Air Force Skeet Team takes world championship

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SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) --  Pull!

The command was shouted thousands of times here from Oct. 3 to 13 where the Air Force dominated 2007 World Skeet Championships as more than 1,700 competitors from around the world gathered at the event in Northwest San Antonio.

Among military teams, Air Force Team One took first place in every gauge, 12 gauge, 20 gauge, 28 gauge and .410 bore, while Air Force Team Two came in second.

Skeet, a competitive target shooting sport, was invented in the U.S. in the 1920s by hunters who wanted to improve their aim for hunting season. 

Today , both hunters and non-hunters around the globe are drawn to skeet ranges where they fire at clay objects, called pigeons, hurled in the air in a crisscross pattern. 

The modern skeet competition consists of eight different shooting stations and offers a variety of fast-flying targets that take flight from many challenging directions.

Air Force Team One won the five person military team championship with 2,701 targets hit out of 2,750. The sharpshooters missed only 49 targets while Air Force Team Two hit 2,631 targets.

The Air Force squad is divided into two five-person teams. Team one includes Lt. Col. Rick Davis, from Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas; Capt. Brian Moore, from Nellis AFB, Nev.; Master Sgt. Stuart Brown (team captain), from Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C.; Master Sgt. John Barnes, from Malmstrom AFB, Mont.; and Master Sgt. Mike Geise, from the Pentagon.

Team two includes Lt. Col. Vernon Lucas (overall team captain), from Ramstein Air Base, Germany; Master Sgt. Eric Agney from Scott AFB, Ill.; Master Sgt. John Yanick, from Shaw AFB, S.C.; Staff Sgt. Reid Beveridge, from Offutt AFB, Neb.; and Staff Sgt. Jesse Caldwell, from Nellis AFB.

Team One's Stuart Brown and Brain Moore were the overall active military champion and runner up, respectively, while John Barnes placed third overall in the mini-world 12 gauge.

"We appreciate the Air Force Services Agency's sponsorship and backing," said Colonel Davis. "We couldn't do it without their support."

The Air Force Skeet Team participates in at least five competitions a year and practice year round. Team members are selected based on number of targets shot the previous year, overall shooting averages, quality of shooting events attended, potential and military bearing.

Geise, who practices about three hours a week, has been shooting competitively for more than four years and has been a member of the Air Force team for three. He credits his military experience to his success, he said.

"It's great to go up against the best and become a world champion," Geise said. "The Air Force has instilled me with discipline and attention to detail, the things you need to be a champion shooter.

"This is a very detail-oriented sport and nothing less than perfection wins," he said.

When Geise steps up to shoot he concentrates on how the targets are flying. A slight change in the wind can dramatically change the flight path of a target, he said. "I have to stay pretty focused."

He also attributes success to his fellow teammates. "We have great esprit de corps. We work well as a team. While one member is shooting, we are all there cheering him on," he said. 

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