As I write this the grass is starting to turn green and the trees are starting to bud out. You can feel that spring is about here and I can't wait to get out to shoot. We have a full slate of shoots scheduled here in Illinois and I want to encourage everyone to get out and shoot and support our clubs that really need your help.
Illinois has a couple of shooters that are reaching milestones. The neat thing about this is they are at opposite ends of the spectrum. The first one is Ron Piro, a long time shooter out of the Peoria Skeet & Trap Club. Ron won the state Handicap Championship several years ago and has now shot 100,000 Doubles targets. Way to go Ron! Keep showing us what dedication is all about. The other shooter is Garrett Helms, a great Junior Gold shooter here in Illinois. Garrett shoots all over, and where he shoots he wins. He was recently tearing up his category at the Southern Grand in Florida. He has already shot 25,000 Handicap targets. Great shooting Garrett!
Sadly, I have to report that longtime, southern Illinois shooter, Tom Winn, has passed away. Tom was a fixture here in Illinois for many years. He and his brother Richard ran the Rend Lake Shooting Complex for many years and had shooters from all over coming to shoot there. We'll miss Tom here in Illinois and my condolences go out to his family and friends.
Shoots are just now starting up so next month I should be able to tell you about great shooting results from our shooters. Shoot well and stay safe.
Bill Duncan, ATA Delegate