Behind the Line - Community

As we step into the 2026 High School Trap Spring Season, I want to take a moment to recognize something important.

First—thank you to Tim Hein for his recent post. That kind of dialog is exactly what brings this community to life. It sparked conversation, perspective, and reminded me why this group matters. We need more of that.

Now here we are.

All the off-season planning, organizing, recruiting, fundraising, and preparation has led to this moment - 9+ weeks of student athletes stepping onto the line, representing their teams, their schools, and something bigger than themselves.

This is where I hope it all shows up: Discipline. Commitment. Attitude. Accountability.

And with that… I want to open up a conversation on something I'm sure every coach deals with, but not everyone talks about openly:

We recently added six new shotguns to the LNSC Youth Program - not as a replacement, but as an expansion of our existing club gun inventory.

As our program has grown, so has the demand for safe, properly fitted entry-level equipment. This addition was about capacity, flexibility, and access, not upgrading for the sake of upgrading.

Here’s what we added:

12 Gauge (4 total):

• Winchester SXP Trap (Pump) -1 Full Size & 1 Compact

• Stevens 555 Trap (Break Action) (adjustable combs) - 1 Full Size & 1 Compact

We start developing the foundations of QE from day one, long before shooters even know the term.

1. Rookie Phase — Both Eyes Open

The first priority is getting athletes comfortable shooting with both eyes open. This sets the stage for everything that comes later:

• Wider field of view

• Faster target recognition

• Better depth perception

One of the quietest but most important operational pieces in any youth trap program is ammunition management. Over the last five seasons at Lake Noquebay Sportsman’s Club, we’ve built a system that works well for our structure - three high school teams, roughly 75 athletes, and a shared resource pool.

I’m not saying our way is the way. It’s just a way. And I’m really curious how other big programs manage this same challenge.

Here’s how we currently handle ammo at LNSC:

1. Storage & Access

   We keep team ammunition segregated from the club’s retail ammo. Only designated ammo managers and coaches have access. Athletes sign up for their round, then head to the back of the clubhouse where ammo is issued specifically for that round.

2. Standardized Loads (With Transition Options)

Hey everyone — I’m really curious to hear how your teams run practice.

With our program growing across Crivitz, Coleman, and Wausaukee - and only two trap fields to work with - our practices tend to look the same every week: squad up, shoot a couple rounds of trap, and coach specific fundamentals during those rounds. It works, but I feel like we're leaving a lot of potential development on the table.

I’ve been wanting to incorporate more station work, specific drills, and maybe even small-group fundamental sessions… but with our numbers, time, and two fields, it’s tough to experiment without breaking the flow.

So I’d love to hear from coaches who run larger or fast-growing teams:

• Do you run dedicated drill stations or skill circuits?

(footwork, hold points, breakpoints, gun mount, eye exercises, etc.)

Hey everyone — Randall here.

I wanted to break down something I get asked about all the time: How do you fund a full high school trap program without constantly scrambling for money?

For us at Lake Noquebay Sportsman’s Club, it all starts with one simple rule:

Before you talk fundraising, you have to understand your costs...

Every offseason, we build our budget like this:

1. Figure out the true cost per student athlete

Kicking Off the Off-Season (AKA: The Real Work)

Hey everyone -

Figured I’d start this group off with something that’s been on my mind a lot lately: the off-season for our high school trap teams.

Most people see the practices, the meets, the wins, the misses… but honestly, the part nobody sees is everything we’re doing right now. These months before anyone signs up are where 90% of the work actually happens.

Right now our youth committee at Lake Noquebay Sportsmans club is planning for Crivitz, Coleman, and Wausaukee High School Trap Teams - trying to get schedules in place, figuring out volunteer roles, and making sure we don’t start the season already behind. I’m rewriting parts of our handbook, cleaning up the lettering program, sorting out safety training, and trying to get our committee structure dialed in so it’s not the same two or three people doing everything.

We’re…