2010 Irby Mandrell Charity Shoot - Clay Shooting USA

66 FORCHARITYSeven Springs and to honor thememory of Irby Mandrell – ashooting sports advocate.The Seven Springsand The Wish Upon a StarMountain Resort Sporting Foundation. This year, Irlene andClays facility hosted the family – along with their sponsors2010 Irby Mandrell Charity Shoot and supporters – decided to nameJuly 8-11. In years previous, this the tournament in honor of herevent has been called the Irlene father who passed away in MarchDay OneMandrell Celebrity Shoot and has ’09 just prior to this event last year.benefited the Boy Shooters from all over the countryScouts of America traveled to shoot the courses atIRBY MANDRELLThe 2010Thursday was Kids Day withevents offered to many youngpeople who might not otherwiseCHARITY SHOOTA REPORT BY AL HAGUECLAYSHOOTINGUSA

FORCHARITY 67KIDS INSTRUCTION ON SAFE SHOOTING.have an opportunity to beintroduced to shootingsports in a safe and expertenvironment. Sponsorssuch as Smith & Wesson, CZ andMarlin provided small caliber riflesand handguns along with expertinstructors to show the curiousyoungsters how to safely enjoy thefun of target shooting. Flyfishingand archery experiences were alsoavailable along with airgun targetshooting. Judging by the smilesand enthusiasm of the youngsters,everyone had fun – including theirparents. Prizes were awarded tothe participating youngsters –along with the FBI takingfingerprints as part of the FBI’sCommunity Outreach Programfor youths of five years of age andolder. The children’s fingerprints,taken by an FBI agent, weregiven to the parents or guardiansin the event of a tragedy, naturaldisaster, abduction or runawaysituation.spacious Seven Springsclubhouse. General Manager,Michael Mohr, and staff, wereavailable to handle every detail.Each participant received awelcome package fromsponsors. At the appointed time,everyone climbed in theirassigned carts to head out to thewooded course chosen for the firstday of competition. This was a 200target event over two days, withmorning and afternoon flights beingreversed each day to make it fair.Seven Springs offers threecourses, cut into the beautifulmountain-side, all with pathwaysand well appointed shootingstations. Each station has multipletraps that provide the ability tohave virtually any presentation atany station. The first day’s targetswere tough – everyone agreed.Rabbits, battues, chandelles,incomers, outgoers – you name itand Mohr and his staff gaveshooters a bit of everything!The weather was pretty hot andhumid the first day, with a bit ofrain showing up for the secondflight which started at 1:00pm. Atthe end of day one, two shooterswere close at the top. It’s importantto remember that many of thoseattending are not regularcompetitors, but come to the eventfor fun and to be part of a specialevent that gives so much toworthwhile charities. However,there was no doubt thatcompetition was serious for some.Perhaps the most seriouscompetition was between Irleneand her sister Louise! At half way,they were close on target count.According to both, they havealways been competitive – exceptwhen it came to their music andthen it was all teamwork .Day 1 had Joseph Zeitler on topwith a well crafted 91, followed byJohn Klisiewicz, nine back at 82.Celebrity top score for the dayDay 1 had Joseph Zeitler on top with a wellcrafted 91, followed by John Klisiewicz,nine back at 82.Day TwoThe sporting clays event startedwith registration at the beautiful andCELEBRITY SHOOTERS TJ CLAY AND PATRICK KIRKPATRICK.CLAYSHOOTINGUSA

68FORCHARITYwent to TJ Klay. This Nashvillesinger songwriter (and 19-yearHohner Harmonica artist) was anoriginal member of the countryband “Western Flyer.” Hisharmonica, mandolin, guitar andIrby Mandrellharmony vocals graced the group’stwo CD’s and helped garner fourhit singles and three CMT videos.They performed for the KansasCity Royals, the Martin LutherKing Foundation and PresidentIrby was a husband, father,grand-father, musician, policeofficer and WWII navy veteran.During the first evening’s dinnerat this special charity event,each of his famous daughtersshared with the attendees theirmemories of their father.Irlene, Louise and Barbarawere all in agreement that Dadwas a great and good man whogot things done. He started theMandrell family band to givehis daughters the opportunityto promote their talents andshare his love of music. Everyone in the family, as timewent on, became a part of the group. His wife of 60 years, Mary,played bass guitar and eventually Ken Dudney became the bandsdrummer. (Years later he would serve in the Navy as a pilot and flymissions in Vietnam and fall in love with Barbara and raise a family.)Irby played rhythm guitar, sang and fronted the band withBarbara, singing at the early age of 14. He managed all the businessdetails – from the bookings to driving the old bus they used to getaround. According to Barbara, he was a pretty good negotiator andwould prefer to have his contracts on a handshake – he really was aman of his word.It all started for the Mandrells in Oceanside (CA) and whenBarbara’s career began to take off, the family moved to Nashville.Irby managed Barbara’s career for thirty eight years until seriousillness forced him to slow down.In 1965 Irby took his group, including his wife Mary and Barbara,to Vietmam to entertain the troops. This commitment was not as partof the USO, but on their own as a family – such was his love andrespect for the men serving their country.Aside from his musical talents, Irby Mandrell is remembered asbeing completely dedicated to shooting sports and the people’s rightto bear arms. His daughters learned this from him early on andappreciate the legacy he passed on to them. Most of the shootersattending and donating generously never met Irby, but all appreciatewho the man was and how important he was to Irlene and family. Allof the sisters are serious outdoors women, which includes shooting,but Irlene is perhaps the most serious, having hunted all over theworld.Clinton.TJ performs solo and witha Trio at venues and shootingevents across the country. He’scurrently a member of the Pro-Staff for HiViz. With his publishingcompany, Sporting Klay’s Music,he has released four solo CDs. Hewrote and produced “The GrandAmerican” CD for the ATA’s GrandAmerican TrapshootingChampionship; the “San Antonio inSeptember” CD for the NSCA’sSporting Clays Nationals and the“Shoot for the Moon” CD for USAShooting. (The song was featuredin the video promotion for the 2004Olympics in Athens, Greece.) TJ iscertainly heavily involved inshooting sports and it was nosurprise he posted a proficientscore for two days of 146.Day ThreeOn the second day of competition,the afternoon flight from theprevious day was out first and theweather had cooled nicely withrainstorms overnight. However,along with the weather patternchanges came breezy conditions,swirling between the trees, makingsome of the targets that muchtougher. When the courses wereoriginally created, Michael Mohrand Seven Springs owner, BobNutting, were very cognizant ofkeeping the forest around theThe hardwoods in full leaf bloom createmany challenging shadows making someof the targets difficult to see early.CLAYSHOOTINGUSA

70 FORCHARITYstations as natural as possible. As aresult, on some stations you reallyneed to carefully select your holdand break points. The hardwoodsin full leaf bloom create manychallenging shadows making someof the targets difficult to see early.The weather gods were kindfor the remainder of the day andscores were up over the previousday – as predicted by Mohr. Thetrue pairs were fair but challengingand the report pairs made everyshooter pay attention to thenuances of each presentation.The trappers and staff at SevenSprings really are the best. Manyof the guys and gals working at theJIM AND PAM TUCKER WITH KEN ANTON.venue are instructors (variouslevels) and all are helpful and wantthe customer’s experience to bethe very best. It’s hard to imagine abetter place for an event such asthis – or perhaps any event. Maybeone day we can attend a US Openat Seven Springs. It certainly haseverything necessary and more.Dinners andAuctionsEach night dinner was servedfollowed by a live auction to benefitthe charities. The main sponsorscertainly stepped up to the platewith quality items for auction.S&W, Ithaca, CZ, North AmericanArms, Marlin and Browning alloffered multiple handguns, rifles,air rifles and shotguns – raising alot of money for the Boy Scouts.High value collectibles, artworkand statues (all donated) raisedadditional money for the othercharities.In previous years, Irlene’scharity earned enough money toprovide more than 200 rifles forBoy Scout Councils shootingprograms all around the country.The money raised this year will beused similarly, along with supportfor The Wish Upon a StarFoundation. Attendees were veryIt’s hard to imagine a better placefor an event such as this – orperhaps any event. Maybe oneday we can attend a US Open atSeven Springs. It certainly haseverything necessary and more.BARBARA MANDRELL.generous in their bidding andmuch fun was had by all.Professional Master ofCeremonies, Jon Pelz, a verytalented performer himself, gavethe dinner and auctions a flairseldom seen at charity events. Hishumor and fun attitude, along withhis magic tricks with audienceparticipation, made for a greatatmosphere.Presenting this amazing eventtakes a lot of work, and as always,there are many people behind thescenes making it all happen.Everything from arrangementswith the resort to securing andworking with all the sponsorstakes time and effort. Two of thoseunknown heroes are MandrellFUN LOVING TEXAS DIVAS.LOUISE MANDRELL.CHRISTINA MANDRELL GETS SOME COACHING.THREE GENERATIONS OF MANDRELL FAMILY.CLAYSHOOTINGUSA

72 FORCHARITYRIGHT: VANESSAMANDRELL HELPS OUTDURING THE AUCTION.BELOW: PARTY IN FULLSWING.BOTTOM: LOUISEMANDRELL WITH JOHNZEITLER (HOA – 180).FAR RIGHT: A DRESSEDUP TEXAS DIVA.husbands. These ladies know howto have a good time – and judgingby some of the outfits these ladieswore I wouldn’t argue with them.Celebrities and friends alikeenjoyed the great surroundings ofthe Seven Springs MountainResort. No plans for next yearwere announced, butyou can be sure that Irlene andher family will find a way tocontinue supporting their charitiesand have fun again. ■5-STAND.Charities board members Sondraand Grover DePriest. Accordingto John Worrel, Board Chairman,these two great folks put inendless hours of work andsupport all year long to make thisevent successful.The Saturday night dinnerand auction was also AwardsNight. John Zeitler held on witha total score of 180 to take theHOA top prize of $2500. JohnKlisiewicz maintained his runnerup position with a total 172. LadyHigh Overall went to Marty Mabrywith a score of 144. High femalecelebrity went to Louise Mandrell(136). All winners in class receivedautographed plaques and gifts.shooting was challenging butentertaining and a lot of moneywas raised for very worthwhilecharities.The Texas Divas, a group ofabout 1500 members from all overthe country with the love of theoutdoors, were represented byseveral members and a couple ofBOB NUTTING OF SEVEN SPRINGS WITH FAMILY.Great SuccessThe 2010 Irby Mandrell MemorialShoot was fun for everyone – justas a charity shoot should be. TheCLAYSHOOTINGUSATOP AND RIGHT: VENDORS FROM KRIEGHOFF AND ITHICA.ABOVE: SEVEN SPRINGS CLUB HOUSE. RIGHT: ALL CAUGHT ONCAMERA.

In Conversation with Irlene MandrellDuring this year’s event, I had the opportunity to talk with Irlene, founder ofIrlene Mandrell Charities Inc, to talk about her memories of her Dad, her lifetoday and her charitable work.WHAT’S YOUR FONDEST MEMORY OF YOUR DAD?Fortunately I have many. But perhaps the most important is the example heset for all of us. Daddy got things done. He was a man of his word, he like tojoke around quite a bit but always took care of everybody. He had enormousenergy. He would drive the bus all night and perform the next day and dealwith all the business details. His belief in our right to own firearms and enjoyshooting sports was a gift he passed on to all of us.I UNDERSTAND YOU’RE NOW A LEVEL I SPORTING CLAYS INSTRUCTOR. WHY?I love shooting and wanted to get better, so I took the Level I course fromMichael Mohr here at Seven Springs.AND DID YOU ENJOY IT?Very much so – and it has helped me with my shooting as well.HOW, WITH YOUR BUSY SCHEDULE, WILL YOU FIND TIME TO TEACH?That’s sure to be a challenge, but I do have some friends that are expectingme to work with them, so we’ll see how that goes.DOES THAT MEAN WE CAN EXPECT TO SEE YOUR FEMALE CELEBRITY FRIENDSTAKING UP SPORTING CLAYS?That’s hard to say, but I do promote this sport wherever I go – so maybe.WILL YOU MOVE UP TO LEVEL II AT SOME POINT?Part of that process is to give lessons and have the student sign my card. So, it’llFORCHARITY 73depend on how many lessons I actually give – but Level 1 really was more formy own improvement. However, if more comes out of it, great. I sure hope to.HOW CAN THE SPORT ATTRACT MORE WOMEN SHOOTERS?I think it’s already happening. There are many more women shooting todaythan I remember in the past. We also need to remember that women are abig influence on the youngsters that are attracted to this sport. If it’s not OKwith Mom, then maybe it won’t happen. We need more effort on education,but all shooters can help by inviting a non-shooting friend to give it a try –especially if she’s a Mom!WHAT’S DOWN THE ROAD FOR IRLENEMANDRELL?I continue hosting a show at weekendsat the Nashville Palace and I will be aspokesperson for some new productssoon to be introduced by Smithand Wesson. I’ll continue to dohunting shows – and of coursekeep my family happy. I havetwo amazing daughters,Vanessa and Christina, and awonderful son Deric – allcurrently working on theircareers and future plans. I alsoenjoy working with myFoundation on the chosencharities, all year long, whichis very important to me.