As Ryan Weberg stares down the barrel of his over-under double-barrel shotgun, his mind is blank. He’s honed in on a familiar sound, the “click” of clay targets being released. Weberg lines up his shot in anticipation, waits for the sound and fires. The orange targets, which were flying through the air just milliseconds before, shatter and fall to the ground like neon snowflakes. And a satisfied smile stretches across his face.
A successful break means more points for the 18-year-old, which puts him one step closer to achieving his goal: joining the National Sporting Clays Association’s (NSCA) U.S. national team.
“Getting to represent the U.S. and going to one of these gigantic shoots and wearing a Team USA vest would be really, really cool,” Weberg said with a beaming smile.
Making the U.S. nat-ional team is no easy feat. Not only does a shooter need the skills to make the tournament, but they need the finances, too. Shooters need to travel to the different NSCA events in order to gain points to make the national team. The events are held all over the country and Weberg said can easily cost a shooter $1,000-plus to attend.
“(It’s $1,000) just to be able to show up and fire your gun off,” he said. “That doesn’t include the cost of ammo, the airfare, food, hotel and all that. It gets really expensive.”
Before this season, Weberg had only attended one “big” shooting event. This year, he’s had the opportunity to shoot at a few more, including the U.S. Open Sporting Clays Championship, held in Northbrook, Ill.—and he loved every minute of it.
Weberg said he enjoyed everything about the U.S. Open from the venue to the target selection. Plus, professional clay shooters were also in attendance and he got to rub elbows with his idols.
“(The U.S. Open) was incredible,” Weberg said. “It was like nothing I’ve ever seen.”
The event gave the Christopher High graduate a taste of what being on the U.S. national team is like and now he’s hungry for more. But in a sport where even practicing costs between $30-60 for range fees and ammo, he’s finding it difficult to reach his full potential.
“I’ve had a hard time being as good as I think I can be,” Weberg said as
shotgun blasts rang out behind him at Coyote Valley Sporting Clay. “If it was something like lacrosse, I could sit out there in my backyard and all day long just practice…I just can’t just go out to my backyard and start blowing off rounds.”
As of press time, Weberg has raised $1,250 out of his $10,000 goal on his gofundme page, which he established to aid with travel expenses to the different events. He’s planning to attend the NSCA’s World FITASC Championships—which is similar to clay shooting—in Le Sueur, Minn. July 21, and said any extra money helps.
Despite the challenges, Weberg has come a long way in his two short years in the sport.
He discovered clay shooting at a California Waterfowl Association fundraiser shoot held at Coyote Valley when he was 15. He had shot a gun a few times before, but never sporting clays, and won the junior portion of the event. After that, Weberg began working his way through the NSCA classes to reach the highest rank of Master Class shooter, earning sponsorships from Fiocchi Ammunition and Randolph Engineering along the way.
Weberg is two-time All-American shooting clay athlete and earned a scholarship to Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo. He will join the school’s elite 12-time national champion Shooting Sports squad this fall.
“I think I’ll have a really, really good opportunity there,” Weberg said. “There’s a lot of really good shooters on the team. I think it’s going be a whole new experience because now I’m on a team; it’s no longer an individual sport. I’m playing for someone other than myself.”
Weberg doesn’t want his shooting days to end with school either. For him, shooting sporting clays is a lifelong commitment. He has his sights set on joining the Professional Sporting Clays Association Tour and one day, representing the U.S. in the Olympic Games.
“Sporting clays is my love in life,” Weberg said. “It’s a weird one, but it’s mine.”
To donate to Weberg’s fundraising effort, visit his GoFundMe page at gofundme.com/makingteamUSA.
