Yamba clay target shooter Kim Nealon has won the Tasmanian Clay Target Association’s State Trap Championship (Jan 22 – 24), shooting 49 out of 50 and 10 out of 10 to win the title in a shoot-off. As the overall AA champion, Nealon’s point score was a perfect 150 out of 150. The two wins, combined with previous results, have earned Nealon a place in the NSW Clay Target Association Hall of Fame – it will be made official at the NSW championships at Wagga Wagga in October. Now 58, Nealon was a late starter when he took up the sport. “I grew up on a farm … at Grenfell in NSW, Henry Lawson country,” he says. “When I moved to Canberra, my brother-in-law got me involved in shooting; that was 25 years ago.” Nealon says people of all ages participate in the sport. “They come from all walks of life,” he says. “We’ve got children as young as 12, up to people who are 85. There’s a chap in Victoria, a young guy, who is 16 and he’s nearly one of Australia’s best at present. “They come from all walks of life; tradesman, solicitors, barristers, doctors, nurses, housewives, farmers; it’s just a big diversity of shooters.” When asked about the dangers regarding guns and gun laws, Nealon says, “From the word go safety and discipline [are] the most important things in … clay target shooting. “[Shooters] are given a sheet of what their responsibilities are when they walk onto the ground. “When they apply to join a club they have to go through a police check and have to be licensed before they can join. “If you’ve got a criminal record you can’t get a gun licence. “Shooters are supervised for at least two months before they are … allowed out there on [the range] on their own.” Over the weekend just passed, Nealon made it to the last four shooters (out of 220) in the double and single barrel disciplines at the South Australian Clay Target Titles.