Minutes: October 2, 2020
WTA Meeting
October 2, 2020
Homegrounds
The 10/02/20 Board of Director’s meeting of the Wisconsin Trapshooting Association was called to order at 9:05 am by Fritz Thistle, President. Directors present were N/E Don Chrapla and YZ Weisensel, N/W Keith Lehmann (phone) and Rich Johnson, S/W LaVerne Lehmann (phone), S/E Bob Ebbers (phone) and Tyler Buchanan, ATA Delegate Kevin Doerring (phone), 1st Alt. Delegate Dwight Paulin, 2nd Alt. Delegate Fritz Thistle, Treasurer Taylor Katzenberg (phone), Executive Assistant/Shoot Coordinator Amy Jenkins.
Also present were:
Glen Grabski, John King, Catheryn Johnson, Esther Thistle, Ken Michels, Connie Reimer, Brad Bomkamp (phone), John Coniff, Jeff Recob
Meeting started at 9:05 am.
Fritz congratulated the All Americans this year – George Hass, Sandra Jo Jack, Pete Rustad and John Duwe.
Old Business:
WiFi/TV Responder/TV Antennae:
Amy had given some hot spot information and prices earlier in the year. Taylor uses a hotspot at their house. Fritz suggested checking on hotspot but it would be only for the staff. Fritz will pursue checking into getting wifi and bring information back to the next meeting. Kevin said the equipment that Tom needs is sitting on the border and needs a dual visa to get the materials here. When he gets his equipment, he will come up to install it and see if we need anything else.
EVR Water/Building:
Will discuss under projects
New Business:
Secretary Report:
Amy gave an update on the campground now being closed and reservations being turned off in the computer system.
Treasurer’s Report:
Homegrounds is at $45,000; WTA checking $168,000, savings $7600 and $5600 = $227,000
Taylor will do some projections to see what we need for money to make it to May and will send an email out later. We owe $690,000 to Summit. State Shoot expenses were $191,000. Net income $79,000.
Don made a motion to approve the treasurer’s report. YZ seconded. So Carried.
Grants:
Fritz did not apply for any grants from the DNR because of the income and the timeline for approving them (a year out); as we have to pay for the projects in full up front and then they come and inspect before reimbursing the money. Fritz is trying to figure out what we owe for the forest management land. It could be as much as $30,000 to get the two 40s out of forest crop land. Fritz did apply for a grant from the tourism department. Between last Friday and Monday, we got the grant completed and sent in. We showed losses for not having events in May and June which totaled $151,000. Fritz thanked everyone for their help in getting these numbers so quickly. Connie was able to get everything uploaded before the deadline.
Shoot Reviews:
State Shoot – It was a huge adjustment due to the pandemic. Fritz really appreciated John Madsen and John Reding for working the trap line every day during the state shoot. Amy stated that Lanny’s Ice Cream reported that he was upset that we were announcing another vendor’s ice cream sales over the PA system which was not fair to other vendors. Amy and Fritz both spoke with him about this. Amy will speak with Lanny in Tucson to make sure he is planning to return for the 2021 state shoot. Tom and Nora Bristol are willing to take over the food vending for the shoots. Connie is willing to help as well to find vendors. Connie stated that the vendors have to be licensed so it doesn’t fall back on us.
SCTP – They had 805 that shot trap and brought in $20,000; 296 shot sporting clays on the east end of the grounds and brought in $4900.
Mid-State – They were here September 11 and had 43 shoots and took in $1900.
Central Zone – We hosted the first one ever and it was a huge success. We had the most participants and trophy winners from all the other host clubs. Chops wrote a letter to the ATA suggesting to always hold the Central Zone shoot at Homegrounds (the letter has not been sent to the ATA but is open for suggestions here). Fritz said that we do not want to step on other clubs’ toes. Kevin said that the ATA does not make the decision where to hold it. Kevin said that we struggled for shoot off referees. We still need to wait for the other host clubs to finish before shoot offs can start. Kevin said the WTA is to support the other clubs. Brad Bomkamp agreed that we do not want to take it away from any other clubs. Brad stated that Janesville originally stepped up to hold the zone shoot years ago. Tyler suggested getting into the rotation for the central zone. Kevin will talk with Tim and Bill from Sauk and Janesville and if they will agree for Homegrounds to be added to the rotation. Bob suggested asking both clubs if they still want to be a host club for the central zone shoots. Kevin will get back to us once he talks to the two clubs.
WI Fall Classic – Ken Michels did a great job setting up the computers and running all the shoots. Fritz suggested if we are going to continue with this shoot, we really need to get some sponsors and added money. Suggestion was to look at changing the date due to falling on the same weekend as Gateway. Bob suggested we may have a problem getting trap help if we move to Labor Day weekend. Fritz said that he already talked to Brian and help will not be a problem. Bob and Taylor suggesting leaving it the same dates. YZ said there was 27 shooters that were at Gateway that would have been at the Fall Classic. John King stated he would have been at Land O Lakes had he not volunteered here. YZ shoots where he puts his money and he has been sponsoring since 1994. We need to figure out what is best for everyone. We will table this discussion for now.
Don made a motion to table this discussion for now. YZ seconded. So carried.
2021 Shoot Schedule:
Cheesemakers – they would like to schedule for July 21, 2021
Kettle Moraine – They would like to schedule something in the fall for 2021. They will have their May shoot as well but a date has not yet been confirmed.
HSCTL – June 11 to 13, 2021
SCTP – June 24 to 27, 2021
Zone Shoots – June 5 & 6 will be Janesville and Fox Valley; June 19 & 20 will be at Eau Claire and Hartford. Amy will check to see if Hartford held a registered shoot in 2020 otherwise they will not meet the qualifications for holding the zone in 2021. Amy believes they did not. If not, the zone shoot should go back to Beaver Dam for 2021.
State Shoot – July 13 to 18, 2021; Marathon will be held on July 12
Mid States – August 20, 2021
LNPAF High School League – they will be shooting and practicing until November 2nd. They have a contract written up through next spring. We will need to approve their contract which is from September 1st, 2020 through June 20, 2021. Glen is suggesting raising their prices to $3.50 for targets in the spring. They can then provide a revised contract. Amy suggested that we are doing this backwards as we should be providing contracts to organizations rather than them providing them to us. John Coniff agreed. Glen will talk to Charlie on Monday.
Rich made a motion to approve the contract with LNPAF with a modification of $3.50 for targets. Don seconded. So carried.
May Shoot – May 1 and 2, 2021
Glen will try to schedule some marathon shoots at Homegrounds during the season.
Fall Classic – To be Determined
WACO Membership:
They wanted us to pay earlier so we get a discount. The fee would be $651 a year to remain a member. They list all facilities in their advertising. We will need to redo our pamphlet. Fritz will hold off paying for this and see if they contact him. We aren’t sure if we are gaining anything from being a member.
Golf Carts:
Fritz asked that Rich oversee the golf carts for the 2021 season. Amy suggested that we will need to get proof of insurance for all events (youth events also). More and more people are bringing their own machines for other events other than the state shoot. We need to purchase two more carts. Rich will check to see what the price is for us to have them rented for the season. Don and Tate will watch for deals on them. The golf carts need to be serviced. John Coniff has a trailer and can use it to haul them. Amy and Don suggested getting them serviced in the spring.
Donations:
Arlene is reviewing donations from 2012 to present to get them in a grouping of categories. Fritz said that Glenn Carlson needs to have an “in kind” donation letter for $45,000 for work done in past years. Taylor and John will be working on a corporate resolution for a stock transfer for future donations.
Trap Mechanic:
We hired John King to work the state shoot and he has been present at every shoot since. Fritz is wondering about compensation. When he works on other traps, he charges $35 an hour from the time he leaves his house. He will discuss this with Fritz and some of the other directors to come up with an amount as he can’t keep doing this for free. John was paid $599 for working the 2020 state shoot.
Sound System:
The current box does not have enough cooling in it. Ken Michels has a new box to utilize the current PA system. We also need to get the antennae up on the roof. It will boost power up to 10 watts. Ken has talked to multiple tech support and have to go with an external transmitter box. The new box was $1300 and included the longer cable.
Advertising:
Fritz showed the flyers that are handed out to the campers. Fritz passed them around so that everyone can review and give feedback for the next season. Some advertising was done in a shopper from WI Rapids City Times and it increased the numbers in shooting by a lot. Glen was having to open up more traps each weekend. Fritz thinks about $500 was spent for six ads in two different publications. Fritz would like to advertise in WI Outdoor News. HS Clay Target League advertises in this publication. Fritz would like to revise the ad to try to get some teams to come here to hold their championship events and picnics.
Pump house/EVR Water:
Fritz would like to get the pressure tank out of the pump house and into the main building. The plumber needs the water pumped out of the lines before we do it. Fritz can get the compressor out here and can get it again to blow out the campground if needed. It is going to cost around $5000 and that is if we do our own digging. YZ will talk with Chops and talk with Glen about getting a date set. We had an estimate to run the water on EVR around $8700. This was already approved at the February meeting. Glen will call the contractor to get this done (Van Dreel). Bob said he can bring up a trencher to dig the line.
Closing of Grounds:
We have a camper paid through October. October 17th will be the date that we close the facility and shut the water off in the campground and the pump house blown out. Fritz will talk to Brian about getting some kids to get the trap houses cleaned out. Tate will be here to show the process on how to shut down the facility for the winter.
Expansion:
Fritz brought some diagrams of the trap layout for the new ten trapfields. Chops has not received any diagrams to give to the operators at Coloma at this time due to them not wanting to do any work at this time due to the pandemic. YZ asked if the Army Corps of Engineers would possibly be able to assist if needed.
Five Stand:
Fritz stated that this was already approved at a previous meeting. He said there was some opposition on the forum of some shooters this past summer. The 5 stand will be removed for the state shoot. Fritz stated that the friends could pay for the 5 stand. Tyler asked who was going to pull for these. Glen will not be able to run them. Glen has friends who could train others, perhaps some of Brian’s kids. Fritz asked if we needed another vote on this and it was suggested that it was approved months ago and do not need to vote again. Glen has been looking into a heated enclosure for the five stand and passed out a diagram and cost needed for construction of this. Glen’s proposal totaled $12,000. He would like to get going on this yet this fall. For now, no movement will be made on the heated enclosure. Connie stated that the Heart has put in heated 5 stand and it is going well. The Friends will be paying for the 5 stand.
Target Management System:
Fritz put out an email regarding the system. Tyler asked how much we are losing in target money. Jeff said 20% to 40% could be lost. He has been out here working for a few weekends, he believes we are not getting paid for 25% of targets at least. Bob Schultz is the one that we are looking at for purchasing the systems. They run on batteries. John stated that Bob agreed to donate a system to us previously that we never received it. The first system will cost about $1000 and has to have a dedicated computer for it so the first one will be about $2000. Four systems will cost about $4000 to $5000. Kevin agreed yes we need the systems. But do we need them right now. Yes, we may have the money to spend it, but would be more comfortable to wait until the spring to see what is going to happen with this pandemic.
Don made a motion for the Friends to purchase target management systems. YZ seconded. So carried.
WTA T-shirts:
Fritz would like to get some shirts ordered for the Directors. Many of them have been handed down from previous directors. He would also like to have some that say Official and Staff on them. Prices are $11.50 for 100 shirts or more. He would like to order at least 7 of them for the directors so they have one for each day of the state shoot. YZ will check on prices as well.
Youth Guns:
Fritz suggested that we need some smaller guns for women and youth. Kevin is looking for 1100s at Cabelas. The Beretta A300 Outlander with composite stock is $600 and with a wood stock is $685. SKB adjustable is $750. Glen suggested we have a 20 gauge and a 12 gauge for youth. John said that the friends would support this decision.
Don made a motion for the Friends to purchase one 20 gauge and two 12 gauge adjustable SKBs. YZ seconded. So carried.
West End Pavers:
We will get the ground ready to lay the pavers in the spring.
Entrance Sealcoat:
There were some suggestions to sealcoat the entrance. Bill spent a lot of time filling in potholes this summer as they get worse as the time goes on. Fritz will get some estimates.
Trophies:
Taylor has volunteered to help with the trophies. Fritz has talked to Dennis and he is willing to continue to help. Fritz has not talked to Sandy about it. Fritz has had some contact with Gander Outdoors and would like to work with us on trophies. Don suggested not doing Scheel’s cards for out of state. Kevin received lots of feedback on the all state team towels that were received this year. YZ asked shooters at Gateway what they thought about the trophies and all state team awards and they were not happy. They want things that they can display and be proud of. Amy suggested that the trophies be approved by the sponsor of the event to make sure they are happy with what they are giving for their trophies. Tyler will agree to help out with the trophies as well for 2021.
Don made a motion to spend $22,000 on 2021 state shoot trophies. Tyler seconded it. So carried.
Grounds:
Fritz got both of the campers winterized. Shower house was plugged last weekend. He called to have a guy come with a jet. Bill pressure washed them with Lysol and Helen sanitized them again. It cost $250 to have them cleaned. The pumps were not cycling for the septic. A part was replaced and now it is working perfectly. They will be shut down for the winter.
Bill and Helen did the mowing for all the grounds by themselves this summer. Bill also helped out on the trapline. Fritz suggested giving them some sort of bonus for the extra work that they had to do this summer because of the pandemic protocol.
YZ made a motion to send Bill and Helen $599 each as a bonus for extra work during the pandemic. Bob seconded. So carried.
Round Table:
John Coniff said we had authorized $2000 to be gifted to youth clubs through the state. Because of the pandemic, we did nothing and held off on this. Should we wait until next year or disburse the funds to the clubs that have already applied? Fritz suggested waiting until next year and be able to do the fundraising. More discussion was made about giving the funds out now due to some clubs needing funds now due to the pandemic. Brad agreed that some clubs would really need the money now.
Don made a motion to give out the $2000 for youth shooting yet this year. Rich seconded. So carried.
John suggested added a Garmin to utilize for shooting at Homegrounds to help benefit the youth shooting aspect. Table this discussion for now. There is a lot of programming and learning the system to be able to benefit from the unit.
John King said that Wescot has broken four springs already. Just information for clubs that may be considering switching to springs.
Rich said that he has talked to Brian about trap help. He said with the expansion and adding more shoots are we going to have enough help? Rich questioned what would happen when Fritz steps down from his President position; he asked if we will be able to continue to run this organization as is, without Fritz?
Tyler asked if we needed to get someone out here from MEC to teach us how to use it. He is willing to learn how to set this trap.
Glen said that people are coming in and asking to be a member of our club. Glen is not looking for the WTA membership, but people are looking for something to purchase showing that they were here and had a good time. YZ and Dwight will get some prices on getting some hats or shirts or something for people to buy as a souvenir type thing.
Fritz stated that Muscoda had a fire and asked if we should give them a donation. YZ said if we do, what happens in the future if something like this happens again. YZ stated that we have enough insurance on our building to cover to replace it. Rich stated that Muscoda helped us set up when we opened. Fritz asked Brad for a wish list and maybe we can purchase a refrigerator or a grill or something and have it labeled that the WTA donated it.
Bob gave a shout out to his daughter for winning runner up Lady I at Missouri Fall handicap.
Next meeting will be December 11th at 9am at Homegrounds. If the water is not on, the meeting will be moved to Sherwood Lodge.
YZ made a motion to adjourn. Don seconded. So carried.
Meeting adjourned at 3pm.