Clay Target Nation, April 2019

p Mild weather challenging targets and plenty of competition make the Gator Cup a very attractive event to draw shooters south and out of the winter weather in February APRIL 2019 CLAY TARGET NATION 53 Champion 47 Tim McCoy 47 runner up and Richard McCready 47 M1 after a shoot off Melissa Wright was Lady Champion 39 with Dee Orr runner up 38 5 STAND The 50 target 5 stand event was held on the clubs normal 5 stand location with Chuck Frazier setting stiff but fair targets The true pairs were a challenge where the second target had to be shot as a dropping target at a greater distance than many shooters were used to Chris Childerhouses exceptional 46 on Thursday was the score to beat during the remainder of the week Although 319 shooters attempted to unseat Chris with several people coming close Chris was able to capture HOA After a shoot off Joseph Fanizzi was runner up 45 followed by Clay Watkins M1 and Brice Grantham M2 Lady Champion was Grace Callahan 41 Ashley Little 39 was runner up and Carolyn Smith was third 37 Lady Champion Grace Callahan thought the targets were specifically set so everyone could enjoy the events She suggested for the newer shooters that shooting preliminary events is good experience without as much pressure as the main event Set goals get comfortable and never stop learning SUB GAUGE EVENTS The 50 target sub gauge events were held on an eightstation course using four Laporte traps per station Fred Fanizzi set the stations to allow all shooters to shoot from the same box but used two of the four traps for the various sub gauges Station 8 was unique using a fire lookout tower as one location for two traps to be used during the event For the 12 gauge event Mike Wilgus was leading for several days with a 48 until the final day when Chris Childerhouse took HOA by one target 49 Alejandro Bravo was M1 46 Lady Champion was Ashley Blenker 40 and Carolyn Smith 37 was runner up After a threeway shoot off in the 20 gauge event HOA was Malcolm Parker 44 with Peter Kallie runner up and Edward Miller M1 Lady Champion was Melissa Wright 40 followed by Tammy Williams 39 During the four days of the 28 gauge event the shooter at the top of the leader board changed daily After a shoot off Malcolm Parker was HOA 47 followed by Taylor Watkins as runner up with Alex Sumner M1 45 Lady Champion was Ann Little 38 with Sandra Moore 36 runner up and Melissa Wright third 36 The 410 event required yet another shoot off leaving No Gator Cup event would be complete without the Saturday evening prime rib banquet and all of the giveaways including 32 shotguns Desirae Edmunds said she appreciated the hospitality and many different festivities including the alligator show and social cocktail hour every evening Fred Fanizzi said If you are attending only one major shoot next year come to the Gator Cup You will enjoy the hospitality shooting events and entertainment activities Congratulations to all of the winners Special thanks to all of the people who made this event a truly exceptional experience Thanks to Fred Fanizzi general manager target setters Doug Vine Mike Luongo Chuck Frazier Fred Fanizzi trappers staff volunteers sponsors and vendors Scores can be found at www winscore online com Steve Shepherd 45 HOA and Rod Vetter runner up and Alex Sumner M1 43 Lady Champion was Sabine Moeller 35 and Tammy Williams 34 was runner up SUPER SPORTING The 50 target Super Sporting event was held on Saturday and Sunday using the same course as the sub gauge events This years twoday event was designed to accommodate the larger number of participants desiring to compete Doug Vine set a demanding eighth station using the fire lookout tower Overhead targets were thrown from the tower and a belly crosser at 55 yards and another crosser at about 30 yards rounded out the challenge On Sunday evening three shooters were tied with a remarkable score of 49 The shoot off found Joseph Fanizzi HOA followed by Todd Simmons as runner up and Anthony Matarese M1 Lady Champion was Grace Callahan 44 Reanna Frauens 42 runner up Ashley Blenker third 40 and Carolyn Smith fourth 40 DIGITAL EXTRA PHOTO GALLERY Scan the QR code or go to clay target nation com