CONRATS TONY RIVERA! ANOTHER CHAMPIONSHIP UNDER YOUR BELT!
It was a drive from Houston----> Six hours+.....I followed the GPS..that's "MISS GPS" to you....seems she wanted time to see some Texas back-country so she choose to take the Austin route, Hwy 7, over the San Antonio Interstate 10 that I had become more accustomed to traveling.
But I can't forsake LBJ Country and you can't miss Fredericksburg! The time passed quickly. Small towns, cattle and cowboys. The scenery unmistakably TEXAS! If you have not been, you have not experienced Texas the way it was.... history literally leaps from the side of the road along your route. Comanche Creek, gunfights, wars and hangings! My God, I missed a wonderful period in our history! Horseback all day, campfires, roasted game hens over open fires, stars yet uncounted...oh, but the whiskey and women, they still exist there today, cowboy, so all may not be lost in the pages of LOUIS L'Amour paperbacks...oh well, we came to shoot, didn't we?
After checking into the one hotel I would not recommend to my worst enemy----> hope your listening #$%@&!... Anyway, dinner at the restaurant next door was advertized as Italian food...so, "Joe", was short for "Giuseppe"? Needing to do something about my disappointment with the room, I decided that a Chianti would help pass the time, while the one, "very small" a/c unit began the task of cooling off the "sauna of 114"...OK I'll stop whining now...lol..a minute ago I was sleeping on the ground under the stars??
ANYWAY...
when I arrived at the SAN ANGELO CLAYBIRD ASSOCIATION the usual last minute rush to complete and get prepared was in full swing. I parked outside the office and waited patiently.....sooner or later my radio guests would come. Alas they did! My first interviews were with DONNA LEWELLEN, KATHY BAINS and SHANNON STARNS. I had actually interviewed Donna at the 2007 Nationals while she and her husband MIKE LEWELLEN were considering the purchase of several new PROMATIC machines for their club in GLEN ROSE TEXAS ,called----> LONE STAR SPORTING CLAYS!
THANX for being so kind, DONNA, inviting me to your trailer if I needed a break from shooting or interviews. As you will hear on the radio, only DONNA shoots. Her friends are part of a support group. Their husbands were busy setting up the course!
I thanked the ladies for the fun interview. It was time to head into the office and get checked in...those girls were the last smiling faces I saw for the next hour or so....for inside those registration walls the tension was mounting as the time drew closer to the on-slot of some 500 shooters that would descend upon them at any moment!
This is the face of mounting frustration as the phone began to ring 
and the shooters began to make demands upon the small staff. But all of us know COLETTE ROGERS works best under pressure....after all, her real job is working at the famous ELM FORK CLUB in Dallas.
Hey, remember if you want any of these photos just click on them and they will go full screen...print on good photo quality paper, and they are "on me"....Colette I'm sure you want a cop
y..lol
BUT...it did get better as the time passed....so before I left, I put all the smiling faces together around another DONNA! This was the group that happily separated you from your money..sold t-shirts and caps, and issued shooting carts, etc., etc. They were having the most fun. AND..AND.. I did get an exclusive, very interesting radio interview with SKIP 
LAUGHLIN---> don't miss it!
I no sooner got out the door when---> MR. PETE MASCH gave up "INSIDER" info on "how to hit 'em....and where they will be"...should have been there shooters!
THURS: BUENOS DIAS CUP!
I arrived about 9 am and sorted out the shooting cart, picked up a few practice tickets and headed out to the practice 5-stand,just in time to see the 2006 Texas State Champion warming up. Can you tell he was NOT ready for the picture when I snapped it...hee..heee..
But what a fashionable guy, our Mr. Greenway is becoming! Lovely shade of lime green, Gary...
When I stepped into the box for a few practice shots, Gary disappeared. Just as well, I'm still fighting this, "you're behind it" comments...anyway when I did look back I saw Big John, "the puppy man", Calandro. He immediately analyzed my situation and gave me a few quick pointers, it was a miracle! THANX JOHN! I met John at Gary's LEVEL III class, in San Antonio last year. He had invited us over to his beautiful Motor Home for refreshments after the class 
ended. John is an intense guy, one of those guys you see on the phone, talking to the President, or he has just been given 3 seconds to save the world from a horrible disaster! Ya know the type?? Well here's the truth about John....he's a big kid who loves dogs...Labs to be exact. He raises them, trains them and seldom goes anywhere without one of his newest pride and joy.
We will hear more about John on the radio so----> GET THE SHOW! IT'S FREE....just call or email me with your mailing address.
OK @ or about 1:50, the BUENOS DIAS CUP squad members showed up at station #4.
I was surprised this time to find I would be shooting with famous local shooters ---> BILL HOLLAND, a fast burning, rising star and owner of HOLLAND JEWELERY... AND--> President of ICLAYS, DAVID CLIFFORD. And two men I have not met before, but hope to shoot with again, Mr. ATUL KHANAPURE of KATY, TEXAS and MR. GRANT HULING of LEANDER, TEXAS. Boy, talk about setting the bar high....these guys were in the right mood and ready to start blasting away from the moment I first laid eyes on them!
I hoped DAVID CLIFFORD would find his watch tooo heavy, and ask me to hold it... he was blinding the rest of us with all the diamonds! Now combine the diamonds, with the gold on the inlay of his Browning and I'm not sure which was more distracting? But, by days end, it was ATUL who showed us all how to hit clay targets...amazing job, ATUL, I am sure you have won your class---> AA. Between your shooting, ATUL, and DAVID'S gold and diamonds, PLUS the Mr. Fashionable, GARY GREENWAY--->whew, watch for new trends coming to competitions near you and sweeping the SPORTING CLAY Industry!....well maybe not until gas returns to $1.75 a gallon.
But, back to the shoot!
I seem to have run out of fuel during the closing stations. So I went back to the truck and gobbled down a yogurt, a power bar and a hard-boiled egg.( it's a California thing) Just as I was beginning to enjoy "stewing" in my own self pity, over my lack of shooting skills today, up drove two of the real octogenarians of the sport to pull me back to reality. MR. VANCE BARNS and a real favorite friend, MARTIN JONES. 
But it was not shooting they wanted to discuss...2nd Amendment right to own and possess, had just passed the Supreme Court, only hours ago. They thought they could sneak up on the "radio guy" with fresh information...lol..don't think so boys, heard about it early this morning minutes, after the doors opened to the court house and the decision was made. But we did have a good discussion...VANCE agreed to remove the OBAMA bumper sticker from his truck..."NOT ON MY TRUCK!" lol..lol..I knew VANCE would snap too, when I said that....Vance was actually timing his run to the PORT-A-POTTY as we spoke not paying close attention to the conversation, until I mentioned the sticker! But before Vance left, I tried to get him to book me a few lessons at WESTSIDE SHOOTING GROUNDS, but he was booked. Next time, VANCE! I promise not to mention the bumper sticker again....lol
FRIDAY PRELIM DAY:
We were a short squad. One man out, due to an illness. I could not have picked two better gentlemen shooters, to help me work out of my slump. TOM HABERLE of Liberty, TX and WILEY KIMBLE of Lubbock, TX. Big Wiley struggled with his shooting but made some amazing shots, just when you thought he was about to give up. Tom, here in red, was consistent and hung in there, to the end. I managed to ace a few stations and slowly began fighting my way out of the hole I had dug, at the US OPEN.
The targets were honest and straight forward. No tricks.
I ran into BILL MCGUIRE and HEYWARD CUNNINGHAM. Both non-resident shooters. They had shot it well. BILL said it will take a high 90's score to win it....he added, he thought he was not in the running. Since I don't like to dwell on subjects that are not positive when I am about to shoot, I passed on further comments and switched the subject to more pleasant activities-----> FISHING! I had a good time in Galveston, fishing trout from the surf. BILL said he was going to a fishing tourney right after this shoot in Tenn. Isn't it funny how winners just keep going to events to win? Good luck, Bill! We can expect to see Hayward rep'ing PROMATIC ,all over the USA. I know, as soon as I can, I will order a 5-stand for my property in CaLEFTornia. Sorry we did not get to spend more time together fellas....
The squad was 5-man strong. I had shot with MIKE HALLMARK before, in Texas. JASON GREGORY, standing here in red shirt, and I have crossed trails also. The two other members requested NOT to have a photo taken...sometimes we forget that not everyone wants the attention that comes with the media. Some men are still "WANTED" somewhere for something like X-girlfriends , X-wives, or that restaurant check they forgot to pay... or maybe the CIA has identified them as possible suspects in the rising costs of fuel....who knows? But the other members backed off when the camera came out of the holster. I didn't ask why....
SATURDAY FIRST DAY MAIN:
It was a good day on the range. We all shot well. The targets were
acceptable. If you missed them, it might be because a well disguised man, lurking around in the Mesquite trees, hunched over trap machines in a funny hat, kept us guessing?? Now and then, he would "POP UP", like a target, smiling....there were a few remarks from the Viet Nam era guys, but.....
A more interesting character was, Scot Robertson...he was testing out a bow he was going to take on an Elk hunt, in New Mexico. Good luck Scot, just looking at the bow made me dizzy...was it a bow or a model of the George Washington bridge? -----> EEKS...even if it missed, it would still put some kind of a hex on the animal!
As I moved into the club house to buy tickets for the practice range, Deb was behind the counter sharpening pencils, preparing for the day! Look'n good----->
her husband and I had just finished discussing MY next deer hunt, around the end of November. He had pointed out that IKE SUGG was in possession of the best deer hunting property in that part of Texas. I needed to contact him soon, to make a reservation for the rut. Ya gotta trust a guys opinion, especially one who shares my love of FREIGHTLINER TRUCKS!
DAY 2 MAIN EVENT:
No... It's not my foot fetish that I am showing you....it's all about the day! MUD...MUD...MUD...
I was shooting the red course, on the last day. The weather gods were not with us this day. Suffice to say, the targets were difficult and the mud was deep. I will go home this year, hoping to do better next year...I will let the photos do the talking.
Most of the day was spent... being pulled out of the mud...through the mud or sitting in the mud... waiting for t
he tow..
Finally, all those guys that own their own shooting carts had ANOTHER reason to laugh at those of us who 
RENT golf carts....golf carts don't do mud folks!
Lastly, I would like to mention a few people. Many of you may not have met ART RIVERA. I had my first opportunity to actually meet him at this shoot. I admit, I did not know TON
Y had a younger brother!..lol..
Oh, before I forget I did run into " REST & RETALIATION"....that's Robert Newton and Ricky Gonzales. We shot together in San Antonio, at the "KIDS & CLAYS" shoot, for the RONALD McDONALD HOUSE. Good to see you guys again!
AND...AND...someone I had have been trying to get an interview with for a year! JANET McDougall! I will call you at the number you gave me and we will keep trying!
THANX everyone, I am heading for the DIAMOND CLASSIC, in Houston, before I shove off for CaLEFTornia.
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