2006 Shoots Reports

12/31/06 “Bring in the New Year” Shooting Range Shoot

Two officers, four members, five guests (including one first time guest), three sons, and one daughter (15 participants) had a great time at the 12/31/06 “Bring in the New Year” Shooting Range Shoot at the Eagle Peak Shooting Range.  We shot three .30-06’s, a .270, a .25-06, four .22’s, two .45’s, three .38’s, and a 9 mm.  Many holes were put in paper.  My group shot 450 .22 rounds alone!  Seven of us also shot a challenging round of Five Stand.  It was especially challenging  since the first four shooters shot at sundown, followed by the last three shooters.  We didn’t keep score, but Robin Rowley was on fire, hitting at least 15/25.

12/9/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot (by Kenneth Kidd and Randy Rowley)

Six officers, four members, two first time guests, two sons, and one nephew (15 participants) had a great time at the 12/9/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot, despite the foul weather (it would have been great for ducks or deer, but for dears it was not so good, although a few did show) at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  The targets were good and challenging but not outrageous.  A good time was had by all and we wound up a very pretty blue sky during the late morning.  Ten of the participants had a good lunch and further fellowship at the 290 Cafe in Manor.

The shoot was preceded by a filmed interview of Randy Rowley by Ed Sosson with Gathering Texas, KNVA 54, Cable 12.  Gathering Texas (the media outreach of Gathering Believers Ministry) has a television show that airs on Sunday mornings at 6:30 with a focus on “Shining the light on Christians doing good things.”  The FCS interview will air in about 4 – 6 weeks and we’ll receive a DVD copy.

The shoot was started off with Joe Schram, our new Membership Director, giving a short devotional on what he wanted for Christmas.  It was a thoughtful request to consider more fellowship and ministry opportunities to each other and to those seeking God’s love.

We shot six stations on the masters level course.  The first station had a tough fast bird that went low and straight away and curved slightly to the left.  It was followed by a high left-to-right mini bird that was also tough.  The second station was much easier with two teal (one to the left and one to the right).  The third station was also easy with two birds that went from right to left, the second was higher than the first.  Although you had to break them before they hit some trees.  The fourth station was big trouble with a screamer that went low from left to right (you had to shoot it quick, or it would break in the dirt).  I went 0 for 4 on this bird and most shooters didn’t do much better.  It was followed by a right-to-left high bird that slowed down considerably.  The bird was deceptive and gave us trouble.  The fifth station had two huge cedar trees.  It featured a right-to-left high mini that was falling (you had to get it before it went behind the left tree) and a left-to-right high mini that fell faster still.  This station also gave several shooters trouble.  The last station had a low incomer to the right that managed to hit a tree that was half-way out more than half of the time.  The shot was hard only because one tended to lose the bird in the tree and then didn’t have much time to re-acquire it before it hit the ground.  It was followed by a bird that went over your head from behind and to the left that was easy.

Joe Schram came in first place with 40/50.  Randy Rowley came in second place with 36/50.  Ken Miller came in third place with 27/50.  He was followed by Kenneth Kidd with 25/50, Ron Denison with 23/50, Derrich Pollock and Randy Gordon with 18/50, Chris Rowley with 17/50, first time FCS sporting clays shooter Simon Burnett with 14/50, first time FCS sporting clays shooter Reuben Cazare and first time FCS sporting clays shooter Alex Denison with 12/50, and Ryan Rowley and first time FCS sporting clays shooter Will Pollock with 11/50.  The combined group shot 264/600 or .440.

Joe jumped out to a three bird lead over Randy and never looked back.  He also sealed his victory by breaking all 18 of his targets on the last two stations.

11/18/06 Sporting Clays and Trap Shoot (report by Kenneth Kidd)

One officer, four members, two guests, one son, and one daughter (nine participants) had a great time at the 11/18/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  Joe Schram came in first place with 35/50 (his third best score). Richard Corbin came in second place with 29/50 (his third best score).  Ken Miller came in third place with 28/50. He was followed by Kenneth Kidd with 26/50, guest Tracy Campbell with 25/50, Randy Gordon with 16/50, Johnny Corbin with 7/50, Emily Corbin with 6/50, and first time guest Nick Guzzardo with 0/50.  The event was well attended even without some of the regulars.  The targets were tougher than last time.

Joe gave a very good thoughtful devotional (John 21:15-17) after shooting and we discussed some upcoming events, shared prayer requests, and were dismissed by Randy.

Joe, Ken, and Kenneth shot two rounds of trap.  The first round was not very good but Joe gave a little instruction and the second round was quite good.

10/21/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot (by Kenneth Kidd and Randy Rowley)

Three officers, three members, one guest, four sons (eleven participants) had a great time at the 10/21/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  We shot the corporate (hunter) course.  It was the second easiest course that we have shot.  Tim Price came in first place with 43/50 (tying his best and the Club sporting clays record for the third time).  I, Randy Rowley, came in second with 40/50 (my third best).  Kenneth Kidd came in third with 39/50 (tying his best).  He was followed by Joe Schram with 38/50 (his second best), Isaac Price with 30/50 (tying his fifth best), Regina Kidd with 27/50 (her best by far, her old record was 17/27), and Tyler Price with 21/50 (his fourth best).  As a group we shot 238/350 (.680).  Tim, me, Joe, Isaac, and Tyler shot 185/250 on 10/22/05.  The same five shooters shot 172/250 today (Kenneth and Regina did not shoot on 10/22/05).

The first station had a high, moderately slow crosser from right to left followed on report by a lower moderately slow crosser from left to right.  The second station had a teal that came towards the shooter and sloped to the right.  We had a new experience with the on report bird – self-defense sporting clays!  It was a low bird that went three to five feet left of the shooter, waist high.  If you missed, you might get hit and if you hit it you did get hit by pieces.  The trick was to make smaller pieces.  We did rather well –  not much blood and no bandages were observed.  We shot it about 10 – 15 yards out.  I got hit hard on my leg and Isaac got hit in the face.  We had them adjust the trajectory after we finished.  The third station was the only true pair.  One bird was a high, close, and left to right.  The other bird was further, left to right, and dropping.  The fourth station had a far fast right to left angled bird that gave us the most trouble of the day.  We went combined 5/35 (.143) on it.  This target kept Tim from breaking the record (he went 1/5 on it).  It was followed on report by a high right to left bird that was dropping slightly.  The fifth (last) station had two close birds coming from right to left, angled towards the shooter.  The first bird was typically shot about 10 yards away.  The shooter then had to quickly shoot the following bird at about 8 yards away.

Tim, Kenneth, Joe, and I had a very good competition.  Tim started things off with a bang, going 10/10.  Kenneth and I followed him with 9/10 and Joe shot 7/10.  On the second station Kenneth tied Tim, going 10/10 (Tim went 9/10).  I went 8/10 and fell two birds behind but Joe went 10/10 and was now only two birds behind.  On the third station Tim and Kenneth remained tied, going 9/10.  Joe and I went 8/10 and fell to three birds behind.  On the fourth station Tim and Kenneth remained tied, going 5/10.  I caught up two birds, going 7/10, and was now only one bird behind.  Joe went 3/10 and fell five birds behind the leaders.  On the last station Tim went a perfect 10/10, not given me a chance to catch up.  I went 8/10 and ended up three birds behind him.  Kenneth had trouble with the first bird and went 6/10, one bird behind me.  Joe shot 10/10 and ended up one bird behind Kenneth.  This was the closest competition that we have had since 10/22/05, when I shot 42/50, Tim and Joe shot 41/50, and Bret Mercer shot 39/50.

Zach and Brad Kaufman also shot a round of skeet.  Mark Dillow was the instructor.

We all had a great time.  The weather was good, and the course was not as challenging as past ventures (except for the self-defense stations).

10/14/06 Beyond the Basics: Pistol Class (report by Kenneth Kidd and Randy Rowley)

The long awaited Beyond the Basics: Pistol class has finally been accomplished.  Karl Rehn of KR Training near Giddings presented a fantastic ,informative and fun class to three officers, four members, and one first time guest.  The goal of this course was to improve the general shooting skills of intermediate level pistol shooters.  The class dealt with the self-protection environment and close rapid fire skills.  We learned and practiced firing at close range, rapid fire, and multiple target situations.  We learned how to improve our basic grip and stance to get good hits, the precision trigger control necessary to hit small targets out to 15 yards, and how to rapidly “shift gears” as needed to increase accuracy and speed on a wide variety of targets.  Instruction was also included on how and what to practice (in dry fire at home and on the range) to continue improving.  Information about local pistol competitions and gun clubs was provided.  We all learned a great deal and had a great time of fun and fellowship.  Our last session was shooting a variety of steel plates, which was a blast.   On the way back from the class we stopped in Elgin at Cross-Town Barbecue and had a meal together and further fellowship.

8/12/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot

Three officers, three members, two guests, seven sons, and one daughter (sixteen shooters) had a great time at the 8/12/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  We shot the corporate (hunter) course.  It was harder than the 7/29/06 course, as evidenced by the scores.  We shot five stations with 10 birds per station.  Each station was a true pair.  Tim Price and Richard Corbin tied for first place with 35/50 (Richard’s high score and his first 1st place finish).  Isaac Price came in second with 32/50.  I, Randy Rowley, came in third place with 31/50.  I was followed by Ron Denison with 28/50, Tyler Price with 22/50 (his third best), Kevin Wall with 21/50 (tying his second best), Zach Corbin with 11/50 (his third best score), and Emily Corbin with 9/50 (her second best score).  As a group we shot 224/450 (.498).  We shot .590 on the 7/29/06 shoot.  The fifth station was, by far the hardest.  It featured two left to right birds that were 40+ yards out and moving fast.  The second bird was also dropping.  We shot a combined 21/90 or .233.

Tim and Richard and Tyler and Kevin shot in different groups, so they didn’t have head-to-head competitions.

Richard and I had a good head-to-head competition for a while.  We tied on the first station.  Richard went up by one on the second station.  Richard went up by three on our third station, going 10/10.  I caught him one on our fourth station, but Richard shot the best of us all on the fifth station, going 4/10, and beat me by four.

Tim and Isaac also had a good head-to-head competition for a while.  Isaac went up by one on the first station, but Tim went up by two on the second station.  Isaac went 10/10 on their third station, cutting Tim’s lead down to one.  On their fourth station Isaac went 2/10 but Tim went 1/10 and they were all tied.  On their fifth station Tim went 10/10 beating Isaac by three.

Isaac and Ron also had a good head-to-head competition.  They were tied on the first station, but Isaac went up by four on the second station and extended his lead to five on their third station.  They tied on their fourth station.  Ron caught him one on the last station, but Isaac won by four.

Zach and Emily had a good head to head competition.  Zach went up by one on the first station, but Emily went up by one on the second station.  Zach tied her up on the third station, went up by one on the fourth station, and ended up winning by two.

Several shooters also shot a round of skeet, including Alex and Jake Denison for the first time.  Tim Price shot a perfect 25/25.  Kenneth Kidd also started a round of skeet but had to leave for an orientation of the Drott Brothers lease.  Brian and Jason Brelsford and Tim Little and his son arrived just as we finished shooting.

7/29/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot

Two officers, five members, three guests, two sons, and one daughter (13 participants) had a great time at the 7/29/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  Overall, the course was on the easier side, although there were some difficult targets.  Isaac Price came in first place with 42/50 (his best and tying the FCS second best all time score).  Tim Price came in second place with 41/50 (tying his second best score and tying the FCS third best all time score).  Paul Ellis came in third place with 38/50 (his best).  He was followed by me, Randy Rowley, with 36/50, Ron Denison with 34/50 (his second best), Joe Schram with 32/50 (tying his second best), Richard Corbin and Ryan Rowley with 30/50 (Richard’s best score and Ryan’s second best), Ken Miller and first time sporting clays shooter B.J. Schram with 29/50 (tying Ken’s third best score), first time sporting clays shooter Ileana Ellis with 7/50, and first time sporting clays shooter Emily Corbin with 6/50.  We shot five stations with 10 birds per station.  The combined group went 354/600 or .590 (our second best combined group score; we shot .468 on 7/1/06).  The weather was a muggy, but it was overcast.

Isaac and Tim had their usual good competition.  Isaac jumped out to a two bird lead on the first station.  He increased his lead to three on the third station and by four on the fourth.  Tim went 10/10 on the last station, falling short by one.

Ryan and Ken also had a good competition.  Ken went up by one on the second station.  He increased his lead to four on the third station and by five on the fourth.  But Ryan came on strong on the last station, going 9/10 and passing Ken by one.

Richard and B.J. also had a good competition.  B.J. jumped out to a three bird lead on the second station.  But Richard went up by one on station three and by four on station four.  B.J. went 9/10 on the last station falling short by one.

I started off hot with 18 for my first 20 but cooled off and scored 18 for my last 30.  I was the only shooter not to shoot or tie his first, second, or third best score (it was my sixth best).

Joe Schram was also very consistent.  His scores on the five stations were 7 – 7 – 7 – 6 – 5.

Ron became the third FCS member to break 500 targets.

Isaac had a chance to beat the FCS record (43, shared by Tim Price and me).  He shot 9 – 9 – 9 – 8 on the first four stations.  If he had shot a nine again on the last station, he would have beat the record by one.  He looked like he would pull it off, shooting 5 out of his first 6 birds on the last station.  But he missed birds 7 and 8 and fell one bird short of tying the record.

Several shooters also shot a round of skeet.

Thanks to Shooter’s Fellowship who provided breakfast tacos.

7/1/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot

Three officers, four members, and four sons (11 participants) had a good time at the 7/1/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap and Skeet Range.  We started at 7:30 AM to beat the heat.  It was overcast, which kept it from getting too hot.  We shot five stations (10 birds each) on the Corporate (Hunter) Course.  Capitol City had their “Emerald Open” two weeks ago and overall the course was great.  It was not overly challenging or overly easy, with the following exceptions.  Station 3 was a bit too easy.  I, Randy Rowley, went 10/10 on it and our group went 55/80 (including two 13 year olds on their first shoot).  Station 4 was a bit too hard.  The best scores of our group for this station, by Kenneth Kidd and Hunter Chance, were 3/10 (I went 2/10 on it).  Our group went 15/80 on it.  The right to left low bird gave us the most trouble (we went 4/40 on it).  Joe Schram came in first place with 32/50.  I came in second place with 31/50.  Ron Denison (shooting his new Benelli Super Sport 2) came in third place with 29/50.  He was followed by Larry Dowden (shooting his son Adam’s 20 gauge Benelli) and Kenneth Kidd (shooting his new 20 gauge side by side that he won at the 6/17/06 Ducks Unlimited Sporting Clays Shoot) with 27/50, Jim Gault with 19/50, first time sporting clays shooter Jordan Chance with 16/50, and first time sporting clays shooter Hunter Chance with 6/50.  The group shot a combined 187/400 or .468 (compared to the .351 that we shot on our last, 5/20/06, shoot, which was on the Masters Level Course).

Joe and I had a good competition.  On our first station (Station 1) we both broke 7/10.  On our second station (Station 2) Joe went up by one bird.  On our third station (Station 5) Joe extended his lead to three birds.  On our fourth station (the challenging Station 4) we both shot a miserable 2/10, so Joe maintained his three bird lead.  On our fifth station (Station 3) Joe went 8/10 and I went 10/10 (as previously mentioned), falling one bird short of tying him.

Several shooters also shot a round of skeet.

6/17/06 Ducks Unlimited Sporting Clays Shoot (report by Kenneth Kidd)

Two members and one guest (three participants) had a good time at the first ever FCS participation at a Ducks Unlimited Sporting Clays Shoot and Luncheon on 6/17/06.  The shoot got off to a soggy start.  It rained and then rained some more.  Being a group of mostly duck hunters, a little rain would not bother us, but as one organizer said having folks walking around with a lightning rod on their shoulder is not a great idea.  There was a lot of fire from the sky.  However, three hours after the scheduled start time we were able to start with the few hearty souls that braved the weather.  I don’t believe they had anywhere near the 300 plus shooters they expected but a good group of somewhere around 100 did show.  Lunch was fantastic as promised.  Antelope meat loaf, skewered duck, and skewered venison were the main entrées (oh yea they had some kind of lasagna with cheese and spinach and other good stuff), salad, veggie medley and garlic mashed potatoes, rolls and iced tea.  Guest Chris Kidd had the high score with 32/50.  He was followed by Kenneth Kidd with 27/50.  He was followed by Regina Kidd with 17/50.  Kenneth and Chris won the 30 bird flush (a two shooter game where they throw 30 birds at you without stopping, to see how many you can hit) with a 27 and walked away with a new side by side 20 gauge (Note – since dad paid the shooting fee, provided the shells, and it was the day before Father’s Day, he claimed the gun).  Kenneth also won second place in the rabbit shoot and won a very nice DU print of Geese flying over water.  Regina , soaked by rain ,dried by wind, a little crispy from sunburn when it finally came out, caked with mud, and wondering what to do with a skewered duck said she had a good time.  She now has a new picture of geese flying over water and a new shot gun in the house that she did not have to pay for.  What more could a woman want?

5/20/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot

Two officers, six members, one first time guest, and two sons (11 participants) had a good time at the 5/20/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap and Skeet Range (our 50th shoot there).  We started at 7:30 AM to beat the heat, but we couldn’t escape the wind.  To make things even harder we had to shoot the masters level course because the corporate level course was being set up for an early afternoon corporate shoot.  Capitol City had their “Lone Star Open” a week ago and the course was even tougher than normal.  Several of the targets only gave you a second or two to track them before they disappeared into the trees.  To excel a shooter needed to shoot quick so it’s no surprise with Tim Price came in first place with 28/50.  Kenneth Kidd came in second place with 24/50.  Isaac Price came in third place with 20/50.  He was followed by Gary McKenzie and Joe Schram with 18/50 (Joe’s worst ever), Jesse Price with 17/50, me, Randy Rowley, with 16/50 (tying my worst ever, shooting my new-to-me Browning Gold), Ken Miller and new member Matthew Rankin and 15/50, first time guest Numi Castillo with 12/50, and Tyler Price with 10/50 (his worst ever).  There wasn’t very close competition to report between the three participants who placed.  The group shot a combined 193/550 or .351.  In comparison we shot a combined .520 on the same course on 4/1/06.  Jesse came all the way from north of Dallas to join us!

Several shooters also shot a round of skeet.  Tim shot a perfect 25/25.

5/20/06 Beyond the Basics: Pistol Class

Two members had a great time at the Beyond the Basics: Pistol class on 5/20/06 with KR Training.  Ken Hamilton reports that the training was outstanding, and Karl Rehn is an excellent instructor.  Ken recommends the class for anyone who plans to shoot a pistol and for a concealed handgun advocate.  Karl presented great safety lessons and a lot about pistols in general.  He also focused on how to hit the target and left us with shooting exercises to do to go forward.  You get your money’s worth for sure.

4/21/06 – 4/22/06 24 Hour Sporting Clays Shoot (report by Kenneth Kidd)

Upon arriving at the historic 74 Ranch Resort, west of Campbellton, Texas around midday Friday, April 21, 2006, two officers, two members, and four guests (including three first-time guests) had a smashing good time until mid-day Saturday, April 22, 2006.  As promised the 24 hour clay shoot was all it was cracked up to be.

I have no idea how many thousands of clays were broken by our devoted group but somewhere near 7000 rounds were fired by the group.

Upon arrival  we were met by Milo Abercrombie, the host/general manager.  Milo checked us in, acquired the proper release forms where we promised not to hold the ranch responsible for any dumb things, we might do to ourselves.  He then collected the balance of our fees, showed us where the drinks, chow, and rest rooms were, assigned us to our rooms, gave us keys to golf carts, told us the place was ours have a good time, and don’t miss the meals served at the announced times.

First order of business was lunch: fresh garden salad, meat loaf, carrots, and roasted potatoes, desert, and lots of ice cold tea.

Armed with great anticipation, cases of shells, shotguns, and bottles of water we eagerly attacked the course of 15 stations each with four traps from approximately 1:30 PM until it was too dark to see (close to 9:00 PM).

Dinner was prime rib and/or baked salmon, asparagus, mashed potatoes, salad, and of course desert.

After a long day and a short night we needed and received a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, biscuits, cinnamon rolls, pancakes, orange juice, fresh cut fruit, and great coffee to prepare us for the rigors of the day ahead (after all it was four hours till lunch).

The course offered a 20 and a 40 foot tower as well as two 100 foot towers, several stations over water with a good variety of presentations.  Many stations offered opportunities for multiple shooters to fire at the same time.

Some of the more challenging targets were off a high levee shooting down  the back side into a draw or ravine.  There were three stations on the levee with 12 different presentations, all long shots.

Lunch time: beef and chicken fajitas with all the fixings, iced tea, and more desert.

Pack it up, turn in the keys to the golf carts, say goodbyes and head home.

This trip is all it was promised and then some.  Start saving your money for next year.

The lodge room where we relaxed was full of all kinds of stuffed animals.  If you have been to Cabela’s, well this was as good or better.  A wall of flying ducks, a full grown lion standing on his back legs catching a deer in flight.  An elephant head with ears extended and trunk outstretched appeared to cover a wall (it would make a republican proud).  A bobcat catching a tom turkey at a run graces the floor in the dining room.

The food was fantastic, the service was superb, the hospitality was unbelievable, the shooting was unequaled, the weather was fantastic, and the fellowship was sweet.  It was a near perfect outing with friends and brothers in Christ.

Thanks to Ron Denison for heading up this event.

4/15/06 Llano Crawfish Open (Sporting Clays Shoot) report by Kenneth Kidd

One officer, one member, one guest, and one granddaughter (four participants) had a great time at the Llano Crawfish Open Sporting Clays Shoot on 4/15/06.  The weather was great and there was a good turnout for the shoot.  There was a 50 bird main event, a 30 bird side event on a separate course, as well as a side of 30 birds that could be shot over the main event course after the main had been shot.  There was a warm up set of targets (10 rounds for $2.00) on a three target set up where you could request any of a tower or a right or left crosser flying low and fast.  It was a little unnerving to shoot it because the cows appeared to be in range.  They apparently did not mind because they rarely moved from their spot.  There was also a two man flush which they did not shoot.  Kenneth Kidd came in first place for our group with 33/50.  Chris Kidd came in second with 26/50.  Regina Kidd came in third with 14/50.  Kenneth came in first place for the 30 bird shoot with 17/30.  Chris came in second with 15/30.  Regina came in third with 8/30.  Danyel Hammond kept score and did not shoot.

There were some great targets.  Some were through trees and others down into a ravine.  One rabbit target that was so slow most folks were shooting ahead of it or over it.  After shooting they enjoyed a feast of mud bugs cooked the way they should be out in the open in a large vat with plenty of spice, corn and potatoes.  For those less adventurous there was smoked sausage and ribs that would have made Coopers green with envy.  The homemade desserts were…well you would gain a few pounds just looking at them.  Pies, cakes, puddings, and, yes, banana pudding were available.  Kenneth reported that he tried to sample as many as possible and they were all good.  Tea , lemonade, and ice were provided…yes, they had sweet tea.  Warning next year when you come (because you won’t want to miss it again) remember to bring you own lemon if you want it for your tea and red sauce for the mud bugs.  Tables and chairs were available, but not nearly enough.  When we go next year, we should bring some tables and chairs and set up our own little social area.

4/7/06 – 4/8/06 24 Hour Sporting Clays Shoot

Two participants (one member and one guest) had a great time at the 4/7/06 – 4/8/06 24 Hour Sporting Clays Shoot at the 74 Ranch Resort near Campbellton.  The ranch has 15 stations that are in a circular course around an approximately 20-acre lake.  Each station has a minimum of four throwers.  One station had eight and another had six.  All throwers worked except for one.  Just about every imaginable target presentation was present including several rising teal, crossing shots, flushing quail, landing ducks, and rabbits.  Three stations offered shots down into or out of a ravine.  There were several stations over water and several more through trees.  There were four throwers on top of a 40-foot tall platform and six throwers on top of twin 100-foot tall towers.  Unlike regular sporting clays, where you shoot anywhere from four to ten shots and then move on to the next station, we were able to “camp out” at stations and stay there until we were good and ready to move on.  It was easy to shoot three to four boxes at a single station.  It was great to just keep trying a shot repeatedly until you figured it out.  The meals and lodging were great, as usual.  Thanks to Larry Dowden for heading up this event.

4/1/06 FCS Classic (Clay Target Shoot and Cookout)

Two officers, eight members, fours guests, and six sons (20 participants) had a great time at the first ever Annual FCS Classic (Clay Target Shoot and Cookout) on 4/1/06 at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  The morning was cloudy, but we didn’t get a drop of rain.  It was sunny in the afternoon and windy all day.  We cooked beef and chicken fajitas and deer and beef wrapped with bacon and stuffed with cheese and deer sausage (courtesy of Tim Price) for lunch.  Joe Schram led us in a devotional and in prayer.  Members shot skeet and sporting clays.

For the first round of sporting clays, Warren Hoke came in first place with 34/50 (he tied his best score).  Tim Price came in second place with 33/50.  Isaac Price came in third place with 29/50.  He was followed by Joe Schram with 27/50 (his third best score), Paul Ellis (his third best score), Kenneth Kidd, and me, Randy Rowley, with 26/50, Richard Corbin and Zach Corbin with 21/50 (by far Zach’s best score), Ken Miller with 17/50, Tyler Price with 16/50, Bruce Crockett with 14/50, first time guest Steve Springfield with 11/50, Regina Kidd with 8/50, first time guest Curtis Springfield with 6/50, and Chris Bell with 4/50 (his second best score).  Ron Denison also participated and scored 15/26 but had to leave early for a ball game.  If he had been able to stay and had continued at that pace, he would probably have tied Isaac for third.  We shot 10 stations during both sporting clays rounds.

Warren and Tim had a fine competition.  On the first station Tim jumped out to a two bird lead.  Warren caught up a bird on the third station.  On the fourth station Tim’s lead increased to three birds but Warren tied it all up on the fifth station.  Tim went up by two birds on the sixth station.  Warren caught up a bird on the seventh station.  On the ninth station Warren went ahead by one bird and that’s how they finished.

On the second round of sporting clays, Warren came in first with 32/50 (his second best score), I came in second with 30/50, and Paul Ellis (his new third best score) and Joe Schram tied with third with 27/50 (he tied his third best score).  They were followed by Tim Price with 26/50, Isaac Price with 21/50, and Ken Miller with 19/50.  This group shot a combined .549 for the first course and a combined .520 for the second course.  So the second course was a little harder than the first.  I became the second FCS member (the first was Tim Price) to break 1000 career targets.

Warren and I had a good competition.  Warren jumped out to a two bird lead on the first station.  I cut his lead to one on station four, but he regained his two bird lead on station five.  On station nine I cut his lead to one again, but he finished the 10th station two birds ahead.

2/25/06 Skeet Shoot

Six participants (four members and two first time guests – Bill LaGrone and his daughter, Kristie) braved the cold rain at the 2/25/06 Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  The participants decided not to shoot sporting clays due to a muddy field and instead shot two rounds of skeet.  Score was not kept.  Spirits were not dampened by the cold rain.  All had a great time fellowshipping and enjoying the great outdoors.  Bill and Kristie were first time skeet shooters.  It rained most of the time that they were there.  The rain finally let up about the time that they finished (around 10:30 AM).  Thanks to Tim Price for heading this outing.

2/4/06 Concealed Handgun License (CHL) Class

Eleven participants (two members, one guest, and eight first time guests) had a good time at our second FCS CHL class on 2/4/06 at the Eagle Peak Shooting Range.   Participants each shot 50 rounds to qualify (20 at three yards, 20 at seven yards, and 10 at 15 yards).  Participants also shot for fun and practice during lunch.  Windy Mings was the instructor.  She did an excellent job.  Thanks to FCS guest Troy Cooley for heading up this event.

“Let us speak courteously, deal fairly, and keep ourselves armed and ready”  – Theodore Roosevelt.

1/16/06 Shooting Range Shoot

One officer and one member (two participants had a great time at the 1/16/06 Shooting Range Shoot at the Eagle Peak Shooting Range.  Ryan and I, Randy Rowley, sighted in his .30-06 and .30-30 and my .25-06 and .22 and shot our .40 S&W pistols.  We had the range virtually to ourselves.

1/14/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot

Two officers, eight members, three guests, and two sons (15 participants) at a great time at the 1/14/06 Sporting Clays and Skeet Shoot at the Capitol City Trap & Skeet Club.  A visiting sporting clays expert had reset the course and it was considerably harder.  We shot 10 stations on the regular (masters level) course.  Isaac Price came in first place with 26/50 (his first first-place finish).  Ron Denison and Bret Mercer tied for second with 25/50.  Kenneth Kidd came in third with 24/50.  He was followed by Tim Price with 22/50, Joe Schram with 21/50, Mark Dillow with 19/50, me (Randy Rowley) and Tyler Price with 18/50, Matthew Rankin with 12/50, Regina Kidd with 11/50, Ken Miller with 8/50, and Dick Matteson with 4/50.

Isaac and Kenneth really didn’t have a close head to head competition, but Ron and Bret had a good match.  On the first station that we shot Ron jumped out to a one bird lead.  Ron maintained his lead through the next station, but Bret caught him on the next one.  At the fourth and fifth stations they remained tied but on the sixth station Ron jumped out to a three bird lead.  Bret caught him by two on the seventh station and tied it up again on the eight station.  Bret went up by one on the ninth station.  On the tenth station, Bret went 4/6 and Ron went 5/6 causing them to end the match in a tie.  Ron and I thought that he missed his last bird, but Bret and Matthew said that a couple of pieces broke off the top.

Thanks to Shooters Fellowship for providing hot coffee, juice, and breakfast tacos.  FCS member Joe Schram heads up Shooters Fellowship, which is a ministry to men who are on the skeet/trap/sporting clays tour and who do not participate in a church.

Several shooters also shot a round of skeet.