During the month of June and early July a number of our members have been hard at work remodeling and renovating out clubhouse. They have done a yoeman's job and we should all be grateful for the work they've done. The inside of the clubhouse has been given a professional coat of paint, including all the trim work. We've added new tables inside and out giving us much needed room for meetings and social gatherings. We have new, more comfortable chairs to make those meetings and social gatherings even more comfortable for those of us with aging backs. Tables and chairs that were previously on the deck are now placed around the area behind the trap fields so that those who want to get some sun while watching the action on the line can do so.

MAY

SOUTHERN ZONE (May 5TH & 6TH)
 

20 shooters on the line!
 

Anticipation !

Mike showing great form, as always

Next squad is on deck

Lead shot is on its way

Craig making it look easy

Koleen - Miles - Paulo - Brian - Chris

How to dress for doubles in the rain

Cindy

Chris B (Easter)

 

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With March finally behind us we are done with (most) of the snow. Now that the nicer weather is coming it's time to do some spring cleaning!
Friday April 13th was forecast to be sunny and warm. Time for an official

FIELD DAY!

If many hands make light work then this beast makes work almost, but not quite, effortless. Repackaged some reclaimed lead with the help of Freddy and his mechanical helper. (Mickey, Craig and John)

First you start with logs, lots of them

Apply chain saw as needed. The trick to saving the chain saw blades was to cut only half way through the log. Then Freddy would pick it up and roll it so you could cut through the other side.

If you have multiple chain saws, so much the better. At one point we had THREE of them running.

While the chain saw crews were making their first cuts Freddy was pushing, pulling and lifting stuff all over the lot. Some people paint, some play music, Freddy is a master with heavy equipment - I'm convinced he could make that machine dance if he wanted to!

Making progress.

Turning logs into firewood. Dennis and Tom (and the photographer) split countless logs before the day was over.

It took most of the day but when we were done all the trees had been turned into logs and the logs split into firewood. (Bruce and Freddy)

It ain't over til it's over! What didn't belong in the dumpsters we burned. Then we swept the lot with feather dusters.

 
Many thanks to the members who turned out to help!
Sorry I didn't get photos of everyone but even webmasters have to pull their weight.

 

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MARCH

Duncan C, Jim L, Levy Lorenzo, Miles M, Jerry M and Vinnie R
line up to shoot one last round together

Levy Lorenzo, who has been a member of the club for over 25 years, retired recently and is moving back to the Philippines. Before leaving he stopped by the club to shoot one final round with some of his many friends on Sunday 3/18. Levy is a well known and well liked member who has helped many new shooters over the years perfect their technique and improve their scores. He was the Club Champion in 2006 and has won a number of Club and ATA awards over the years. He shoots handicap from the 24 yard line and last year broke 93.4% of his singles targets. His ATA stats are impressive. He has shot at 25,400 singles targets, 14,800 handicap targets and 600 doubles targets. He has won many a turkey in our annual Turkey Shoots as well as more than his share of wine bottles in our Wine Shoots. This is probably the last time he'll have to shoot with snow in the background for awhile.
 

Jim - Duncan - Levy - Miles - Jerry - Vinnie   Levy's last shot at the club was ruled a "dead bird" and it really couldn't have been any other way since 6 people shot at it simultaneously! To send him off with a bang we all fired at the same bird. In the left photo you can see the bird over Levy's right elbow and about level with his hat as it leaves the trap house. A fraction of a second later it was dust. If you look carefully in the right photo, just below the top of the trees and directly over his head, you'll notice what looks like a small sprinkling of orange dust, that's all that is left of that bird. We all wish him the best as he moves on to the next chapter in his life.   Happy Retirement Levy, we'll miss you!

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They say that "March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb". It's too early to talk about the lamb part but the lion part certainly proved true this year. Friday, March 2nd saw a classic northeaster hit the North Jersey area.
 
Overnight a tree was blown down that blocked Horseneck Road for part of the morning on Saturday.
 
Blocked roads won't stop Andy and when he got to the club he found that it had not been spared. The roof of one of the trap houses was blown over. The club IS open but we're down one trap house for the time being.
 
As you can clearly see in this photo the background has changed a bit as well. Shooters will temporarily see a small lake beyond the area of broken orange clays.
 
The club is OPEN so come on down and shoot.

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FEBRUARY

February started out as a continuation of January but cold doesn't stop trap shooters from enjoying a day on the field. We woke up on Sunday 2/18 with about 10" of snow on the ground but snow doesn't stop us either! Crystal clear blue skies and virtually no wind. At the end of the day we all agreed it was a perfect trap day. Tony and some of the pullers/score keepers got to work early cleaning the fields and before you knew it the sound of "PULL" was being heard on three fields. A number of us even shot registered targets today!

Jeff U. gets ready for registered targets

Vinnie R. has just called for the bird. There it goes!

Nice shot Vinnie SMASHED IT!

Jim L. shooting registered birds

2 of the 3 squads shooting on Sunday

Clays looked like flying pizzas

Jeff couldn't miss a bird like this, and he didn't

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JANUARY

The first couple of weeks were bitter cold and snowy BUT that can't stop a dedicated trap shooter!

Frozen solid. If you shot this weekend (January 13, 14 or 15) you know the feeling.

Mike C. and John W. taking advantage of the club being open Monday 1-15-18 for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

At least when they are frozen like this they are easier to pick up.

 

John T., Mike, Pete and mystery man showing they have the right stuff to shoot on a very cold day.

Modern art courtesy of Mother Nature and the intrepid shooters at NJCTC

Tom F. and Miles M. "Cold is not a factor, it's a state of mind"

 

The "Fab Five" shooting in the fall (Tom W, Tom F, Karen F, Stu and Miles) Photo courtesy of Marsha W.

Jay trying out his brand new Blaser F3

It shoots as good as it looks and it looks GOOD!

The clubhouse looks deserted on a 10° afternoon however there is a fire in the wood burning stove and it's warm as toast inside.

It's even colder than it looks. Tomorrow is another day.

Not even yours truly is out shooting on a 10° day.

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2017

DECEMBER

Sunday December 10, 2017
28 degrees, overcast with snow flurries - PERFECT TRAP WEATHER!

Snow? No problem!	Bob - Miles - Jim - Jay	Jay
On The Line Jim - Bob - Miles	Jay taking a shot	Miles doing what good members do - pitching in where and when help is needed!

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NOVEMBER

Thursday November 30, 2017
A beautiful afternoon to be shooting with the one you love!

Tom & Karen

Anibal & Alicia

Richard & Claudia

Duncan & Patti

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Miscellaneous photos from around the club
prior to November 2017

Duncan - Chris - Terry - Jim Taken at the Northern Zone Shoot (Before you mock their lucky shirts, they ALL won prizes!)	Night Doubles Look closely, he's broken the first one already	Field 3 on a beautiful day!
Mike - Ryan	Pullers do a LOT of work around the club. Be sure to leave a tip for them in the tip jar on the counter in the office.	Some squads compete in style bringing a bit of home with them. Canopy provides shade, folding tables for set up, portable grill for home cooked meals, private gun rack, ice chests for food and drinks, a place to hang your vest between rounds and last but certainly not least, comfortable chairs and loungers!
Steve Carfaro and Terry Shaffer getting their 100 Straight patches from Joe Sisanno	Pedro keeping score during registered shooting.	"DEAD PAIR!"

Trap shooters come in all sizes and ages. This young man broke 100-Straight on his 10th birthday!

Jeff smokes another one

"How could he miss that one?"

Duncan - Vic - Levy - Jim

Bruce and John behind the range manager's desk

Socializing is a big part of trap shooting. You quickly make friends in the sport!

Looks like a full squad.

That's another one!

Rainbow over Field 1 - Good luck Billy!

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Some license plates seen in the parking lot.

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Hanging out in the clubhouse after a couple of rounds.

Marlene and Vinnie winning together!

Sending another load of lead to the target. Ed rarely misses!

A peek inside the trap house.

A sunny Saturday morning at the club

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