Trap Talk Ep. 156 – Weston Anderson: 2025 Autumn Grand HOA Champion & Junior All-American

Summary

---

Trap Talk From The Back Fence

Episode 156 – Weston Anderson: 2025 Autumn Grand HOA Champion & Junior All-American
Date: December 26, 2025
Hosts: Zach Nannini & Richard Marshall Jr.
Guest: Weston Anderson

---

Episode Overview

In this engaging episode, hosts Zach and Ricky sit down with rising trapshooting star Weston Anderson, the 2025 Autumn Grand HOA Champion and Junior All-American. The conversation covers Weston’s rapid ascent in the sport, his approach to practice and mental toughness, equipment choices, the challenges of balancing ambitions with youth, and his vision for the future. Laced with humor and camaraderie, the episode offers valuable insights for both aspiring and seasoned shooters.

---

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Weston’s Background & Rapid Rise

• Hometown & Origins:

  • Weston comes from Nyssa, Oregon (famously, the New York Sheep Shearing Association town—"and it ain't in New York" [01:30]).
  • Started trapshooting at age 10; began competing ATA at 13.
  • Now, at 17, he’s won multiple Oregon state titles and achieved Sub-Junior and Junior All-American status.

• Grand Slam & Major Achievements:

  • Captured the Western Zone Singles by beating John Mullins in a shoot-off.
  • Recently won the Autumn Grand HOA Championship; only shooting ATA for about four years.
  • Completed his Grand Slam, with the final doubles leg at Vernal, Utah, on a windy day (03:04–03:32).

• On Rapid Progression:

  “How the hell do you start at 13 and get so good so fast?...You made the All American team your first year shooting ATA, made the state team the first year…the top two, top three in your category in the country." – Zach (08:31)

  • Weston credits lots of practice, traveling early to large shoots for steep learning experiences, and guidance from seasoned club coaches (09:20–10:50).

2. Building Skills: Practice & Mindset

• Practice Philosophy:

  • Focuses on consistency, hitting the center of the target, and using extra full chokes in practice to reveal weaknesses (16:10–16:56).
  • Shoots mostly handicap and doubles in practice; believes mastering handicap smooths out singles as well.

  “If you practice a lot of handicap, get your movement right for handicap and you’re smooth for handicap, you’ll be smooth for singles.” – Weston (16:53)

• Choke Preferences:

  • Shoots modified for singles, full for handicap; finds full chokes keep him precise and discourage "spray and pray" shooting (17:20–19:37).

  “If you're shooting like super fast…your pattern can still have holes in it.” – Ricky (18:39) “I want to get better, not just make it easier.” – Weston (19:36)

• Equipment Experiments:

  • Switched recently from a custom-stock Kohler shotgun to a K80 Trap Special.
  • Built his own custom stock by hand—literally whittled it to fit, showing his hands-on, DIY approach (27:38–29:34).

  “Pretty much just whittling on it, truthfully, till it was comfortable…and mount it and shoot it for like three or four weeks…” – Weston (28:00)

• Gun Fit Importance:

  • Hosts and Weston stress the critical nature of custom gun fit for breaking big scores (31:13).

  “I think Gunfit is the most important thing.” – Ricky (31:27)

3. Mental Traits & Overcoming Challenges

• Competitiveness:

  • Played baseball as a kid—attributes his hand-eye coordination and focus to both sports (11:29–12:02).
  • Describes early transition to high-level travel shooting as “pushing himself out of his comfort zone,” which rapidly accelerated his development (09:55–11:05).

• Dealing with Slumps:

  • For young shooters facing early success, warns against quitting when the inevitable slump hits—“There is a light at the end of the tunnel” (72:43).
  • Hosts reinforce the theme of resilience and sustained effort through ups and downs.

  “This is a sport where, you know, you’re only as good as your last event. And you could last shot, last shot, right?” – Zach (74:03)

4. Life Outside the Trap Line

• Hunting and Outdoor Life:

  • Weston is an avid outdoor sportsman—pheasant, chukar, quail, antelope, elk, and deer hunting (08:04).
  • Loves fishing on the Snake River; helps with the family’s farm business.

• Coaching and Community:

  • Coaches at his local club and helps new shooters, both young and old, break their first 25-straight (45:00–45:30).

  “Even some of the new older shooters…[she] just broke her first 25, so that was pretty cool.” – Weston (45:24)

5. Equipment Deep Dive

• Guns and Setups:

  • Custom K80 Trap Special (now), formerly Kohler with homebuilt stock.
  • Standard blue receiver for uniqueness ("I wanted something that not everybody and their dog had." [33:28])
  • 34" unsingle, 32" O/U barrel lengths—extra length suits his 6'4" build.

• Ammo Choices:

  • Remington STS for singles/doubles; Double A Super Handicap for handicap.
  • Struggles to source heavy handicap loads locally due to sporting clays preference in the area (38:29–39:29).

  “An important thing…I learned as well [is] if you do switch ammo, practice with it like you just got a new gun…” (39:43)

• Gun Setup:

  • 80/20 point of impact on all events for natural swing, particularly in unpredictable wind (35:49–37:24).

6. Tournament Scheduling, College, and Future Goals

• Travel & Team Building:

  • Travels with his mom to major shoots; dad joins when able (58:04).
  • Girlfriend, also a top shooter, partners up at events.

• Shoots Planned:

  • Spring Grand, Southern Grand (Florida), Vernal Western Grand, possibly Pennsylvania and Ohio State Shoots, ATA Grand (67:25–68:10).

• Education, Career, and Life Beyond Shooting:

  • Finishing homeschool early; college a possibility but undecided (46:46–47:32).
  • Interested in business/accounting, possibly to run his own future venture.

  "College seems to be not in the mindset at the very moment. But I’m not close to it." – Weston (46:46) “Some of the richest people I know didn’t go to college.” – Zach (52:02)

• Shooting Goals:

  • Gunning for Junior All-American Team Captain and AAA-27-AAA pin status, with tough competition ahead from peer Wyatt (59:17–59:39).

---

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On Outgrowing T-ball:

  “I did T ball for a really long time, and then I got too big, but my age wasn’t right, so I was too big but too young…” – Weston (11:33–12:01)

• On Being Misjudged for Age:

  “He kind of walks around and Barrett looks up and he looks way up there and he says, ‘You mean I gotta shoot against him?’” – Zach, on shoot-off with then-15-year-old, 6’2” Weston (13:44)

• Weston's Approach to Shooting

  “Making sure your gun fits the same whether you gain 25 pounds or lost 25 pounds…then it’s just natural and you can be precise because it’s just naturally you’re swinging to that target.” – Weston (21:37)

• Advice for New Shooters:

  “Younger shooters…will shoot good the first time they ever go out and then they struggle…and then they’re like, well, I don’t know if I want to do this anymore…just stay in it and don’t give up because there is a light at the end of the tunnel.” – Weston (72:35)

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Weston’s Introduction & Early Career: 01:16–04:40
• Practice Philosophy & Coaching: 09:20–10:50
• Memorable Shoot-off/Outgrowing T-ball: 13:44–12:02
• Gun Fit & Equipment Discussion: 27:38–31:27
• Ammo, Practice, and Consistency: 38:29–40:26
• Tournament Scheduling, College & Future Plans: 46:46–47:32, 67:25–68:10
• Advice to Young Shooters: 72:35–74:20

---

Closing Takeaways

• Focus on Quality, Not Quantity: Consistent, targeted practice on weaknesses with the right equipment (and proper gun fit) is more important than just rounds downrange.
• Mental Resilience is Key: Both Weston and the hosts emphasize perseverance through inevitable slumps—success is built on what happens between the wins.
• Community Matters: Weston’s story is a testament to the power of mentorship and supportive club environments.
• The Next Generation: Weston is as committed to helping new shooters as he is to pursuing his titles—a promising ambassador for the sport.
• Looking Ahead: As he plans for bigger goals and potential college teams, Weston’s work ethic, humility, and adaptability suggest the best is yet to come.

---

Acknowledgements

Weston gives thanks to:

• Meridian Shields (ID)
• Shameless Game Totes
• 80 Below Sporting Oil
• His parents (“Dad supplies the money, so the key’s the key bailing.” [74:29])
• His girlfriend, Alexis

---

For listeners, this episode offers a compelling portrait of trapshooting success achieved through hard work, smart practice, and grit—plus a lot of laughs along the way.

Transcript

[A]

J.

[B]

Welcome to season three of Trap Chop.

[A]

Brought to you by Craig off the Choice of Champions.

[B]

Hello Trap Doc listeners. I'm your host, Zach Nini. Thank you for tuning in this Friday. I've got my co host Richard Marshall Jr. The one and only coming from Lincoln, Nebraska. And our good friend and shooter, Weston Anderson. How are you, Weston?

[C]

Good. How about you guys?

[B]

Oh, it's, it's a good day to be alive other than it's a little cold outside.

[C]

It is a little.

[A]

Yeah, it's a. It's a little, little chill here, a little windy, but I. I don't think it's. Yesterday was nice and the day before wasn't bad, but. Yeah, it's gonna get cold this weekend.

[B]

Oh, it's gonna be a nasty one. I'm not going to be outside, that's for sure. No, no clay pigeons for me this weekend. Yeah, so. So Rick, would you mind introducing Weston with his accolades for the people that might not know who he is even though he is winning all over the country. So I'm sure a lot of they.

[A]

They know who he is, but we'll, we'll go ahead with this. So Western hails from Nyssa, Oregon. N Y S S A and it is the New York Sheep. What is it?

[C]

Sheep Shearing Association.

[A]

Sheep Shearing association, that's the name of the town folks. And it ain't in New York. So.

[C]

No.

[A]

But he hails from there west. Has been shooting trap since he was 10, but only ata about the last four years, since he was about 13. He's 17 years old. He's was a sub Junior All American, now a junior All American and he's won five plus Oregon state titles. One of his biggest accolades though was the Western Zone Singles which he did beat our, our good friend John Mullins in that shoot off, we found out. But just recently he did win the Autumn Grand HOA Championship, which is a big deal. I wasn't there to witness it, but I heard all about it because my host here, Zach, was the roux in that event, which is.

[B]

Hey, we were, we were, we were gunning for that title into Sunday's handicap. And me and him were kind of like, it's probably going to be one of us. I mean we're right there. Sean Hawley was right there too. It was the three of us. But, but I mean it was tight. You know how it is. It's always one, it's always one bird in the last day. And he shot, he shot great on Sunday. So you, you gotta, you gotta, got to give it to the guy who shoots great on Sunday.

[A]

Absolutely. And, Zach, you. As in the. In the words of Rich Bullard, the mustard slipped off the hot dog on you.

[B]

It didn't slip that bad. He just shot better. I had. I think I had a. I had a. A 90. 94 in the. Handy 94 in the handicap, but 94, okay, he had a 96, and that's just a little bit better for the folks that I.

[A]

But Weston does have his Grand Slam already. So with only shooting three and a half, four years, and to achieve your Grand Slam in that short period of time is a. Is a huge accomplishment, of course. But it took him the last leg, the doubles, which he achieved at the Utah State shoot. Which was it? If I'm not mistaken, that was at Vernal last year. Was it?

[C]

It was.

[A]

So in Vernal, as we know, great place to shoot, but it can't be a tough place to shoot.

[C]

Yeah, so actually it was pretty windy, the. The doubles as well, so it was a bit of a challenge, but nice.

[B]

That sometimes with the doubles being windy, that's the day where you actually pay attention. You break them, I mean, because they're.

[A]

They're.

[B]

They're moving around and you're. You're not just, you know, spot shooting them. I know a lot of people, you know, you get kind of lulled into that. That perfect set of target, and you're just, pop, pop. And then, you know, I've seen people where they're moving around a little bit and you have to watch them, and that's when you're actually, you know, making shots, you know, giving credit to. To Tyler the other day, I remember he broke that. That score in the fall handicap. And it was one of those days where they were moving around, and I'm like, you know, this is a day where if you're paying attention, you can really, you know, you can really pop them. That's for sure.

[A]

But, yeah, I wasn't there to witness that. I was teaching.

[B]

I was. I. So I was there.

[A]

Called me, he said they were sporty. Just so you. Yeah, no, he.

[B]

He did good. Back to you, Weston. What I want to know is how you got started and from the ages of 10 to 13, how did you make the transition to the ATA?

[C]

So I started with a small. It was actually a hundred. Safety. Hunter safety gathering. It was all the kids in the area that did the hunter safety class. And one of my dad's buddies was like, hey, you should send him over there and we'll have some Fun. And I shot fairly well for never shooting trap before. I had hunted my whole life before that. I mean, since I could hold a shotgun, I was shooting stuff. So I walked out there and I shot good and I was hooked. Seriously. Always asking to go to the range. Always asking to shoot. The transition from 10 to 13, the range was more of. It was more of a fun activity instead of a sporting competition aspect. And I went to. In Boise, Idaho, I went to a ATA shoot. It was a pata shoot, actually. And I did fairly well. I won a couple of my first trophies and stuff like that. And I thought, you know what, I think I want to pursue this. And then I, I started going to like Walla Walla, Washington and stuff like that, closer shoots, and started just getting better and better and better and decided to really get after it. And that's, that's when I started traveling.

[A]

So you started at the, your first shoot was at the Boise, Idaho Gun Club?

[C]

Yeah, my first.

[A]

Oh, nice.

[C]

Real, real shoot.

[A]

Real, real registered shoot. Yep, that, that's a. I've shot there. I shot the Idaho State shoot there one year. So it was a kind of an older laid back club.

[C]

Yep. That's only about 45 minutes from my house. So it's.

[A]

Oh, okay. So you live then you live right on the, the Oregon or border there, I guess.

[C]

Snake River. Yep, I'm right on the Snake River.

[B]

So is there a lot of good.

[A]

Fishing right there, Kelly?

[C]

There is a lot of really good fishing I love.

[B]

So fishing, duck hunting, all that stuff's kind of right where you are.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

So everybody's gonna want to be your friend after this episode, huh, Weston? Yeah, I guess so.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Just remember who's first.

[B]

Yeah. If you had a blind, you won't have much room for anybody else if me and Ricky get in there. But you know, it'll be all right.

[A]

Yeah, you better be a big blind.

[B]

We'll bring snacks. We bring Slim Jims and stuff.

[A]

So we're good.

[C]

Turn a three person into a two person.

[B]

Yeah, it gets a little tight.

[A]

Zach will be on the outside.

[B]

Yeah, I'll block, I'll block cover for you. You won't feel any cold wear air come through the blind.

[A]

Are you, how far are you from, like Caldwell, Idaho?

[C]

Like 30 minutes.

[A]

Really?

[C]

Yep.

[A]

Okay. That's our buddy, Dave Kelly, lives by there.

[B]

Our good friend who hailed from Byron, California, but now he's up there smoking ducks left and right. We're gonna have to have a duck hunting episode with Dave Kelly because he's, he's he's apparently pounding pretty good up there, so. Good for him.

[A]

He is. I talk. I actually was on the phone with him last night, so.

[C]

Yeah, just opened for Oregon, so it's. It's starting to get a war zone out here.

[B]

Do you hunt?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yep. What's your. What's your preferred hunt? Are you, like, more deer, more ducks, pheasants, chucker? Like, what's your thing if you. If you could pick one?

[C]

Pheasants, chucker and quail. That's my upland. Seems to be my favorite. But I. I like killing everything. I mean, I. I got an antelope mount on the wall up here, and. And just elk, deer, antelope, pretty much everything. Everything get a tag for.

[B]

Well, there you go. So you like to hear a true outdoorsman, if you could say so, yeah.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Well, that's. That's a wonderful. We love to have that on the show and hear more about it. So. You know, what I'm trying to wrap my head around, and I'm sure other people listening are trying to wrap their head around how the hell do you start at 13 and get so good so fast? I mean, because immediately, from what I heard from Ricky's, you know, acknowledgments of your accolades. You made the all American team your first year shooting the ata. You made the state team the first year shooting the ata, and you haven't missed it since. And you've only had three seasons. And, you know, correct me if I'm wrong, but I would say you're, you know, top two, top three in your category in the country. I mean, consistently. Right? I mean, so you're. You're right where you need to be.

[A]

How.

[B]

What do you. What do you attribute that success to? It is. Is it a practice regimen? Is it natural ability? What. You know, what do you think in your mind?

[C]

It definitely is a lot of practice. I mean, a lot of practice. But I definitely think it comes down to. Instead of. I kind of jumped into it so fast, like, I started traveling, started learning all this stuff instantly. I mean, learning stuff that I like. If I stayed around the area and shot salt, small shoots for two years, I wouldn't have known. I mean, yeah, I went Caldwell, Boise, Walla Walla, Montana. I mean, it was just, like, almost instantly started going way out from, you know, the area and I think.

[A]

Out of your comfort zone.

[C]

Yes. I think that kind of pushed me into, you know, healthy practice habits, healthy mindsets, learning things faster than I normally would if I was just staying around, you know, that's definitely an aspect, but I got a couple really good coaches in the area that are just old guys who know what they're talking about, and they pushed me hard to success. I mean, they. They don't let me be lazy or nothing like that. Did a lot.

[A]

Do you work with them occasionally or is it just, you know, when you see them. What. What's your. Your ro.

[C]

It was more just when I started. They kind of got me started, pushed me to go. Push me to practice, do all this. And now I. I go over there and it's. It's the Weezer Trap and Ski Club in Idaho is where I go to. And it's tiny, tiny 12 traps and it's, you know, in a hole.

[A]

Weezer. Where's that located at?

[C]

So, you know, Ontario, Oregon. Yeah, it's about 20 minutes up from Ontario in. Right on the board.

[A]

Right on the board.

[C]

Yep.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

So they pushed me really hard. I think they pushed me out of my comfort zone faster than I would be out of my comfort zone, which also helped me improve faster.

[B]

So.

[A]

So in relation to that, Weston, is it so out of your comfort zone? Have you always been competitive? Growing up, did you play other sports or is it just, you know, what's your. Your background on that?

[C]

I played some baseball. I was good at that too.

[A]

So hand eye coordination.

[C]

Hand eye coordination. A lot of hand eye coordination. I. I love batting. That was my favorite thing to do. And they actually. I did T ball for a really long time, and then I got too big, but my age wasn't right, so I was too big. I was too young, so they. I couldn't play the next. Let the next step up. So I started.

[A]

No more T ball.

[C]

Exactly.

[A]

Well, good thing is I'm still playing T ball, but it's okay.

[B]

You know what, it just helps me hit it better, you know. But. But here's for the listeners that maybe haven't seen you, Weston. You know, you're a pretty big kid. How tall are you?

[C]

I'm six four.

[B]

So I. I've got.

[A]

He was almost looking over Rich Bullard.

[B]

So I've got to go on a little sidetrack tangent because I think it's a hilarious story and I have to tell it. So he. You are six' four now, but when I seen you the first time as a sub junior, that. And. And I think it was in Iowa. We had. We had gotten in a TV shoot off, I think, at the. At the Heartland Grand a couple years ago now. How. How tall were you then? About six, six Two. Okay, so, yeah, so, so the story is about Barrett and, you know, Barrett Debris. He's, he's as, he's as good and cool and fun of a kid as I've ever met. And I love Barrett. Right? And, and he's a good shot. And you came around as a sub junior at the time, and you know, to look at him a couple of years ago when he was a sub junior, he kind of looks like he does now. He had a full beard and, and, you know, he's 6 foot 2. And Barrett's saying, who's this Weston Anderson kid? And when we, when he sees him and he kind of walks around and he looks up and he looks way up there and he says, you mean I gotta shoot against him? And, you know, because, because I would tell you, you, you, you did not by any means look like a sub.

[A]

Junior, let alone a junior.

[B]

I said, this guy's a junior. I was about to invite you to the bar with me and go get a drink after our shoot off and, and say, hey, this junior gold over, he's probably 22, you know, and, and we got done with the shoot off and somebody told me you were 15. And I said, and then Barrett said that, and I just, I busted out laughing because it was just, it was hilarious the way he delivered it, because, you know, Barrett, you know, he's, he's, he's, he's obviously growing. But yeah, at the time, he was.

[A]

He ain't growing that much.

[B]

He's, he's moving, he's moving on up. But I just thought it was, it was funny because I, I would say you're probably, That I can remember was the biggest, you know, sub junior that I've seen in a long time as far as height wise, size wise, and all that stuff goes. But Derek Stringer. Well, yeah, I, I, I wasn't around when he was a sub junior. That was pre, pre Zack junior.

[A]

Derek was just like Weston. Everybody thought they were like 25. That's the same thing. Tyler's the same way. Tyler's got a full beard and stuff. He's got more hair in his face that I do, you know, And I'm like. And people are like, oh, you know, your son, does he want a beer? And I'm like, he's 17, he's 18, he's 12.

[B]

Yeah, we can't do that.

[C]

He's 12. Yeah.

[B]

No, that's, that's funny.

[A]

That is funny, though.

[B]

So, so for you, Weston, I want to circle back. You, you, you said you attributed your Success to practice.

[A]

Hey Zach, have you been out to 73 Pointers Ranch lately?

[B]

You know I have. Rick and Carla Burke have been great. I normally hunt pheasants and chukar down there, but now they got a brand new sporting clays facility and it is top notch. I shot it the other day, absolutely loved it. And if you guys haven't, you need to go give it a check out.

[A]

We'll have to come out and do a little hunting and we'll shoot some sporty clays then.

[B]

45 minutes from St. Louis Airport. Come see it if you haven't. Guys, check them out. Hey folks, if you're wondering where you can get your merch, head on down to shop.traptalkpodcast.com yes folks, you can get.

[A]

Half hats, T shirts, sweatshirts. They even have a ladies tank, shooters, towels. We might have some new stuff coming out for the 20, 26 year. Who knows?

[B]

We got all the swag. Head on down to the website. Thank you so much for being trap talk supportive.

[A]

Thanks everyone.

[B]

What did practice look like for you? Were you doing, you know, specific drills? Were you shooting singles, doubles and handicap equally or you just working? Like, I'm going to go work on post one today. I'm going to work on post five today. I'm going to work on, you know, whatever it is I was trying to do. Like what did practice look like?

[C]

So it was a lot of consistency practice like. And that came down to if I was struggling on a post, breaking a target, breaking it different every single time. Like if I broke the back or broke the front, broke the top. I work on hitting center and that's, that's a big thing for me is, is like that's, when I practice, I shoot a extra full choke. I want to know exactly where my patterns at and adjust to the target, how I break it, how it, how I move to it and practice look like that. I mean I would, I rarely shoot singles now. I mainly just shoot handicap and doubles. I feel like if you practice a lot of handicap, get your movement right for handicap and you're smooth for handicap, you'll be smooth for singles. And that's my opinion.

[B]

I'm gonna write that down.

[A]

I knew Zach was gonna say that. Don't be giving him any help.

[B]

If I, if I take, if I take that joke, then you can't use it against me. So I just, I just jump, I just jump on that hand grenade every time.

[A]

Well, Weston, so what are you shooting? So in the event, what do you shoot for? A choke for singles and handicap.

[C]

So I usually shoot a modified for singles, but all of Tucson I shot a full shot a full for handicap and singles. And then how'd it work? Extremely well. Extremely well. I think, I think it, it helped a lot with not being sloppy. I think.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

If you, if you open up and you're shooting singles and you start chipping and chunking, you're like, ow. Well, I hit it anyway. You start to miss one or two here and there because you're sloppy.

[A]

Yeah, no, you are correct on that. And let's talk about that for a quick second. Zach. That's, you know, we just had Robert Hyde on the show and he talked about, you know, the, the 25,000ths choke roughly being, you know, one of the best chunks of singles, which is a light improved mod and a Craig off. So it's a two plus. And I think you get a good pattern. I like the full and I'm always going to stick to a full because of that reason of being precise and y. Because in your head and nothing gets our good friend Mitchell Loveless. But Mitchell always shot him a mod singles and he always used to say, I spray the target. Just kind of throwing it out there. Well, it's one of those of if you're shooting like super fast. Yeah. But you still, your pattern can still have holes in it.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

And, and that's the one thing where I think, you know, and you practice with a super full. That's the old Ryan Glow strategy, you know, But Ryan used to shoot a super full for everything too. But you know, that foal, it makes you aware of your barrel to the target, you know, acquisition. And that's one of the things where I, I think if you're gun shoot where you're looking and shooting that full choke, you can see that target and you go after it and you're going to be more in control versus I got that mod in. Let's just snapshot it.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, 100. I mean, you know, I, and that.

[B]

Is, you know, I 100 agree with that. I think there's more good lessons learned from shooting tighter chokes than there is. Yes. From shooting looser chokes. And what you said was the appropriate answer. The answer is I'm not doing it because it's easier. I'm doing it because I want to get better.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Better.

[B]

And so if you want to get better, folks. Well, in anything in life you want to, you want to, you know, push yourself to the highest level or, or, or train a little bit harder, make it to where you're like, okay, I can break this target where I want to break it to. To give some credit, when we were down in Tucson shooting the singles, the. The last hundred we shot, because I. I got to shoot with Weston. It was the first time shooting together, and we had a great time. It was a fantastic squad. We had a lot of fun. We won a lot of trophies. And. And, you know, in that wind, that last 50 targets that we shot, they were everywhere. You know, they were. They were up, they were down, and there was a couple of them that, you know, every member on the squad didn't really hit that hard, but it was because the targets were really jumping in and out of the zone. But, you know, everyone was pointing where they should be and where, you know, where you want them to be, where they are.

[C]

And.

[B]

And I think that if you're used to shooting loose on a day like that, where everything's moving up and down, you don't have. You don't have that ability to go, you know, grab a target out. I seen he broke. Weston broke one that was probably, I don't know, 10ft off the ground. And it wasn't 10ft off the ground because he waited very long. It just caught the wind and went boom. And just kind of hit that elevator. And he hit it, but he was looking at it, and he's like, okay, this is going down. And he made a shot. Versus, like you said, that, that. That spray through the target method. If you'd have used a spray through the target method on that shot, you wouldn't. You wouldn't have hit it. You won't.

[A]

You won't hit targets like that?

[C]

No.

[A]

You can't be precise on them.

[C]

No. The biggest thing, it's like having good movement and good brakes all comes down to knowing exactly where your gun. Gun to eye pattern is. Like, you can't just dive towards a target and just shoot at it. If you don't know, like, if your pattern is not where your eyes looking, it ain't gonna work out. Truthfully.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

I mean, yes. And that's another thing with practice. Making sure. Making sure your gun fits the same whether you gain £25 or lost £25. You have to, you know, get it fit, make sure your eyes where your pattern is, and then you. Then you. It's just natural and you can be precise because it's just naturally you're swinging to that target. Yes.

[A]

Well, and let's talk about guns real quick. So what do you shoot now?

[C]

I'm right now I'm shooting a K80 trap special. Okay.

[A]

What'd you shoot before?

[C]

A Kohler.

[A]

Okay. So you switch from. Is this the first year you switched?

[C]

I've had it for a month.

[A]

So you start. Yeah, that's right. Because you started it at the autumn.

[C]

Right at I guess two. Two months now, the Nevada State shoot.

[A]

Okay. Yeah, I'm sorry. Yeah, you shot it in Nevada. And then. Because at the autumn we shot. I just shot a couple doubles events and the one doubles event we shot together.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

And that. And I've seen that. I thought you had shot a core before and then you were shooting the Katie. So do you like it better? What made you switch?

[C]

I wouldn't. I mean there's really. Truthfully, when it comes down to it, if the gun fits you, you won't really notice. Like if you're just shooting and the gun fits you and you're breaking targets, a different gun isn't, you know, there's not that much difference between a good fitting gun. A good fitting gun. I noticed things different with the trigger on the K80 than the Kohler. The weight was different between the two. I like the weight distribution of the K80. The triggers are a lot smoother, a.

[A]

Lot snappier or in the middle of your hands. In between your hands.

[B]

The balance and the balance. About that a lot on the show with a lot of shooters is the reason why they've gone Craig off is because the weight is distributed between the hands very, very well. Where I think with some other guns out there, it's either back heavy or front heavy.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

And, and I think that, you know that you can make that work if you know what you're doing. But if I was going to say, you know, if you were going to push a broomstick, you know, you want the whole thing to be levelly the same way, not, you know, a big heavy head on the end or a big heavy handle on the back. I mean, you want it to kind of just be like everyone could pick this up and use this. And I think that you want the.

[A]

Weight between your hands.

[B]

The weight between the hands really matters.

[C]

So.

[A]

So you're shooting an unsingle. What's your. What's your over and under length? 34 inch on single 32. Okay.

[B]

Well, yeah, but look at him. He sasquatch. He can.

[A]

I know.

[B]

You know, I know.

[A]

He's like Coach Buller Jr. We were.

[B]

Calling him the white Mamba at freaking Tucson. He's, he's, he's just, he's just a big bugger. I Tell you what. And he just. Amen. Swings that thing around. Most people that we talk to are swinging the 30 inch K80 barrels. I swing the 30s and Ricky shoots, swings the 30s. But there are some out there that still swing the 32s. Doesn't Sean swing 32s, Ricky? Or did he switch?

[A]

I, you know what, remember, he's from California originally, so who knows, you know? No, no, I think, I think he's shooting 30 twos, but I thought he went had a 30 also. I don't know. I'd have to ask Sean.

[B]

We'll have to ask him. I, I thought I remember him saying 32s but know I could be wrong. My memory doesn't always serve me correct. But I, I could tell you Weston didn't have any issue swinging those 32s. He was powdering those doubles. I was like, damn, this kid's just breaking the heck out of these things. And, and was consistent winning the HOA.

[A]

After two months of shooting the. Katie.

[C]

Yeah. You know. Yep. I had about a week of practice before I left the house for the Nevada and.

[A]

Really?

[C]

Yeah. And it was about 500 targets before I left. So I think that the biggest difference was I had built my own custom stock for my Kohler. It was big, it was bulky, it was heavy, and I loved it. I mean I, because I hadn't really shot any other gun. I mean.

[A]

Other gun.

[C]

Yeah, I jumped right into a Kohler shot. And the reason I jumped right into it was it must have been how I was built when I first got my Kohler, how my fit was or whatever. I had mounted a Krieg off and I went, that's weird. It doesn't fit me at all.

[A]

That's weird.

[C]

So I'm like, man, I guess, I guess I'll go with the Kohler because it was the only one I can get to fit me. And over time, I think I just, I think I got more of a natural, normal build. I was built okay all crazy at 13. So as soon as I, you know, fit. Tried to Craig off recently, I was like, man, this is comfortable. This is comfortable. The balance is really good. It swings really nice. The triggers are really smooth. And I'm like, all right. I think, I think I'll. I'll give it a shot. I'll try it.

[B]

I'll try in the Cadillac.

[C]

Yeah. Yeah. So, yeah, I built my own custom stock right before the Western grand in Vernal this year, this last target year. And okay, shot a little bit with it. It wasn't even finished didn't have finish on it or nothing. And I broke my hunter straight from the 27 yard line with it the first shoot. And then I got it finished in between the. That shoot and the Utah State shoot. And shot my first hundred and doubles that Utah State shoot. So I love good shoot. I loved it.

[B]

Good two weeks.

[C]

Yeah, it was great. Yeah, it was great.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So. So when you say you built your own custom stock, I mean, did you go down to Home Depot and get a 2x4 and start whittling or what? What, what are we doing here? Because most people don't take that on as a, as a project, as a.

[A]

As a 16 year old kid.

[B]

So walk us, walk us through where your brain was and how you articulated and what you did and kind of, you know, did you have a blank from somewhere or like.

[C]

Yeah, so I got a. I got a receiver cut through a gunsmith in the area. And it was, it was a cut receiver with a. A rough shape. And I basically just whittled on it, truthfully. Whittled on it, whittled on it. Whittled on it till it fit me exactly how I wanted it to. Got finger grooves and everything. Got the length right and had the gunsmith put an adjustable comb on it because I was growing and I wanted to, you know, have the capability being moved and then I finish it and everything, but pretty much just whittling on it truthfully, till it was comfortable and I would whittle on it and mount it and shoot it and whittle on it and mount it and shoot it and whittle on it. Mount and shoot it for it was like three or four weeks it took me to get it done. And I was.

[A]

What's your length of pole?

[C]

It's. I think it's 15 and a half.

[B]

Oh, I was gonna say like 26 inches. Yeah. Oh, Jesus. He's shooting one of these things. I mean, but it's all right.

[C]

But the Vegas, my hands, my hands are huge. I mean, my hands are giant meat paws. Yeah. Getting, getting a palm swell that fit me right. Getting a, you know, pistol grip that fit me right. My. On my Krieg off right now I have the, the short shoe trigger, so. So I can move it farther forward. And it's moved all the way forward as far as it'll go. And it's still on the back half of my pad.

[A]

Back half there. So you need a custom stock is.

[C]

What you're saying, at some point in time. Yeah, but can't afford that right now, so.

[B]

Yeah. You're gonna start whittling again or.

[C]

Probably not. I. I want to get one professionally done.

[A]

We could call him the whittler.

[B]

Weston Anderson. Customs out of Oregon, takes a while.

[A]

Triple W stock works. Weston the widdler.

[B]

I mean, it's not a bad idea.

[A]

I don't.

[B]

I don't hate it, but it might be hard to complete the orders with that old case pocket knife as you're with stocks. But you know.

[C]

Exactly.

[A]

So when you. So when you switch to the Craig off. Now shooting the factory stock, I mean, how's that feel for you?

[C]

I mean, it fits good. That rollover comb fits me well. Yeah, it fits my face better. I got a big old fat face, so it fits me good. The only thing is, like, the same with my hands. My. The bottom half of my palm hangs off the edge. And yeah, if I shoot all day long, it can. It can start to hurt a little bit, but it's not. Not that big of a deal. It's. It fits just perfectly to not hurt me, but not be exactly what I would need for my big ass hand.

[B]

So.

[C]

Okay, it's. It's just.

[B]

Yeah, so you need like a grip.

[A]

Cap on there is what you need a longer length.

[C]

Yep. Yeah, I was thinking about doing that, but there's. I haven't found anybody to do that yet.

[A]

So I thought he was gonna say, I'm gonna just screw one on the bottom.

[B]

No, get to woodland, go get some 2x4, screw it on, throw some Bondo on there, start whittling. I mean, it'd be. It'd be custom. Rick, I really think that Gunfit is probably the most important part of shooting big scores. Would you agree with that?

[A]

Absolutely. I think Gunfit is the most important thing.

[B]

I mean, most of the top. All Americans are shooting custom stocks. I know when I got my custom stock, my scores went up. I broke 100 strips in the 27 within seven days. I mean, I'm sure your experience has been similar.

[A]

Yeah, I've been shooting a custom gun stock for 20 years. Winig. If you want to win championships, get a win of gunstock.

[B]

Yeah, call Bobby, call Luke. I mean, we got the stock whisper over there, Bill. Give them a shot. They're great and they know what they're doing.

[A]

Absolutely. Winig.com check them out.

[B]

You know, Ricky, I know you used it on your barrels, but do you even know what RGS stands for?

[A]

No. Zach, what does it stand for?

[B]

Really good.

[A]

Well, that is true. It is good stuff, folks. I use it to clean my Barrels, and it does make them shine.

[B]

Only problem is I wear white T shirts when I clean my barrels and I get them all messy, so I got to be better at that. But it gets all the plastic, all the gunk out. Give them a try, folks. They're great.

[A]

That's right. Give RGS a try. We appreciate all the support.

[B]

You know, Rick, I just love having the peace of mind and knowing that if I'm traveling or I'm flying, something happens. I can get my winig and my craig off replaced quickly and easily without costing me a bunch of money.

[A]

Yeah, exactly. The gun and trophy insurance, it's the best out there to ensure your guns, ch, your trophy, animals, everything.

[B]

Thank you to the whole Cushman family for supporting the show and everything they do for trap.

[A]

Absolutely. Get a hold of Cole Kushman and he'll get you set up.

[C]

It would be custom. I mean, the only thing about it is I'd like to keep the factory stock nice. I mean. Yeah, you always want to.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Cuz you're shooting a. Are you shooting a shadow gun? It's blued, right? All blued.

[C]

Yep.

[A]

Is it. Is it the K80 shadow or what?

[C]

It's just the base. The blued receiver. Just the base.

[B]

Standard bl.

[A]

Okay. Just a standard blue. Okay. I thought it said Katie on the side of it for some reason.

[C]

Nope.

[B]

No, it's. It's a nice gun. And, you know, it kind of. It kind of shook me.

[A]

Is a nice gun.

[B]

They're all nice, but. But like, I don't see a lot of blued ones that aren't like the, you know, the case color, hard end or whatever that are, you know, the high end with the gold inlay or whatever. So when I looked at it the first time, I'm like, is that K80? And I'm like, oh, that is. And that was exactly why. Looks good.

[C]

Because it. I wanted something that not everybody in their dog had. I mean, I wanted something different.

[B]

It is different. I mean, it looks.

[A]

That's why. That's why I like the plantation scroll nickel, because they don't make the nickel anymore. And everybody's always like, oh, do you have that done? I'm like, what are you talking about? They're like, well, they don't offer it in a nickel. I said, no, they used to. They don't anymore.

[B]

Yeah, not anymore. Baby, we got it. We got them Rick James specials, the one offs that well.

[A]

And actually, I got a line on another one I just found, so we'll. That hasn't Been shot very much.

[B]

Ricky's got the market cornered on nickel receivers. You don't want to get in his dish. It's like Rolex. He's setting his own price on it now.

[A]

Well, listen, I like the nickel because it doesn't wear, you know, as much a bluing can wear just depends on the acidic in your hands, you know.

[B]

So now, I haven't had one, Rick. So this is a question to you. How about the case color harden? Does that protect it? Or is that.

[A]

I mean, they put a protection over it, a clear coat that you have to have reapplied so it can wear and depend on. I mean, when you're holding the bottom of receiver, I don't care what it is, it's still going to wear. Even the nickel, you'll still get a.

[B]

Little wear on how you.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

At all on how you handle now. Like Jody, like my wife. You let her touch the barrel, you better wipe it off. By the morning, it'll rust because her hands are very acidic where. You know me, I, I can rub all sweat on it. It really don't do nothing. So. But everybody's different. So I always tell everybody, listen, just wipe the guns down, you know, at the end of the day, that's your, you know, your, your best bet.

[B]

Yeah, Put some RGS down the bore, wipe it off, and you're good to go.

[A]

That's right. That is correct.

[B]

So, so, so for you, the transition seemed very, very smooth from the color to pick off. I mean, you didn't have, you didn't have any down period. I mean, you went from shooting well, winning an overall at a satellite grand title, you know, title, which is fantastic. As far as point of impact and setup. Do you have those guns set up equal or did you. I mean, are you shooting a different point of impact with the Craig off than you did with the Kohler? Or what are your, what are your settings that you shoot singles and doubles and handicap with as far as height on the gun?

[C]

So I, I don't change anything in between. I, I keep it exactly how it was. So I shoot, it's about 80, 20 for singles.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

And about 70, 30, 80, 20 right there. I mean, it's, it's close. And then that's the same for doubles. I mean, both shots, I have it set flat. That's. That's how I like shooting. I think I can be a little bit more natural and aggressive. Aggressive without having to be careful about, oh, I got to be underneath. Especially if they're dropping like you talk. We Talked about the, the wind in Tucson. I don't have to think about, oh, my pattern's 100. I got to get way underneath it or way. It's just, you just swing to it and pull trigger.

[B]

There's not a lot of geometry going on. If you have the gun, show where you're looking or in a flatter position, you're just going to the target and you're finishing and pushing through the target versus, you know, if, you know, and I've tried it, but you, you get that gun so high and like you said on a flatter bird, you can't really push through the target in that scenario. You've gotta, you've got to have some, some float and, and you know, I, I test everything to, to a wobble target. I mean, because me and Rick shot a lot of wobble and you know, if you put it on wobble and you could shoot the flat ones, well, then there you go. And, and some trap shooters would say, well, you know, in, in the game of American trap, everything's going up, so why wouldn't you shoot a higher point of impact? And I, I mean, I understand that terminology, but you're not always shooting a target going up. When you're dealing with the wind, you're dealing with.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You're dealing with other environments.

[A]

The elements play hard in that.

[B]

Yeah. I guess if we were in a vacuum where the targets were always going, you know, 12ft, 15ft, you know, always going up, up, up, up, up, then I could maybe make an argument for that. But I, I just feel like as much as we shoot coast to coast, you're not getting, you know, you're not getting a consistent perfect burn every time.

[C]

Not at all.

[A]

No. And that, and that's one of the things. Now, Weston, what are you shooting for? Ammo.

[C]

So right now I, I switch a lot. It's just kind of a struggle to get ammo here in the area enough to travel with because I try not to buy anything on the road. I don't, I can't count on it. As of right now, for handicap, I'm shooting a double, a 1250 super handicapped super handicap. And then for doubles and singles, it's a STS, 1200 ounce and 8th Remington STS. And I've been shooting the STS for, since I started, I mean, because that seems to be the only one I can get enough of to count on have, you know.

[A]

Really?

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

So I see you're wearing a shields hat. I mean, shields carry shells.

[C]

So. So actually it's, it's pretty Funny they, everybody in the area seems to struggle with getting like handicap trap loads, like good numbered handicap trap loads. Like it's either they, because sporting clays is what's in the area, it's not trap. So they have, you know, 1300, 12, 50 ounce, just stuff like that, but very little handicap. You know, anywhere any stores in the area is very little handicap.

[A]

So really I wouldn't, I wouldn't have thought that.

[B]

Yeah, because I, I mean I spoke with you about it because the first time we shot, our first event together was singles and I seen you shooting the sdss and I said oh, you shoot the good stuff and then we got to handicap and I seen those, those silver bullets and I said ah, he, he don't know. But, but you, you told me, you said well I like, I shoot these because I can get them where I'm at but when I can get the nitros, I love the nitros and you know, and that's a, you know, good shell. But I understand, you know, supply and demand and where, you know, some places in the country, some shells are more readily available because of distributors or the dealers or whatever you know, that might be. And, and being consistent is, is important.

[C]

And, and that's a. Well, I was just about to say that as well. I mean if I do end up switching, like if I run out of ammo and I was shooting the bmps for a really long time for handicap and then now with the tariffs and stuff like that, I can't get enough of them and they're way too expensive. Before that I was shooting the Diamond Grade and for that I was shooting nitros and I've just kind of switched all over the place. But an important thing that I learned as well is if you do switch ammo, practice with it. Practice with it like you just got a new gun because yeah, even though it might be the same numbers, you're something's going to be different. So practice with it, learn it 50, figure out everything and then go, go shoot.

[A]

Well now you, speaking of sporting, do you ever go out and shoot at Rock Creek Ranch?

[C]

I have been, I have been. That's not too far from me and Yep, yep, Caldwell and there's one in Boise and there's one just outside of. It's, there's Harper and, and stuff like that. They're all over the place. Ontario has one and I, I, I.

[A]

Know they've grown up a lot out there but I know of course Rock Creek Ranch because Nick, Barry, you know, Nick's on BMP and I'm on Fiocci, so same deal. But I've known Nick. We all went to Dubai together back in 20.

[B]

We had a lot of fun.

[A]

Yes, we did.

[B]

We got to hang out the sporting clays guys and, and they didn't even exile us. They welcomed us as one of their.

[C]

Own because we were really, we were.

[B]

Hanging out with these guys saying, hey, you guys are all right. And we're like, well, we just like shooting questions crap and, and maybe eating a little bit of food and if there's some whiskey around here, we'll drink it. But I gotta tell you, it was, it was hell getting a bacon sandwich over there. It wasn't, it wasn't easy. Well, you know what? They got pretty good turkey bacon.

[C]

The thing about it is I. I shoot everything from ski trap, sporting bunker. I've shot it all and I enjoy it all. I mean, as long as I'm shooting shotgun and I'm breaking something, it's fun.

[B]

Hey Rick, we got to take a second. We got to thank Outlaw Engineering and the Freston family for supporting Trap shooting and supporting Trap Talk podcast. They've been here for us. They're great people, you know. You know them real well, Rick.

[A]

Yeah, I've known Randy since 1988. R2 and the family, they're great supporter of the show. Coop just won the Autumn grand handicap championship with a 97.

[B]

I know, I was there. I got to interview him. It was great. I'm so proud of him. He's doing a great job. Hashtag, where's Coop? He's somewhere with that big buckle. He's having fun. So that's so you need anything engineering related, get a hold of Outlaw. They'll take great care of you.

[A]

Great folks. Thanks for all the support. Outlaw.

[B]

Hey folks, we really want to thank Remington for supporting the show. Since day one I've been shooting the STS, ounces and eighth light eights for singles and doubles and the Nitro 27 from the 27 yard line. Ounce and eight, seven and a half. They make a great product. You should give them a try. And as always, thank you for the support. You know, Rick, the only thing looks better than these hats we're wearing right now is a bunch of gold and silver from Ron Prescott at Mid State Precious Metal. Show them the goods.

[A]

Listen, all I got silver right now, I won't bring the gold out for.

[B]

Zach, but you know I always want to get that gold.

[A]

Shotgun shells, 10 ounce bars. Folks, he could do anything for you. For all your shoot needs. Give Ron Prescott a call midstatepreciousmetals.com He's a great guy.

[B]

Support him. He supports all the shoots. He supports trap Talk. If you're thinking gold or silver, you need to be thinking Ron Prescott at midstate precious metals. Thank you, Ron.

[A]

That's right. Thanks for all the support.

[B]

You know, Rick, when you're riding around your air conditioning and your nice can am and I'm walking, I'm thinking to myself, where do I get one of these things?

[A]

At Big red motorsports, that's where you get one. George or Jason Lee, they'll take care of you, Zach.

[B]

I mean, I need one. I'm tired of riding on the back of that cooler. I want to sit inside that cab and roll around in style. I mean, my face is on the back, but help me out.

[A]

Listen, I going to move your face to the bumper is where it's going to get moved for the new one. Okay? All you need is a little quiche and we can take care of you. But listen, Big RedMotorsports.com thanks Jason and George Lee and big red motorsports for all the support. They'll take care of you folks. And it's free delivery. So do you, I mean, are you thinking about shooting any bunker or is that something that you just kind of shot? You like ata better? What, what's your, what's your thought process?

[C]

The biggest thing is the closest range for bunker from my house is nine hours away.

[A]

O.

[C]

So.

[A]

So it doesn't look like you'll be partaking in a bunker shooting.

[C]

No, no, not at all.

[B]

At least. Maybe some really fast wobble.

[C]

Yeah, not, not in any future. I, I did the fast wobble Sunday at a meat shoot and ended up six pies and two turkeys. So.

[B]

Damn.

[A]

Putting.

[B]

Putting food on the table.

[A]

Weston, you're going to start looking like Zach. See, I got away from the pies and I'm slimming.

[B]

He's. He's thinning up. He's almost see through at this point.

[C]

See through.

[A]

Oh, lord, here we go. So what do you, what, how much practice are you shooting right now? Through the winter? Are you shooting any? Are you just kind of helping out, you know, around the farm? What, what's your, what's your structure there?

[C]

I shoot at least once a week on Sunday, sometimes twice. Okay. And it's about 100 to 150 rounds per time per session.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

Session per practice.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And like when I'm not shooting at the range, I'm helping some of the new kids or stuff like that. I've Been, I've been around that range so long that I'm just kind of a part of it now. I'm actually the one who orders targets for them and stuff like that. So when I'm not shooting, I'm coaching some of the new kids. Some of the, even some of the new older shooters. There was a young lady or older lady recently that just broke her first 25, so that was pretty cool.

[A]

Nice. Now you say older lady. What was she, 28? I mean.

[C]

I think she's 32.

[B]

Yeah, she's sex age.

[A]

She's sex age.

[B]

Real old.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Well, that's good. And that's, that's cool that you're, you're doing that stuff and you're involved. What is, what's your future plans? What do you, what are you wanting to do?

[C]

I like to stay in the sport one way or another.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

If that has to do with me working, you know, with targets or with machines or with anything like that or.

[A]

You know, guns, the shooting, sports related.

[C]

I would like to be just. Yeah. I would like to be around it.

[B]

In the industry.

[A]

In the industry. Now, what about college? Because you're gonna graduate, you're homeschooled right now. What do you got, another one more year?

[C]

I'd say even a couple months left, I'm way ahead. So. Yeah, one or two months.

[A]

So you're an overachiever.

[C]

I am, I am.

[A]

That's good.

[B]

That's good.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Right now it's just college seems to be not in the mindset at the very moment. But I'm not close to it. I mean, I'm looking, I'm studying, I'm looking around for schools and.

[B]

Well, you're 17 now and you said that your birthday is not till next September. So technically, I mean, even if you said, okay, I'm gonna enroll next August, you'd be a 17 year old college student. So, you know, you could, you know, that's how far ahead you are.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Of, of it right now that.

[A]

When's your birthday? September. What?

[C]

19Th.

[A]

Okay. So, yeah, see, I'm the 11th, so I graduated. I was 17. Yeah. So, yeah, that'd be the thing. Now are you. What do you want? If you're interested in college, what are you wanting to major in or what?

[C]

Just business or business and accounting and stuff like that. So I can, I can.

[A]

There you go.

[C]

Properly run my own business in the future.

[B]

Not social studies or finger painting.

[C]

Right.

[B]

No.

[C]

Art degree. Yeah. No, no, yeah.

[B]

They don't use that at the farm much.

[C]

No, no, no, not at all.

[B]

Dad might not let you come back.

[C]

No, he might not. You're right about this.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You can't just stay out.

[A]

Well, there. Listen, there's some good schools out there. They do give some good scholarships and such, you know.

[B]

Yeah. I would, I would tell you, anyone listening to the show, you know, I, you know, I've talked with Weston a little bit offline, and I think he'd be a great addition to any team across the country. You know, the biggest thing is when you've, you know, got a talented shooter like him, you know, it's, it's, it's got to be the right environment and it's got to be the right, the right program and the right, the right offer. I mean, and I think that's, you know, I can share. Me and Weston have some things in common because we were both homeschooled. So for me, yeah, when I was finishing, I didn't have college on my mind either. So the reason, I mean, for me at the time, I didn't go to college, college until I was 19. So I had a whole, you know, whole year basically where I was just working with dad and shooting targets and traveling around.

[A]

You were screwing off is what you were doing.

[B]

I know, really big time. But, but it was, at the time, it was a, it was a financial decision for me. It wasn't, it wasn't like, okay, just go to college so I could party. At the time I was shooting to, to pay for the next shoot. Everywhere I went was like, if, if, if, if you didn't do so hot, you didn't really have a lot of gas in the tank to go to the next one. And I was working in sporting goods at Big 5 Sporting Goods store, selling guns and, and stuff like that so I could, you know, have some, some money to go to the next shoot. And, you know, I think it's so important for young people to not just go to college because they're going to go to college, but to go to college because they want to learn some specific thing that they could utilize and not put themselves in a hundred thousand dollars of debt just to get a degree. Yes. I think that that hundred thousand dollars in debt to get a degree, in my mind, is, is way backwards.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Be way better off going and working and learning some applicable skill and making, you know, money and then saying, oh, I like, I like business, I'm going to get a business degree, or I like accounting, I'm going to get an accounting degree and getting specific instead of just showing up. Because most of the people I talk to, they show up and they're like, yeah, I don't know what I'm going to study, but I'm going to college. And, you know, it's the kind of the thing to do, and I'm going to find myself. And, you know, it ends up being four years of. Of. Of waste. And in the first part, you know, maybe the first year is just a bunch of partying and being away from home, and then the grades slip and the scholarship goes away, and mom and dad get the phone calls, and then, you know, you're back home and you've got some student loans and you didn't really make any progress. So. And I've seen that so many times.

[C]

I hear that a lot. I'm like, people tell me, go for the college experience and go for the maturity, getting mature. And I. I kind of think about it as. I mean, I'm going to all these shoots and being around all these grown adults. Grown men. Yeah. I mean, grown men full. And I. I feel like I'm getting all the maturity that I'm gonna need. I mean, I feel like college is definitely not gonna get me anything more than, like, hanging out with you guys or hanging out on the range with Bullard or.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

You know, teaching important, valuable life lessons instead of hanging around a bunch of college students that are just partying. So I feel like the other thing.

[B]

Is you look at the background of where you came from. I mean, a lot of the people that are saying, yeah, get the college experience. A lot of those people don't have to bear the financial burden of what college is. So if, you know, if the parents are like, like, hey, go to college and, you know, four years and have fun and, you know, it's covered, it's paid for. You know, a lot of those people, I've seen it affect them, you know, some in a positive way, some in a negative way. I mean, if it just depends on the household, but, you know, if. If they're not having to bear the financial burden of it, well, then what. What's the skin off their back? You know, what's, What's. What's the downside?

[A]

There.

[B]

There is no downside. But when you're. When you're making your own decision and you're having to take care of it on your own, you have to be sure that it's right for you.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

And. And I think that you're. You're being very smart and, and educated in those decisions, because nowadays, with all the technology and with everything that's going on. Some of the richest people I know didn't go to college.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And they just. Yeah, they just.

[A]

You're absolutely correct on that. The difference now is a lot of companies requesting in the industry are going to require college education for younger, you know, 100.

[B]

And that's the barrier that if you're gonna work for somebody else and you're gonna get into that kind of thing, then you have to have that. That foundational college degree. And I'm not. I'm not sitting here trying to bash going to get an education. I just think people need to be specific with what do they want to learn out of it. What are you going. Going just to go doesn't seem like a good idea to me. It seems like going to go for a reason and a specific purpose and learning. And maybe that reason is a shooting team. I mean, I. Maybe, you know, for me, yeah, my decision was I'm going to get a business degree. But the reason why I wanted that business degree is because I wanted to shoot on a team and I wanted to have, you know, the next four years paid for of traveling and shooting and working on my game and meeting a bunch of other good guys that know how to. To do that, do the sport that we love and those connections and those relationships. And I can't put a monetary number to that. I can't. I can't tell you how much that's been affected my life and given value. Just the people that I met and the relationships that I built in those five years of college that really, you know, set up the path for my life.

[A]

No, yeah, absolutely. So. So that's. So it's not guaranteed or you're not declining it, you're just kind of weighing your options and kind of seeing what.

[C]

Okay, I'm not. I'm not diving for it, you know, I'm not chasing after it. But I'm also not saying no.

[B]

So, yeah, he. He needs some college to call him up tomorrow and say, hey, we're sending you over here, pack your bags, let's go. And that's for sure.

[A]

That's.

[B]

That's what we need for Weston. So we'll, you know, so. And anybody that's listening, if you're part of shooting teams, colleges or whatever, and you're looking for somebody good, I think he'd be a great addition. And especially if it's a good program, because you could. I mean, based on what I've seen, I would say that you could probably learn to shoot the other games pretty quickly. Even if you haven't shot them a lot, I mean, you could, you could advance at the collegiate level on those sporting clays and skeet and things like that, which it's necessary now, unfortunately, when I did is.

[A]

It is, but it's not. You don't. I was a college coach for 10 years. So you, you really, you want to, you could try to shoot everything, but there's very few people that can realistically compete in every discipline at a high level.

[C]

Yeah. So I have a couple good scores in skeet. I have a 50 straight and stuff like that. I think my highest in sporting clays out of 100 is 97. So I can shoot them all. Yeah. But I, I seem to enjoy trap a little bit more a lot of. For the mental aspect, I think. I think sporting clays is a little bit more of a physical, you know, mechanical. And I like having to be mentally strong and, and not a lot of people can be mentally strong to go 5, 600 straight in a shoot off, you know, And I like the, I like the people that I'm around while in the, at the trap range. Everybody's, you know, intelligent, everybody knows what they're talking about. I like that a lot. I, I've experienced that more in trap shooting than anything.

[A]

But you're getting that from hanging around me and Bullard.

[C]

Oh, for sure. Yep. Yeah.

[B]

And the smart ones.

[A]

I was waiting for Zach to comment on that. He went right over. He's thinking, well, that's good. I mean, so what are your, what you are. What's your, your short term plans here after. I mean, the, the winner, you're gonna head down, shoot the spring grand, and then are you coming over and shooting the Southern in Florida? Okay. Have you been to Florida before?

[C]

I haven't. Nope. I haven't. I'm excited. I'm extremely excited.

[A]

Florida's a great time. We have a, we have a great time shooting down there.

[C]

Well, I'll go straight from the spring across to Florida. I will. We'll drive straight across.

[B]

So you're driving over?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

That's a long way, bubba. You know, they make planes for a reason. That's right.

[C]

Well, the, the thing about it is I'm not 18, so I can't fly with a gun yet.

[A]

Oh, that is right. That's right.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

We ran into that last year with, with Wyatt. Where were we, Zach? Somewhere. They were talking about it and they were going to fly by themselves. And I was like, no, you can't. And Tyler was the same thing, you know?

[B]

Yeah. And I Don't remember when that happened because I remember flying with my gun when I was 17 and, and I guess that was, that was a minute.

[A]

That was, that was pre 911 stuff. Yeah, well, it really wasn't pre 9 11, but it was pre.

[B]

All the TSA three, all the TSA crap is what it was. I mean, but I, I remember. But I did drive a lot, I will say that. But I'm excited to see you at Florida. I think that's a great place for you. I think you're going to see a target that's different than probably anywhere you've shot on the west coast, that's for sure.

[A]

Oh yeah, it's.

[B]

And, and, and there, if you like seafood, you're going to get plenty of it. There's a lot of good restaurants out there. And it's. It's a lot like baseball.

[A]

There's spring trainings going on, so we always. I always go usually once or twice during the Southern. Tyler and I go over to the Yankee Stadium and watch a Yankee spring training game. Like last year we went. We got done shooting at like noon. The game started at 12:45. We were down there watching the game. You know, you buy tickets last minute. So it. Yeah, it's a cool area. There's a lot of stuff to do in the Clearwater Tampa area.

[B]

Is your, Is your mom your traveling partner or does your dad go or. So mom's pretty much going on the trips with you?

[C]

My dad comes when he can. He owns his own baler mechanic business, so he's busy all the time, especially in the summer. So like the grand and stuff like that.

[B]

He's hard. He'll come.

[C]

He'll come from for a day. He'll fly a weekend or like the championship weekend or whatever and then he'll head home. But it's mainly me and my mom. We take turns, drive in and we.

[A]

So is it just YouTube that travel or who else travels with you?

[C]

Yeah, that's it.

[A]

I know if there's any girls that travel with you or what.

[C]

I, I do have a girlfriend and she shoots as well. But we all.

[A]

She shoots pretty well too. She.

[B]

Yeah, she was right there in the high overall at the autumn ground all the way to the last day.

[A]

I'm like.

[B]

I'm like, they got hit pounding these things.

[C]

Yeah. She ended up taking lady one, so it was pretty cool. She had been struggling a little bit and she picked it right back up. She's getting right back.

[A]

Nice.

[C]

So.

[A]

So now she lives in Arizona, right?

[C]

Yeah. Yep. She Lives in Arizona, in Casa Grande area. Yep. Yep.

[B]

Okay, for you, do you establish goals or. Or anything that you're trying to achieve in your mind that you're working towards? Is there some things ahead of you that you're like, laser focused on that you want to knock off?

[C]

The biggest thing right now is team captain, Junior team captain. I am, I am pushing for that. But the next one would definitely be the AAA 27 AAA.

[A]

You gotta. You got a little barrier in front of you, and he's. He's not quite your height, but close.

[C]

I know.

[A]

About the same size. He ain't got a hair on his face. Wyatt. I know.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

No, he's a hell of a shooter, and I'll say that, you know, based on what I've seen, I don't think there'll be any issue with you getting AAA 27 AAA. You know, this year you'll get that knocked out. And I think that's something, you know, that obviously shows that you've got the ability to shoot all three guns, which to go for captain in any category, I really think you need to have all three guns going. Abely, you know, you can't. You can't make it if you. You can't shoot singles or you can't shoot doubles or your handicap's not good enough. I mean, you're not gonna. You're not giving yourself an honest chance.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

And so step one, make. Get that.

[A]

And to make captain, you know, I was never a category captain at all. I think the best I ever did was second a couple times, I think. And once in Sub Junior. I know, and I think maybe once in Junior, but, you know, in captain and men's four times, it does take, you know, shooting all the big shoots up.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

You gotta go. And that's. And. And it sucks to say that, honestly, the way the system is, because it takes you away from shoots that are great, shoots that you got to maybe go to another shoot that it's a great shoot, it's just a bigger shoot and the attendance dictates the points. So you're. It's. It's kind of. Which I. I understand, but it still sucks because I was just talking about this with Joey and, you know, some other people about, you know, the smaller shoots are the ones that are suffering.

[C]

Correct.

[B]

And it is. If the. If the all American team is based on, you know, as many points as you can get and you can only use seven shoots, well, then, you know, mathematically it's pretty simple.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You know, you're gonna go to the seven biggest shoots that you can afford with the most events. I mean, and that's, and that's it. Period. And you know, people, you know, people have always, you know, asked me, well, why are you going here? Why are you going there? Well, you got to look at the program and there's a reason why a lot of people go up to Dale's. You know, it's because of the events. I mean, if you've got, you know, a lot more events in a seven day period, you've got a lot more opportunity to point than if you, you know, you go to a shoot that maybe has two events a day. Right. And, and like the Autumn grand was a fantastic shoot. I'm not going to say that they didn't throw a great target. I'm not going to say that it wasn't a great shoot. But you know, unfortunately because of the attendance right now, it went down to a four. It's probably not going to be a shoot that a lot of people are going to be able to use at a 4 because it's a 2 event a day.

[C]

4. Well, the biggest thing is that they split the two weeks in half for the points.

[A]

Like, well, they, they've always done that. And, and to be fair, that has how it actually should be because you're getting, you know, different competition in each one. So it should go off its own merit on that. You know, I, I believe all shoots should go off their own merit. I don't think nothing should be guaranteed. That's just my opinion. I think it should go off. Who's there? Yeah, because you know that. But yeah, it is like, like Zach was saying, like Dale's, I mean Dale throws as many targets as possible.

[B]

Yeah, it's 2200 birds. Now it's A4, but there's 2200 birds. So when you look at that and you say, okay, this, the Autumn grand, you know, you're shooting, you know what, 1200 targets or you know, whatever that number is.

[A]

1100 actually.

[B]

And that's in the overall. Right. But I think Monday, Monday on, I mean, so you get 13, 1300 targets. So, so we're talking an extra 800, 900 birds at Dales right now. If you, if you're at a four, you damn well need that. And if you don't, absolutely, you know, if, if you're going to actually use it and, and, and quantify it for a high level. Now flip that upside down. If you're someone that's just trying to make the team, second team lower on the first team or whatever. Well, then it's not as big of an issue because you know you can get in that 110 to 170 point range. You know, Rick, when you're walking down the line, you see smoke ball after smoke ball after smoke ball. What are you thinking in your head?

[A]

I'm thinking there's some good set targets and they got to be a white flyer.

[B]

They got to be white flyer. I mean, we were just a Nevada State shoot. We were shooting these things for the 27 yard line. They look like 16 yard smoke balls. And I'm like, only a white flyer can smoke like that. And we love them. And they've been supporting the show since day one.

[A]

That's right. Thanks for all the support, White flyer.

[B]

I just love the way they're covering all the shoots across the country. The content, the pictures, what they're doing online, what they're doing on Facebook, Instagram. What do you think?

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Traption usa, it's a great magazine. They are the official magazine of our podcast and we are the official podcast of Traption usa. So we really appreciate it.

[B]

That's really cool. And what they got is a deal right now. If you put Trap Talk P in for the print version and Trap Talk D for the digital version, it's 19.99 for the print and $9.99 for the digital for one year. You're not going to find a better deal. So subscribe today. You won't regret it.

[A]

Absolutely. Thank you for all the, the support.

[B]

You know, Rick, I was at the Autumn grand and the Nevada State shoot and I was just really impressed with how I could see where my squad was when I was up. Just the technology, the ability to be able to see what options I've played if the event's paid or not. I mean, what's your experience with, with the app?

[A]

Listen, SOS Clay's app, it's the best thing out there, folks. You can see everything. It's great. You see your option payouts. You can see when you're up, you can see who's paid on your squad. Sometimes Zach does that pay on time, but it's.

[B]

I get out there. But what I really think is, is for gun clubs, it's free. Call Greg, get a hold of them. He'll set you up, he'll get you running. Right. And if you pay the, the premium once a year, you get free pre squatting in all the shoots. And that's the best value in trap shoot.

[A]

Absolutely. SOS clays.com you know Rick, I, I.

[B]

Know you had a lot of involvement with them since the beginning, since they started. But I really love the way that the shot tracker, you know, catches the doubles from shot to shot with the looping. You know, tell the folks what they need to know about that system.

[A]

It's the best system out there. It's like having a coach on the end of your barrel, like we say, but going especially in double from first shot to second shot. You can see it on the graph. You can see it on video.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, if you talk about that J Hook with Sha Holly and all them, I mean, it'll literally show that loop and I think that's really powerful if you're doing it. They've supported the show since the beginning. They love trap shooting. They're great people. Give them a shot, folks. They make a great, great product.

[A]

Take Aim Technologies.

[B]

But if you're, if you're trying for the top end of the team, depending on the category, you got to average well over 200 points of shoot. I mean, at least, at least 200 points a shooter.

[A]

300.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. On the categories for sure. I mean, in the categories for, for.

[A]

It's the same with open the, the top five to the categories. You want to be in the top five, you got to average 250 to 300 minimum. And then you got the grand. Where is even a bigger. But yeah, it is, it, it, it sucks because like I said, I was just talking with some people about the smaller clubs and, you know, hurting. I actually, I just talked to Brian Weeks who's the general manager of Livermore, and we talked about that, you know, and it do. It hurts. Those size of clubs versus satellite grants.

[B]

Correct.

[A]

Because everybody's going to want to go to a satellite grand because, oh, it's going to be a bigger shoot. But when you know the downside, like we got the spring ground be our next shoot coming up in, in February, you know that it's two events a day.

[B]

Correct.

[A]

You know, but the attendance is always higher there, so that kind of makes up for that a little.

[B]

It gets to a five. I mean, if the Southern Grand's a five, it used to be as a five. Yeah, it used to be a six. And so that, that can make up for it at some level. But if you're going to have less events, you got to have more comp factor. And that's the only way you can make up for it for people chasing these points and going, you know, down that roll.

[A]

So, so talk about your schedule. So spring Southern, then Where you heading after that? It'll be.

[C]

I think. I'm pretty sure it's Vernal. Vernal is west right after that. Yep. Western. Then I won't be doing the Utah state. I think I'm going to try to do Pennsylvania, go all the way over there, so.

[A]

Oh, boy. That's a long haul from.

[C]

It's a little.

[A]

Oregon.

[C]

It's a long way.

[A]

It's 17 hours from my house.

[B]

Pennsylvania, Ohio.

[C]

Yeah. Maybe we might just come home.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

And prepare for the grand and stuff like that.

[A]

Pa. If you go to pa, Ohio's gonna be a great shoot.

[C]

We'll.

[A]

I'll just give you a little snippet. They are doing some big changes there.

[C]

They've.

[A]

They've. They've changed software. They're. The back fence shootout, of course, is going to be another banger, you know, for the 26 year. So that's a shoot that. I mean, it. It's you. Ohio is usually number one. Ohio and pa. But this year I think it was Ohio, Wisconsin, then. Pa. And Nevada is going to fit in there, probably top five.

[C]

Yeah. 100%.

[B]

Yeah. Nevada. Nevada. Nevada is definitely.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

There now. I mean, it's. It's. It's become. It's become one of those shoots every year where now you have to go because you're not going. You're missing out on the opportunity. And that's how I felt about Ohio. It's like, you know, do I always want to go to Ohio? Depending. I don't know. I mean, sometimes yes, sometimes no. But now it's like as the size of it, if you don't go to Ohio and you don't give yourself a chance to swing at it, you're. You're putting a lot of. A lot of good points, you know?

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Because Ohio shoots three a day. So that's the thing there. And it's a six factor. So, you know, you might want to save up, you know, go out there and start bailing some. Some wire and sell some wire.

[C]

Yeah. Firewood. Firewood is what it is right now. Cutting firewood and selling.

[B]

All you got to do is run 100 handicap that week. You're good, bud.

[C]

Easy. Yeah, you're exactly. Exactly right.

[B]

Yeah, you're good. But you might. I mean, Pa might pay well for you, too. I mean, there's. There's a good chunk of. At least from what I've read, there's a good chunk of money up there. It's been a long time since I've been there.

[A]

It's it's not nothing like Ohio like.

[B]

It used to be.

[A]

I. It's good. Yeah. Yeah, it's, it's. But Ohio's where, where it's at, so.

[B]

Cuz I haven't been to PA Since I was a category shooter and it's been. And at the height of that it was, it was a, it was good. I mean it was, it was a big, it was a big D. It's.

[A]

Always a big shoot.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

So. Well, cool.

[C]

Well then I might, might throw in Ohio as well then we'll see.

[B]

You never, you never know. You heard it here first, folks. I mean the, the travel, travel schedule. Weston, he's going, he's shooting targets. He actively looking for, for teams to pick him up and, and, and to get on the road and represent and that's, that's what we like. And, and you've, you've made a lot of progress very quickly and, and you're, you know, you're a student of the game, you're learning things. You know, I loved what you said about getting into the center of the target and watching your breaks. There's so many shooters that we talk to that don't even bring that up and like how. Well, yeah, and it's like it's, they're measuring their success based on the number that they hit on the board. Right. And that, that, that can work on any one day. That can work one time. But, but to be there every time you have to figure out that you're hitting the target in the center and you're putting, you're utilizing those pellets and you're not wasting pellet count on that bird. And we, you know, we had a whole conversation about Robert Height with that. I mean it's getting, yeah. Getting the shot in the right spot on the bird consistently. Because if you're, if you're using the center and then you're a little sloppy with it, you're a little off or the target jumps in or out, you're still going to get a break. But if you're, if you're fringe, breaking everything all the time, you're one slip away from, you know, the old chaos and failure.

[C]

Absolutely. 100%.

[B]

Well, Weston, is there anything, anything else, you know, you being a category shooter that you would like to touch on for the young people that, you know, maybe see you and look up to you and say, well, he just got into this and he's already having immediate success. Is there any, is there any success story or any, any good tips that you'd like, to give today, I would.

[C]

Say for younger shooters and people starting, it's, it's difficult people that are starting, like, to look at like Zach Danini, Richard Marshall and go, oh, they're doing it. I mean, they're doing it. Looks easy to me. And they don't realize the in between of the practice, the hardship, the, you know, all the stuff that you have to go through to, you know, get to that point and not giving up in between now and then. For younger shooters, that's definitely a difficulty. I see that in this area that they'll shoot good the first time they ever go out and then they struggle and then they're like, well, I don't know if I want to do this anymore.

[B]

Yep.

[C]

So that's, that's definitely something is just stay in it and don't give up because there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

[B]

I mean, and that's huge because. Because I can't tell you how many people have that instant success right off the, you know, they, they, they hit something, they win a trophy, they break 100 straight and then they hit their first, you know, I would call it, you know, slump, which we all have them at some level of time. We've all had them. And the slump can take some shooters out, especially if, you know, they're holding themselves to the expectation of, well, I shot here before, why can't I shoot here every single time I walk to the line? Well, that isn't the case. This is the, this is, you know, this is a sport where, you know, you're only as good as your last event. And you could last shot, last shot, right? I mean, you could be on top of the world and then two weeks later, you're in the ditch. And if people, you know, mentally can't handle the ridicule and the, you know, the. What the hell happens? I mean, I, I know, I've heard it in my career of, you know, man, you're shooting. You used to shoot so good. You're shooting, you know, what's going on, what's happening here, what. And, and let's. It, let's. It can affect you. If you don't have the right positive mental headspace for understanding that this shoe, this too shall pass. And you know, that was one of the, the greatest, the great quotes of whether you're doing really, really good or whether you're doing really, really bad. This too shall pass. So it, you know, you're never going to be on top forever, and you're never going to be on the bottom forever. And wherever you are, you're going somewhere else. If you don't give up and you keep working on it, you got to.

[A]

Put the time in.

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

Put. Put them rounds down range. Well, well, Weston, is there anybody that you'd like to thank, any sponsors, anything like that before we wrap up today?

[C]

Absolutely. Meridian Shields in Idaho. I really appreciate everything they do for me as well as shameless game totes here on my shirt and 80 below sporting oil. Great, great products, great companies, great people I want to thank. Obviously my parents, they drag me all over the country and even though my dad can't come, he supplies the money, so the keys. The key bailing. And then, you know, my girlfriend Alexis, she's amazing as well. So just great, great people. I'm surrounded by great people. That's a big thing to having positive people around you.

[A]

So that is true.

[C]

Negativity can kill a lot.

[B]

It's very helpful to have a good group of people around you that want to see you succeed. And, you know, unfortunately, sometimes in this world, I'm not saying in this game, but in this world, people don't always want to see others succeed. And I think there's a, there's a selfish mentality of, you know, there's only so much happiness in the world or there's only so much money or there's only so much victories or whatever. And, and people, you know, they, they almost like, want you to do worse so that it makes them feel better about the worst they're doing. Yeah, and, and, and I think in trap shooting, it's one of the rare places, and I'm not saying everybody in the sport's this way, but most of the people in the sport are, you know, at a level enough place where if they're. No, if, if we're not winning today, we can cheer on our competitors and we can, we can be happy for them and, and actually truly, you know, just want people to enjoy whatever it is they're doing and whatever fun they're having, you know, not necessarily. Oh, well, I don't want to see him shoot good because I'm not shooting good. And, and that, yeah, you know, that can be a toxic environment that, you know, I, I basically, you know, try to remove that from life as quickly as possible. If you don't have a good team of people around you, you don't have a good bunch of support group. You know, that's, that's why I got Ricky. He's always lifting me up, telling me how good I'm doing. All the time. I mean, he's just, he's a shining light of positivity.

[A]

Absolutely. He deserves. We have a love hate relationship.

[B]

No.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

No, it's good. I mean, we listen when we're out shooting, you know, we joke around. Zach and I've had that type of relationship for. Got 20 years. Years, you know, so. But it, when we're shooting or there's serious stuff, then, you know, it's all, it's all business. So that's. Well, I'm happy for you, Weston. We, we look forward to you seeing you at the, at the Spring Grand.

[C]

Absolutely.

[A]

We'll be down there. So we'll have fun and you have a, a happy holidays, you and your family.

[C]

You guys as well.

[B]

We'll see you soon. We look forward to seeing you complete some of your accolades and your goals in the future and, you know, maybe get one of them grand rings and we'll have you on the show again. Something, something cool. But look forward to seeing you on the range and, and be safe. And for everyone tuning in, thanks for listening. Like, Share. Subscribe. Send in your comments. Wear your trap. Talk merch. Proud Ricky's always looking good in the Ricky Marshall special.

[A]

Get your merch. Get your merch.

[B]

Get your merch and support us any way you can. And, and if you have any opinions, thoughts, ideas, send them. Send them our way. We're listening and we are the sounding board, so we will. We will. We had a lot of fun doing the Kings episode and I couldn't believe 220 comments on our, on our Facebook that we're, you know, we're still navigating. There's a lot of questions that we didn't even get to cover. We're probably going to need to go back and do some more content there, so, so keep it coming, folks. Thank you so much and we'll see you next Friday.

[A]

See you guys. Good luck.

[B]

Sam.