Clay Target Nation

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

11th Annual Skyline Open

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The Skyline Skeet and Trap Club in Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania hosted its 11th annual Skyline Open on July 12-14. Skyline is a privately owned, two-field skeet club. For the second consecutive year, the Mankanzana Challenge was held in conjunction with this shoot. The weather was nice for the entire weekend.

The Skyline Open is a typical five-gun shoot that began with doubles on Friday and ended with the .410 on Sunday. Hunter Dickerman’s HOA score of 384 and HAA score of 480 were high for the weekend.

Six shooters shot doubles. William Kalwas, from New York, ran them and was AA1. Other class winners were Hunter Dickerman (A), Ed Call (B) and John Quealy Jr. (C). The 12-gauge (21 entries) was also shot on Friday. Hunter Dickerman and Kalwas shot 100 straights, and Dickerman took A1. Debra Meade was AA1 with her 99. David Cook, Robert Nichols, Scott Cooper and Robert Saam, respectively, took B, C, D and E class first places.

Seventeen shooters participated in the 20-gauge event on Saturday morning. Tim Holtz was high gun and took A1 with his 99. Other class first places included Cook (AA), Meade (B), Cooper (C) and John Hoffner (D). The 28 was shot on Saturday afternoon, and 16 shooters participated. Hunter Dickerman’s 97 was good for AA1 (after he bested Ed Call in a shoot-off); Tim Holtz took A1, Ethan Call B1 (after winning a shoot-off with Joe Dickerman), Stephen Lucas C1 and Anthony Johnson D1.

The .410 bore was shot on Sunday with 14 entries. Hunter Dickerman was AA1 with his 92. Ethan Call, Dancho, Nichols and Quealy Jr., respectively, took A, B, C and D first places.

The Mankanzana Challenge is a four-gun handicap event with the grand prize being a seven-day hunt in South Africa or $1,000 cash. The hunt includes four trophy animals (impala, blesbuck, springbuck and warthog). Fran Bussiahn, professional hunter and owner of Mankanzana Safaris, and Kevin Kayn, booking agent out of NY, put this grand prize together for Skyline’s shoot. Last year, Hunter Dickerman won the prize. Hunter went to Africa with Ed and Ethan Call and Kevin Kayn in this April and had a great time. This year there were 13 entrants in this event. Final scores were based on their four-gun (HOA) totals, plus a class-based handicap in each gun. The results were very close, with Tim Holtz winning with his total HOA, including handicap, of 393; right behind were Joe Dancho (392) and Bob Nichols and Hunter Dickerman (390). Tim chose the $1,000 option for his prize.

Theresa Call, with help from Hunter Dickerman and Debra Meade, handled office duties (registration, score posting, etc.). Ed and Ethan Call helped keep things humming outside (filling houses, mechanic’s duties, etc). Special thanks to Kalan Knickerbocker, Trever Lupp and Dominic Picarazzi for pulling and scoring.

As usual, the food at Skyline was abundant and delicious and included steaks and lasagna on Saturday night and Theresa’s famous pies all weekend.

– Contributed by George Gleich

California State Skeet Championship

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Last year the California Skeet Shooting Association elected to move the annual state championship from May to July 5-7, a period when it was previously held. The 2019 championship was slated to be contested in Los Angeles, a gorgeous part of the country during the summer. Triple B Clays in South El Monte was the venue. It was a busy month for the club, having held the California State Sporting Clays Championship just two weeks prior, but we were welcomed by owner Billie Barsotti, her son Billy England, and range manager Jun Vergara.

A Southern California vibe was present the entire weekend. For those who have experienced the area during this season, you know what to expect. A marine layer will be present in the early hours, burning off late morning to midday. Little or no wind until about noon when the ocean breeze appears from the southwest. Mild conditions indeed. The weather left little doubt as to why SoCal is a legendary destination for vacationers.

The range was open on Independence Day for abbreviated hours. A fair number of shooters took advantage of the time to practice, tune up or register. Here’s a So Cal vibe: Lola Fitzgerald sponsored the PA system, putting her father to work early each morning. The result was background music being piped in until shooting began each morning. Most responded positively, especially the younger shooters. Melissa Taylor and Dylan Imperatrice asked if we could turn it up and leave it playing for the entire shoot! We’ll take that under advisement.

Registration continued early Friday morning while Rick Anderson, Rob McCormick and Jun Vergara set the targets in preparation for doubles. They must have done a good job because on the first flight out, a perfect hundie was broken by Daniel Bocks. Daniel is a fine shooter who has won a number of titles recently. However, this was his first perfect in doubles, so a hat would be shot later. Two 99s came in right behind, resulting in Layman Reid taking runner-up and Jack Bernardi third. Melissa Taylor broke a beautiful 98 for Lady Champion.

Friday also included the first two flights of 12-gauge, the final being shot Saturday morning. J.R. Fernandez broke his first 100 in the 12-gauge, and Joe Fry ran ‘em as well. A slew of woulda-shouldas came in right behind them. High scores abounded, and something else was becoming apparent. The young shooters were going to have to be contended with; they weren’t going away. After shoot-offs, young Joe Fry was champion, Fernandez runner-up and the skilled Caroline Church third and Lady Champion. 99s won class champion and runner-up all the way to B, with one exception.

Saturday also included the 20-gauge in its entirety, with five 100s, plenty of 99s and other great shooting. Junior shooter Jace Sulzmann broke his first perfecto in just the 13th tournament of his young career. We’re guessing more will follow. After the tie-breakers, Dan Lewis was the gun champ, Bocks runner-up, and Sulzmann third. This time, 100s and 99s took the class champion and runner-up positions through B. High HOA scores were setting up.

Each year the CSSA hosts a Hall of Fame banquet. State teams are announced and new inductees to the Hall of Fame are honored. Pacific Sporting Arms and the Fry and Fitzgerald families added sponsorships, resulting in a number of niceties for the already top-shelf event. Taking place at a local hotel, pressed shirts and dresses abounded. The banquet was very well attended by shooters and families, including a nice group of children from one inductee’s family. So who are the new Hall of Fame members? Glad you asked.

Joe Falabrino, inducted by Rick Anderson. In addition to many titles and years of great shooting, Joe has been a silent supporter of our sport, physically and financially.

Bill Williams, inducted posthumously by Bob Mills. Bill was a legendary SoCal shooter and instructor whose accomplishments go back decades.

Jim Wong, inducted by Billie Barsotti. In many ways, Jim is the backbone of SoCal shooting. He volunteers countless unpaid hours ensuring local tournaments go smoothly.

Congratulations to the latest inductees. A night a little later than preferred, everyone retired to their abodes. The tournament would conclude the next day.

Once again Vergara, McCormick and Anderson arrived early to set targets. A flight of 28-gauge needed to be shot, along with the entire .410 event. The weather hadn’t changed. One group of Central Californians remarked that they almost needed a sweater! Back home, temperatures were over 100. Speaking of 100, two more were registered in the 28, one each by Dan Lewis and Nick Ballentine. Several 99s followed. When the dust had settled, Lewis had the gun title, Ballentine runner-up and Bill Borrelli third. Joe Fry’s 98 took Junior Champion and Melissa Taylor Lady Champion.

After 300 main event targets, there was a logjam at the top. Ballentine was leading, down only two targets. Bocks and Lewis were right on his tail, having missed only three. Out-of-stater Larry Blount was sitting at 296, and four others were down five at 295. It seems like it always comes down to the .410, and this time was no exception. Lewis’s 96 in the noon flight opened a door a bit. Bocks broke a gorgeous 99, resulting in an HOA of 396. Blount’s 94 effectively took him out. At 1:30, a terrific squad of young shooters, including Ballentine and Fry, went out. Both were clean through three boxes when Nick dropped one. Joe Fry ran it for the .410 bore championship. After shoot-offs, Ballentine was the .410 runner-up and Bocks third.

After three days of shooting at 400 targets, Nick Ballentine won his third California State HOA title with a score of 397. Nick is a fantastic champion and has represented the Golden State well. The talented Daniel Bocks captured runner-up with a score of 396, followed by Joe Fry with 395. Melissa Taylor was the Lady Champion with 391. The youth abounded. It would appear the game is in good hands in the West. Congratulations to all the champions.

First 100 straights were shot by Daniel Bocks, J.R. Fernandez, John Heim and Jace Sulzmann. Although attendance was a bit lower than in past years, HOA scores were the highest in the past four years, owing to a combination of awesome talent, conditions and targets. The tournament stayed on schedule essentially the whole weekend – no doubt the result of the behind-the-scenes workers led by the CSSA Board of Directors. The tournament was also conducted safely.

Many have inquired about new ammunition restrictions in California. Gun ownership in the state is a moving target, but everyone got to the tournament with all the ammunition they needed. Make California a stop on your next shooting trip. There are great ranges located throughout the state. Bring sunglasses and shorts, you’ll fit right in. Come shoot with us!

– Contributed by Chris Baker

Bull Run Open

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“Dunbar loved shooting skeet because he hated every minute of it and the time passed so slowly.” (Apologies to Joseph Heller, Catch-22.) That was not the case for those who came to the Bull Run Open at Fairfax Rod and Gun Club (Manassas, Virginia). Although shooters missed the oppressive heat bubble that passed over the area the week before, temperatures at the Bull Run Open were still in the 90s with some added high humidity. But everyone made it through with lots of water, ice and shade – and good friendships.

Twenty shooters came out for the doubles on Friday afternoon, with squads starting from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Most waited until later in the day to shoot in hopes the temps might drop a little. After the smoke cleared, Jerry Schaefer was the champion with a solid 97. Class firsts were earned by John Snyder (A, 93), Randal Horsley (B, 92), Craig Childress (C, 84) and Kevin Baker (D, 78).

Saturday reflected the highest attendance of shooters this year to date, including out-of-state representatives from Delaware, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Maryland and North Carolina. With a generous grant from the Fairfax Rod and Gun Club Foundation (John Feroldi, president), all the Collegiate, Junior and Sub-Junior entry fees were covered. As such, this attracted a Boy Scout group from the Baltimore area which camped on the archery range and a youth group (plus their parents) from the Northern Virginia Gun Club (Ron Yagla, skeet chairman) located just east of Fredericksburg, Virginia. Additionally, we were able to attract a few Collegiate shooters.

Starting in the morning, the 20-gauge event resulted in Garrett Jordan having the sole 100 – no shoot-offs needed for champion. Class firsts and a compact emergency kit went to Dan Felton (AA, 99), Gil Traore (A, 99), Doug Frazier (B, 96), Joe Scott (C, 97) and David Latimer (D, 95).

Midday Saturday we were visited by a group from the Buckhall Volunteer Fire Department which services our gun club but has never had to make a call to our facility. They were just visiting by invitation, in case we had anyone in heat distress. But all the shooters were good, and the paramedics had quite the interest in our skeet-shooting activities. We sincerely appreciate the hard work these first responders perform for our community.

The afternoon’s 12-gauge event resulted in Katherine Adams, in her first visit to Fairfax, having the sole 100 – again, no shoot-offs needed for champion. Class first and a can of Virginia peanuts went to Dan Felton (AA, 99), Bob Myers (A, 98), Jonathan Honey (B, 98), Brad Olson (C, 98), Dan Timlick (D, 94) and Kevin Baker (E, 91).

The steak and potato dinner was cooked to perfection by club president and pitmaster Jeff Bolster. For those who stayed for dinner, there was some great entertainment with the distribution of $1000 in raffle items that were donated by many club members and Vortex Optics, which donated a binocular and riflescope. But it was probably the bottle of 14-year-old single-malt Scotch that many of the participants were aiming to get. After the raffle, we moved right into the auction of the six teams for the 28-gauge 3-man blind. Col. Tom Williams got into character, and with his auctioneer persona, his fast talking and funny rhymes had everyone laughing and having a good time. All the desserts brought in by club members were excellent, with few leftovers. Each of the dinner guests were challenged to bring just one more skeet shooter with them next year.

And now for an unabashed advertisement: Donald Root of Texas handmade the clock awards for the gun champs and can be reached at donald.root@reagan.com for the possibility of making similar awards for other shoots.

With Sunday being slightly warmer than the day before, the 28-gauge contest resulted in Al Means having the sole 99 for gun champion. Class champs were John Snyder (AA, 97), T.W. Williams (A, 97), John Liberty (B, 95), Paul Hunt (C, 92) and David Latimer (D, 85).

Chip Simmons, also in his first visit to Fairfax, had the sole 100 in .410 bore for the championship. This was only his second straight in the little gun and very well earned in the heat of the day. It was highly unusual that all the gun champions won outright with no shoot-offs required. .410 class champs were Katherine Adams (AA, 94), Al Means (A, 95), Doug Frazier (B, 92), Joe Scott (C, 92), and Byron Howard (D, 85).

HOA Champion was Chip Simmons (393), runner-up was Katherine Adams (389) and third was Dan Felton (386). Class winners were Garrett Jordan (AA), Al Means (A), T.W. Williams (B), Joe Scott (C), David Latimer (D) and Byron Howard (E). Katherine Adams also earned Lady HOA and was awarded an antique sterling silver and glass candy dish complete with Hershey Kisses.  (The candy was not antique.)

Special recognition goes to Jamie Martin, club manager, for getting all the outfield skeet fencing replaced and painted before the shoot. Many positive comments were received about the outstanding conditions of our facility, which is a direct reflection of the tremendous time and effort that Jamie puts into maintaining the skeet fields. Our most sincere and heartfelt thanks go to Jamie Martin.

Lastly, it would just not be a success without all the hard work that Terri Bolster and Becky Myers put into getting all the supplies necessary for our good dinner and great appetizers. We would also like to thank Connie and Van for preparing our lunches and snacks during the day.  Finally, thanks to Dutch Hillenburg for his support from the Pro Shop throughout the entire year.

– Contributed by Jeff Bond

Texas Skeet Championships

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The 2019 Texas Skeet Championships, held at Dallas Gun Club on June 20-23, was one for the books. Gun giveaways, raffle prizes and a superb atmosphere made for a spectacular weekend. This extraordinary event was only possible due to the hard work and generosity of many corporate and individual sponsorships.

Friday’s schedule included the 28-gauge event and half of the 20-gauge event, with shoot-offs taking place on Saturday, as the TSSA Hall of Fame Banquet was reserved as the showcase for Friday evening. Bailey Glenewinkel was honored as the 2019 TSSA Hall of Fame Inductee for her shooting accolades, while Robert Paxton was honored with a TSSA Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding shooting career. Family, friends, and shooting legends attended to witness the special evening for the two deserving honorees. In addition to celebrating Bailey’s and Robert’s accomplishments, many prizes were given away, including the raffle drawing in which Armour Strunk was the lucky winner of 100 flats of shells, thanks to Remington and Crow Shooting Supply.

Saturday was a full day of shooting with the completion of the 20- and 12-gauge events, along with the shoot-offs for the 28, 20 and 12 gauges. Jason Foshea was the hot shooter Saturday, winning both the 28- and 20-gauge championships in back-to-back shoot-offs. A big “thank you” to Pacific Sporting Arms and Lonesome Charlie’s for sponsoring these two events. Finishing next to Foshea were Josh Poole, runner-up, and John Barnes, third, in the 28 gauge and Riley Chaddock and John Barnes in the 20 gauge. The top lady in the 28 gauge was last year’s HOA Lady Champion, Kaleigh Lawson, followed by Taylor Nicosia, Lady runner-up and Alexia Shaw, Lady third. Mackinzee Swetman, Lady Champion; Lauren Burge, Lady runner-up; and Melissa Barringer, Lady third, took the top spots in the 20 gauge.

While the shoot-offs were ongoing, competitors and guests enjoyed scrumptious hamburgers and ice-cold beer. Up-and-coming shooter, Bradley Pang, won his first Texas State title by outshooting seven others with perfect scores and securing the Greater Houston Sports Club 12-Gauge Championship. Riley Chaddock had to settle for another second-place finish while Hunter Edmunds earned third place. Lindsay Plesko crushed 100 to take top Lady honors ahead of the Barringers, Rachel (Lady runner-up) and Melissa (Lady third).

With the conclusion of three guns in the books, the .410 bore remained for Sunday. S&B Plumbing was the sponsor of the .410 Bore event, and perfect scores were turned in by Carter Wehrheim and Cody Sergeant. Carter earned the championship over Cody, runner-up, while Jason Foshea secured third place after a shoot-off of 99s. These three competitors also squared off for the prestigious High Overall Championship, sponsored by the one and only Robert Paxton and Paxton Arms. History would repeat itself as Carter Wehrheim, defending 2018 Texas State Champion, would again secure the crown of Texas State Champion. Sergeant and Foshea finished in runner-up and third spots, respectively, to finalize an outstanding weekend of shooting.

Melissa Barringer finished the weekend on a strong note, capturing the Lady .410 and HOA titles. Mackinzee Swetman and Alexia Shaw made their way to the podium for the silver and bronze places in the .410 event. Shaw also captured third in the HOA race, with Lindsay Plesko taking Lady runner-up in the HOA race. HOA class and concurrent champions included Riley Chaddock (AAA), Hunter Edmunds (AA), Chuck Rister (A), Lauren Lee (B), Don Miller (C), David Roberts (D), Cade Holland (E, SJ), Kendall Jaroszewski (JR), Matthew Roberson (CL), Carter Wehrheim (TS), Jason Foshea (SU, MV), Patrick Byrne (SS), Van Boerner (SR, RM), Doug Coulter (VT), David Cudia (SV), Melissa Barringer (LY) and Timothy Riordan (ML).

The success of the 2019 Texas State Championship was only possible due to the hard work of the TSSA Board and Shoot Committee, the excellent vendors, and generous sponsors, individual and corporate, and the Dallas Gun Club. Thank you all for your hard work and support for making the 2019 Texas Skeet Championship one for the ages.

TSSA would also like to recognize the following individuals: Brandon Cade, Pat Byrne, Cindy DiMaggio, Kaleigh Lawson, Armour Strunk, Cody Sergeant, Josh Poole, Lindsay Plesko, Bailey Glenewinkel, Jason Ward, Troy Behrens, William Edmunds, Tommy Mays, Dirk Proffer, Woody, Anderson, Lance Phillips, John and Cynthia Castillo, and Charlie Beard for their generosity and support to help increase the excitement and participation in the Texas Skeet Championships. Many corporate sponsors also assisted in the event, including Jackson Oil Co., Zoli, TruGlo, Greater Houston Sports Club, Crow Shooting Supply, Remington Arms, The Thompson Group at Classic Chevrolet, Beretta, duPont/Krieghoff, CZ-USA, Clay Shooters Supply, Fossil Pointe Sporting Grounds, Dawn Grant, Highlands Residential Mortgage, Shurley Brothers, Paxton Arms, 3on8 Reloading Supplies and Equipment, Krieghoff, Perazzi, Briley, Big Guy’s Shooting Supplies, Corpus Christi Gun Club, S&B Plumbing, B&E Resources, Negrini, Rio, Myskeet.com, Ocean Point, Rittman Capital Management, Moore Supply Co., On Target, Sophia Michelle, Optima Wealth Management, FGA, Nu Skin, Briggs Freeman, Don Rackley, TX Whiskey, Americase, Muller, African Game Industries Inc., Sweeney Lumber, JPG, Baseline Analysis Corporation, Yard Birds Inc., and White Flyer. Thank you to all of our tremendous sponsors for helping TSSA host a great shoot.

We look forward to seeing you all next year at the Greater Houston Sports Club. It will be a must-attend event!

– Contributed by Nathan Boyd

Lake Mead 400 at Sandy Lake and Meadville

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Meadville Sportsman’s and Sandy Lake Sportsmen’s Club co-hosted the Lake Mead 400 on June 29-30. Saturday’s weather was hot and humid, while Sunday was beautiful, if a bit windy, after a cold front moved through overnight. This new four-gun shoot consisted of 100 12- and 28-gauge targets at Meadville on Saturday and 100 20-gauge and .410-bore targets at Sandy Lake on Sunday. Kurt Suprynovicz’s 384 was good for HOA Champion, and Dale Snow took HOA runner-up with his 379.

Ten shooters participated at Meadville on Saturday. The 12-gauge,sponsored by Channel Lock, was shot in the morning. Michael Zavasky was champion with a 99; Dale Snow took runner-up with 98. A, B and C first places were Suprynowicz, Scott Holman and Mark Johnson, respectively.

After a lunch of fried chicken, potato salad and no-bake cookies served up by Chris Marks, the 28-gauge event (sponsored by Myers Sporting Goods) was addressed. Holman had a nice 97 and was champion. Suprynowicz was runner-up after winning a shoot-off of 96s with Dale Snow, who settled for A1. Morgan Evans took B1, and Chris Greenlee was C1.

Sam Marks handled registration and score posting, while Sam Marks, Sr., Larry Price and Keith Snow pulled and scored, filled houses, etc. Kriner Insurance and Sam Marks were also sponsors for the day.

On Sunday morning, the action shifted about 30 miles south of Meadville to Sandy Lake’s very nice 3-field club. With 12 shooters participating, the 20-gauge was shot first. Suprynowicz’s 96 took the champion spot, but not until he won a shoot-off with Dale Snow, who finished as runner-up. AA1, A1 and B1 were, respectively, Zavasky, Evans and Keith Snow, after winning a shoot-off of 93s with Paul Augustin.

Sunday lunch, prepared and served by Dee Leake and Mary Smith, included pulled pork sandwiches, macaroni salad, baked beans and luscious homemade brownies.

The skeet gods cranked up the wind for the .410 – no surprise there. Augustin’s 95 was good for champion after he won a shoot-off with, who else, Kurt Suprynowicz, who was runner-up. Class firsts included Dale Snow (A), Holman (B) and George Kirik (C).

Sam Marks handled registration and scorekeeping/posting again. Pullers, scorers and general laborers at Sandy Lake included Jerry Lopata, Terry Leake, Denny Smith, Tom Greggs and Jarret Troy. Many thanks to all!

Sunday’s sponsors included Sandy Lake Implements, Lakeview Fertilizer, Sandy Lake Mills and Brian Patterson Insurance. Thanks to each and every one!

– Contributed by George Gleich

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