Additional information found in Introductions & General Rules.

Match Contacts

• Tim Gothard, Shotgun Discipline Lead/Match Director
  • (256) 284-5752, tdg0021@aces.edu

Date

Friday, May 5, Saturday, May 6, and Sunday, May 7, 2023

Locations

• Red Eagle Skeet & Trap Club, Childersburg, Alabama
• Selwood Farms, Alpine, Alabama

Time

• May 5, 7:00 a.m. (on-site check-in, Selwood Farms)
• May 6, 8:00 a.m. (Red Eagle Skeet & Trap Club)
• May 7, 8:00 a.m. (Red Eagle Skeet & Trap Club)

Age Divisions

• Juniors age 9 to 13 (as of January 1, 2023)
• Seniors age 14 to 18 (as of January 1, 2023)

Cost

$75 per shooter (nonrefundable)

Registration

All teams and individuals must register through v2.4honline.com. At least one coach from each team must register. Registration opens February 14 and closes April 10. All shooters must be enrolled in 4HOnline by midnight on January 10, 2023, to be eligible to participate in this event.

Eric Massey/Will Gunnin Memorial Shotgun Fund

This 4-H Foundation fund is named for Eric Massey, longtime 4-H Shotgun Club volunteer and leader from Lauderdale County who died in December 2012, and Will Gunnin, 4-H member and State Championship participant who died in December 2016. Fund donations are used to support statewide 4-H shotgun programs. Donations will be accepted at the 2023 State 4-H Shotgun Championship.

Event

Team schedules for shoot times are emailed the week before the championship to the coach that registers through 4HOnline for each team. A mandatory safety video is posted on YouTube for all team members to view before arrival at Selwood Farms. Everyone on-site (shooter and nonshooter) is required to sign a Selwood liability waiver for the event.

Teams rotate through lunch on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Concessions are open Saturday and Sunday at Red Eagle for purchasing food and drinks. Participants should eat when they have time between rotations.

Competition continues until all teams have completed their scheduled courses of fire and all (if any) shoot- offs are complete. Shoot-offs are held on Sunday. Awards are presented at the conclusion of the event on Sunday at Red Eagle.

The ranges at Red Eagle Skeet & Trap Club open at noon on Friday, May 5, if you wish to come early and familiarize yourself with the ranges. Red Eagle Club members may be available upon request to coach your teams at this practice. The range fee for 4-H members at Red Eagle is $5 per twenty-five targets.

Coaches

A mandatory Zoom meeting for coaches will be held on April 17, 2023, at 6:00 p.m. Connection for this meeting will be sent to the coach that registers through 4HOnline. The coach that registers does not have to be the one that attends, but one coach from each registered team must attend.

Shotgun Allowances

Participants must provide their own shotguns, ammunition (no reloads), and eye and ear protection. Allowable shotguns include any shotgun 12 gauge or smaller firing a shot charge (not to exceed 1 1/8 ounces with shot no larger than US 7 1/2 fine or smaller than US 9 fine) at velocities approximating 1,200 feet per second. Participants should have a means of carrying enough shells (twenty-five) to complete a round of fire, and they must be able to carry fifty rounds of ammunition at Selwood Farms. All equipment and ammunition are subject to inspection by range officials before and/or during usage as necessary to ensure safety.

General Guidelines

• Music listening devices are not hearing protection and are not allowed on the firing line.
• At no time may shooters rest the muzzle of a firearm on any part of their bodies.
• Firearms must remain unloaded until a shooter is on station and ready to immediately call for a target.
• Postal match rules are not applicable to the 4-H Shotgun Championship. Teams/shooters must be on-site to compete in one or all of the three shotgun games that comprise the championship event.
• Tents, chairs, spectators, etc., must remain behind the ready line at all times.
• Due to ongoing COVID safety guidelines, groups must maintain social distancing during this event.
• Teams must be on their range at the ready line prepared to take the field 10 minutes prior to their scheduled shoot time.
• To accommodate unforeseen schedule adjustments, complete teams must be at Red Eagle and available for call-up 2 hours before their scheduled shoot time. (This does not apply to first rotation of the day.)

Match Logistics

Juniors and seniors shoot two rounds (fifty targets) of trap, two rounds (fifty targets) of skeet, and fifty targets of sporting clays.

Team Scores

The top four scores determine the team, with the top three scores determining the team score in both junior and senior divisions. A 4-H’er may decide not to compete for team awards and only participate individually; this must be determined at on-site check-in.

After each round, shooters must initial their score on their score sheet. Once a shooter leaves the range, the score is final. Issues on the range are arbitrated by the chief referee.

Selwood Farms

• Participants walk from the bridge to the sporting clays range and between stations during the competition. 4-H members participating in sporting clays are not allowed to ride carts until they have completed the sporting clays course.
• A limited number of carts are available for parents to rent for $20.

Sporting Clays

• Event: Standard NSCA (American) Sporting Clays
• Course of fire: fifty targets; may consist of singles, doubles, and report pairs
• Time limits: Each squad has 15 minutes to shoot each station. Shooters should be prepared to take the field 30 minutes before their scheduled firing time. Prestaging with a safety briefing takes place at the bridge before shooters walk out to the range.
• Misses: A shooter may take a second shot at a missed single target but at no time may fire more than two shots at any given station during a scored presentation.

Skeet

• Event: Standard NSSA (American) Skeet
• Course of fire: Two rounds (fifty targets) consisting of singles and doubles; doubles from stations one, two, six, and seven and singles from stations three, four, five, and eight
• Time limits: Shooters must fire in an expeditious manner to avoid unnecessary delays.

Trap

• Event: Standard ATA (American) Trap
• Course of fire: Two rounds (fifty targets) consisting of five targets from each of five shooting stations at 16 yards.
• Time limits: Each squad has 15 minutes to shoot each station. Shooters should be prepared to take the field 30 minutes before their scheduled firing time. Prestaging with a safety briefing takes place at the bridge before shooters walk out to the range.
• Misses: A shooter may take a second shot at a missed single target but at no time may fire more than two shots at any given station during a scored presentation.

Team Ties

In the event that two or more teams in skeet or trap tie for one or more placings, a shoot-off is held. Each trap team chooses a representative and shoots a complete round. Skeet teams shoot doubles at stations three, four, and five. Team ties in sporting clays are broken by using the longest run from the final target.

Individual Ties

Individual ties in skeet are broken by shooting doubles at stations three, four, and five on the skeet range. Individual ties in trap are broken by shooting complete rounds of twenty-five targets until the tie is broken. Individual ties in sporting clays are broken by using the longest run from the final target.

Protests

Any questions regarding the rules, including protests and appeals, are directed to the event rules committee consisting of the match director and/or a representative of the State 4-H SAFE committee. All decisions by the rules committee are final.

Directions

Red Eagle Skeet & Trap Club, 332 Hollywood Boulevard, Childersburg, Alabama 35044

From Birmingham

Take Hwy. 280 East to Childersburg. After crossing the Childersburg Veterans Memorial Bridge, turn left at the first traffic signal onto Hwy. 235N. Proceed 1.2 miles and turn right onto Pinecrest Avenue. After crossing the railroad tracks, immediately turn left onto Hollywood Boulevard. Proceed approximately 200 yards and look to the right for the Red Eagle sign.

From I-65 South

North of Clanton, take AL Hwy. 145 to Wilsonville. Turn right on AL Hwy. 25. Turn right on AL Hwy. 76 and follow to US 280. Turn right on US 280, cross Childersburg Veterans Memorial Bridge, and turn left at the first traffic light (AL Hwy. 235N). Proceed 1.2 miles and turn right onto Pinecrest Avenue. After crossing the railroad tracks, immediately turn left onto Hollywood Boulevard. Proceed approximately 200 yards and look to the right for the Red Eagle sign.

From Auburn

Follow US 280 West to Childersburg. Turn right on AL Hwy. 235N. Proceed 1.2 miles and turn right onto Pinecrest Avenue. After crossing the railroad tracks, immediately turn left onto Hollywood Boulevard. Proceed approximately 200 yards and look for the Red Eagle sign.

From Talladega

Take Hwy. 21 South approximately 10 miles and then take Hwy. 76 West (Desoto Cavern Parkway) approximately 10 miles to Hwy. 280. Turn right on Hwy. 280 and proceed to the next traffic signal and turn right on Hwy. 235N. Proceed 1.2 miles and turn right onto Pinecrest Ave. After crossing the railroad tracks, immediately turn left onto Hollywood Boulvard. Proceed approximately 200 yards and look to the right for the Red Eagle sign.

From Red Eagle to Selwood Farms

Selwood Farms (Sporting Clays), 706 Selwood Road, Alpine, Alabama 35014

Drive out to the paved road and turn left on Hollywood Boulevard. Turn left onto Pinecrest Drive and take the first right onto Hillcrest Lane. At the dead end turn left onto Forest Hills Drive. At the dead end turn left onto AL 76 for 4 miles, then turn right onto Selwood Road. Go 1⁄2 mile to the stone gate on the right. Parking is on the left across from the entrance. (Selwood road is a public access road. Please be aware of traffic at all times.)

 

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Shannon Andress, 4-H Foundation Regional Extension Agent, Auburn University

Revised January 2023, Shotgun 2023 State 4-H SAFE Championship, 4HYD-2131-E