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Here is the
working calendar for International Clay Target competitions.
It is the best International Clay Target calendar there is. Thanks to
the United States Army Marksmanship Unit for allowing us to get this
important information on the Trap & Field web site. Keep
in mind this is a “planning calendar,” and as such there will be
additions, cancellations, as well as date and location changes. So,
make sure to confirm with the site in advance before making travel
arrangements. I’ll be making some updates as I receive them.
2009 Planning Calendar for SHOTGUN Shooting
(in Microsoft Excel format)
Now
that Mark Weeks is the new National Shotgun Coach, what changes do you
see that would affect young shooters in the USA Shooting program?
I talked with National Coach
Mark
Weeks at some length during the fall selection match. It is
his intention to make more use of the Regional Training Centers to
provide junior shooter training especially for Junior Olympic and
National Development Team members and national level coaching in the
different regions of the country.
With the elimination of the Spring Selection Match, he will use
that March timeframe to hold a PTO (preliminary try out) at which the
top three finishers in each discipline from the 2008 selection matches,
who will be attending the World Championships, would not compete. He
would then select several of his World Cup team members based on the
Spring PTO rankings, thereby offering more young shooters an opportunity
for overseas experience and giving adult shooters just out of the junior
ranks attainable goals and good reason to stay with the program. With
four World Cups each year that would provide excellent motivation for
our upcoming shooters.
What do you hear about the new bunker in central Ohio?
The
Cardinal Center, located in central Ohio, is quickly becoming one of the
nation’s premier shooting facilities. Cardinal has been named a Bronze
Level Regional Training Center featuring international trap, double
trap, and in the near future, international and American skeet. The
shooting club is also home to Buckeye International Junior Shooting
Sports, Inc., an organization whose mission is to promote and develop
young shooters in the international disciplines. The Cardinal Center
features onsite camping, cabin rentals, fishing pond, indoor swimming
pool, banquet room and other shooting opportunities. It is also the home
grounds of the Ohio State Trapshooting Association. Located in Marengo,
Ohio, it is easily accessible from Interstate 71, and is only a 30
minute drive from Columbus International Airport.
Jack Fishburn, owner of Cardinal Campgrounds and shooting
facilities, is the force behind the goal of constructing a premier
shooting facility in Ohio. The Ohio State Trapshooting Association (OSTA)
had lost its home grounds in Vandalia and was looking for a new
location. Mr. Fishburn recognized OSTA’s need and an opportunity to
boost the local economy. With Mr. Fishburn’s vision and input from
national governing bodies like USA Shooting, the club has goals of
holding national and international competitions in the years ahead.
With one bunker in operation and additional bunkers in the planning
stages, the facility is available for coaching junior athletes in all
aspects of the international shotgun sports. Coaches Tim Young and Jim
Eyster are recognized by NRA, CMP, and USA Shooting as level II
international shotgun coaches and serve as members of the National Coach
Development Staff. They are well versed in the shotgun sports and have
helped develop elite athletes from the Ohio region.
Plans for 2009 include holding the Jack Fishburn Classic
International Trap Championship March 13-15, the Ohio Junior
International Trap Championship and a NRA Junior Shotgun Camp in July.
Contact Tim Young at
ohiotim@gmail.com or view their website,
www.buckeyeinternational.org, for further information and
upcoming events.
There is a rumor that double trap will be
dropped from the Olympics. What do you hear?
The latest information
from ISSF is that double trap will continue in the Olympics at least for
2012, but perhaps in a changed format. The ISSF believes that double
trap participation would be improved if the game were less expensive and
that bunker shooters would be more inclined to shoot the game if it were
made less technical and involved more gun movement.
In order to achieve both
goals the ISSF shotgun committee has recommended for 2010 the following
changes. The number of targets would be reduced. Instead of shooting
the qualification match of 25 pair in five passes of each of the three
schemes for 150 shots, only 15 pair would be shot in the three passes
but the targets could be either an A, B or C scheme presentation,
repeated three times. This would reduce the total number of targets shot
to 90 in the qualification match and require more gun movement, because
the shooter would not know in advance the location of his first target.
The up-to-one- second delay between call and target appearance would
also be eliminated.
The 2009 World Cup and
World Championship events would be contested under the current rules but
no Olympic quota spots would be awarded. This would allow time to
modify control computers for the new presentation and develop successful
technique. At this time this is only a recommendation from the Shotgun
Committee and may or may not be adopted.
I think this is a good
thing. Certainly, double trap participation in this country and
overseas has lagged far behind that of bunker trap. One reason may be
that it takes thousands of rounds to learn the correct and very precise
hold points and look points required to shoot winning scores with
minimal gun movement. The new rules should make skillful gun pointers
more competitive and reduce the cost.
Where can I get proper coaching and
training in the Olympic clay target sports?
USA Shooting has instituted a new policy establishing Regional Training
Centers that focus on the international shotgun sports. There are
currently two such RCTs. The first is Willawalla Creek Gun Club at
Saint Jo, Texas, where Olympian Bret Erickson is head coach. The phone
number is 940-759-4695. Brett’s website is
www.bretericksom.com . The other
is my program, the Youth Development Shotgun Team at the North Mountain
Sportsmen's Association in Muncy Valley, Pa. My e-mail is
les@greevy.com and phone is
570-326-6561. To achieve the RTC designation the facility, program, and
coaches must go through a vetting process established by USA Shooting
and meet certain standards as well as carry on an active program of
training, competitions and introductory programs for new shooters. Only
programs with a known successful track record achieve the RTC
designation.
Do I have to shoot the 24-gram international load?
Not necessarily. International trap is shot with a 24-gram payload of
shot that can be no larger than size 7, generally at a muzzle velocity
of about 1350 fps. 24 grams is almost exactly the same as 7/8 ounce, so
that this load can be duplicated easily by re-loaders. In USA
Shooting-sanctioned matches it is not necessary to shoot the 24-gram
load unless you are a top-classed shooter or are attempting to make one
of the national teams—in which case, it is mandatory. This rule is
unique to the United States and is not applicable worldwide but was
introduced to make international trap more available to shooters who do
not have access to the international load. My recommendation, however,
is to shoot the international load. It's easy enough (and with current
lead prices, it is much cheaper) to reload and now the factory
international loads, especially the imported ones are more readily
available. Even the 7/8 ounce hi-speed promotional loads at the chain
stores work reasonably well.
Should I quit shooting ATA?
Absolutely not. You need to shoot ATA matches to develop competition
experience because there is very little international competition in
this country. Although it is beginning to change with the development
of more youth programs and the SCTP state qualifying matches there are
really only four national class international trap shoots for you during
each year. These include the spring selection match in the April
timeframe, the national championships in June or July and the junior
Olympic national championships in August or September followed by the
fall selection match typically in September or October. That is not
enough. It is absolutely necessary that you hone your competition
skills in ATA and particularly at the big shoots—state and zone
championships, the Satellite Grands, and the Grand American. That's
where you learn how to win. Some people are concerned that they will
not be able to switch back and forth between the different target
speeds. In my experience that has not been a problem. Several members
of the Youth Development Shotgun Team who have achieved National Team,
National Development Team, or Junior Olympic Team status are also
multiple state champions, Grand champions and ATA All-Americans. They
transfer easily back and forth between ATA and international trap and
find that each discipline complements the other and makes them better
shooters. I look at it as cross-training.
Where can I shoot
Olympic trap?
The best list of Olympic trap bunkers and
addresses, as well as the contact person, phone number and/or e-mail
address and website, if they have one appears at BJ McDaniel's website
www.deadtargetschool.com . This website, run by the 20 year
assistant national shotgun coach also contains excellent information on
training plans, shooting diaries and articles geared to the needs of
elite shooters. There is a lot of very useful material there.
What kind of a gun
do I need?
International trap is shot almost exclusively with
over- and-under shotguns choked modified to improved modified in the
first barrel and I-mod to full in the second. I like the Krieghoff gun
especially for double trap because you can set different points of aim
for the first and second barrels. Semi-automatics and pump- action guns
are very rarely seen. There are several reasons for this, including the
desirability of having two separate chokes for your two shots; the fact
that the shooters stand on a straight (rather than curved) line and the
traditional automatic will toss fired shells on the shooter to your
right; the need to empty and clear the semi-automatic before changing
shooting stations and the need to load two shots which can occur only
after the shooter to your left has completed his shots; and the tendency
of the semi- automatic to set off the voice-release system when the
action is closed. The sum total of all of these things tend to disturb
squad rhythm but are, more importantly, handicaps to the semi-auto
shooter. If you are intending to try Olympic trap, give yourself a fair
chance and don't handicap yourself by attempting to shoot with a semi
automatic.
How do I know my
child can be competitive in Olympic trap?
This question gets asked in a lot of different ways
and, to some extent it has a number of different answers. But
basically, if a youth is competitive at ATA shooting, there is no reason
he/she should not be able to be competitive in international trap.
Olympic trap shooting is a harder game than ATA and the scores are
lower--- there is no question about that. While Olympic trap is a slower
paced, more focused game, the targets are much faster and the angles
harder. But the qualities that make an outstanding ATA shooter are the
same qualities that make an outstanding bunker shooter. They include
focus, determination, commitment, a love of shooting, and tremendous
support from family and their communities. Like ATA it is not a cheap
game, but there is much more than just expense involved, as there are a
lot of family decisions that have to be made along the way. But most
importantly, there is the dream: the dream of the Olympic gold medal.
That has to be an amazingly strong dream for someone to train at the
highest level month after month and year after year for the opportunity
to qualify as one of the two men or only one woman to represent the
United States and shoot at 150 trap targets once every four years at the
Olympics. It is that dream that separates the Olympians from everyone
else. Do you have it?
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As the temperature hovers around Zero Degrees here in Ottsville, we find
it difficult to imagine that the shoot season will soon be in full
swing. But as we know, the Dixie Grand signals the beginning of another
trap season as our shooters head out on the circuit. We hear the brisk
weather has greeted shooters in Florida and send our warm wishes to all
for a good shoot!
Congratulations to the 2009 ATA
All-American Team!! We proudly congratulate K-80 Shooters Harlan
Campbell, Jr. – Five Time Men’s Team Captain, Kay Ohye
Veteran Team Captain and Debbie Ohye-Neilson who continues her
reign as Lady Team Captain!! Krieghoff wishes all shooters the best of
luck in their All-American quest as the New Year begins.
For those of you who like to vary
your sport, Krieghoff offers a full line of competition shotguns and
hunting firearms to suit your individual style.
The success of the K-80 Trap
Special, including the new Pro Rib model, has inspired Krieghoff to
introduce the K-80 Pro Sporter for Sporting Clays and Skeet
shooters. Designed with a higher rib and coordinating stock, the K-80
Pro Sporter offers shooters a wider field of vision for quicker target
acquisition. The “head up” design reduces perceived recoil and helps
lessen fatigue. The Pro Sporter can be configured with 30” or 32” inch
choke tube barrels and the choice of #3 Sporting adjustable or #6 Monte
Carlo adjustable stocks. The Pro Sporter’s point-of-impact can be
adjusted to 50/50 or 60/40 through interchangeable adjustment wedges
which fit under the barrel rib.
For the hunter, Krieghoff has
designed a revolutionary new In-line Repeating rifle. The Krieghoff
Semprio’s precision engineering and design allow for quick caliber
changes in a few simple movements. The ergonomic design incorporates
kinetics to dissipate recoil and keeps the Semprio firmly seated against
your shoulder throughout the firing sequence. Already well received in
Europe, the Semprio will be available in the United States later this
year.
To paraphrase a popular saying,
when something new comes in, it generally means something old goes out.
After enjoying over a decade of success as a Trap Handicap and Singles
competitor, the Krieghoff KX-5 program has reached its maturity and
production will come to an end later this year. Now is the perfect time
to add this single barrel – dedicated competition shotgun to your
collection with the assurance service will continue to be available for
the KX-5.
Krieghoff’s new Certified Pre-Owned
Firearm Program has received great interest since being announced.
Shooters are realizing the great value of purchasing a pre-owned
Krieghoff backed by a One Year Limited Warranty. Contact your dealer
today to find out more about this new program.
The Grand American seems so far
away to us on this chilly day, but before long we will see you once
again in Sparta for another memorable event. Until then, keep an eye on
our website for the latest Krieghoff information and to follow our
shooters success as they head out on the circuit. We wish all of you a
successful 2009 full of good shooting!
Krieghoff Custom Stocks
The Perfect Finishing Touch
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Krieghoff K-80
Trap Special
see what's new for 2008!
Les Greevy operates the Youth
Development Shotgun Team at the USA Shooting Regional Training
Center in Muncy Valley, Pa., where he provides novice- to
championship-level training in American and Olympic clay target
games for individuals and groups with emphasis on visual, mental and mechanical skills.
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