Hi everyone. I want to start out with John Stegler. He reached the 25,000 target milestone in both Singles and Handicap. Nice shooting, John.
Frank Payne and Lauren Dunn were elected to the ISTA Hall of Fame. I have known and shot with both of these shooters and I can tell you they are well deserving of this honor. Congratulations to you both. I can't wait till June when they are inducted.
I have some exciting news about a new shoot. For several years Brittany Shooting Park had a telephonic shoot in April with a club in Texas. It was called the Illinois-Texas Challenge. Through some hard work and cooperation, the shoot has been expanded to six clubs. Brittany, two in Texas, and one each in Missouri, Kansas and Iowa. The really exciting thing about this is if we have 450 or more shooters participate, this becomes a point shoot. The shoot will be held on April 19, 20 and 21. Watch for the ad in Trap and Field for the exact clubs where you can go to shoot. 
I was sad to hear that another Illinois shooter has passed. Daryl Fornoff was from Havana, IL and shot all over the Central Zone of our state as well as many other places too. Daryl was a really good guy and will be missed by all his friends and family.
I am writing this in January and the weather across the country has been terrible. Hang in there. Spring is just around the corner. Shoot well and support your local club.
                                                                         
Bill Duncan, ATA Delegate
                           

Hi everyone. I want to start with some milestones Illinois shooters have reached. Jim Ketchum has shot 25,000 Singles and Gary Crowe has shot 25,000 Doubles. Mike Dennis has shot 100,000 Singles. Great shooting guys. 

Illinois is well represented in the 20,000 targets in one year club. Leland Hassler, Mike Dennis, Dave Dressler, Mike Westjohn and Lawrence Gillum all shot at least 20,000 targets. That's 80 flats of shells. WOW. I really respect their dedication to our sport. Nice job.

I was looking at my latest issue of Trap and Field magazine and came across a page listing the AIM All-Stars, basically a list of the best AIM shooters in the country. As I looked at the names, I started to realize there were a lot of Illinois shooters listed on that page. I did some basic math and found 1/4 of those shooters were from Illinois. Boy, this is impressive to me. I knew the competition was tough, I just didn't realize how tough. Well done to all the AIM All-Stars, particularly to those from Illinois.

I was saddened to see in Trap and Field magazine that Jeff Brown has passed. Jeff would come down to Brittany Shooting Park from time to time and I always enjoyed talking and shooting with him. Rest well in Heaven.
Spring is just around the corner. Shoot well and support your local clubs. 

Bill Duncan, ATA Delegate

Hi everyone. I want to start by introducing you to the Illinois 2023 All-American team. OPEN - 1st TEAM: Garrett Helms. LADY 2 - 2nd TEAM: Janice Rigler. SUB JUNIOR - 1st TEAM: Mason Bartlow, Payton Wottowa. SUB JUNIOR - 2nd TEAM: Carson Sievers, Coltyn Schutte. JUNIOR - 1st TEAM: Landon Sievers. JUNIOR - 2nd TEAM: Steve Margherio. JUNIOR GOLD - 1st TEAM: Ian Lawrence. JUNIOR GOLD - 2nd TEAM: Ryan Lewis, Wyatt Williams, Ian Freeman. SUB VETEREN - 2nd TEAM: Mike Hathaway. VETERAN - 1st TEAM: Brian Hezel, Mike Dennis, Frank Haynes. VETERAN - 2nd TEAM: Dan Staker. SENIOR VETERAN - 1st TEAM: Mike Westjohn, Frank Payne. CHAIR SHOOTER: Larry Norton.  It's not easy being an All-American. It takes a lot of time, resources and talent to get there. I am always in awe of how many great shooters we have in Illinois.

I need to correct a few mistakes I made when I told you about the raffle for the Illinois HOF. First off, the drawing will be on Sunday of the Illinois State Shoot, not Friday at the annual meeting. The ticket price is $100 and only 400 tickets will be sold. Anybody who buys a ticket will have a 1 in 400 chance to win a $20,000 Kolar Trap Combo shotgun. That is the other correction, I told you $15,000 before. Please consider buying a ticket. The board and I would really appreciate it.

I just received word that another giant in Illinois trapshooting has passed. John Bull died on November 19, 2023, in Florida. John and his wife Pat shot all over the Midwest for years and did it well enough that they are both enshrined in the Illinois Hall of Fame. John was a Director for many years and also served as a Delegate representing Illinois with the ATA. John did not suffer fools and if you did something wrong, he could give you a glare that would freeze water, but he was also a very generous and kind man. The first time I was elected President of the ISTA, I really didn't know what I was doing. I asked John for help, and he graciously sat down with me and explained to me everything I needed to know and do. This might not seem like a lot, but it meant the world to me. Rest well John, you have earned it.

I have a couple of milestones to mention. William Anderson has shot 50,000 Singles targets and Randy Miller has shot 100,000 combined targets.

Get your guns cleaned and your 2024 shooting schedule set. It will be here before we know it. Support your local clubs.                                                                                                 

Bill Duncan, ATA Delegate

Hi everyone. Here is the 2023 Illinois All State team. OPEN: Randy Miller 94.6; Bradley Bomkamp 93.17; Lynn Hamlin 93.1; Kent Kruse 92.6; Bruce Bennett 92.02; Ron Wolf 91.81; Kent Temple 91.8; Mike Ruebhausen 91.32; Kevin Wunder 91.29; Richard Drennen 90.17. SUB VETERAN: Mark Fielder 92.64; Ron Fearheiley 92.54; Brian Cox 92.14; Ken Mitchell 91.82; Pat Murphy 91.36. VETERAN: Frank Haynes 94.75; Dan Staker 94.28; Brian Hezel 94; Dave Dressler 92.59; John Kravanek 91.62. SENIOR VETERAN: Tim Marucco 94.75; Mike Westjohn 93.4; Frank Payne 92.7; Ken Rigler 91.18; Charlie Bickle 90.93. LADY 1: Lauren Dunn 93.2; Olivia Rainey 89.78; Jade Short 87.64. LADY 2: Janice Rigler 88.75; Joan Maiden 88.02; Denise Dressler 82.88; Sue Staker 81.74; Brenda Dennis 81.72. JUNIOR GOLD: Wyatt Williams 95.99; Ryan Lewis 95.23; Ian Freeman 90.95; Lucas Mcvaigh 89.46. JUNIOR: Landon Sievers 96.85; Steve Margherio 95.91; Wyatt Sibley 94.49; Evan Maple 93.4; Wyatt Baine 91.52. SUB JUNIOR: Carson Sievers 93.39; Mason Bartlow 92.88, Drake Lawler 92.79; Payton Wottowa 92.28; Coltyn Schutte 92.16. CHAIR SHOOTER: Larry Norton 89.07. Not only are these men and women fine shooters, but they are also just as good of people. You all make Illinois Trapshooting proud.

Last month I told you about the Illinois Northern Zone Shoot at St Charles Sportsmen's Club. This month I want to tell you about the club. A few years ago, the Board of the club decided to update the facility and boy did they do a good job. The clubhouse is large, modern and as nice as you will find anywhere in the country. They have six new trap fields as well as skeet, sporting clays and rifle/pistol. The place is immaculate and reeks first class all the way. To give you an idea how nice it is, they have two sixty team leagues during the year. They could have more teams, but they don't have room for them. Obviously, Chicago shooters think a lot of the club. If you are in Northern Illinois, check this club out, you will not regret it.

I received a call last night that I have been dreading for the last year. One of the giants of Illinois and USA trapshooting has passed. Mike Jordan died peacefully on October 19, 2023. It falls upon me to try to incapsulate his life for this column. You could write whole books about Mike and his accomplishments. I am no author so I will not even try. What I will do is tell you about the man I knew and loved. Mike was a rare blend of talent; he was a superb shoot, a fierce competitor and a true gentleman. God just doesn't make many like Mike. He was a quiet, unassuming man, not given to bragging about himself, and he preferred to let his guns do the talking for him and believe me they spoke volumes. He was the best all-around shot I have ever seen. He was a champion at trap because he liked trap, but he could have won at anything that involved pulling a trigger. His specialty was Singles in my mind. Many times, I watched him turn 200 targets into soot balls. It was an awe-inspiring example of the precision shooting that Mike was capable of again and again in his career. He was also a great teacher. He was always willing to help someone if they asked for it. Those of us that took advantage of this learned to listen because the man knew what he was talking about. I could go on and on, but to sum it all up, he was a friend to all, a mentor to many and my personal hero. Trapshooting will go on without him, but it will never be the same for all of the people who knew Mike. Rest well my friend. You have earned it. I'll see you soon enough on the other side.

I have several milestones reached by Illinois shooters. Mike Ruebhausen and Kim Schaefer have shot 25,000 Singles and Jay West, Chris Deterding and Tom Coley have shot the same number of Handicap targets. David Peace has shot 50,000 Doubles targets.  Brenda Dennis has shot 100,000 combined targets and Pete Vonberg has shot the same number of Handicap targets. Johnny Piscone reached the 27 yard line for the first time. Finally, Rodney Johnson won the Singles Championship at the Missouri Fall Handicap and Leah Tedrick won the Handicap Championship at the same shoot. Congratulations to all of you.

By the time you read this the holidays will be upon us. Everyone have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Bill Duncan, ATA Delegate