a total of 19 4-gun shooters. Shooters joined the club from multiple states including Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and New York.

Friday began with a comfortable breeze, clear skies, and an impressive group of shooters competing in the doubles event. Andrew Winders was crowned Doubles Champion, posting a 98. Class Champions were Bruce Christian (AA), Peter Bogdon (A), Connard Bailey (B), Andrew Smith (C), and Connor Picard (D).

For the next 2 days, shooters enjoyed impeccable weather, allowing for some impressive shooting. The 12-gauge event was won by Jack Grehan with a 100. Class winners were Bruce Christian (AA), Ryan Melcher (A), Peter Bodgdon (B), Andrew Smith (C), Mickey Moore (D), and Bill Bush (E). The 20-gauge was also won by Jack Grehan with a solid 100, posting his first 200×200. Pat McCartney also shot his first 100 in 20-gauge but, more importantly, his first 100 registered ever! He was able to walk away with the A-class title. Additional winners were Kevin McDonald (AA), Robert Palmer (B), Mickey Moore (C), and Bella Earley (D).

On Sunday, Jack Grehan continued his streak of 100s, posting yet another milestone with his first 300×300 and taking the 28-gauge title. Class winners were Bruce Christian (AA), Peter Bogdon (A), Pat McCartney (B), Mike Picard (C), and Bella Earley (D). Finally, the .410 bore event came along and Jack Grehan posted a 99. He was so close, and you could hear the squad lose their breath as a low 6 continued to fly unbroken. But he finished strong and posted an impressive weekend. However, his title reign was put to an end by Tom Davis from Kentucky who also posted a 99 in the .410 event and won the shoot-off against Jack Grehan who took A-class. Class winners included Bruce Christian (AA), Greg Volz (B), Pat McCartney (C), and Connor Picard (D). HOA Champion Jack Grehan had a successful weekend and earned his impressive score of 399×400. HOA Class champs were Kevin McDonald (AA), Tom Davis (A), Peter Bogdon (B), Mike Picard (C), Conor Picard (D), and Bella Earley (E).

We would like to thank Outdoors Environments, Inc, Briley Mfg., and SGS Performance Eyewear for their sponsorship of the shoot. We look forward to upcoming years and are eager to welcome registered shooters from all over the world! Be sure to visit the NSSA website for updates on next year’s Buckeye Challenge.

– Contributed by Andrew Winders

2022 National Championship Photo Gallery

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The NSSA-NSCA’s official photographer, Lefty Ray Chapa, was on hand at the 2022 National Sporting Clays Championship to capture all the action. Enjoy this selection of photos, and feel free to send us your own photos at CTN@nssa-nsca.com.
Click on an image to enlarge photo.

 

Member Grant Bergmann has also shared his photos from the 2022 National Sporting Clays Championship. Our thanks to Grant for these great photos!

 

83rd North Carolina State Closed Championship

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The 83rd annual North Carolina State Closed Championship was held at the Fort Bragg Clay Target Center September 9-11. Out of the 80 total participants, 65 shot all four guns, and there were 11 youth shooters in attendance. The weather was not ideal all weekend, but there were good scores and fun times had by all.

Stuart Brown 12 gauge, .410, HOA, HAA, C of C Champion

Friday started with 56 shooters taking to the fields for the doubles event. 98s stood at the top of the leaderboard with the shoot-off leaving Steve Timmons gun champion, Stuart Brown runner-up and Jeffery DeSantis third. Class champions were Mike Pittard (AAA), Jay Bunting (AA), Richard Nixon (A), Randy Browning (B), Bill Kluttz (C) and Tim Barber (D).

Little did we know what Mother Nature had in store for us on Saturday. While the morning events went on with decent weather, the afternoon would have us getting over three inches of rain in 4 hours. Five shooters were able to post perfect scores in the 12-gauge event. The shoot-off, lasting just into the second box, left Stuart Brown gun champ, with Anna Wood runner-up and Scott Graham third. A big congratulations to Ridge Pearson, a Sub-Junior from Stanley, NC, for running his first 100 straight in the 12-gauge event and lasting well into the box in the shoot-off! Class winners were Otto “Chip” Simmons (AA), Josie Cloninger (A), Aaron Kibby (B), Ridge Pearson (C), George Shuman (D), and Christopher Malone (E). The coveted 5-man team buckles went to Charles Lawley, Josie Cloninger, Jason Cloninger, Ron Hostinsky, and Adam Hostinsky.

Battling through the rain left only two 100s in the 20-gauge event, with Richard Nixon taking the top honors and John Feezor getting runner-up. This was also John’s first 100 straight in the 20-gauge. Seven shooters posted 99s, with Stuart Brown clinching the last spot on the podium. Class winners for this event were David Stevenson (AA), Eric Potts (A), Bill Swenson (B), Adam Hostinsky (C), and Christopher Malone (D).

At the conclusion of shoot-offs Saturday evening our state teams were recognized as the shooters enjoyed an Eastern Carolina BBQ dinner with desserts provided by the attendees.

       First Team                                               Second Team                         Military Champion

Stuart Brown               .9903               Corrie Cloninger         .9708               Ron Hostinsky .9277

Mason Watkins           .9815               Scott Graham             .9653

Kevin Hostinsky          .9765               James Delosh             .9646               Lady Champion

Jay Bunting                 .9742               Timothy Koller             .9632               Anna Wood .9591

Otto “Chip” Simmons  .9713               Mark Smith                 .9611

Sunday’s events were met with cloudy skies, but thankfully no rain. The 28-gauge event was finished with only three shooters posting perfect scores. Scott Graham was able to outlast Richard Nixon and Stuart Brown for the title, with Nixon finishing runner-up and Brown third. Class winners for this event were William Davis (AAA), Otto “Chip” Simmons (AA), Eric Potts (A), Randy Browning (B), Ron Hostinsky (C) and Doyle Estes (D). Congratulations to Jason Shell for his first 75 straight.

With the HOA still in a tight race, the little gun left two 99s battling for top honors. Stuart Brown found top honors again, leaving Jeffery DeSantis runner-up. Jay Bunting posted the only 98 to capture the last spot on the podium. Class winners for the .410 event were Corrie Cloninger (AAA), Mark Smith (AA), Randy Browning (A), Aaron Kibby (B), Neil McInnis (C), and Mike McKenzie (D).

With the final shots sent downrange, the HOA was won outright with a strong score of 398 from the newly inducted Hall of Fame shooter Stuart Brown. Runner-up and third went to Chip Simmons and Kevin Hostinsky, respectively, with 391s. Class champions were Richard Nixon (AAA) with a 388, Jeffery DeSantis (AA) with a 388, James Delosh (A) with a 390, Adam Hostinsky (B) with a 384, Allen Kirby (C) with a 367, George Shuman (D) with a 358, and Wendelle Gray (E) with a 305. Ridge Pearson won the Sub-Junior concurrent with a 373, Junior went to Josie Cloninger with a 383, Corrie Cloninger took Collegiate with a 385, and Anna Wood took home top honors in the Lady concurrent with a 386.

A big thanks must go out to Jim and Belinda Tiner for all their help in making this shoot run as smoothly as it could, and to all the refs, parents, volunteers and staff at the FTBCTC.

– Contributed By Kevin Hostinsky

Scott Graham 28 Gauge Champion
Josie Cloninger Junior HOA Champion
Steve Timmons Doubles Champion
Richard Nixon 20 Gauge Champion

Kentucky State Skeet Championships

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The 2022 Kentucky State Skeet Championships returned to Chief Paduke Gun Club after a four-year hiatus. Junior star Donald Ryan Kitchen subdued his closest competitor, Gavin Stevenson, by three targets in the HOA contest. Participants were rewarded with a smooth-running shoot and only slightly high temperatures. Maybe the highlight of the event was a fish fry hosted by the home club and served up by Earl Yarbrough and his entourage; it was enjoyed by all.

HOA and Doubles Champ -Donald Ryan Kitchen

Kitchen got off on the right foot, breaking 98 to take Friday afternoon’s doubles event uncontested. Other class winners were Les Lala (AA, 97), Brad Felton (A, 96), Gavin Stevenson (B, 95), Nick Harwood (C, 84), and Bobby Blalock (D, 81).

In the all-bore event Saturday, Jody Stevenson of the five-man team champion Calvert City Gun Club prevailed over Don Donnelly in a tiebreaker of perfect 100s. Barry Stevenson defeated Kitchen in a shoot-off of 99s in AA, Donnelly led A, and Bart Redman won his B class. Charles Castle with 97, new registered shooter Lane Wicker, 88, and Timothy Thompson, 94, won C, D, and E, respectively.

The yellow shells came out Saturday afternoon, and this time, Les Lala and his 100 prevailed over Kitchen in a miss-and-out decider at 3-4-5. While Joseph Charles was best in A by virtue of his nice 98, Kitchen was tops in AA, Barry Garner grabbed B1 with a 97, while Timothy Thompson garnered a second class champion medal with a 94. Also notching another class win was veteran star Bobby Blalock, breaking 91 for D1.

The hot-shooting Calvert City squad showed their five-man team victory was no fluke in the 28-gauge event, with Jody Stevenson, Gavin Stevenson, and Ken Ford each putting red marks on the board with their perfect efforts. The gun championship shoot-offs ended in that order. T. D. Berkes made his trip from the Volunteer State pay off by finishing first in A with a near-perfect 99. Mark Hammond led the B-class gunners with his 94. Bobby Garner was the winner of C with his 97, and another Calvert City shooter, Zach Oden, got his first class award, this time with his 91 in the D division.

Shooting in one of the last squads, Gavin Stevenson inkballed 99 in the baby bore with a smooth 99, taking state gun champ (and his first) uncontested. Barkley Lister prevailed over Lala and Kitchen in a shoot-off of 98s in class AA. Donnelly marked again with his 96 in A, while another Calvert City hot shot, Nathan Harrington won B class with 89. Garner and Thompson grabbed more gold in C and D, with scores of 91 and 84.

Trailing Kitchen and Gavin Stevenson in the HOA tilt were Donnelly (A, 391) and Jeff Pope (B, 367). Garner and Thompson again triumphed in their respective HOA divisions, breaking 378 and 359, respectively.

Chief Paduke would like to thank all those that supported and participated, especially the KSSA leadership. We invite each and every one back for the 2023 version of the Kentucky Lake Open.

– Contributed by Bob Toy

12 and 28 CH – Jody Stevenson, 410 CH – Gavin Stevenson
20 GA CH – Les Lala

8th Annual Couples Shoot at Generations Skeet Club

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The 8th annual Couples Shoot was held at Generations Skeet Club near Patton, Pennsylvania, on September 18. The weather was lovely, upper 70s, mostly sunny, and not too much wind, at least by Generations’ standards.

The Couples Shoot was initiated by Generations in 2015, and the initial goals of the shoot remain: to introduce new shooters (especially ladies and younger shooters) to skeet; to have fun shooting while stressing gun safety; to enjoy an early autumn afternoon with a fine group of people, and, of course, to eat!

Twenty-six couples shot this year, four more than last year. Very few skeet shoots in the country have 26 lady shooters.

Shooting began late in the morning, and all four of Generations’ skeet fields were involved. Many of the participants were first-time shooters, and several had never handled a gun before in their lives. NSSA Certified Instructors were available to all four fields to help new shooters. Shotguns and shells were provided to any who needed them.

Squads of four or six people were formed. All NSSA safety rules were strictly enforced, but some of the other rules were slightly “bent” at times to help new shooters. For example, some new shooters shot four singles instead of two singles and a double at times, and congratulating a new shooter each time they smoked a bird was strongly encouraged.

After everyone had shot at 50 birds (two rounds), shoot-offs began. Liberal handicaps were applied, which allowed all 26 couples to shoot doubles at 3, 4 and 5. The shoot-offs were also handicapped, with experienced shooters receiving no targets and rookies getting four. Most shoot-offs are somewhat subdued to let the shooters concentrate, but not this group. Up and down the line of fields you could hear hootin’ and hollerin’ as the ladies were busting targets at doubles. Following the first round of shoot-offs, the remaining eight pairs of shooters proceeded to field 2 for the final shoot-off while everyone else gathered around to cheer on the competitors.

Several new shooters made it to the final field, but even with their handicap they could not hold off Allison Shaffer and Alex Newara, who just kept breaking clays and emerged as the Couples Shoot champions. Alex is new to the game but held his own in the shoot-off. Allison is getting used to this champ stuff, as she was Pennsylvania Ladies HOA Champ at this year’s State Shoot. Terry Smith and his grandniece Jenna Smith were Couples Shoot runners-up, and Kevin and Cheryl Smith (no relation to Terry and Jenna) took third place. Cheryl remarked after the shoot-off that she could not believe they won third place. She and Kevin were thrilled. Pictures of the group followed the crowning of the shoot champions with the custom-made crown of shotgun shells, while gift certificates for food and shooting were awarded to all three winning teams.

After the shooting was done, people headed to “The Barn,” about 200 yards from the skeet clubhouse, for a fine picnic-style dinner. Ryan Holtz cooked the delicious chicken on-site, and many people brought covered dishes and yummy desserts. There was plenty of food and drink, including homemade wine, but more importantly, many new friendships were formed.

Kudos to the Generations Skeet Family for hosting a great event. We are already looking forward to next year. If you would like to be added to the list of competitors, please email Roy Holtz at royholtz@gmail.com. No prior experience is necessary, and the Generations family will definitely show you a good time.

– Contributed by George Gleich

Champions – Alex Newara and Allison Shaffer
L to R-Kevin and Cheryl – 3rd, Terry and Jenna Smith – RU, Alex Newara and Allison Shaffer – CH
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