CASCTP International News
Three A&A Shooters found out what it takes to pursue the dream of becoming an Olympic trapshooter after their first International competition held at the Olympic Training Center at Colorado Springs last weekend. Cassie Ding, Aeric Skinner and Gary Creason, all A&A Shooters from Amador County, competed in the Scholastic Clay Target Program’s first National competition in Bunker Trap along with another California team from San Diego and 24 teams from 13 other states.
Ding, Skinner, and Creason had just been introduced to the game of Bunker Trap by their coach, Richard Lynch, this spring at Coon Creek Trap and Skeet in Lincoln and had only shot the game twice before entering the competition. “It was a learning experience for the young trapshooters as Bunker Trap requires a quicker response with faster targets and wider angles of targets being thrown. It is quite a different game from American Trap which they have been shooting”, said Lynch. Skinner commented when asked what the difference was to him between the American and International game, “Bunker is more fun and more challenging, you get two shots and see a much wider range of different types of targets”. Ding replied, “It is definitely more challenging and requires a great deal more focus.”
The three person teams shot 75 targets per shooter on Saturday, and on Sunday morning another 25 for a possible team total of 300. The top six teams then went to a 25 target shoot-off where there is only one shot allowed per target to determine the three medal winning teams. After 300 team targets Missouri was in the lead with 258 followed by Georgia with 251. The A&A Shooter’s found themselves in 3rd place with 237 targets with Colorado close on their heals with 232 and Michigan with a 230. The weather was a detriment to the A&A Shooters in the single barrel shoot-off. Temperatures were in the forties and a strong wind blew into the shooters faces, splashing rain drops on their shooting glasses. “We were not able to hold our position in the shoot-off and that was a little disappointing but I am pleased with their overall results considering the amount of time we had to practice. Going into the competition, I thought we should be pleased if our shooters could shoot some traps in the twenties. We achieved that as our average and that was good,” said Lynch. Ding, Skinner and Creason finished the competition out of the winning circle with a 5th place, 6 targets out of third.
In the individual high overall category, Aeric Skinner tied for 6th place with his score of 86/100. This placed him in a sudden death shoot-out to maintain a position to be in the shoot-off for a medal. After 4 shots Skinner dropped a target and his opponent broke it leaving him with a 7th place finish and no chance for a medal. Cassie Ding, with a score of 78, had the highest score of the women shooters, and Gary Creason finished with a score of 73.
All three A&A Shooters stayed in the dormitories at the Olympic Training Center and ate alongside current and aspiring Olympians. When asked what they liked best about the Olympic Training Center the resounding answer was “the food”.
The A&A Shooters will start up their 2007 trapshooting season late in January, with the sign-up time and place to be announced at the schools and in the Ledger Dispatch Sports Briefs. The A&A Shooters program is open to all boys and girls in junior high and high school. For further information contact Richard or Kathleen Lynch 267-0385.