Sandpoint Gun Club competes in local trap shoots

SANDPOINT — Five men with shotguns were lined up on Sunday morning at the Sandpoint Gun Club in Sagle, competing in the 94th Annual Spokesman Review Trap Shoot.

“Pull,” called the first shooter, quickly followed by the boom of a shot gun.

“Pull,” called the next shooter, whose voice activated the automated pull system that launched a green “clay pigeon” into an empty field.

“Pull,” once again followed by a shotgun blast and green explosion more than 100 yards away.

“Aaarggghh,” grunted the fourth shooter, as the unusual prompt of Sandpoint 85-year-old Doyle Crendell preceded another exploding green clay disc on the horizon.

“Pull,” called the final shooter in the line, whose blast ended the fifth and final rotation of the round.

“Five, five, five, four, four,” said the official club scorer.

Out of the 25 clay discs launched like so many Nolan Ryan fastballs, 23 were blown to smithereens.

A dozen members of the Sandpoint Gun Club were on hand, using the honor system to simultaneously compete against clubs from all over the Northwest in the popular Spokane-based trap shooting competition.

When the two-round competition was finished, the top four scores of Mike Thurmond, Doug Bottcher, Charlie Elliott and Crendell added up to 93 out of a possible 100. For Crendell, who has been trap shooting since 1948, it was all about the competition and fun.

“Trying to get the 25,” said the surprisingly consistent sharp shooter of what he loves most. “At my age I’m having a hell of a time.”

While 93 is a decent club score, many of the clubs with far more members will post perfect 100’s, said Sandpoint member Louis Dash.

The Sandpoint club has just 25 members, and shoots every Sunday, from 9 a.m. to around noon at the range off Gun Club Road. The 12 on hand for the Spokane competition was a far bigger turnout than normal, and the club is hoping to get more people out.

Bottcher said consistency and practice are two big keys to success, and called upon a couple other sports for comparison.

“It’s kind of like golf or bowling — everything has to be the same,” described Bottcher. “There are a lot of variables that can screw you up.”

The competition is akin to best ball in golf, where each member of the club shoots 50 shots, and only the top four scores count. Sandpoint’s Mike Thurmond says the camaraderie of the club is what he enjoys most, calling it really low key.

Thurmond, who nailed 24 or 25 shots in his first round, said a few fundamentals are common in most great shooters.

“Standing still on the line, mounting the gun and looking down field,” described Thurmond, noting relaxing is maybe the biggest key. “If you miss one, don’t worry about it.”

The Sandpoint club will be one of a handful of clubs from North Idaho competing in the 2012 Big Sky Postal Trap Shoot, hosted by the Noxon and Thompson Falls clubs, which takes place every Sunday from Jan. 15 through March 4.

For more information on the Sandpoint Gun Club, contact Louis Dash at 290-4018.