High schoolers having fun bustin’ clays

One of the newest, and fastest-growing high school sports in the United States is trapshooting. Students across the country are discovering the fun in the shooting sports and smashing clay targets.

I have friends at Adena High School in Frankfort who are having a blast on the trap range. The Adena Local School District is a sprawling rural district in Ross County.

Given the rural demographics, some might assume shooting is a rural school sport. However, since starting in 2016, there are now more than 50 teams across Ohio. Many are actually competing in suburban and city schools. Some of the schools might be recognized as elite powerhouses in the more traditional football or basketball arenas.

Head coach Kirk Kellis is the driving force behind the creation of Adena's team in 2016.

"We have a lot of community support. We are a school club and not part of the athletics department," Kellis said. “There is a $40 registration fee, which we ask the students to pay. They must also provide a shotgun. We work hard to get sponsorship money from various sources. The sponsorship usually covers the cost of the ammunition and range fees.”

Drew Miner, who stayed to watch and support other team members even though his two daughters had shot earlier, is an enthusiastic parent.

“My oldest daughter is a senior and broke a 49 (out of 50) tonight," he said. "My younger daughter also shoots and plays volleyball. I love getting the girls outdoors. I have always had them in deer blinds and hunting with me."

He continued: "Competing here is a little different from other school sports. The girls are having an enjoyable time. The youngest is a freshman, so this is her first season. She will be back for the spring, when she will do track and trap. Our community provides support for trap. This is a sport where the parents can, in other venues, compete in the same field as their children. That gives trap a unique perspective. My daughter shoots better than me and really enjoys that.”

The trap league is under the direction of USA Clay Target League. The teams are a club activity approved by the high schools but, according to USA Clay Target, must have permission to use the school’s name. Of course, no guns are taken to school.

Because each team competes at a local range, with scores electronically submitted by the coach, there is no expense to the school district. The trap league is different from the normal school conferences, as teams do not compete within the OHSAA conferences. The trap conferences instead are organized according to the number of students participating.

Adena's trap has 15 students competing, so they are in Conference 2. Ten or fewer participants would be a Conference 1 team, with five total conferences offered. They shoot two evenings per week, with 50 targets each night. Only the best score of the two nights is submitted; however, scores cannot be mixed between the nights. All targets are shot from the 16-yard, or singles, distance. Eye and ear protection is required.

A variety of basic field guns and actual trap guns have been designed for the sport. All students were shooting 12-gauge shotguns. Students must complete the USA Clay Target safety training or the state hunter education training.

The Adena team shoots at the local private Mid States Gun Club, and other teams shoot at public ranges in their area.

As I watched Adena's team shoot one evening, I was quickly impressed with the gun safety and shooting form of these young competitors. These are particularly good shooters. I was amused at how quickly various shooting superstitions have taken hold. One young lady inserts all her shells with the name up, as if reading the headstamp. Some shooters use bags to collect the empty hulls for later use, although all new shells are used in the competition. If a target is missed, it is discarded as though it were somehow defective.

The crowd supporting the team is as mixed as the team itself. There were several moms and grandmothers supporting their shooters. They were all silently hoping for good scores, with an occasional groan heard as an apparently “easy” target might be missed. There was plenty to cheer about at the end of the fall season. Lake Kellis is ranked fifth; Laney Miner is 14th.

Erica Kelis notes, “My husband is the coach. He loves trapshooting; he loves the kids and especially watching them grow throughout the season. He puts a lot of heart into the team. He is already gathering with sponsors for the spring season. I was not a shooter while my husband was. Our oldest son began shooting when the team formed. I have watched a lot of shooting. I have shot when they hold the fun shoot at the end of the season. I did not shoot well, but I gave it a go. I had fun.”

Grandmother Karen DeWhitt is following three special team members — grandson Lake Kellis, great-nephew Davis Lane, and special friend Kayle Drum.

“It is wonderful to support the young people," DeWhitt said. "They got me to shoot at the season-ending fun shoot. It was fun. I love going to the high school state shoot each spring at Black Wing Shooting Center (in Delaware). It is wonderful to see all the young shooters from across the state."

Added coach Kellis, “My youngest will graduate this year. I love it so much, I am going to keep coaching if there are kids who want to shoot. We have freshmen coming out every year to keep it going. I will support anyone who wants to get involved. It is the most fun thing I have ever been involved in doing. On our very first night, it was pouring rain. We were all soaking wet. After the shooting was completed, I asked the kids who want to keep doing this. Every hand went up. They were all having fun and wanted to keep shooting.”

This Adena team is a great representative of the fun of trapshooting.

The Ohio State High School Clay Target League, under the banner of the USA Clay Target League, offers a great learning opportunity about the sport. Anyone wanting to know more about the sport or starting a team can find information at oh.usaclaytarget.com/teams. Teams, coaches, and contact information are available.

Outdoor writer and hunter education instructor Larry S. Moore is a longtime volunteer leader for Buckeye Firearms Association and winner of the 2005 USSA Patriot Award, the 2007 League of Ohio Sportsmen/Ohio Wildlife Federation Hunter Educator of the Year, and the 2010 National Wild Turkey Federation/ Women in the Outdoors Hunter Education Instructor of the Year.