Clay Target Nation

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

Nebraska State Skeet Championship

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Saturday morning brought the Morton Buildings 20-Gauge Championship event. Kurt Mann of Kearney added another state title to his resume, shooting the lone 99 in the event. After a shoot-off of 98s, Dave Meisinger was runner-up and Corey Zenon was third. Class winners were Rob Predmore (AA), Chris Lutz (A), Adam Classen (B), Richard Burkhart (C) and Rob Hinze (D).

The Class One Machine .410 Championship event was next up on Saturday afternoon. Skies were darkening, and phones were busy checking radar all afternoon, in the hopes the event would be completed. Rob Predmore broke a 96 and added yet another buckle to his collection. Rob and his .410 like LCWGC, as he posted a 100 straight in the baby bore last year at the Conley shoot in North Platte. Dale Fangmeyer, runner-up, outlasted Chris Lutz, third, in the shoot-off of 95s. Class winners included Bill Buettgenbach (A), Deric Meisinger (B), Wayne Bennett (C) and Steve Zwiener (D). The rain and lightning finally came, and the last squad out had to finish on Sunday morning.

On Saturday evening, shooters and guests were treated to a wonderful smoked pork chop dinner. Door prizes were handed out, thanks to our many great sponsors. To wrap up the day, Deric Meisinger came away with the free entry into the 2019 World Skeet Championships.

Sunday was a day of firsts, starting with the Conreco, Inc. 28-Gauge Championship event. Jacob Uphoff shot his first ever 100 straight in the 28-gauge, and the only 100 straight in the field, to take his first Nebraska state title. Runner-up went to Jerry Classen, and third went to Dave Meisinger after shooting off their 99s. Rob Predmore (AA), Corey Zenon (A), Jim Lewandowski (B), Bill Garber (C) and Rich Johansen (D) took class honors. It is good having Mr. Johansen back in the state, as he had left for Nevada for quite a few years.

Fifty shooters took to the fields Sunday afternoon for the Anderson Auto Group 12-Gauge Championship event. Only one of those 50 shooters didn’t miss, and that was Josh Peters. This was Josh’s second state title of the weekend. Harry Walker, runner-up, outlasted third-place Don Serna and Zach Hinze (C1) in the shoot-offs of 99s. Other class winners were Predmore (AA), Bill Garber (A), Nick Degenhardt (B), Leighton Webb (D) and Cody Nelson (E). The coveted John Day 5-Man Team trophy went to the team of Cody Nelson, Ron Fucinaro, Nick Degenhardt, Mike Kirkland and Jim Stumpf.

Rob Predmore (389) came away with the Kolar HOA title. Other notable HOA results included Josh Peters, runner-up; Chris Lutz, third; Dave Meisinger (A1); Don Serna (B1); Zach Hinze (C1); Rob Hinze (D1); and Jes Crankshaw, Lady Champion. Josh Peters (482) claimed his fourth belt buckle for the weekend by winning the HAA title.

Thanks to Lincoln County Wildlife Gun Club, as well as all of the staff and volunteers, for putting on such a great shoot. Thanks also to our many of out-of-state guests who participated this year. The 2020 Nebraska State Championships will be in Omaha next year. Hope to see you there!

 

– Contributed by Chris Lutz

Minnesota State Championships

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Seventeen-year old Hayden Wege claimed championships in nearly every event at the 2019 Minnesota State Skeet Championships. He first appeared at the Minnesota State Championships in 2016 at age 14, shooting in class D with an HOA score of 355. In subsequent state shoots, Hayden posted HOA scores of 383, 389 and now 395, claiming the 2019 Minnesota State Championships in doubles, 12-gauge, 28-gauge, .410, HOA and HAA.

Hayden attributes much of his success to Tony Lowe, his mentor and NSSA Certified Skeet Instructor who also coaches for the Minnesota Youth Shooting Program SCTP team, as well his mother Kristen Wege, who serves as Hayden’s coach and is a Certified Shotgun Instructor, and the head SCTP coach for the Minnesota Youth Shooting Program. Hayden will finish high school this year and enroll at Bethel University in McKenzie, Tennessee, where he earned a shooting scholarship.

The American flag was raised at the start of the doubles event with the singing of the National Anthem by Justin Staebell, a formidable skeet shooter who sings opera.

The 20-gauge championship was won by incoming Minnesota Skeet Shooting Association president, Jeff Schneider, who bested Hayden Wege in a shoot-off of 99s.

Class champions include:

HOA – Michael Lohman (AA), Justin Baker (A), Janice C. Lohman (B), Mark Cameron (C) and David G. Seidel (D)

12-Gauge – Mark VanderBloomer (A), Robert Muehlenkamp (B), Tate Peterson (C),

Marcus Andrade (D) and Arthur R. Peterson Jr. (E)

20-Gauge – Hayden Wege (AA), Gene J. Helsene (A), Paul Davis (B) and Harry Hoppmann (C)

28-Gauge – Mark VanderBloomer (AA), Gene J. Helsene (A), Brian Hendrickson (B), Mike Halbach (C) and Mark Cameron (D)

.410-Bore – Justin Staebell (AA), Justin Baker (A), Randy Vaske (B), Mark Cameron (C) and

Tate Peterson (D)

The Minnesota Skeet Shooting Association thanks Minneapolis Gun Club Manager, Mark Cameron, for hosting another great state championship. Thanks also to Bob Muehlenkamp and Mike Quigley for running the NSSA software, making the reservations and maintaining the scoreboard.

 

– Contributed by Ronald Chandler

Gil Rodler Memorial

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Tarentum District Sportsmen’s Club (TDSC) near Sarver, Pennsylvania held their fifth Gil Rodler Memorial 4-gun shoot on Labor Day, September 2. Gil Rodler Sr. passed away in June of 2014 at the age of 88. Gil was one of the best skeet shooters in Pennsylvania for many years and had many friends and acquaintances in the skeet community. Gil Rodler Jr. attended the shoot and shot very well, ending up as 28-Gauge Champion, A1 in the 20 and A1 in the 12. Gil Sr. would have been proud but probably would have asked his son, “What happened in the .410?”

The weather was great, partly cloudy to partly sunny, near 75 degrees with light winds. A total of 31 shooters participated in this four-gun, 50-bird-per-gun affair. HOA winners were Josh Crofutt (Champion, 195), Chris Kline (runner-up, 194) and Mike Wollard (third, 191).

The .410 was first on the agenda, and 26 competitors shot the little gun. Kline took the championship outright with his 49; Tim Holtz was runner-up with a 48. Class firsts went to Mike Rykaczewski Jr. (AA), Crofutt (A), Debra Meade (B), Harry Simonovich (C) and Ross Carney (D).

The 28-gauge was next up with 27 shooters, and there were three 50s from Gil Rodler Jr., Wollard and Meade; Rodler emerged as Champion and Wollard as runner-up. Rykaczewski Jr., Meade, Arvid Kobosky, Bryson Fox and Lance Petro, respectively, were AA1, A1, B1, C1 and D1.

Twenty-seven shooters took part in the 20-gauge event. Wollard had the only 50 straight and was champion. Crofutt, runner-up, won a shoot-off of 49s with Kline (AA1). Rodler Jr. (A1), Ernie Anderson (B1), Paul Hunt (C1) and Simonovich (D1) rounded out the list of class winners.

Twenty-nine shooters shot the 12-gauge. There were three 50 straights: Crofutt (champion), Kline (runner-up) and Kevin Spessard (B1). Other class firsts went to Meade (AA), Rodler Jr. (A), Tom Shields (C), Bob Waite (D) and Petro (E).

Kudos to Jerry McCullough and Mike Rykaczewski Sr. for shoot management and to John Smith, Gary Trilli, Chris Smith, Paul Augustin, Tom Gulotta, Josh Crofutt and Mike Rykaczewski Jr. for pulling and scoring. Many thanks to Regina Nemergut and Marie Palmer for preparing and serving the food.

 

– Contributed by George Gleich

Firebird 400 at Generations Skeet Club

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Generations Skeet Club’s 21st annual Firebird 400 was held at its beautiful four-field club near Patton, Pennsylvania, on July 19-21. The weather was oppressive all weekend – hazy, hot and humid with variable wind, but no lightning! Fifty-one shooters shot at least one gun. Joe Vescovi was HOA Champion with a fine 393. HOA runner-up was Chris Kline with a nice 392, and Becky Myers was the Lady HOA Champion.

Doubles were shot on Friday afternoon with 30 shooters. Kline shot the lone 100 straight and was Doubles Champion. Class firsts went to Clay Gormish (A), Adam Vollmer (B), Jerry McCullough (C) and Joe McGarvey (D).

The 28-gauge shooting, with 45 shooters, began on a muggy Saturday morning under overcast skies. Frank Smithmyer ran them and was outright champion. Class firsts included Kline (AA), Dan Felton (A), Mike Naleppa (B1 after winning a shoot-off of 96s with Michael Moats and Kevin Spessard), Joe Paul (C) and Mark Strickland (D).

Shooting continued on a hot and sunny Saturday afternoon with the 12-gauge event for 46 shooters. Gormish posted the only 100 straight and was 12-gauge Champion. Vollmer, Felton, Michael Vescovi, Moats, Colby Eckert and Vance McClaughlin, respectively, were AA, A, B, C, D and E class champs. This was after Vollmer won a shoot-off of 99s with Kline and Smithmyer, and Eckert won a shoot-off of 96s with John Davies.

As usual at Generations, the Saturday night feast in the Youth Barn was superb. It began with drinks, melt-in-your-mouth venison bites with homemade dip and various cheese squares. Joe Vescovi prepared, carved and then served the delicious prime rib. Numerous volunteers prepared fancy baked beans, skin-on potatoes, corn-on-the-cob, green beans and various vegetable salads along with a large selection of yummy desserts to round out the meal. Beverages included cold beer on tap, soft drinks and homemade wine. On Saturday night, the group headed to Lake Eddie to enjoy swimming, jet skiing, tubing, fishing and a campfire (not sure the fire was necessary!).

Sunday morning, still muggy and time for the .410 bore, had 45 shooters taking the field. Joe Vescovi’s 98 took the championship outright; class firsts went to Tom Shields (A1 after a shoot-off of 96s with Kline), Gary Nace (B), Mike Norris (C) and Terry Smith (D).

The 20-gauge event was last and took place on Sunday afternoon with 44 shooters. Weather was hot and hotter! Joe Vescovi had the lone 100 and was 20-gauge Champion – it was quite a weekend for Joe! Kline, Vollmer, Spessard, McGarvey and McLaughlin took firsts in AA, A, B, C and D classes.

The three-man blind, based on .410 scores with teams picked by the computer, was won by the team of Dan Felton, Ryan Holtz and Mike Norris, each receiving $60. Ryan Holtz bought the winning team in the in the exciting live auction on Saturday night and pocketed $555!

Ryan Holtz handled registration and scorekeeping/posting, with assistance from Katie Eberhart on Sunday. Michael Vescovi performed chief referee duties, and a fine group of young referees including Paige McMullen, Abbey Lansberry, Adam Bobak, Zach Stoltz and Scott Kutruff did a great job under less than comfortable conditions. Numerous members of the Generations family pitched in as needed to keep things running smoothly. Last but not least, Pat Leyo provided delicious doughnuts on Saturday and Sunday morning – thanks so much, Pat!

– Contributed by George Gleich

 

2019 Junior World Goes to Fort Bragg

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The National Skeet Shooting Association, Cross Creek Skeet Association, and Fort Bragg Clay Target Center invite all Sub-Junior, Junior and Collegiate shooters to participate in the 2019 Junior World Skeet Championships. The NSSA Junior World is a special event for our youth shooters to take part in their own championship event. The NSSA’s three youth categories are Sub-Junior, any person who has not reached their fourteenth birthday; Junior, any person who has not reached their eighteenth birthday; and Collegiate, a fulltime undergraduate student in an accredited degree-oriented learning institution. Parents and coaches are also welcome to shoot at the event, but preference is given to the youth participants.

The Junior World is an important shoot to our youth concurrent shooters vying for All-American teams, as many All-American points are awarded at this event. However, those not interested in All-American status need not be deterred, as the Junior World is a great way to venture to a new club, meet new people, and make lifelong friends. The Junior World is also a special event because of the age divisions, allowing those of a similar skill level to compete against each other.

While the Junior World program includes multiple gauges, it is not required to compete in all the events. It is perfectly acceptable to sign up for just the 12-gauge event if that is all you wish to compete in. While Fort Bragg has 12 skeet fields, it is important to pre-register so shoot management can plan and make all the necessary arrangements for a successful shoot.

Looking for more to do than shoot while heading to Fort Bragg? Fort Bragg Clay Target Center is located at 651 East Manchester Road, in the town of Spring Lake, in the Sandhills Region of North Carolina. The Sandhills of North Carolina has plenty to offer any family that comes to visit. The military history of Fort Bragg, the Airborne-Special Operations Museum, revitalized downtown Fayetteville, local towns with numerous antique shops, nearby world-class golf courses and so much more make this a very special place. Additionally, North Carolina beaches are only two hours away, and the North Carolina mountains are approximately four hours away.

I can promise you much work has already been put into making the 2019 Junior World a huge success, and much more effort will take place over the next few months to make the 2019 event very special. Registration opened on April 1, so if you haven’t already, make sure to complete your pre-registration form and mail to Cross Creek Skeet Association, Jim Tiner, 2141 Pridgeonfarm Road, Fayetteville, NC 28306.

Pre-registration form, hotel and general information can all be found on the Junior World page at bit.ly/JrWorld.

For any other questions regarding the Junior World, contact me at nboyd@nssa-nsca.com or call 210-254-1533.

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