By John Brownell
Rock Mountain Sporting Clays near Springville, Pennsylvania, hosted the 2021 Northern Side by Side Challenge, held July 29 to Aug. 1. Located in the rolling hills of northeast Pennsylvania, the town of Springville is 12 miles north of Tunkhannock, which marks the junction of U.S. Route 6 and Pennsylvania Route 29, where 29 crosses the Susquehanna River.
Truly one of the Premier Sporting Clays courses in the Northeast, Rock Mountain provides three separate courses to satisfy every shooter and gauges from .410 to 8 gauge. You can thank Mike Koneski for creating some really interesting target presentations. Some targets are thrown across a swamp, curling just as you want to pull the trigger; some clays are thrown along the bottom of a ravine well below your feet; others are launched toward a pair of trampolines that send the targets bouncing upward as they change their speed. It is really a lot of fun!
Then there are clays thrown from the top of a cliff 50 yards above you: a slight breeze will cause the targets of a simultaneous pair to vary from pair to pair, one drifting to the far left and the other far right as they float downward towards the shooter.
Many, Varied Events
There also were games for Single Barrel Trap guns set up on the large bore course named “Diesel Smoke,” and a wobble trap setup called “Gaucho” on the 5-Stand. Black Powder guns also had an event called “Smoke and Hope.” Large bore pump gun, small bore pump gun, hammer guns and hammerless guns -- there were events for everyone, so many that it was difficult to consider shooting all of them!
Ninety-six men, women and youth shooters came to enjoy the fun and for the second year Mike produced the Pro-Am, an event that pairs four? of the highest-scoring shooters (the Pros) with the four-? lowest scoring shooters (the Amateurs), to make four teams. Each team gets 10 report pairs on the 5-Stand. The Amateur must shoot first; if he misses, then the Pro will shoot. Highest score wins.
This event is well-attended, with spectators cheering on their favorite teams. The trophies this year went to Randy Roberts/Russ Burkett and runners-up Brian Hornacek/Arnie Reusch. The Manufacturers Cup followed the Pro-Am on the 5-Stand. This year there were four teams: L. C. Smith, Ithaca, Parker and Winchester. When the smoke cleared, it was Team Ithaca winning first place, with a score of 77. Parker broke 68, L.C., Smith 64, and Winchester, 46.
The Main Event, an 80-bird course that combines the mid-bore and the large bore courses, was shot on Sunday. Some shooters shot the course twice, competing in both Hammer and Hammerless categories. Randy Roberts took top honors in the Hammerless class with a score of 75/80. Runner-up was Brian Hornacek with 72/80. Mal MacGregor won the Hammer Gun class with a score of 75/80 and runner-up was Randy Roberts breaking 71/80. Main Event High Lady was Abigail Frisch, breaking 52/80.
L.C. Smith Raffle Prize
The Youth Gun Drawing winner was Shane Hoover, a lucky young man we hope to see at many S S x S events in the future! He received a 1908 12 gauge 0 Grade with 30-inch barrels, chocked Full and Full. Maybe he will let Dad shoot his new gun once in a while! The scores from each event can be seen on the website for Rock Mountain as there are too many to list here.
Mark your calendar for next year, July 28 to July 31, and come join the fun at the next Northern Side by Side at Rock Mountain. You won’t want to miss it!