262 A Georgia Roundtable Discussion.

  Georgia has always known to be a hot bed for talent when it comes to sporting clays shooters. Its also know to be a place where some amazing tournaments take place, with some of the biggest names in the sport in attendance!     Matt Miller, Kyle Millwood, & Portia Fordham sit down to look at the Shooters Championship, the Georgia State Championship, and the Georgia circuit shoot. Portia is the events coordinator at the Meadows, and sits on the Georgia Sporting Clays Association board,  alongside Kyle Millwood. We discuss what went right, what needs help, and what things they want to change for next year.  We even discuss how things are going for shooting as a whole, in this great nation of ours.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:36

Welcome back, everyone. We have got a huge round table here with us tonight. Of course, Matt Miller. Welcome back, Matt.

SPEAKER_08 0:43

Hey, good to see you, Jason. Or I guess good to talk to you again.

SPEAKER_01 0:46

Yeah, for sure. Mr. Kyle Millwood. What's up, Kyle? Not much. Just doing the daily grind. Doing the daily grind. Are you are you dropping trees everywhere? Uh, pretty much. Awesome. Of course, man, I've saved the best for last. The lovely Miss Portia Fordham. Portia, explain to everyone what your like official title is at the Meadows or with the Meadows.

SPEAKER_02 1:12

I guess that would be the event coordinator.

SPEAKER_01 1:14

Okay. All right, cool. And you are on the board for uh Georgia Sporting Clays Association, correct?

SPEAKER_02 1:20

I am.

SPEAKER_01 1:22

And I said save the best for last because these two other guns I got here with me, I've I talk to them all the time. I don't get to talk to Porsche. So we've got a lot to cover tonight, and this is going to be a really cool episode because we are, like I said, going to hit a lot of bases. Just a real quick reminder to everyone uh Neil Chadwick's contest for the youth shooter entry credit of $500 to the Nationals. That's still up for grabs. So go back and listen to show 259 for the details. Get on that. Any youth shooter, real simple, real easy contest. Go back and listen to the details, what Neil's looking for. And if you're the winner, you're going to get $500 credit towards your entry fee at Nationals.

SPEAKER_04 2:02

The dead pay.

SPEAKER_01 2:10

We have partnered up with Make or Break Ed. That's right, Ed Pritchell from Top Gun Shooting Sports, who holds the Make or Break events around the globe. You know, we kind of touched on that uh last week's episode. I want to let everyone know if you want to get a hold of them any way, shape, or form, just go to info at makeabreak.com. Again, there's a link down in the show description. We're fresh off the 2026 Canadian Open, and I was told this was a phenomenal shoot. I've talked to some people that were there. In fact, we talked to Brandon, and it was an incredible shoot. Uh, they had people from all over the USA, the UK, France, and of course, all over Canada. But Ed wanted me to let everybody know 7:30 on that Saturday evening, the top eight qualifiers in level one, which were A through D, and then of course level two is Master and Double A. They went head-to-head as usual on the top gun stage. In level one, semifinal matches, Brian Morrison beat Dwight Martin 33 points to 14. Cody Dunlap beat Ivano Bortigun. Bornon, I apologize if I'm pronouncing his name wrong, uh, 36 to 26. Ivano went on to beat Dwight Martin 34 to 23 for third place. And then the championship round, Cody Dunlap handedly beat Brian Morrison 47 to 31. Level two, Francis Matthew Delmos beat UK's Charlie Falls 47 to 29. I guess Delmas was on fire. He even ran the first half of the menu. He was the only player, or excuse me, he was the first player to shoot a perfect first half. Canada's Sergio Ortiz or Ortiz, excuse me, again, I apologize for the pronunciation, uh, beat USA's Brett Turtlein 34-28. Brandon Powell beat Canada's Joe Barbier 41-32. And in the last quarterfinal match, Canada's Frank Mostrani beat USA's Jacques Portier 44-32. In the level two semifinals, Canada's Sergio Ortiz brought the crowd to their feet when he crushed the three Rhino Choke sevens in a row and beat Francis Matthew Delmas 52 to 43. In the second match, USA's Brandon Powell took Canadian Frank Mostrani 47-37. There was a really close battle for third place when Matthew Delmas beat out Frank by 50 to 43. In the championship match, Brandon Powell beat out Canada's Sergio 49 to 33 to be the Canadian Open Make a Break champion. So congratulations to all of them. Again, if you're interested in holding a make or break event at your shoot or, you know, whether it's a local club or a state shoot, doesn't matter. Get a hold of Top Gun Shooting Sports and check them out. They also have both Facebook and Instagram at official make or break is their handle. So check that out, everyone.

SPEAKER_04 5:16

The dead play.

SPEAKER_01 5:23

Because we're we're not too far off of the shooters' championship that happened here in 2026. Are there going to be changes to the shoot for next year? I mean, I I know the date may fluctuate a little bit, but is there any big plans coming up for that?

SPEAKER_02 5:38

I feel like with the success we've had the past two years with it, we don't want to change the bones of the tournament an awful lot. Right. We are looking at moving it to the fall next year. Just because the first part of the year is so jam-packed, and we are also the host club for the 2027 Georgia State shoot.

SPEAKER_01 5:57

Oh, nice.

SPEAKER_02 5:58

So we'll have that June 8th through the 13th of next year.

SPEAKER_01 6:02

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 6:02

So we're going to look at pushing shooters out. Hopefully it doesn't come in the fall, maybe get everybody's schedule eased up a little bit. But overall, that shoot is made to give back to the shooters. So the only thing we would ever want to do is continue to grow it and offer more money and more prizes.

SPEAKER_01 6:18

You know, I had talked to um some of the folks, some of you folks down at Meadows about having like a little roundtable prelude uh maybe later on this fall for next year's uh shooters' championship. So we still want to plan on that. I'm not trying to draw details out of you. But the next question I had, you kind of already answered was the date for next year. Looks like you're going to move it towards the fall to maybe capture some better weather. Is that what you had in mind?

SPEAKER_02 6:43

That's the goal. Mother Nature's not been too nice to us the past two years because of the rain. It has turned into a mud bog as much as a Sport and Clays tournament, but we are looking at possibly moving out into the fall to get away from the busier schedule and to hopefully have a little bit of cooler weather and a little bit less rain.

SPEAKER_01 7:02

So let me ask you this, just from your opinion, okay? Like I'm not looking for dirty details in one way or the other. Would you say that the 2026 Shooters' Championship was a success, or do you think maybe it needed some work?

SPEAKER_02 7:16

In my mind, I do think it was a success with our management team just taking over the meadows in December. It was the first really big shoot that we had done, and we have a really good team in place to take care of that. I feel like we were very successful with it being our first big shoot and the first shooter championship that we had done alone in-house. As always, there's things that we can always improve on, and we're always looking at those. But between the weather causing the problems it did, I felt like we bounced back from that pretty quickly. But overall, I think the targets were good. I think the structure of the tournament was good. Everything stayed on schedule for the most part, and everybody we talked to has had the same sentiment. So I feel like it is a success in our book at least.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

Yeah, you know, I I talked about it briefly on the podcast here, and I thought it was awesome. I thought y'all did a great job, especially because you guys had to battle rain for not only the entire tournament, but like I think it started 24, maybe even 48 hours before the first day of the shoot. And it just kind of like that black cloud just wouldn't leave us alone for the whole shoot. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_02 8:24

The rain was definitely relentless, but we did what we could with it and put things in place to make it as good as we could, and we rot and rolled.

SPEAKER_01 8:32

Awesome. Kyle, this this was the first time I had seen you in a hot minute uh was at the shooters' championship. And dude, I've got a whole host of questions for you because you've kind of wicked it up a little bit. So I want to know what's going on. What's the key to your success? Did you find some, you know, some kind of mojo clay target drink or something you're not letting us in on? Or what's was it the break, or what's going on there?

SPEAKER_06 8:58

Uh maybe all the above. Okay, like you gotta drink a lot more water. I tend to forget that from time to time. Uh, but no, I I've spent maybe the last year and a half, two and a half years playing with guns as far as different barrels, different stocks, and adjusting all the above, you know, as I'm going. And I mean, I would even shoot the bigger tournaments, I mean regionals, nationals, like that. I mean, I'd shoot one event with one gun and one event with another, and uh just kind of putting the guns up against each other to kind of dial in what was working better than the other, and and just kind of wanting to wanting to make a change. I felt like I'd maybe plateaued and just something wasn't quite right, and you know, it's yeah, it's never my fault. I mean, it's always the gun, so you gotta change something.

SPEAKER_01 9:52

Well, yeah. I dude, I blame everything but me.

SPEAKER_06 9:57

So uh I I tried that also.

SPEAKER_01 10:01

Are you still in the K gun then?

SPEAKER_06 10:03

Just trying different combinations or yeah, no, I I don't I don't plan on changing that. Just uh like I went from a 34 fixed parkour to uh like back to my original sporter, and then also an X-barrel uh just trying some chokes out since you know the majority of the targets, you probably don't need a 34. Yeah and uh, you know, most of the shooting world shoots a 32-inch, so like, all right, well maybe there's something to that. Do we really need the 34? Just lots of questions that I don't necessarily think it matters if you do it right, but it was just a question or a you know lack of confidence in my mind, so I just had to go through the steps to to narrow it down and get get that settled.

SPEAKER_01 10:50

Well, you know, I I don't know about performance. I've never personally have you know spent a lot of time with a 34-inch barrel, but look, me, you and Matt are all about the same height, and when we're shooting the 34-inch barrels, it looks like a keyboard keyboard elf swinging a telephone pole. So you're you're messing with the equipment, but do you think the brake helped you a little bit?

SPEAKER_06 11:12

I think it always helps. I mean, it's kind of a a reset, whether it's the the mind or maybe even the bad habits when you start back, you're kind of more doing it the right way and and uh leave some of the other stuff behind. But like I usually call it an offseason, uh like I'll go from shooting twice or three times a week to shoot once every other week or something just to like know where the gun's pointing, if that makes sense.

SPEAKER_01 11:38

Yeah. Well, I know you you hammered for quite a long time, so I mean you've got that target catalog to fall back on, you know what I mean, compared to some people that are getting started later uh in life. They don't, you know, they just don't have those millions of targets that grind it out, you know. So for somebody like you, it makes sense to take a little break. Were you gonna you gonna comment there, Matt?

SPEAKER_08 11:58

I saw you leaning forward to the No, I was just gonna say that I have a standing offer to lock all of his other setups up in my safe. He hasn't taken me up on it, but the way he's been shooting, and I shoot with Kyle a lot, and he's shooting so well, I I see it over his shoulder all the time. And every time if I I like think he's gonna bring out a different setup, I just give him a look like don't do it, don't do it. And uh anyway, I'm happy for him, and he's been shooting awesome this year, and and he's earned all the uh successes he's had this year, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_01 12:30

Well, since I've got three guests on the show from Georgia, I would kind of like to do, and we're fresh off of it. Um, I'd kind of like to do a little Georgia State review. First of all, uh congratulations to Connor Daniel. I mean, that what an accomplishment. I mean, for that young man. Look at the look at the uh the company he was in to pull off an HOA like that is really impressive in Georgia.

SPEAKER_08 12:54

And his 96 on Eric's course was stout. Like crazy good. Crazy good.

SPEAKER_01 13:02

Well, good for him, man. That's that's awesome. And what a super polite young man, anyway. You know, he's very respectful. But no, awesome. It was hosted by Big Red Oak this year, and I know Wendell and Jessica worked really hard. Guys, I couldn't make this shoot. You're gonna have to paint the picture for me.

SPEAKER_08 13:19

I thought they did a great job. They also got inundated with with bad weather, and it was unfortunate for them. And not only did they get hit with a lot of rain, like leading up to the chute, right when the site would start drying out, they would get a fresh downpour, and a really heavy downpour came in uh late Saturday. Like it came in right as Kyle and I were finishing the were we on the 3.30 main or the 1130 on Saturday? No, I can't remember. Like it was around late afternoon, and the rain came in and just I mean, inundated the site before the banquet dinner. So I think a lot of people left. But I will say, honestly, I thought they did an excellent job managing the site for the rain, and and they did a lot of things that I thought uh I would have never thought of. Like they did valet trailer parking where they were taking trailers with tractors to minimize truck traffic on some of the wetter areas. Uh they made some modifications to fee task where you stayed on the main road, but they built in like mulch kind of culverts to walk across to keep the cart traffic down between the uh the parkours. That worked out well. The actual courses were the roads were fine. So I just wanted to tip my cap to Big Red O because I thought what they could control, they did a really good job with, and I thought the targets were fair, the targets were fun. Um there was definitely a distinct flavor between Eric's targets and Pat Lesky's targets. Uh it was good cop, bad cop, and I think Eric is always happy to be the bad cop. He was certainly test year. But um, you know, I really don't have anything negative to say. The only negative was Mother Nature again, just like at shooters, and that's unfortunately out of everyone's control. So uh it was a great shoot. I appreciated it.

SPEAKER_01 15:10

Kyle, what do you think, buddy? You got anything to add to that?

SPEAKER_06 15:13

I'd say most of the same. Uh like even on the targets, like they're mostly, I mean, even if you say good cop, bad cop, like Eric, you know, always does a great job, but you know, if if it was hard or difficult, he'd at least let you look at it for a while.

SPEAKER_05 15:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 15:29

Uh you know, sometimes other tournaments, other target setters, stuff like that. Like, you know, they they make it an eye test or or something along those lines, but you know, the you know, I I they did great with the the hand they were dealt at the time with weather and and all the above.

SPEAKER_01 15:47

Portia, from uh from a board perspective, what was your opinion of the shoot?

SPEAKER_02 15:52

I think they did great. Like both of them said the rain didn't help them. I think it hurt the numbers right there at the end with people canceling the week of whenever they saw the forecast. And that's always unfortunate when you put in the hard work. B Red Oak put in a lot of time and effort and energy and money into improvements to get ready for this. They had, I believe it was one full course with covered shooting stands that were super nice. Luckily for us, we were on the main event Saturday afternoon in the downpour, but we had the shooting, the covered shooting stands, so that helped a little bit. They checked all the boxes, they did really good with the shooter gifts. They worked with the board to provide the $20 back to class that the board gave. We done vouchers for meal tickets for the main event, and they rolled with that and just made sure that everything was taken care of. They accommodated our state shoot meeting on Saturday night for the board. They've done a really good job with everything that they had going on to make that a success, I think.

SPEAKER_08 16:57

One uh quick cap tip that I think is awesome is each time we've gone for to Big Red Oak for big events, they've created a distinct flavor with the courses. So this time we shot on the brand new back 40 course, which was absolutely gorgeous. And then the last time we had the Southeast Regional there, we were in that like back pine area where they do quail hunts, and it's unique. So when you go there for monthly shoots, you're typically shooting on um their quail and pheasant courses, but they treat us to different locations and different setups when you go to big events, so it feels completely different. And so I wanted to say um that was awesome. And and yeah, I couldn't say enough what Kyle said with Eric's targets and Pat's targets being really good, and both were in the right range of difficulty for a Georgia State chute, which is typically a little more ramped up than most other state chutes. Uh I don't know how many pro squad members, maybe 20 pro squad members there at least. So they they have to keep them fairly difficult to separate those out, but they were they were a really good difficult and not over the top. I mean, perfect for a state shoot, in my opinion.

SPEAKER_01 18:08

Before I ask this next question to you, Portia, um, I want to preface this with saying that the question is not necessarily directed towards the club. I'm still on the Ohio Sporting Clubs Association, so I'm asking this from a board perspective. What do you think needed improvement? And and I and I'm saying this from a state championship shoot level. Was there anything that you felt as a board, or maybe you you guys came together with the club and collectively made a decision that, hey, why don't we change this for next year? Why don't we try this for next year? Was there any of that kind of talk yet? Or is that coming, do you think?

SPEAKER_02 18:46

It is coming, but it's not anything on the part of Bigger Ed Oak. They did a phenomenal job. Us as a board are constantly working to improve not only sporting clays in Georgia, but our state shoot because that's the pinnacle of shooting in our state. We are constantly looking at ways to hold clubs to a higher standard to make sure that the shooters get everything that they that they deserve. We are looking at getting involved in different aspects to take some of the burden off the clubs to make it a little bit easier for the host club. And we are trying to even formulate a state shoot committee with members of the shooting community in Georgia who would be volunteers to maybe get involved with a couple of the board members to act as a liaison between the host club and the board to make sure that everything is as good as it can be for the shooter.

SPEAKER_01 19:37

That's that's awesome. Yeah, I mean, you know, like I said, I'm still on the board in Ohio, and one of the I mean, we actually have a meeting immediately after the state shoot. And we have a meeting once a month, every month, until we get about two months off from the state shoot, and then we kind of start backing up pretty quick, you know, about every two weeks, just to make sure we're following it up with everything and crossing T's and doting the I's. So that's where my question came from because we immediately have a meeting after to evaluate what went right, what went wrong, what needs improvement, because like you said, it is the pinnacle shoot of the year for us within the state. So what would you say the goal is for the GSCA and their state championship? Is it solely attendance? Is it everything? Is it experience, attendance, everything? I mean, what what is the goal of the GSCA every year?

SPEAKER_02 20:34

I think the goal is to provide the highest quality state shoot that we can for the shooters, but at the same time show appreciation for the shooters, not only the ones in Georgia, but the ones from out of state that travel to it as well, because we do have a lot of those. I think that our goal is to create an environment where the shooter has good targets, good fellowship, good food, good resources, everything they need to enjoy one big shoot and get the board's thanks at the same time. I'm not sure that everybody always realizes what the board puts into a state shoot, not only to the club, but to the shooter as well. We've tried several different things in the past and we're still working every year to figure out what is the best way to thank the shooter for being there. But just like the meal tickets this year, you know, we provided $40 worth of lunch basically for every main event shooter. We provided $20 as an additional back-to-class payout. So our goal is to let the shooters see four of the best shooting complexes that we have in the state of Georgia while shooting great targets by great target setters, but also having a chance to win good payouts and good trophies and have a good meal at the end of the day.

SPEAKER_01 21:53

Yeah. That's that I mean, that's a lot of what our recipe is too in Ohio. And like you said, uh you kind of alluded to it there a little bit ago, is you kinda holding the clubs to a higher and higher standard every year for the state chute, and that's one of the things we're looking at, starting with our bid packet, right? Like let's break some of this out and clarify what we need to be doing for the state chute. It's it's all it's ever evolving, you know. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_06 22:20

Similarities are extreme.

SPEAKER_01 22:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 22:23

We're also doing the same as, you know, in that same process as, you know, like, hey, let's let's do all we can and and even go ahead and set some aspects that we've never set before as a board or or a community as far as what we need to do or what we think we want to do. And then at the same time, you know, we've got a a survey or a questionnaire coming out to to help get the you know the ideas and opinions of of everyone so that we can meet those expectations better.

SPEAKER_01 22:56

Yeah. And you guys said it's going to Meadows next year, and you said that would be in June. Is that correct?

SPEAKER_02 23:02

Correct. It'll be June 8th through 13th.

SPEAKER_01 23:05

Okay. Well, Casey, it's obviously not up on Score Chaser yet, or Casey would have already let me know that it was going to open at a certain date for our tourney talk that we do. So we'll we'll be sure and blast that out there one uh when it is available up on Scorechaser. But you know, speaking of state shoots, one of the topics I had here for tonight was the current schedule for the sport as a competitor is just insane right now. I mean, you know, it the Ohio State shoots coming up here. It's July 30th through August 2nd. Immediately following that is the Indiana State. Immediately following that's the U.S. Open. And we kind of ran into the same thing with the shooters, right? We had the shooters championship. The very next weekend was uh the Southeast Regional, and then the very next weekend there was a whole host of state shoots you can go to. And then the Georgia State was the weekend after that. I mean, it's just back to back to back to back big shoots. Matt, you're over there being kind of quiet. So I'm gonna ask you and Kyle this. How do you guys choose which shoot to go to? Like back in the day, it used to be real obvious, right? Like, if I'm going for money, I'm going here. Or if I'm gonna go for experience, I'm going here. Now all of these clubs have raised the level of tournaments. They're all paying good, they all have good experience. Like, how do you guys pick and choose where you're going?

SPEAKER_08 24:25

Yeah, I think the first thing is to recognize like it's a good problem to have, right? The sport's growing. We have so many great shoots, that's number one. After 2024, when I did like both world championships that were here and maybe three or four of the tour, I kind of had to ask myself the same question. Like, it's getting to the point, like, I've got to start making some decisions. And I think you have to ask yourself like what your goal is, and then work backwards from there. Obviously, if you're chasing all American or Team USA, that kind of makes it obvious what you're gonna want to go to. Very few of us are in that position. Most of us are more hobbyists. I'm I'm 100% amateur. I have no sponsor obligations, I'm not pro-squad, uh, anything like that. So I just look at things simply from a calendar and logistical perspective. So I lay out my calendar like on paper. Starting, I'll be laying out my 2027 calendar now. It'll probably be 50% filled out, and I put on anniversaries, kids' birthdays, everything, and then look at the shoots that are in those open windows and go to the ones that that make sense from a logistics standpoint. So I generally only want to fly to events, like say two events a year, plus fly to a lesson with Anthony. So I try to fly a lesson three times. So if you include nationals and a lesson, that's two of the three. So I'll I'll determine one more event I fly to. The other ones are gonna be definitely Georgia State and hit, you know, state shoots in the area, hit the big Georgia events like the shooters, just because those are in my backyard. But I rip to me, it's it's a very simplistic exercise of, you know, uh I have 20 vacation days, so I start calculating what each chute is going to burn. You have a travel day, you've got Friday, Saturday, Sunday for shooting minimum. So you're talking about two vacation days, generally speaking, if you go to a shoot, or at least one and a half. And so I get you know 20 and you just start doing math down. So for me, it's really that aspect of it is what makes sense from a time standpoint with my commitments to the family, what makes sense from a budgetary standpoint. If I can get great competition driving in my backyard, I'm gonna do that over flying somewhere. And uh it's in line with my goal right now, which is just to be a better amateur shooter.

SPEAKER_01 26:49

Kyle, what about you, buddy? What uh I know it's a little bit different for you being I we'll say family business, self-employed. But it at the same time, that can be even harder to get away, right? So for you, what what do you do? Do you set goals like Matt and then decide from there? Or because I know you've had a little bit of a break and you're coming back into it, so you're probably kind of looking at that calendar, right?

SPEAKER_06 27:14

Uh I probably should. I uh I took I took advantage of the the score chaser, you know, program. There they pretty much signed you up for all the big stuff. So, you know, I'd you know just get an email saying, hey, you're signed up for this, you know, for the the following year. So I wouldn't say I've necessarily chosen to sign up for it's just like all right, if I can make it, I'm going. And then you know, you get the email that says when you need to cancel by if you have to, and and it being a family business, it's just unless something catastrophic happens, we've been lucky or blessed the last couple years that either plan it or or get a strategy up with me and my brother and my dad and be able to go to most of them. I've I've canceled a couple, but you know, if something major breaks down or something like that, then you know, that's the kind of stuff that I need to stay here for. That and and some of it has been like something broke down that it was big enough or slow enough on the shipping that like, hey, this part ain't gonna be here till after I get back anyway. So I'll go ahead and go and then take a stressful week at work and turn it into a you know relaxing weekend somewhere else doing doing what we all love to do.

SPEAKER_01 28:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 28:29

But but I've uh like I like to even weigh back on the uh PSCA stuff, uh shoots, big shoots, like I just like to go see, you know, kind of how I measure up against the guys that that are professionals and and then hopefully slowly ticking my way into that category. But uh there's a lot to be said for you know, working 60, 70 hours and then going and and trying to shoot in the free time and the last hour of daylight here and there, and and all those guys would agree because they most of them have done the same to get to where they're at.

SPEAKER_01 29:05

Yeah. Well, I mean, you know, you take the top 10% of the sport, they coach as part of their living, right? So going to tournaments and having an accomplishment in a tournament could mean lessons for them, you know, revenue for them down the road. The vast majority of what makes up a tournament, though, is people that are going to work every week and every day. So, you know, Matt, you and I kind of talked about this off there is, you know, what's your return on investment for attending a competition? If you're going to compete, and of course we if it's just for the love of competition, great. But like you said, you know, what's your goal? Are you chasing punches and patches or are you chasing money, you know, or is it just simply the experience? You know, the the vast I know there's a lot of wealth in the sport. We get that. Those people can afford to go and they don't give a crap if they win anything. But the vast majority of what makes up the sport is people that are, you know, nine to five. And for them, when they get a chance to get off work and go somewhere to a big shoot, what's their return on investment? You know, what makes them decide where to go?

SPEAKER_08 30:15

Yeah, it's a great question. And um, I think as more of us have asked that question, uh, I think organizations, governing bodies, and clubs are responding pretty well. So, like to answer your point, for me to go to a regional, the return on investment is exactly what Kyle was saying. I want the opportunity to compete against the best and see where I stack up relative to them. Am I within 10%? Am I within 5%? Am I off by 15, 20 targets? Like, how close am I to the best guys? And then how did they do on relative courses or stations so I can analyze my own game and work to improve it? Obviously, at the local level, there is more uh opportunity for a financial return on investment. And for example, like one way I feel like the clubs and and our you know state associations responded is we have the Central Georgia Circuit Shoot Series, which essentially there's eight events, two at each of four major clubs in Central Georgia, and it's a cumulative points system. And I won't bore everyone with the ongoing details, but essentially you drop two events, you have to go to one event at each club to qualify, and there's a $10 uh dollars back to class payout for the event and an additional ten dollars back to the pot. And the pot has been supplemented, I believe, by an additional Porsche, can correct me, but I think it's $2,000 from GSEA and $2,000 from the clubs. And after four events, I think the pot is already at $8,000. And they do a percentage payout from first to 10th place based on your accumulative points. And the points are added like in your class. So if you win a class, for example, you get 100 points. If you win the whole shoot, which is probably what it takes to win masterclass, then you would get 100 points too. So class shooters get an equal opportunity to win money, and it's not just the best shooters. So for me, I can go to those events, those are fantastic events. They can be, you know, pay me back or kind of break even. And so that's a great opportunity to get a local return on investment. I still get great competition, but you know, there is the return on investment for going to the regional events and getting the opportunity to compete against the best shooters.

SPEAKER_01 32:34

Well, you know, I as you're sitting here talking about this, I went ahead and pulled it up. And uh God bless Casey Chase, she's score chaser, is actually got the Georgia circuit shoot. So those results are updated automatically in Score Chaser. Is that right, Portia? Is that how that works?

SPEAKER_02 32:53

Yes. Once the club puts in the final scores of their perspective shoot that day, it's automatically linked to the circuit shoot race that Casey helped us build. That way everybody can see it. Where it's a little bit wonky that Score Chaser can't do is it can't drop the two scores that Matt was talking about. So once we get to that point after two more races, it'll go to an Excel spreadsheet and we'll keep that posted for everybody just because Score Chaser doesn't have that capability. But it's really neat this year being on Score Chaser for the first year because everybody can see where they stand. They've got a constant update of this is where I'm at, this is where I need to be.

SPEAKER_01 33:33

Okay. So let me ask a question because I'm looking, and this is really this this is really cool. And I don't I don't want to get too much into the details because the listeners will will lose them if they're not interested in attending this. But I'm looking at the master class and I'm seeing some AA second, AA5. So obviously these people were in double A when they signed up, but then their points are carrying into masters, or or are they only being accredited for double? How does that work?

SPEAKER_02 33:58

Your points are given to you by based on the class you were in during the tournament. So if you increase in class, your points stay with you, and then you start working in that new class to continue getting points for the remainder of the shoes.

SPEAKER_01 34:12

Okay, I got you. Oh, and now I see why these two knuckleheads are bringing this up because look at this. Kyle Millwood is leading with Matt Miller chasing right behind him. Ah, okay. So they're trying to get more percent as they're turning.

SPEAKER_08 34:25

If I remember correctly, Kyle's at 380 out of a possible 400, which is ridiculous. Means he's shot two HOAs and two runner-ups. So it's a great series. Like I've I know that I think Texas has the buckle race series and South Carolina has a uh circuit shoot series, but if there are other state associations listening, this is just a great model to improve attendance. And I feel like the clubs have done such a good job to give to come up with a format that gives back to the shooters and reward shooters in class as well. Like I think the the first two years they did it, someone in someone in class, like B class or C class, won first in the pot and got a got a chunk. Um so anyway, I think it's awesome.

SPEAKER_01 35:10

It is awesome. See Kyle, you need to go ahead and take him up on his offer to keep all your equipment locked up in a safe so that way you can just pull up. Yeah, literally two of them now. Well, um uh portion, this is where you know we're we're talking about the schedule and how nuts it is with all these tournaments and not only the shooters' championship, but with y'all being on the board, you know, this this really impacts your ability to schedule tournaments and and gain attendance when there's so many other good shoots you have to compete with on the calendar, right?

SPEAKER_02 35:46

It absolutely does. It is extremely hard to schedule a shoot, not only around everybody's personal schedule and business schedule, but then looking at the shoots that are around. In Georgia, we have a rule that you can't host a registered shoot if you're within 100 miles of a club that has one scheduled that day. So when you start looking at all the clubs that are around us in central Georgia trying to schedule a shoot, just local, much less looking at regionals and state shoots and world shoots and everything else that comes into that, it gets to be tedious trying to find the day. And then a lot, like you said, it hurts our local shooters. And I don't think that's taken into consideration a lot when we start looking at scheduling that the people like Kyle and Matt, who were traveling to the bigger shoots, can't always turn around and go to a local shoot the following weekend. Whether it's time or family or work or money or any of the things that go into this sport, it's hard for your local members to still support the local clubs in the middle of all of the big shoots that we have, especially the first part of the year when everything is so jam-packed.

SPEAKER_01 36:57

Every situation like this can become a double-edged sword. And, you know, the the sharp side is for right now, it's for the clubs, right? They have this problem. The the handle side is for the shooters because this is really good for the shooters to have this problem. But like you said, it's it's just tough because you want your local shooters to be able to come to a good shoot, a good tournament right there in Georgia. Unfortunately, the you know, Northwest whatever's going on, and it's going to draw a bunch of people there. And I don't I don't want this to come off wrong when people are listening to this. If you have plans to attend a regional, go. You know, if you especially if you've never been to one, you need to go one. But consider this: if you've been to a whole host of regionals and there's a club local to you that's holding a chute, you could probably, and if you, you know, if money's your thing, you could probably go to that local shoot and make more money than you are going to that regional. Um, even if you win your class. I mean, what is it, Matt? A thousand dollars to win the class or something like that at a regional now?

SPEAKER_08 38:00

Uh yeah, depending like that.

SPEAKER_01 38:02

Right. Yeah. So, okay, and you're looking at probably the rental car and the flight takes that thousand, not including the $900 a week golf cart and you know, food, gas, ammo, registration. So I just I guess my thing is is support your local clubs, and you guys got something really cool going on there. And I I encourage more clubs to look into it because stuff like that is really cool.

SPEAKER_06 38:32

Well, I don't know the exact number, but I would guess that we may be up uh 15 to 20 percent this year on that same point trace than we have in last year. Really? And I think maybe some of that you know, score chaser and and whatnot, being able to see all that is is part of the helpful boost.

SPEAKER_01 38:53

Well, like Jake Spangler says, build it and they'll come, right? So you guys ran it and it was successful, and it sounds like more people are wanting to participate.

SPEAKER_06 39:01

It's definitely a good idea.

SPEAKER_01 39:03

Well, what about Matt? We you again, I keep alluding to conversations we've had off-air. Competition's getting really hot, dude. I mean, listen, I I hope he doesn't get mad at me. Corey and I had Corey Cruz and I had a conversation at Shooters Championship, and he's like, you know, it used to be back in the day, you can go and and shoot really good, maybe drop two, three birds and win the event. Now you got to make a hundred perfect moves and hope you get lucky on a couple of them. And I mean, it's Kyle, look, you've had a little break and came back. Are you seeing the same thing too?

SPEAKER_06 39:39

Yeah, I think yeah. I mean, just even you could say the youth that's that's been getting lessons from Corey and Anthony and Zach and Kevin and all the all the guys, you know, that have been doing it for so long. Well, that you know, they're also starting younger, so you know, we've produced Connor Daniel and and you know, that whole age group, just all of those guys are you know killing it. I mean, Dylan Thompson, same thing. He's his name is at the top locally a good bit. Yeah. Uh and that's just, you know, I can't remember the saying, but you know, Anthony's always good about, you know, the was it rising tides or something about, you know. Lift all ships, yep. Right. You know, iron sharpens iron. Like, hey, you either either practice a little more and get a little better, or you're getting left behind. And that's that's happening a lot in Georgia right now. Just the talent's crazy.

SPEAKER_01 40:36

Well, I mean, look, Georgia's always been a hotbed for shooters. But it, you know, what I'm talking about is if you look at scores as a whole, and you know, I wish we had Neil Chadwick on right now. This guy loves statistics when it comes to this stuff, but because he looks at all this and breaks it all down. But it seems to me like the scores predominantly across the board are going up everywhere. And Kyle, you said something about Anthony. Matt, I know you guys talk all the time. He's not only your coach, he's a friend of yours. What have you guys talked about? What's your take? What's his take on this?

SPEAKER_08 41:09

Yeah, I mean, I think 100% everyone's getting better. Uh, targets are more challenging than ever, and I think our skills are responding. I mean, I feel like I'm shooting far better than I've ever shot now, and there are people that are getting like you think I think about Dylan and how good he's gotten and how great of a shooter he is. It's like, man, I'm getting better. And this kid's getting better like exponentially faster with the work he's putting in. So I don't see that changing to Kyle's point. I think good shooters are going to continue to get better. I think as the cream rises to the top, they're going to challenge each other to get better. And I think for guys like Kyle and I, we just kind of ride that coattail and learn to get better with those guys. But to that point, it's I think it's if you're only going, kind of tying the two concepts of competition and the shoots together, if you're only going to the big shoots as you're going through class and you're coming up, it's going to be very difficult for you to learn how to win because it's so difficult to win. There's only a few guys that are winning, and you almost have to shoot an out-of-your-mind score to win. Like, usually the winning score is something like you shoot the targets and you look at the winning score and you're like, how is that score even possible? I mean, Anthony says that like the winning score is usually something that's just phenomenal. So if you can go to local events and hone your craft, learning to win in class locally, and then when you get through your classes, then the next chance is like, can you win in a local shoot in Georgia? And that sounds like it's not that big of a deal. It's good. Well, that's a big deal. Yeah, no. Uh, because I I've shot my last circuit shoot on the squad was myself and Kyle. Uh Trent Martin's a great shooter, John Bush, the president of GSEA is a great shooter, and Dylan Thompson was with us. Well, there you go. Just to win the squad, you got to beat Dylan. So I think you have to tie those two concepts together and not allow the national, the level of national competition to frustrate you. Um, and even if you win in class with Georgia, if you look at the class scores for like the shooters, they're phenomenal scores. I mean, they're they're scores you would not expect a D or a C class shooter to shoot, and they still do it. So, you know, I would encourage everyone, even if they have aspirations of the national level, don't abandon those local shoots and hone your craft there and then bring that confidence and experience to the bigger shoots where the targets are going to be more challenging. And if you don't have that inherent confidence, those targets are going to grind you down.

SPEAKER_01 43:51

Well, Matt, you said something about honing your craft, and I wanted to ask about that. So has this changed your training? An overall approach to a big event?

SPEAKER_08 44:03

The competition or shooting locally?

SPEAKER_01 44:06

The level of competition in general, just like how the scores have stepped up so exponentially.

SPEAKER_08 44:11

I mean, I've I've definitely kind of amended my mental game. My mental game is just built around it is so much more built around an independent mindset of just simply evaluating how I'm shooting and approving what I'm doing. Because if you get lost in what Brandon shot or Braxton or Dylan or anyone else, it it kind of becomes like a self-licking ice cream of defeat and confidence evaporation. And you just can't do that yourself. So I don't know those guys are going to do what they're going to do. And I have to keep my tunnel vision of what I can do to improve my shooting. And if I focus on that thing, I'm going to get closer to the scores they're shooting. That's the only thing I concern myself with is like how did I shoot on the targets? What mistakes did I make? And then you can use the scores that they're shooting as a guide. But if you're taking the approach of uh winner bust, at least where I am in the game, like that's kind of a fool's errand. You have to kind of insulate yourself from the success and the scores those guys are having and really look at things in a much more simplistic level of gradual improvement and an ongoing process of trying to close the gap. It's difficult to close the gap because they're getting better too. But to me, that's how I look at it. And that's that's really changed my mental game. I used to, you know, go home defeated because you feel like you shoot good, and then um somebody throws up some insane score and you and you feel defeated. But now it's like, you know, they're gonna shoot what they're gonna shoot, and it's up to me to get better at what I do and not worry about the rest.

SPEAKER_01 45:48

That's an awesome answer, Matt. Call, what about you, buddy? Have you, since you've kind of stepped back into it and you're and I'm sure you were probably looking at scores even when you were on a break, but has it kind of changed your training and your overall approach?

SPEAKER_06 46:02

I would I mean, no, I hadn't really changed anything other than just deciding on like, all right, I'm shooting this gun and and I've got the options to, you know, change a couple chokes now and and even, you know, stuff like that. But I haven't I wouldn't say I've changed much other than like, hey, you probably need to focus on some harder targets and you know, better targets and you know, not so much the softer stuff now. You gotta hit all the softer ones, but uh listen, I don't think I've changed much anyway, other than just settled on a certain setup and everything that goes along with that.

SPEAKER_01 46:40

Yeah. Porsche, ma'am. I'm sorry, I don't mean to leave you out of this conversation. So let me ask you this are you at least entertained by watching all this happen?

SPEAKER_02 46:49

I am. I enjoy it. It's fun to me.

SPEAKER_01 46:52

Um, I mean, I'm sure you've seen a lot of uh trash can kicking and shell throwing and all kind of stuff go on with some of the stuff, right?

SPEAKER_02 47:01

I have. There's um always a little bit of attitude, but sometimes it's the good kind. Sometimes it's when everybody does good and everybody's pumped up and things are going well that you see the harder threat, shells getting thrown in the trash can and all of that.

SPEAKER_01 47:16

I I want to ask all of you this question, and and maybe Portia might have the most interesting answer. So we'll start with her. I want to know are we headed in the right direction in terms of target setting and what the current classification system that we have? Based on those two things, are we headed in the right direction as a sport? What do you think, Portia?

SPEAKER_02 47:41

I think so. I think that especially in the Southeast, we have some of the best target setters you can get. There is no shortage of people that can come in and set targets. Luckily for us internally, we have really good full-time staff that set great targets. Kevin and Brian do an excellent job at setting our targets on a day-to-day and even for our monthly shoots. But when we start looking at bigger tournaments, such as shooters and the state shooting things like that, there is no shortage of people that you can call that live within hours away that can be there and set any kind of target you want. Whether it's Rick Hemingway and the big long shots that kill everybody, or Eric who can throw something within 20 yards and still make you miss it. We have a wealth of target setters who can make any presentation that you want.

SPEAKER_01 48:31

Okay. What about you, Kyle? Do you think we're heading in the right direction?

SPEAKER_06 48:35

I think any change is a good change as far as we're searching for what's better and and we're adjusting on the fly and and all the above, but I think the you know, participation's up, the difficulties up, level of experiences up, and and just ability is up. So I th I think we're doing something right.

SPEAKER_01 48:58

Yeah, I I mean, you know, I I go to a shoot every once in a while, and everybody gets their butt kicked, and I scratch my head and go on, was this the right thing to do? But I guess not everybody's gonna get it right every time, right? But Matt, what's your perspective on it?

SPEAKER_08 49:14

I I think so. I think there needs to be some uh like some under give and take or mutual understanding from the shooter and the event. And what I mean by that is I think when people understand that it's it's pretty well established now. When you go to a uh championship tour event, the targets are gonna be difficult and they're gonna be relentless. And I think that's kind of the thing that most people don't appreciate the most. It's not the individual target difficulty that makes those events challenging. It's that every station is technical and challenging. So your confidence is getting tested every station, and you don't get an opportunity to say get a little momentum and build confidence over, you know, six or seven pretty easy stations, and then you're rolling when you hit the hard stuff. Like if you get beat, if you have a rough station, you better have your confidence when you go to the next one because it's not really going to get any easier. So I think if shooters just accept the fact that it it appears that's the direction they're going. They're going to set really challenging targets. And if you go there with that understanding, it manages your expectations and you know what to expect. And I think that in a way is good because I do like the idea of pushing the shooter skill sets, because if we always kept the targets modest, we really wouldn't be pushing the envelope of our skills skill level. On the other hand, um, I think there needs to be other events that fill that gap and there needs to be a hierarchy of difficulty. Like if you go to a regional you know, or world championship, expect that to be the most difficult. Uh, when you go to a state shoot, if it's a smaller state, like don't don't try to smash your attendance and your participants. Like throw stuff that if if a 97-98 wins it, so be it. But but don't use that as an opportunity necessarily to beat down your constituents for that shoot. And then when you go locally, you know, there's kind of a formula. You can have eight, you know, pretty straightforward stations and you know, three a little bit more difficult, and then maybe like three separator stations and go with that formula. So I think there needs to be a hierarchy of difficulty. I don't think it's a one-answer fits all. I do like that we're pushing the limits of skill. It's not always fun when I'm getting smashed on a course, but at the end of the day, the more of those difficult events I've done, the better shooter I've left there. But you just you need to have, I think shooters need to have a framework for making sure you have a way to repair your confidence after those events. If you go there and get D down, then you know, go to a local shoot and kind of go through a competition on less difficult targets and put a round together, shoot that 87 or uh 88 and wash that, you know, whatever, 65 off. So that's kind of my opinion is I accept the direction. I think we'll look back and say is the right one as we as we get, you know, the United States, the US has gotten so much better as shooters, but there definitely needs to be other shoots and other settings that offer an alternative to being the most difficult. Like every shoot shouldn't the target setter shouldn't show up there trying to push the envelope. Like set a fair test and recognize the level of the shooter that you're setting targets for. If you're not trying to distinguish the top 100 shooters, you can you can take it back and and not punish those guys that are in class.

SPEAKER_01 52:39

Yeah. That's well said, Matt. That's very well said. Kyle, see I I see now why you let him do all the talking.

SPEAKER_06 52:47

He's way better at it. But I mean, to be fair, like you know, the word test is a is a big word, and that's what you know, most of these big tournaments, they are the big test. You know, some of the side events are are not as difficult sometimes, and sometimes they're even more difficult, and the and the main events are you know dialed in for the for the masses and not just the top 20 guys or 40 guys that are going head to head. But and I think it's good that that kind of bounces around, but you know, me as a shooter, you know, that's what I like. Like, hey, I I don't care what you throw. You know, if it's you know, some days are gonna be like, all right, it's missing out if you want to win. And some days are like, hey, you got a good five or ten targets, you can you know, you can still be in the game here uh, you know, after the first day or second day or whatever, but with the talent that's out there, likely that's a a big number, you know. I mean, two or three or four misses by the top guys is gonna be about all they're gonna give you for you know your first or second place on the course.

SPEAKER_01 53:56

But if they give you that. Right.

SPEAKER_06 54:00

But you know, there's the point being is you know, it is test day, and and sometimes myself included, like, hey, don't don't get mad at the target setters or the clubs uh for the targets because they have the difficult problem to solve, is like how do you please everybody because you have to separate everyone, but you also have to understand that like, hey, this is a hobby or a vacation, and everybody wants to enjoy the time that they're out there, and not everybody's out there for the competition, they're out there just to have fun with their buddies, and you know, you have to blend that somewhat equally.

SPEAKER_01 54:34

Yeah. Yeah, that's well said. Um, you know, I that's I guess for the Dead Pearl Blast, you know, of course I'm gonna brag about that because that's you know, this program's putting on that shoot in December. I guess that's where I throw all of that out the window. And it's I want that to be just a really fun shoot, right? Pays back good money, gives about we're giving a crap ton of prizes away. Thank you to our sponsors. But that's where I kind of figure like, you know what, it's at the end of the year, and you guys have either stressed yourselves out or beat yourselves up, or a target setter somewhere along the way beat you up. And I just want everybody to come out and have fun, right? So I throw all of that out the window and just go set some wild, fun, crazy stuff. But yeah, which by the way, I hope all three of you are planning on attending December 11th and 12th at Rocky Creek in South Carolina. Everybody's being quiet. Matt's looking at the ceiling and the floor.

SPEAKER_08 55:33

I already told you I would be there. Don't even start out.

SPEAKER_01 55:36

All right.

SPEAKER_06 55:36

It's actually not a bad drive from here.

SPEAKER_01 55:39

See, there you go. So while Kyle just volunteered himself, he's gonna be there. What about you, Porsche? Are you at least gonna come have a drink with us?

SPEAKER_02 55:46

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 55:47

Well, we got Taconic Distillery sponsoring a cocktail on Friday and Saturday night. We're gonna have all the time.

SPEAKER_08 55:52

Porsche's my good luck charm when we shoot anyway, so I want her there. And did you know this? I was on the squad when Porsche shot a 90 at Big Red Oak. I got to witness it in person.

SPEAKER_01 56:04

Really?

SPEAKER_08 56:04

I was.

SPEAKER_01 56:05

Well, wait a minute, Portia. Now I feel bad. I didn't know you were competing too.

SPEAKER_02 56:11

I don't know that I would go that far. I attempt to compete. I go up and participate.

SPEAKER_01 56:17

I mean, come on. I don't I host this podcast, and that's all I do is attempt to compete. So we're in the same boat. But she is a 90 shooter, in fact.

SPEAKER_08 56:27

I saw it myself.

SPEAKER_01 56:28

That is awesome. Well, congratulations, Port. That's really good. Not too many people can wrap up their day with a nine in front of their score, right?

SPEAKER_08 56:36

And if I remember correctly, didn't you beat Trey too?

SPEAKER_02 56:40

I think I beat most of y'all that day, didn't I?

SPEAKER_08 56:44

Oh. Oh, man.

SPEAKER_02 56:46

You just got to smash it.

SPEAKER_08 56:49

I'm not trying to be a Packer. I think I shot a 98 or a 99 that day.

SPEAKER_02 56:54

Oh, I'm not surprised by that. But I wanted the bottom of the squad.

SPEAKER_08 57:00

I I I mean, I don't want to have to needle your balloon, but I'm just gonna have to needle it.

SPEAKER_01 57:05

Wait, she so she did beat Trey. Is that what I'm hearing?

SPEAKER_08 57:08

I'm I'm almost 100% sure.

SPEAKER_01 57:12

You wait till next time I see him. I cannot wait. This is awesome. Portia, I'm gonna I'm gonna have like some kind of a golden goat award made for you and present right in front of Trey, be like, ha ha. Well, well, guys, this is this has been really cool, and and I appreciate everybody getting together. I mean, I don't know how much we've actually accomplished, but I think we got some good information out there. Um, I think we've covered some topics that definitely have needed to be hit lately. Matt, did you have anything else you wanted to spew out there? Because we're we're all ears, buddy.

SPEAKER_08 57:47

Yeah, I've got I've anything intelligent I had to say is out. So there anything from here is gonna be dumb as hell. So I'm just gonna stop talking.

SPEAKER_01 57:56

Well, we got 55 minutes out of him, Kyle.

SPEAKER_06 57:59

True.

SPEAKER_01 58:00

What what do you what about you, Kyle? You've been way too quiet this show.

SPEAKER_06 58:04

I'm just glad to be here.

SPEAKER_01 58:06

All right. Well, we're we're glad to have you. Portia, is there anything else you wanted to let everybody know?

SPEAKER_02 58:11

No, just as always, thanks for supporting the Meadows Shooters Championship. Keep a lookout for all the new things coming from us on that. We our goal is to make everything we do bigger and better, and that's where we're going.

SPEAKER_01 58:24

Well, like I said, we we are going to do a round table um this fall with the folks from the meadows. Uh, of course, Portia, you're included in that, talking about the 2027 Shooters Championship. And since you guys are hosting the Georgia State, we can just do a little prelude to that as well.

SPEAKER_02 58:40

Perfect. We'll take it.

SPEAKER_01 58:42

Yes, absolutely. So everybody keep their ears open for that one. Listen, everyone, the message is the same each and every week. Take someone new shooting, take them to a tournament. And if they're in Georgia, my goodness, listen to all the great shooting that goes on there. Take them, man, drag them out to a tournament. Show them these pros like Mr. Miller and Mr. Millwood here on the show with us.

SPEAKER_07 59:02

I'll point them to Kevin and Dylan and Zach. I'll show them where they where they sit at.

SPEAKER_01 59:07

Show them where they camp up.

SPEAKER_07 59:09

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 59:10

Um yeah. Well, hey, speaking of which, Portia, it sounds to me like if any of the listeners have a lady that they're wanting to take shooting, they need to drag them over there and squat them with you.

SPEAKER_02 59:21

Well, I would not go that far. I am way better with a pen and a computer than I am a shotgun. I can get them in touch with some good people, but I am way better behind the counter there and in front of it. But we would love to have them.

SPEAKER_01 59:33

Oh my goodness. So listen, everyone, thanks again to all of our sponsors. The one that's not on the outro uh is make a break. Uh, we have now partnered with Mr. Ed Pritchell of Top Gun Shooting Sports. We are gonna be bringing you uh updates for Make a Break each and every week that they have one. Um, really excited about that. It's a little venture we're doing together, and um we're gonna have more on that here soon. Matt, Carl, Portia, thank you all very much for joining us. We really appreciate it. And you guys are welcome back here anytime.

SPEAKER_07 1:00:08

Thanks, appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:11

Till next week. Can't wait to catch y'all back here on the Dead Pear Podcast.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:16

We'll see you next time on the Dead Pear Podcast.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:19

The Dead Pear Podcast is brought to you by Kohler Arms, America's competition shotgun, and it's fueled by Fyoki USA. The Dead Pear theme song was written, arranged, and produced by Toby Tomplay. Thanks to the following sponsors: RE Ranger, see it further, see it faster with Ranger Performance Eyewear, Atlas Traps, America's finest play target equipment, gun and trophy insurance, protect your price possessions with the best insurance. I know chokes, the best jokes and fair sporting in the world is tectonic distilleries. After the tournament, it's time for one more joke with tectonic distilleries, long range, the industry standards for track release and target management. Fueled for the fearless and JTEC to get their podcast technology partner.