The Naperville Trapshooter The Official Newsletter of The Naperville Sportsman s Club

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1 The Naperville Trapshooter The Official Newsletter of The Naperville Sportsman s Club June 2003 Issue President s Message Annual Dinner & Raffle The tickets for the Annual Raffle are going fast. Get yours before they are gone. The raffle will take place at the Annual Dinner on June 28th. Please RSVP for the Dinner at rsvp@napervillesportsmansclub.org. If you don t have access to please call my phone and leave a message at Let me know how many are coming and how many will be eating steak. We have completed two of five Trap Fundamentals classes we will be giving this year. We are in need of more help to make these successful. This program has a huge amount of visibility at the Park District and in the community. If you can come out and help (keep score, assist on the line) please contact me or Pat O Malley. I am investigating having another NRA Certified Shotgun Instructor class this year (the sooner the better). I also want to have a NRA Certified Range Safety Officer class. If you want to be included please contact me at your earliest convenience (seats will be limited). This month s new member orientation will be conducted at the club on Sunday, June 1, at 10:00 AM. Please RSVP to myself at The Range Manager/Range Worker clinic will begin at 11:00 AM....Jim Monk President What s Inside President s Message...1 Open Letter...1 Observations from #3...2 Club Info...3 Da Shooting Coach...3 Club News...4 Spring Tap League Results...4 Classifieds...5 Calendar Member/Board Meeting Date: 7:30 P.M. - June 10, 2003 Open Letter to Members A word of thanks to the Real Shooters I have loved shooting most of my life, and like many of you it has become a proud part of my identity. That s why I decided to drop a thank you note to all of our members. You have done a great deal to restore my faith in our recreational sport. Our club is not made up of the stereotypical gun nuts the media portrays so unfairly. If you think the media is unfair to shooters, stop by the next area gun show. See anything odd? Notice how white and male the crowd is? Did you overhear any racist or sexist conversations while you were there? In contrast to the main stream opinion, our club strives to make all people feel welcome. Sadly, NSC is the first shooting club where I have noticed this open attitude. Our shooters have a true respect for this sport. This respect for shooting ultimately extends to respect for our constitutional form of government. Remember, our blessed Second amendment is only part of the Constitution you are enjoying and protecting. This respect manifests itself in great events like the picnic and Step Outside events. While I don t follow you around in your daily routine (my boss doesn t think it s a good use of company time), I must assume you carry this open minded, responsible attitude with you everywhere you go. It isn t enough to simply be good citizens to each other at the club. Heck, we are the proverbial choir that doesn t need preaching. We must remain prepared to recruit new and diverse shooters at any time, at any place. Most non-shooters are simply shooters who don t know what they are missing. Your informed, logical conversation at the water cooler or in the grocery store may be the only impression they ever get of our sport. So again, thank you for your above average commitment to our sport, your polite deportment, and for giving me a new, refreshing look at the shooting community....tom Kerschner NSC Member

2 The Naperville Trapshooter 2 Observations from #3 Etiquette on the Line I m relatively new to the sport of trapshooting, as are many of our members. Unlike golf or other amateur sports, there aren t a lot of books on how to play our sport. It s generally trial by fire, which can result in some bad habits and improper etiquette. Here are a few that I see virtually every time I m on the line. Bozo Buckets I didn t grow up in this area, but I have heard about a famous game on a famous kid s show that involved throwing beanbags into buckets. We have a version of this on the line at Sportsman s Park, except playing the game can raise the blood pressure of your squadmates. You re all familiar with the 5-gallon buckets located at each shooting station. You re also familiar with their purpose, to hold the spent hulls until closing time when they can be put in the garbage cans. Did you know that it s not a good idea to throw your hulls into the buckets, at least not until after the round is over? Hulls tossed into the bucket cause two problems. First, the voiceactivated release hears the shell hit the bucket and, more times than not, releases a bird. This generally happens just as the next shooter on the line is about ready to call for his bird. Second, if the clank of the hull doesn t cause a bird to be thrown, it certainly gets the attention of the next shooter, who probably has enough to think about without the added distraction of the hull hitting the bucket. There are two easy solutions to this problem. The simple solution is to toss your empty on the ground next to the bucket, then when the round is over you can pick them up and put them into the bucket. Or, for those with a sense of timing, a soft underhand toss into the bucket AFTER the shooter to your right continued next column The Naperville Sportsman s Club Officers & Board Members President: Jim Monk Secretary/Treasurer: Fred Turek Vice President: Scott Calhoun Directors: Jim Daniels Dennis Haffner Ed Heasley Art Jablonski Rosemary Jendras Rob Special, Jr. Park District Liaison: Brad Wilson Newsletter Editor/Publisher: Rosemary Jendras Observation continued has called pull will generally result in the sound of the hull hitting the bucket being drowned out by the report of the next shot. Incoming! Have you ever shot a round of trap with the added distraction of dodging the empty hulls from the shooter next to you? Some autoloaders will eject shells into the next county, unless of course the shooter on the next post gets in the way. In addition to being a distraction to the shooter, it can also mar the finish on your shotgun. I ve got a nice, moon-shaped dent on the fore-end of my BT-99 from the brass of an ejected shell. Shell-catchers can be purchased for most autoloaders for just a few dollars, which will make you the new best friend of the shooter to your right. A rubber-band around the receiver will accomplish similar results in a pinch. And just think, no more chasing your empties all over the field once the round is over! Happy Feet Trap is primarily a stationary sport. Shoot five targets from the same spot, move to the next spot, shoot five more, repeat as necessary. However, some shooters like to add some additional movement to their round of trap, which can be both distracting and compromises safety on the line. After you have broken (hopefully!) your bird, please don t retreat to the 17 or 18-yard line to wait for your next turn to shoot. In addition to being a distraction to other shooters, it puts a firearm BEHIND the other shooters. I personally get a little jumpy when people start moving back from the firing line. With the shooting positions so close together at 16 yards, it s important that we are all standing at the same yardage. After you fire, hold your position. If the targets start shooting back, then we ll retreat. Be A Good Neighbor Sportsman s Park, and those who use the facility, have taken some heat in the past few weeks in the Naperville Sun. There have been a few replies supporting our sport and our use of the facility. So far, everyone who has publicly responded has done so in a courteous and respectful manner, which is commendable. It s important that we don t get into namecalling and finger pointing in a public forum. Along those lines, every member needs to make an effort to be a good neighbor. Keep the clubhouse and trap field clean, put garbage in the garbage cans, make sure the facility is clean and secure before leaving. In short, don t give anyone a reason to complain about the activities taking place at Sportsman s Park....Scott Calhoun Vice President & Webmaster

3 June 2003 Issue 3 Da Shooting Coach What s the biggest challenge facing shotgunners? Answer: Hitting more Birds! Unfortunately, there are too many willing experts offering their advice on this very subjective topic. So remember, the advice you re getting is worth exactly what you ve paid for it NOTHING. Now some might say that s a bit harsh, but the truth usually is. Daily observations - It s never the fault of the person pulling the trigger (it s the damn gun! - wrong choke tube, wrong shell wrong shot, powder, wad, primer, hull or any combination of the components); Something is wrong so I better buy something new (new gun, new barrel/choke tubes, stock, sights, glasses/lens, powders, wads, primers or any combination); My gun, chokes, barrels, stock shells /etal. are fine, so it must be something else (weather, targets, trap machine, grass/weed height, lawnmower s broken ) and, while it is perfectly reasonable to want to break every target, it s just not practical. Can we talk?! - Natural ability can take each of us only so far and trying to buy expertise through better equipment never works. Give Tiger Woods a cheap set of Northwesterns and he s going to beat your tuchas 10/10 rounds. Only those that practice enough will improve their shooting ability. You can t run until you ve learned to walk, and too many of us are still crawling. It s just not realistic to expect an improvement in the number of targets broken without putting in the time. So what can You do about it? Patterning Alongside Trap #3 is the patterning board. This very simple structure is one of the most underused tools you have to improve your shooting. Do you know where your shotgun points? What kind of pattern are you throwing at 30+ yards when the shot string actually reaches the target? Don t know then you may as well be shooting blanks. The basic rule of thumb has been to use a modified choke, but as experience has shown, two identical guns can pattern entirely different. Further, slight variances in the manufacturing process can alter the point of impact. Not to mention the differences in arm/shoulder length, cheekbone/eye/orbit structure and height/weight/fat content. We ain t no bunch of Dollies! Staple Up Some Paper Patterning is nothing more than slapping up some paper on the patterning board and shooting at it. To do it properly you need to get a roll of Kraft-type paper from the office supply for $2, fold it twice and put a big dot in the middle to shoot at. continued next column Da Coach continued Alongside trap #3 are some distance stakes find the 30-yard marker and rattle off a few shots. Why fold the paper? When you aim at the target and fire we need to determine where the shot is going. Is it evenly distributed amongst all the quadrants or one in particular? Do it again and confirm your results. If you gun is not distributing the shot evenly and you re aiming at the target, that s a problem that needs to be fixed. Why are we shooting at 30 yards? Remember shooting on a trap squad? You are already 16 yards away from the bird BEFORE it s thrown! The average bird flies yards beyond the front of the trap house. Add them together and voila!, we re at yards. If you let the bird go farther before you take it, then you need to pattern using a farther distance maybe 40 yards! Yes, there is some difference in the size of the pattern from yards, but not enough to worry about. Are there large holes in the pattern where the target can hide? Remember it takes a good 3-4 solid pellets to break a bird. I recommend patterning your gun using all your available chokes. Don t like the pattern with your modified choke, but do not have a full choke? Borrow one. There are NO EXCUSES for not properly outfitting yourself. Practice, Practice, Practice There is no substitute for old-fashioned hard work. We re going to work on the fundamentals. It s YOUR responsibility to figure out HOW and WHERE the shotgun shoots for YOU. We will find out what IS working, and we re going to stick with it. Its time You learn to shoot what s in your gun cabinet and shoot it well. Next month: shooting-exercise ideas to help break those problem target presentations. Break d em birds!...da Coach Jay Spitz, Shooter & NSC Member Club Information The Naperville Sportsman s Club P.O. Box 27, Naperville, IL Clubhouse Phone: Hours of Operation: Thursdays: 6:00 P.M. - 10:00 P.M. Sundays: 12:00 P.M. - 6:00 P.M. Final sign up at 4:00 P.M. Board/Member Meetings: 7:30 P.M., 2nd Tuesday of every month

4 The Naperville Trapshooter 4 Spring Trap League Results The 2003 Spring Trap League is now history, but it didn t end without some final week excitement and a shoot-off for the team championship. Forty shooters, competing on eight five-person teams, began the chase for the title 7 weeks ago. The Suspense Builds Going into the final week of shooting, there was a fourway battle for the top spot in the league. Team Dwight and Team Coleman were tied for first, with Team Benson only 2 points behind, and Team Seetin another 2 points back. When the smoke cleared on Thursday, May 8 Team Coleman and Team Benson were tied for the league title, 3 points clear of Team Dwight. In the shoot-off, Team Benson edged Team Coleman by the score of 4 2. Team Coleman won the 16 yard event 90-88, and Team Benson won the 21 yard event However, Team Benson had a better combined score, winning the combined event to take the title. The final league standings were: Won Lost Team 2 (Coleman) Team 5 (Benson) Team 1 (Dwight) Team 7 (Jablonski) Team 3 (Seetin) Team 4 (Calhoun) Team 8 (Special) Team 6 (Zesch) 8 34 In addition to the team championship, there were three individual titles at stake. Bill Benson captured the high overall award, breaking 298 targets of a possible 350. Scott Calhoun took home the 16-yard high gun award with a score of 156 (of a possible 175), and Bill Benson also won the 21-yard high gun award with a score of 152 (of a possible 175). This spring we threw 13,700 targets for league shooters, 6,850 each from 16 and 21 yards. Shooters broke 4,757 targets from 16 yards for an average of per round. There were 4,171 broken targets from 21 yards, an average of per round. In addition to plaques awarded for team champions and individual winners, all league shooters enjoyed a pizza dinner on the final night of league shooting. Team Champions: Bill Benson, Dennis Haffner, Kevin MacKay, John Witt, Yance Yore continued next column League Results continued Team Runner-up: Tom Coleman, Jud Mann, Mark Van, Jeff Wagner, Robert Champagne High Guns (Overall): Bill Benson (298), Scott Calhoun (296), Art Dwight (294), Bob Seetin (288), Art Jablonski (279) High Guns (16-yards): Scott Calhoun (156), Art Dwight (152), Dennis Haffner (149), Art Jablonski (148), Bill Benson (146) High Guns (21-yards): Bill Benson (152), Bob Seetin (144), Art Dwight (142), Scott Calhoun (140), Art Jablonski (131) Results of the league, including team results and individual averages, are posted on the bulletin board in the clubhouse and Sportsman s Park....Scott Calhoun Vice President & WebMaster Club News NSC Logo Apparel - New Items for Summer By the time you read this, the club will be offering a new selection of NSC Logo apparel for the spring and summer season. Although we got a late start on the winter items this year, they were a big hit with members. We ve included an item specifically for ladies, and will also be offering a limited-edition item available only at the club picnic in June. Thanks go out to Paul Johnson for coordinating this program. The following items will be available, all with club logo. Prices will be slightly higher for sizes XXL and larger. Look for the sample items on display in the clubhouse. Short-sleeve Denim Shirt $25.00 Ladies Sleeveless Denim Shirt $24.00 Knit Sport Shirt $27.00 Hanes Beefy-T t-shirt $16.00 Multi-purpose Bag $ Scott Calhoun Vice President & Webmaster

June 2003 Issue 5 Classifieds AD SPACE FOR

5 June 2003 Issue 5 Classifieds AD SPACE FOR RENT Business Card Size Rates: $10/month $100/year Jay Spitz, CLU Independent Insurance Broker Box 876 Naperville, IL (630) Insurance for Individuals & Small Businesses Life: Term, Cash Value & Annuities Disability: LTD, Keyman & Long Term Care Health: Individual, Group & Medicare Supplements

6 Naperville Sportsman s Club P.O. Box 27 Naperville, IL May 2003 SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY Battle of Midway Began (1942) 6-10PM D-Day NSC Board Club Closed & Member Meeting - 7:30PM NCHS Graduation All members Day welcome 6-10PM Flag Day Father s Day NSC Annual Picnic 6-10PM Summer Solstice Korean War Began (1950) 6-10PM

The Naperville Trapshooter

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