Hi everyone. I have a boat load of milestones to list this month, so I better get to it. John Morgan, John Rauscher and Dan Barlett have all shot 25,000 Singles. Harvey Schultz and Mark Chiodini have Shot 25,000 doubles, Tim Murphy and James Hugenberg have shot 25,000 Handicap targets.
Ron Fearheiley, Jack Anderson and Thomas Bates have shot 50,000 Singles. Steve Johnson has shot 50,000 Doubles targets. Ron Fearheiley and Ian Lawrence have shot 50,000 Handicap targets.
Dan Staker and Ken Jones have both shot 75,000 targets. Dan is in Singles and Ken is in Handicap.
Finally, Brent Ausbrock and Glenn Simpson have shot 100,000 combined targets. WOW, this is super impressive guys! Keep up the good work.
A few weeks ago, I made a pleasant drive through southern Illinois to the Edwards County Sportsman Club to go to their Founder's Shoot. It is their big shoot of the year, and they ran it like a well-oiled machine. They had 13 squads of Singles and Handicap, along with 10 squads of Doubles. They have a dedicated group of volunteer workers that make it all work. They also have a friendly group of shooters that welcome anyone new to the place. Edwards County is a great example of making a lot out of very little. What I mean by that is they only have a small amount of land and they have fit in two trap fields and a rifle range into that area. Because of the lay of the land, the trap fields are off set from each other. Don't worry about this, there is a fence and a line of trees that separate them, so it is no big deal. The grounds and club house are immaculate, and it is a great place to shoot. If you think you would like to shoot there, it is located a mile north of Albion Illinois on Route 130. Check them out, you will not regret it.
The shell of the new Hall of Fame building is done. All that remains is to finish the inside. We have people that have said they will install the electricity, and heating and air conditioning. When that is done, we need insulation and dry wall, and we will be ready to walk in and hang pictures. If you would like to donate your expertise or your money to do these final steps, I and the Board of Directors would really appreciate your help. Remember your donation is tax deductible.
I've been looking at shoot reports from around the Midwest and Illinois shooters are doing really well. There are so many categories, classes and yardage group wins I can't list them all. Read the shoot reports in Trap and Field Magazine. I do want to mention two notable events. At the Arkansas State Shoot, Ryan Lewis was both the Out-of-State Handicap Champion and the HAA Champion. Sixteen Illinois shooters won 68 trophies at the shoot. At the Michigan State Shoot, Ian Lawrence won the Out-of-State Doubles, HAA and HOA Championships. Congratulations to all of you. I'm proud to be an Illinois shooter.
Bill Duncan, ATA Delegate