Dear members and guests,
Warm greetings from Jacksonville Clay Target Sports Club! JCTS is proud to host the General Kenneth Pletcher Open, May 12 - 14, followed by the 57th Annual Armed Forces Skeet Championship, May 15 - 19! Please join us in welcoming our servicemen and women to JCTS for these exciting tournaments!
During these events all skeet, trap, and five stand venues will be closed. Both sporting clay courses will remain available to all.
During the month of April, we had two notable events: The Jacksonville Corporate Challenge, and the Florida State Skeet Championships.The Corporate Challenge is our annual event where corporate teams compete against each other for bragging rights. It kicked off on a Thursday with dinner and a Reverse Raffle Draw, where competitors mingled and got to know each other. On Friday, the tournament was held and the winners declared. Once again, the Intrepid Capital team dominated – for their third win! Congratulations to the Intrepid team of Mark Travis, Dan Powell, Terry Pilinko, and Boyce Mann. Money raised from the event will go toward the purchase of the scissor-lift that will be placed on the Sporting Clay Course South. I personally would like to thank the sponsoring corporations for their support of our club. Next year’s event will be held April 12 & 13.
The Florida State Skeet Championship was held April 21 - 23, bringing together the best shooters in the state. The overall champion this year was Brian Bierwagen, with 397 out of 400, from Winter Haven. Several shooters from our club placed high as well. Congratulations to all!
With daytime savings in effect, our members have more time to shoot after work, and we anticipate a busy month. This is the perfect time to sharpen your aim and practice those shots that need improvement. As always, please observe all safety rules and report any safety violations to the Safety Officer on duty, or call the office.
We look forward to seeing you at the club!
Z. Mincek
President
904.631.0577
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Upcoming Events
Every Wednesday Night
"GRILL YOUR OWN" Entree Night
May 12 - 14
NSSA General Kenneth Pletcher Skeet Open
May 15 - 19
NSSA Armed Service Skeet Championship
Please note that during these two tournaments, all skeet, trap, and 5 stand fields will be reserved for tournament activities. All sporting clay facilities will remain open to members, guests, and the public.
Friday, May 26, 3:00pm
Jax Belles With Shells Ladies' Shoot-n-Network
Memorial Day, May 29
The club will be closed in observance of Memorial Day
Friday-Saturday, June 2 - 4
John Shima Clinics
Saturday, June 17 9:00am
NSCA - Registered Fired Up! Sporting Clay Shoot
Friday, June 30 3:00pm
Jax Belles With Shells Ladies' Shoot-n-Network
Saturday, July 15 9:00am
NSCA - Registered Midsummer Banger
Friday, July 28 3:00
Jax Belles With Shells Ladies' Shoot-n-Network
August 11 - 13
NSSA Zone 4 Skeet Shoot
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JAX BELLES WITH SHELLS
JCTS has established a ladies shooting group, Jax Belles With Shells, that meets once a month to enjoy shooting sports and networking. The group meets the last Friday of each month from 3:00 - 5:30pm, (with adjustments to that schedule during the holidays). They are currently enjoying growing attendance by a diverse group of women who have a wide variety of shooting experience. The women have focused on skeet shooting the past two months with the assistance of several instructors from the club. Following each shooting session, the women break for refreshments, networking, and other activities, such as gun maintenance lessons, discussions on shooting equipment, hearing protection, and Pro Shop products.
All lady shooters are invited to join the monthly events. To get on the mailing list, or RSVP your attendance, please contact:
Michele McManamon 904.424.4484 or Michele.McManamon@sandler.com
Early Piety 904.993.7419
JCTS Pro Shop 904.757.4584
See the JCTS calendar to confirm event dates and times.
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Skeet News
The Florida State Skeet Championship April 21 – 23 was a great success. Shooters from around the state gathered to compete, meet, visit, and break bread together. The competition was fierce, and the scores were high. Congratulations to all participants! And thank you to all the FSA officers, referees, volunteers, photographers, and caterers who make all of our Florida events a great success! Highlights of leading scorers can be viewed here.
JCTS is honored to be the host club for the General Kenneth Pletcher Open May 12- 14 and the 57th annual Armed Services Skeet Championship May 15 – 19. Please join us in welcoming our servicemen and women to these exciting tournaments! Please visit the Armed Forces Skeet Association home page for event details. Anyone who would like to volunteer to work at either of these competitions, please contact me: Bud Steil gsteil61@gmail.com.
Please note that during these two tournaments, all skeet, trap, and 5 stand fields will be reserved for tournament activities. All sporting clay facilities will remain open to members and guests.
We look forward to seeing you at the club!
Bud Steil
Skeet Chairman
gsteil61@gmail.com
Sporting Clay News
JCTS will host an NSCA - registered sporting clay event Saturday, June 17. Due to increasing temperatures, we have moved activities to the morning. Start time will be 9:00am (no later than 9:30am). Each participant will shoot the two courses consecutively, with your choice of starting point. Lunch will be served at 11:45am, and shoot offs will be held at 1:00pm. All activities should be completed by 2:00pm.
Everyone should try this event. You will have fun and improve your sporting clay skills. You can bring your own group, or we can assemble groups from participants. Past experience has shown that this event attracts an amiable group of people of all ages. Club members will be able to participate in a member drawing in which two members will have the opportunity to win $150 each.
Our sporting clays activity has experienced 28% growth over the same period last year. We appreciate your strong support. Please let us know if you have any suggestions to improve your experience at the club.
Joe Luke
Sporting Clay Chairman___________________________________________________
Spotlight on our Sporting Clay Founders
JCTS applauds Jim and Sherry Davidson for their continued support of JCTS and shooting sports in Northeast FL. Jim first embraced his love of hunting and shooting sports as a child, and carried these passions into adulthood. Sherry was introduced to shooting sports when Jim took her to a skeet competition on their first date. From this introduction, Sherry graduated to deer blind duty without a firearm. These sports grew on Sherry as she found several friends who were interested in clay target shooting. In addition to the challenges of hunting and clay target shooting, Jim and Sherry enjoy the immersion in nature that both sports provide. And they are happy that these sports lend themselves to couples activities and family activities.
Jim and Sherry both began their careers in the accounting field, later diversifying to the real estate industry. They are the locally famous founders of The Davidson Companies, under which they manage full service real estate development, agency, and property management companies. While plying the challenges of the real estate industry, Sherry and Jim also raised three accomplished children, who have chosen to work for The Davidson Companies in various roles. Sherry and Jim are fortunate that their children live nearby and are able to participate in shooting sports and other outdoor recreation with them. JCTS extends its gratitude to the Davidson clan for its support of JCTS and the new sporting clay courses.
Collegiate News
The Collegiate shooting season will be taking a slight breather as we enter the summer months, but not for long! Our season culminated in the ACUI Clay Target National Championships in San Antonio, which was held March 27 thru April 2. Over 840 collegiate athletes from 85 universities attended, a new ACUI record. The weather cooperated as some of the top shooters in the nation competed in 6 different events: Sporting, 5-Stand Sporting, American Skeet, American Trap, International Skeet and International Wobble. JU Shooters took Gold, Silver and Bronze medals, with JU Shooting Team Ron “La Machine” Palazzetti grinding out a perfect 100/100 in the Skeet Event, giving JU another National Team championship title in the American Skeet Event, as well as taking National RU Team in the 5-Stand Sporting Event and 3rd in International Skeet. This is the largest (ACUI) Collegiate event to-date – great news for the development of high school leading into collegiate shooting! Even better is the fact that high school and collegiate shooting teams boast some of the highest GPA’s of any discipline on campus!
Both the Jacksonville University and University of North Florida Shooting Teams will take a short summer break, then begin practicing as the season approaches. Both teams will be losing some serious talent due to graduations, but there is a lot of new talent joining to rebuild our teams. Coming up this summer, the SCTP High School and Collegiate Nationals will be held July 8 – 15 at the Cardinal Shooting Center in Marengo, OH (north of Columbus, OH). Our own JU Shooting Team is the defending SCTP HOA Collegiate National Champion at this event which is expecting over 2,700 athletes. This is a wonderful testament to the growth of our young shooters over the past 10 years, thanks to support from the MidwayUSA Foundation and the Scholastic Clay Target Program .
Many thanks to the Jacksonville Clay Target Sports Club, and all the other clubs here and around the country who have stood behind our youth and collegiate shooters, as they are our future. God Bless and safe shooting!
David T. Dobson, MBA
NSSA/NSCA Certified Instructor/Level III
Paragon Master Instructor
JU Faculty & JU Varsity Shooting Team Head Coach
Gunsmith News - Your Gun Maintenance
Greetings to the Jacksonville Clay Target Sports Membership. As we continue into the competitive season, the overall health and preservation of our shotguns becomes a key player in our success (or lack thereof). There are many things you can do to keep your shotgun in good working order when it is getting more day to day use.
Keeping your shotgun well lubricated and greased at the friction points is one of the most important maintenance procedures during the competitive season. Applying grease on over-under shotguns is most effective on the contact points of the barrel and receiver, as well as the contact points of the forend metal. Semi-Automatic shotguns are best lubricated with oil on the gas piston and within the action. You can locate the gas piston on your semi-automatic shotgun by unscrewing the for-end cap, keeping slight pressure on the barrel as you unscrew the forend cap will make the process easier. After sliding off the forend wood, you will see the gas piston as a ring that extends from your barrel. There is no need to take the mechanism apart, just a few mists into the gas system will keep carbon build up from affecting the function of the gun. Swabbing out your barrel after use will also prolong the life of your shotgun, keeping carbon build up and shot from affecting your competitive season.
Choke tubes are another important maintenance factor that we do not usually address until it becomes an obvious problem. As we shoot, small bits on carbon, shot, and even plastic shavings get wedged into the seatin
g lip of the barrel. As time goes on, this can push your choke out, allowing more gasses and debris to accumulate. The end result is a stuck choke. In extreme cases if the problem is not addressed, the choke can become unseated and cause the end of your barrel to become damaged beyond repair. Screwing your chokes out and cleaning the threads, followed by a light mist of oil will prevent this issue from occurring. In addition, making sure your chokes are well seated before shooting is always a good idea.
There are many brands of cleaners, gun grease, and oil you can use for your maintenance needs. We recommend and carry Safari Charlie’s CLP, as well as Q-Maxx Lubricating oil and rust deterrent. Petroleum based greases such as K-Gun grease will lubricate and displace debris without becoming sticky and hard over time. As always, we are happy to answer questions about maintenance as it pertains to your specific make and model. Thank you for choosing Gunsmiths Inc. to accommodate your gun maintenance and repair needs. Happy shooting and we will see you at the club!
Kelsey Doleo
Office Manager
904-410-2206___________________________________________________________
Membership Report
Since 1936, JCTS has built a tradition of clay target recreation for generations of Northeast Florida sports men, women, and youth. As a premier shooting sports club, JCTS offers six different clay target disciplines for shotgun enthusiasts on 270 acres of upland pine brush terrain. The club is open to members and guests four days of the week, and is available for rental for group and organizational events. In addition to recreational shooting, the club has many social, competitive, corporate, and nonprofit events on the calendar. Check the calendar, website, and newsletter to find activities that appeal to you.
JCTS welcomes volunteers to assist in the operation of these events. Please contact the Pro Shop if you would like to volunteer your time and talents. We look forward to seeing you at the club!
JCTS Open to Members and Guests
Wednesday 12:00 - 8:30pm
Friday 12:00 - 6:00pm
Saturday 9:00am - 6:00pm
Sunday 9:00am - 6:00pm
info@jacksonvilleclaytargetsports.com 904-7574584