The West Osage Gun and Archery Club is gearing up for their trapshooting season. Once the snow has all melted in early May, trapshooting will be held on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 p.m. until dusk at the Club.

Fred Paslawski, President of the West Osage Gun and Archery Club, specified that in the summertime, they also have ball tournaments on the Club grounds, which consists of 10 acres. "We hold a steak fry in the summer and an annual spring shoot in June."

Paslawski shared, "I'm 88 years old, they chose me to be President because I was an original member back in 1964."

"We are getting quite a bit of support from some Weyburn shooters," Paslawski noted. "We only have shotgun shooting [trapshooting], which is clay targets [at the Club]. We don't have a rifle range or a handgun range, because we aren't allowed to have one, we are in too open country." 

Trapshooting involves shooting shotguns at clay targets. The shooter shoots at a moving clay target after they call "pull."  The clay targets are launched out of a trap machine, which is positioned off-range from the shooter. Trapshooting is for both recreational and competitive shooters.

Trap machineTrap machine. Courtesy of West Osage Gun and Archery Club / Facebook.

Paslawski revealed that they have over 50 members right now, which is great for the Club.

"We do have archery at the club, it's catching on big time," he mentioned. "We have a bunch of targets, and anyone that wants to shoot targets can come down." 

"The young kids especially want to shoot archery. We set up targets that are imitation deer, bear, turkey, boar, and whatnot. They are available for the members to shoot at, and we have some good instructors at the Club."

Anyone below the age of 12 is required to have parental supervision. 

Inflation has impacted the Club, Paslawski revealed. "But, we've tried to perform as best as we can and we encourage a lot of young people to come [to the Club]. That's where they can learn the responsible and safe use of firearms."

Paslawski divulged that he used to be a firearms safety instructor for over 25 years, but he's semi-retired now. "Except I've almost got a full-time job at the Gun Club."

They'd like to have more young people show up, Paslawski reiterated. "They seem to enjoy it a lot, once they start in here they get pretty supportive of the Club. We're trying to encourage more of the younger people to get involved," he added.

The Club will have a ham shoot at the beginning of May, and a turkey shoot in October before Thanksgiving. Paslawski explained that they are both very popular, and they run about 50 to 75 birds that people compete for. 

"Everyone is welcome at the Club, they don't have to shoot at all, they can take in the other activities there. You don't need to be a member to start. If you enjoy yourself, we prefer a membership. We aren't expensive. A yearly membership is $30, we don't make money that way."

Trapshooting season starts on May 3rd of this year and will be held every Wednesday evening from 6:00 p.m. until dusk, at the West Osage Gun and Archery Club.

The Club is located in the R.M of Wellington, two miles South and four miles West of Osage.

For more information or to inquire about memberships, check out their Facebook page HERE.

TrapshooterPhoto courtesy of Valerie Maurer.