Where can I find a club in order to participate?
Most, if not all clay target clubs will welcome the WAYESS prgoram. Click here to find a club near you.
My daughter/son particpates in another youth shotgun program. Will he or she need to choose which program to participate in?
Absolutely not. The WAYESS is a continuation and or additionl program for young clay target shooters to participate in.
It is ecouraged that athletes find friends that would like to shoot and form their own teams/squads. If a squad is short members, we can fill the spots with other members.
What does it cost?
USAYESS does not require NSSA, NSCA, ATA, USA Shooting or any other registration. Our registration and insurance covers all youth events; Shotgun, Archery, Airgun, BB Gun, and Handgun tournaments or Outdoor Shows. There are no other memberships required, in order to participate in any of our local, state, regional or national events.
Annual membership with USAYESS is only $42.20 ($40 Membership and $2.20 processing fee paid directly to processing company); This covers liability insurance anywhere in the United States, background checks and the Double-Gold Coach Course. ALL adults volunteering directly with WAYESS athletes MUST be registered with USAYESS, and MUST complete a background check; including State Advisors, Board Members, Advisory Committee Members, Coaches, Assistant Coaches, and all other volunteers.
Who will my child be competing against?
Teams and squads can be made up of both genders and skill levels. It is up to each states discretion for age divisions.
WAYESS has 3 competitive divisions:
Novice Division: 6th graders and lower (dependent upon maturity, and coach’s approval)
Junior Varsity Division: 6th through 9th grades
Varsity Division: 10th through 12th grades
When attending USAYESS Regional, National, or other USAYESS states or local events:
Divisions; may be as follows:
Novice: 6th grade and below (dependent upon maturity, and coach’s approval) *
Intermediate: 7th through 8th grades *
Jr. Varsity: 9th grade and first-time competitors in high school *
Senior: 10th 12th (no bump-ups into the collegiate division)
College: Freshman through Senior (full-time college undergraduate. Includes: Community Colleges, Colleges, Universities, and Trade Schools)
What if there is no team in our area?
The WAYESS prgogram does not allow 'Cherry Picking'. But if your child wants to participate in the WAYESS, they can become team members of the closest team to their club or form their own team. A team may consist of one or more shooters, plus an adult head coach. Obviously, a one shooter team can not compete in squad events, but may compete in individual events. Please contact your state advisor for futher information.
Which disciplines will be available for the athletes to participate in?
Athletes can participate in trap, skeet, 5-stand and sporting clays. Also available are the International disciplines of Bunker Trap and Olympic Skeet.
It all depends on what a particular club has to offer and most importantly, what the athlete wants to compete in. No athlete will be forced to participate in any event that they do not wish to compete in.
Who will be coaching my child?
All WAYESS instructors, coaches and staff are certified by USAYESS and by their particular organization. The USAYESS does a background check on all adults involved with the athletes. There are no exceptions to this rule. Most of the time coaches will work with athletes in their particular field of expertise. But it is possible of a skeet, trap or sporting clays coach/instructor to also work with athletes in other disciplines. It all depends on availability and volunteeres.
From time to time coaching/instructor's clinics and certification classes will be made available for those who would like to improve their coaching/instruction educaton. And there is a difference between a coach and instructor!
How often should they practice?
WAYESS teams/squads are required to hold six (6) practices per season with their coach. 4-H or any other organizational pratices that are held with their coach are counted as WAYESS practices. Success depends on the amount of time invested in practice...just like any other sport.
How many events must the athletes attend?
It is realized that other organizations have their own events. The WAYESS holds tournaments as well, including the WAYESS state championship and USAYESS Regional and Nationals. The WAYESS events should not interfer with any other organizations events. In order to participate in the USAYESS Nationals athletes MUST compete in a USAYESS State Championship.
Who can go to nationals? Any athlete can go to nationals as long as they have competed in their state's WAYESS Championship.
For each five athletes it is recommended that there be at least one adult/coach.
Where are the Regionals held?
Regionals are all inclusive and held in 6 US regions. Please see link for events https://www.usayess.org/our-events
Where are the Nationals held?
Nationals are all inclusive and held in June at the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio Texas.
How many times can athletes attend the national championships?
Athelets can attend every year until they graduate from college.
Are there shotgun programs available after they graduate from high school?
Absolutely. ACUI is the collegiate governing body. More and more colleges are introducing collegiate shotgun programs due to the fast growing USAYESS. Including universities such and Texas A&M, Purdue, Yale Harvard and seven time National Collegiate Shotgun Champions Lindenwood University. Also more and more colleges are offering shooting scholarships. For more on collegiate program please visit https://www.acui.org/claytargets
How can I help?
There is always room for more volunteers within the program, regardless of experience. Please visit WAYESS Contacts on this site to see where help is needed and feel free to contact any one in that section .
Where can I find information about the MidwayUSA Foundation grants?
https://www.midwayusafoundation.org/
On the Home Page click on "Find a Team. Fund a Team". This will take you the endowment accounts.
On the Home Page click on "Grants", and then click on "Team Grants" you will be able to see when and how to apply for funds from your team's account.
Are there programs to help off set some of the costs?
Absolutely. WAYESS has partnered with several manufacturers and organizations, such as the Friends of the NRA, Mule Deer Foundation, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, National Wild Turkey Federation, Pheasants Forever, Big Horn Sheep Foundation, Zander's Sporting Goods, MidwayUSA Foundation and others who all contribute to WAYESS in one form or another. See Promotions. Go to the 'Promotions' tab
What is the best gun for my child to shoot with?
Whatever the athlete feels comfortable with. The goal of the program is to engourage, make sure everyone is safe and having fun. Your local sporting good store can direct you to a good gun fitter. Keep in mind that gun fit is a huge part of comfort and success. If the gun does not fit properly, it will 'kick more', and hitting targets will be more difficult. Thus discourage even a seasoned athleted, let alone a first timmer.
Try differnt guns before making a decision on any one in specific. And keep in mind, that there are a ton of good used shotguns for sale. Semi-Autos and Over/Unders are more versitile than single shot. WAYESS does not allow pull triggers.
What are chokes?
There are several types of chokes; Extra Full, Full, Improved Modified, Modified, Improved Cylinder, Skeet and Cylinder. Not all chokes have discriptions on them, some have astricks, some have numbers, while others have notches.
There are flush mount chokes which screw into the muzzel, are flush with the muzzel and need to be inserted and removed with a tool. Then there are thumb chokes which are inserted into the muzzel using your fingers. Thumb chokes are becoming the chokes of choice for clay target shooters as they do not require a tool to be changed. This is very handy when shooting sporting clays.
Chokes are used in shotguns to help with different target presentations. Trap shooters like a tighter choke, usually a modified or full choke, because trap is a long disctance shot.
Lets use a shot at about 20 yards:
With a full choke the pattern will open up to about a 12 inch circle.
With a modified choke at the same distance the shot will spread out to about an 18 inch circle.
With and improved cylinder choke at the same distance, the shot will spread out to about a 24 inch circle.
With a cylinder or skeet choke at the same distance, the shot will spread out to about a 36 inch circle.
http://www.briley.com/understandingshotgunchokesabriefexplanationbybriley.aspx
http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/MediaPages/ArticleDetail.aspx?mediaid=20
Frequently Asked Questions
