PEORIA MAGAZINE November 2022

S P O T L I G H T

‘YOU’LL NEVER FIND A BETTER PLACE TO SHOOT’ Peoria Skeet and Trap Club is nearly 90 years old and appealing to a new generation

BY NICK VLAHOS PHOTOS BY RON JOHNSON

F or a noisy place, the Peoria Skeet and Trap Club seems relatively obscure. The facility located along Illinois Route 26 south of Bayview Gardens has been there almost 60 years. Founded in 1935 in Peoria, the club has been a haven for local devotees of two of the primary forms of clay-pigeon shotgun shooting. Still, some club members believe its profile is low. “I think most people aren’t even aware that we exist over here,” said Kent Koshkarian, the club treasurer. “Unless you go by here, you hardly even know it’s here.” A recent Saturday at the club provided scenes that might dispel Koshkarian’s notion, at least for the casual observer. The place was loud and busy. It was playing host to a “meat shoot” – a

tournament in which the prizes were gift cards from Peoria-area butcher shops. Gunfire from the 10 skeet-and trap fields was plentiful. Gunpowder was pungent. Smoke wasn’t causing Chris Phelps’ eyes to well. But in talking about the club that has 225 or so members, board member Phelps sounded a bit misty – including when he discussed its future. The cost of shooting has risen significantly in recent years, Phelps said. Koshkarian and Nick Ripley, the departing club president, concurred. “Our sport isn’t cheap,” Ripley said. “Ammunition used to be 5 bucks a box. Now it’s 10, if you can find it.” Phelps also mentioned an Illinois pol itical cl imate he bel ieves is detrimental for firearms enthusiasts. “We’re a not-for-profit club,” Phelps said about a facility open three days

a week to non-members. “If no one is shooting, we can’t pay the bills. We exist to sell targets to people that want to shoot them. And if nobody’s shooting, it’s tough. We don’t have a product to merchandise, to sell.” But the club does have a new experience to sell. Officials believe it will appeal to current and potential shooters whomight consider skeet and trap boring and repetitive. At the north end of the club grounds sits a so-called “Five Stand.” The area, which in September opened for use, has five stations and about a dozen clay target throwers, or traps. Shooters take turns at various combinations of clay targets. Cards at each station list the sequence. Some targets are flung into the air. Others roll along the ground. The Five Stand is a concentrated

96 NOVEMBER 2022 PEORIA MAGAZINE