November 2017
November 2017
Greetings to everyone......here we are entering the beginning of November and the trees are turning fast. Before we know it we will hopefully be sitting down with friends and family giving thanks for what we have. How appropriate it is once again this year. Another devastating year of fires that affected many of us in so many different ways. Maybe it didn't affect us personally yet we all had friends and or family that lost a great deal. Weather it be all their worldly goods or a loss of life. Our hearts and well wishes go out to all that are affected!
It's been a while since we had a news letter because we are transitioning over to using the web site exclusively. Please save it into your favorites www.lakecountyrodandgunclub.com. Please check it often because it is kept up to date. The home page has a bulletin board that will keep you informed of the latest updates and breaking news.
In April we received a new shipment of birds. We had John Crockett, Dick Latham, Mike Wiley, Tucker, Ken Peters, Charlie Winchell and Skip Miller there to help. A special shout out to Andy Scully for showing up with his forklift once again. This is a life saver and a back saver for all who are involved. This year proved to be a bit of a challenge because of all the rain. The ground was not very good for what we were doing, so Andy had to do some fancy driving to keep the forklift from getting buried in the mud.
Our round robin shoot was another great time had. Unfortunately attendance was way down due to other big state shoots and mothers day weekend. We had 20 less single shooters. We had 25 less doubles shooters and 50 less lunches purchased. Even with a $5 increase in shooting costs and less money on the knifes we only made $1,610 dollars where last year we made $2,100. Hopefully next year the timing will be better and we make more money for the club.
We had an outstanding attendance for the work party to get ready for the round robins. Plus there was a lot of work done during the week prior to the Saturdays work party. Bob & Merritt Winchell showed up with their tractor and mowed everything in front of the trap houses. Charlie Winchell worked on the machines and painted the trap houses the nice dark green. This was after we had all metal roofs installed on all the houses to keep the interior dry. Ken and friend did some wood cutting along the entrance driveway from a tree that feel across the road that Sunday. Then on Saturday we had Skip show up with his ride mower and mow everything else around the houses and back field. Ken and Terry Hopkins got all the wood split and stacked in the wood shed. Mike Wiley, John Crocket and Larry Davis worked on branches and garbage and then hauled it off. Shawn Faull and a few others formed up 4 pads to set a storage container that was donated by Shawn Faull of SLF Concrete that will be located right behind the BBQ. John Crockett painted the house around the wild trap to match the other 4 houses. Rick Freeman and other worked in the office and kitchen getting all that squared away and I am sure there are other that I am not remembering that put blood, sweat and tears into keeping our club one of the nicest clubs around. Thank you all for pitching in!!!
We have brand new crushed concrete from the 27 yard line back out into the parking lot. This should help with the standing water we have around the fire barrel behind house 2 and the rest of the areas. Mike Pankovich hauled it all in for us then a work party of Mike Marshall and Wife, Ken Peters, Larry Davis, Tucker and Mike Wiley spread it all and Tucker had a roller to pack it. Hopefully it will be real nice this winter.
We had our annual club shoot on October 22nd and it was a lot of fun. We had a good turn out which was great considering all the fires and issues people where dealing with. Folks just wanted to come out and unwind a little and that's exactly what happened. We had 6 or 8 squads of singles and 6 squads of doubles and as usual lunch was great. Folks really came through with some great salads and desserts. Thank you everybody!!!
We had our Ironman doubles again this year and, unfortunately, we had a very bad turn out. There was all of 11 people shooting the event. Your input would be much appreciated on when a better time would be to hold this event or to even have them at all....please let us know!!!
We just received another big order of components from our supplier and he even had a good supply of powder this time. Andy volunteered one of his storage sheds to unload and store for us.....Thank you Andy. Terry, Andy and Mike helped unload during the ironman doubles. What a job that was....Thank you guys!!! Terry Hopkins did a great job taking all the orders, money and coordinating everything....Thank you Terry!!
We have a couple of future projects that are safety issues that have high importance. The wild trap has to be completely re-worked. The direction it's pointing now is not a safe one. It needs to be rotated more north so it's facing the hill directly in front of trap 1. Also, the pattern board has to be moved as well because more and more people are walking on the road right next to the pattern board. Not a good scenario for the hikers or us. If anything was to happen we would loose the club permanently!
Wow.....I think that about covers it!!
!! It's Membership Renewal Time !!
It's that time once again to renew memberships for 2018. You will find enclosed a membership renewal form. Please fill out in it's entirety and return to Rick Freeman via mail or hand deliver during your next visit to the range. It's important we get all your contact information to keep our records up to date. We are also in the process of creating an email notification list in an effort to save us time, printing costs and postage. Please print neat and clearly on your membership forms. It's important we have all information right so you don't get left out of the loop. Flyers will be sent to non-members in hopes to get them to come back. Rick Freemans address can be found at the end of this news letter.
!! Scoring !!
During all these events we need a lot of help from folks to make things run smoothly and I am happy to say that people have been stepping up and helping a lot. As usual, the ladies do a bang up job in the kitchen putting out some great food. Thanks to all of you for doing such a great job, it's very much appreciated. Many hands make things a lot easier for all. There is one specific job that we need a lot more help with and that is scoring. It's not a scary or difficult as it may seem. No one is going to yell at you for making a boo boo or score a loss when you didn't see a chip. It gets fixed and you move on. All our events are fun and learning experiences. This is not PITA or ATA where folks can get a little intense. We are all there to have fun. There is a system of checks and balances to ensure all scores are accurate and fair. Believe me I know from experience that at the end of the day things get a little fuzzy. Scoring singles then calling and scoring doubles, sometimes 9 from 50 is 31.......LOL. You fix it, laugh about it and move on. If you know how to score, please step up and lend a hand. If you would like to learn we will be happy to teach you. Just let Rick, Ken or Skip know and we will hook you up.....Thanks!!
!! For Sale !!
The club still has shot for sale at $35 a bag and hats are going for $20. We do get wads & primers, but that is only through a special request bulk order done a few times a year. Talk to a board member about getting onto the list for the next order.
!! Christmas Party !!
Hey, guess what.....six weeks until our annual Christmas dinner at Howards Grotto in Clearlake. Last year was a lot of fun with several great raffle items to be won which included a lot of good shooting stuff. If you have not attended, please make an effort to come. We have a good time swapping stories and shooting the breeze. The gathering will take place December 8, 2017 beginning at 6:00 pm. All payments and meal selections must be returned to Rick Freeman via mail or hand delivered no later than November 25, 2016. The meal cost is $22 per person and let Rick know if you want prime rib, chicken piccata or salmon.
!! Turkey Shoot !!
On another related topic.....November 12 we will be holding our annual turkey shoot. Come out and join in on the fun and win some prizes too. Remember, we are an equal opportunity club. You will get heckled just the same as everybody else, all in good fun. The shoot is run the same as our monthly money shoots with something off the BBQ for lunch. We shoot all the standard games and make up some as we go. We are only limited by our imaginations. Come out an enjoy the fun. These events are open to all club members so renew that membership right away.
If you have questions about any of our special events contact Rick Freeman @ (707) 974-1551
If you wish, you can mail your membership renewal and Christmas party info back to one of the two following addresses:
Rick Freeman Lake County Rod & Gun Club
16651 Greenridge Road PO Box 341
HVL Ca. 95467 Lakeport, Ca. 95453
We look forward to seeing you all at the range
Rick & Skip