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The SCTP program had it's first official practice Sunday, 2/8/09.

It was windy and.......it was cold! The place was an ice rink. The terrain was frozen as solid as concrete........but the traps all worked. Ron Robinson and Bert Stambaugh, moving tons of snow in the process, had again plowed open the circle track around the field to each trap. Saturdays thaw and the overnight freeze had frozen the plowed berms as solid as ice and the kids hacked away until we had decent entry ways into the traps.

The first practice is always an eye-opener with the new kids. One diminutive little guy gamely stood in the #5 cage and fired shot after shot at bird #4 to no avail. He got lots of personal attention from Noel and Trina, but just could not get on target. Stoic, solemn, he stood in there, he didn't quit. He was cold, his arms were tired (His Dad was shaking, snot dripping from his nose). We were tired, hands freezing, backs hurt, slipping and sliding all over the place. To be honest, from the start we adults probably all would rather have stayed home where it was warm.

Right at the end this same little squirt asks "can I try again, just one more time?"

He smashed it! Center hit! Smile on his face from ear to ear! Little thing, big payback. The value of some things cannot be measured in dollars.

Noel Hutton and I attended an SCTP clinic in Grand Rapids last Saturday, 2/7.

Beyond shooting a little skeet and five-stand and learning some new techniques and suggestions in the process from nationally ranked skeet and sporting clays instructors, we also had the opportunity to meet face-to-face with persons from the state SCTP program. This was good for a number of reasons; getting to be on a first name basis being just one of them.

To some extent locally, we may be victims of our own success in that last year we had 10 SCTP participants and the kids did very well. This year we've still got the same 10 and also 10 new kids who also signed up. We'll simply have to manage what we have relative to our budget. SCTP will not be a financial burden to The Club but, as last year, we are asking for founder/member donations to the program......money, ammunition, eye/ear protection, clothing/shooting accoutrements, services, etc. All SCTP funds are maintained as a separate line item in the Club treasury and are not co-mingled with club monies. Additionally, this year, each kid will also be responsible for generating revenue. The coaching staff will help manage this process, but the kids will each have goals to reach. SCTP will sustain itself, or it will not exist.

The biggest goal for the team this year is to represent COLSC at the National SCTP Championships in Sparta, Illinois later this summer. At this point we are a long ways, financially, from being able to do that.

One of the goals set by the founders when COLSC was started was to develop a program to encourage and bring local youth into the shooting sports. SCTP currently is that vehicle. If we don't do that we will without a doubt see the shooting sports continue to diminish, eventually to the point of non-existence. This would please a certain myopic segment of our society. We are all sensitive to the fact that generally speaking our local communities and our year round population are not known for their affluence. We don't need any Rah! Rah! Sis-boom-ba!.......flag waving, or Mom's apple pie, to stimulate a positive response to this club goal; we're all well aware of our personal responsibilities to our families first and, then only where we are able, to others.

SCTP will accept any help that can be given and we would like to thank everyone ahead of time for their consideration. Donations may be sent to Treasurer John Thumm, COLSC, Box 765, Bellaire, MI 49615, for "The SCTP Program".

July 11, Saturday, SCTP State Championships, Michigan Trap Shooting Association, Mason, MI