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WAVERLY — Abe Shelley, going into seventh grade at Paul Hadley Middle School, carefully aims his rifle toward the sky and waits for his target to show in his sights. When it does, Shelley and his other teammates blast it, then watch it fall to the ground, a shred of what it was five minutes before. No, this is not a skeet the Glenns Valley Claybusters members were shooting at - not this time. This was Abe’s cap. Abe had just broken his first 25, meaning he hit all 25 skeets without a miss, and the hat shooting is a ceremony to celebrate the perfection. “It’s a right of passage,” Claybusters’ coach Jason Barnett said. “It feels good,” Abe said, the cap back on his head, the brim just about to fall off. “I’m proud of it.” Abe and the other Claybusters, based in Waverly, will be competing in the Scholastic Clay Target Program state competition this Saturday in Daleville, and after that will be off to national competition July 19 in San Antonio, Texas, from teams all over the nation. The team comprises Luke Broderick, Nick Cannon-Mason, Carter Cummings, Chris Fergurson, Christopher Mayfield, Kody Niese, Shelley, Callin Temperly, Nicholas Temperly, and Kyle Wagoner. Landon Wall and Nick Bryant are alternates. “I fully expect to win,” Barnett said. “Last year I wouldn’t have said that but with the amount of work these guys have put in, I know we can win.” Abe agrees. “We all have days,” he said. “We all have the potential to break 25, it’s just a matter of if we can do it.” Pretty good for a team that’s only in its second year of existence. “I used to bring my gun all the time and shoot with them, but I don’t do that anymore,” Barnett said. “They can beat me now.” The team is actually divided into two teams, both junior level, and last year the two teams finished fifth and sixth. Half of the shooters are carryovers from last year’s team and half are new, including Abe. The team has improved immensely however, so immensely there were two hat shooting ceremonies in one practice. Barnett joined the team as coach after last year’s coach Ron Mason was promoted to the state level to help spread skeet shooting. Barnett shot at Indiana University in college and was called by Mason to coach the team this year. “I just wanted to give something back,” Barnett said. “I thoroughly enjoy this.” Abe joined the team for the first time this year, and has become one of team’s most reliable shooters. He got interested sport because his father, Kevin, shot. He started in 4-H shooting two years ago at the Indiana Hunt Club, then joined the Claybusters this year. “I love the thrill of it,” Abe said. “It feels good breaking a target, to see it break.” He makes sure his homework is done before practice during the school year, then he’s off to the range to practice. He practices as much as four nights a week. That may be more than most of the team practices, but the whole team does show dedication. “We’re usually not out of here until dark,” Barnett said. “People usually have their headlights on when they leave.” But all that practicing takes its toll, in the form of money. Most parents said the cost was phenomenal, and that’s what keeps some people away. “This is not a cheap sport,” Kevin Shelley, Abe’s father said. “It costs $3 a box, and Abe can go through six or eight boxes in one shooting.” And that’s not even counting the gun, which can be very expensive. Costs can range from $1,200 to over $10,000, and then there’s adjustments to be done. Kody Niese, another team member, spend $2,200 on a gun and that’s not even counting his adjustments. “That was another $600 there,” Ron Niese, Kody’s father said. “That’s a lot of money.” And the trip to San Antonio last year cost about $3,000 for the Nieses. But the cost isn’t the only thing that will drive some people away from the sport. Safety can also be a sticking point to some parents, but it wasn’t for Kevin. “These kids are about as safe as they can be,” he said. “They hold after a misfire and are very careful with the muzzle of the gun.” Barnett agreed. “These kids are very careful,” Barnett said. “They’ve all had hunter’s regulation courses so they all know what they’re doing.” And next year should be even better for the Claybusters, as Barnett hopes to have a bigger team than last year. He had turn some people away this year. “We’re maxed out,” Barnett said.
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