Younger People Reject Trapshooting-Simple-No CREDIT CARDS

Just on the issue of credit cards. (I ain't getting into the other stuff here.) When I was President of Miramar Gun Club (San Diego Shotgun Sports) for 4 years in the early 90s the club did not take credit cards. We had over 500 members and a large walk in public trade. I asked why we didn't take cards and the answer was kinda ol' boy stuff. "Cash is what shooters have, want etc. We don't want to be bothered and we have to pay 2-3% to accept them." Well, I was Pres. and I knew darn well people would quit shooting when they ran out of money and might not if we accepted CC. So, we got a CC machine.
Our income increased almost immediately. Within 6 months more than 70% of our income was from CC payment and our sales had increased by over 1/3. It was almost instantaneous. No question that taking CC was a game changer. And, most of the ol' boys slid right into using the credit cards themselves.
I also have a 25 year old son. He almost never carries much cash. Neither do his friends. And his GF flat out thinks cash is creepy (especially now with Corona virus as our constant friend). Within not too many years we will be a cashless society.
Sorry, you can't stop change.
Jake

 

I just happened to need my weekly case of Miller Light and the distributor was only accepting CC's payment through my phone. My wife tried to pay for an appt. and they said they're no longer accepting cash payment-CC only. Order food on line and be prepared to pay for it with a CC before pickup. This virus is making cash payments a dinosaur more rapidly than we expected.

 

Iam out of popcorn, and going to bed . Hope this ends soon! Was anything decided ?

 

Twenty Five years in the Hunting Preserve Business and I have about 50 corporate members and a hundred or so Family members. Members most who have been with me for many years. I also had a gun store until 2016, I quit taking CC in about 2007, and by the way I tore up all my personal and business Credit Cards then also. I pay all my bills by check or cash. If someone wants to hunt with me and don't have cash or a check they can go elsewhere. My members understand this but the reason they hunt with me is that I offer a superior product the wildest birds and the best cover period. The product is what brings me business, not how convenient paying for it is and I don't think Credit Cards will save registered ATA shooting..

The ATA offers a poor product. Young men want competition, old me want to feel good about themselves so they demand easy birds. The ATA is an old man camping, socializing, organization with nothing resembling competition.

I am as busy as I want to be, everything is paid for and I don't need credit or want it. My members find a way to pay me and I've never been stiffed in 25 years.

 

"Alright, alright, I'm truly sorry for even doubting you killed a 25 straight decades ago"

Thank you, I know that had to hurt.

You could have ended that sentence with the word straight but not in ollie's world, right? Just had to tack on the
decades ago. LOL That's why I know it hurt.

"We were all young once"

It doesn't matter WHEN I did it ollie. What is important is that I did. In the words of a great HOF Trap shooter and a damn good Flyer shooter that I don't "know" but "know of" and have a great deal of respect for,

"my 25 pin is the one I'm proudest of."

THAT is why I use my pin as my avatar. Unless you have earned one of those pins you could never understand that. I can reminisce about that shoot off in Vandalia or dig out the Silverware and remember how exciting it was but that little pin means more than anything.

"Sometimes God never provided a black driver from an end box so I must never have believed in God as I've always been punished."
"God must have loved you that day."

Translation for all you guys that don't know what ollie is lamely trying to imply.
I didn't get any really hard birds. And when he missed it was God's fault.​

I've missed some hard ones and some that weren't so hard and heard all kinds of excuses but blaming God is a new one.

That's the thing ollie. You have to be able to kill them ALL. Even when the last two were from #1 and #9. That's what separates the guys that win and the guys that don't.

We all can't be in the big parade ollie, some people have to just sit on the curb and clap.​

Thanks again for the...….. "apology"? LOL

EDIT: I just went back and read some of the crap you wrote olliedawg. On second thought, your apology sucks.

 

So you're still denying younger people tend to use credit cards as payment for most purchases? I see you conveniently ignored another post where an individual who actually managed a gun club saw his sales take a tremendous jump after initiating CC's as payment. Ya see, that's where this thread started and that's where you went into denial and started blowing nothing but smoke. Look, you can remain in the dark ages and continue to talk about things from 30 years ago-I can too since I was there but since you're not part of todays' business world you'll remain clueless about how it functions.

Ya know I broke my one and only 200 straight in MD around 1993-nearly 30 years ago. Should I put my scoresheet up as my avatar?

 

You should have quit with the apology.

"So you're still denying younger people tend to use credit cards as payment for most purchases?"

Post where I said that.

I said my grandsons, use their DEBIT cards for almost everything. That is why when I told them to bring cash to our ALL CASH club's Turkey shoot they went to their banks ATM and got CASH. Reading comprehension a slight problem for you?

"I see you conveniently ignored another post where an individual who actually managed a gun club saw his sales take a tremendous jump after initiating CC's as payment'

I didn't ignore it. I read it and thought that's great for them. I know you were hoping everyone would say that proved you were right but one "club" doesn't prove anything. I think the post from a very successful businessman that showed you don't NEED credit cards to prosper was very informative. Didn't conform to your OPINION so the selective amnesia kicked in again?

One FOR CC's. One AGAINST CC's. I would say one "TRUMPS" the other as far as this thread goes.
( Like the way I used TRUMP there?)

"you're not part of todays' business world you'll remain clueless about how it functions."

Re-read the post from a very successful person that runs his own business.

Geeeez "dawg", why can't you just say what you mean without the innuendo. Here ya go, something like this.

"I'm a business man and you're not so I know everything about running a business. Unless you have ever owned your own business you are clueless."

I'm not going to start another BS "I did, you did" conversation, that's your style, but I would win that one too. Learn from your mistakes "dawg". NEVER assume anything. It has a tendency to come back and bite you in the ass and you end up apologizing later.

"one and only 200 straight in MD around 1993-nearly 30 years ago. Should I put my scoresheet up as my avatar?"

You can use whatever you want "dawg". If that is your biggest accomplishment then I see no reason you can't. Unlike you, I don't care what you use.

 

Try getting back to the beginning! Try reading the title of the thread. You were given two examples of successful business that accept CC's then you use your kids as examples for using cash. I mean really, do you actually believe it's in the best interest of a business to refuse CC's as payment-that includes gun clubs? I suppose you actually believe everyone thinking of attending large trapshoot must carry $4,000 or 5,000 in cash or simply not show up? Do ya think-at least maybe-that's a reason why many play fewer options, enter fewer events or simply don't attend? If you still attended ATA shoots you just might have heard that a few times. Since you don't you're simply speculating.

 

"Try getting back to the beginning! Try reading the title of the thread. You were given two examples of successful business that accept CC's then you use your kids as examples for using cash"

OK, I went back to the beginning. Mine is the first reply after your initial post. Nothing in between, no examples of pro CC businesses before I posted . And it wasn't my kids but my Grandsons and in a later post I showed where a gun club (mine) was cash only and doing quite well thank you.

READ and COMPREHEND first, then type.

Your whole premise is that if clubs would just add the offer CC use a LOT of people would show up and it would SAVE Trapshooting. Good luck with that pipe dream.

"I suppose you actually believe everyone thinking of attending large trapshoot must carry $4,000 or 5,000 in cash or simply not show up?"

Gee dawg, you suppose a lot don't you? Did the voices you are hearing in your head tell you I said that?, because I sure don't see where I posted it. I DID post that if I thought I needed $2500 I would take $3500. I was a Boy Scout, be prepared.

"Do ya think-at least maybe-that's a reason why many play fewer options, enter fewer events or simply don't attend?"

No, I think their are a lot of better reasons people quit the ata and stay home.

"If you still attended ATA shoots you just might have heard that a few times. Since you don't you're simply speculating."

And you have an opinion. Regardless of what those voices are telling you ollie, everything you say is not the gospel, just YOUR OPINION.

 

Our club doesn’t take CC and we are doing fine, I don’t want to raise the price to offset the 3% handling fee. Our biggest cash influx comes from college students and high school kids with the shooting sports teams. Never once has anyone complained about cash or checks only. While I’m thinking about it none of the 5 clubs I frequent takes CC and they have large crowds also.

 

OOPS!

 

High school and college teams are supported by mommies, daddies and donations from various groups. Hopefully they left high school by the time they are 30 yo. That said, did you ever stop to think how much more you might take in by offering CC's as payment? I find it hard to determine what is a large crowd when the large shooting venues are down nearly 30% in attendance in 10 years

 

Mommies and Daddies carry CC and Cash, we are a small club and generally only throw a couple of trailers of targets a year. 40 plus school age kids on the high school team and 10 or so in college team. The rest are regular everyday shooters. As far as I can remember in the last 5 years or so that I’ve cashiered I’ve never had anyone want to use CC. I guess Ky hillbillies use cash, like I said the 5 clubs I frequent don’t take CC. Once again the price would have to increase for the 3% the card reader company charges or the club has to eat it. We keep our prices as low as possible to encourage people to come and shoot. I can say with confidence that using CC is not the answer for our club and probably not for a lot of small clubs. Imagine how much could be lost if we went up 3% so a few might use CC. We will stay cash or check.

 

So I suppose you charge around $5/round of trap. Charging .15 extra for using a CC shouldn't break anyone. Our local Sporting Clays course has a standing order for a trailer load of targets every two weeks. Yes, they accept CC's. We all know nearly every shooting club refuses to accept CC's. Most are run by old farts like us who still live in the 60's.

 

Two things I see from reading this thread. First, here in Berks county, the folks running the local shoots are older average people like me. We have enough trouble getting emails sent and received by the other folks in the league. Credit Cards would just confuse most of us. Second, look at the responses to this thread. Would you want to shoot with some of these people here? Walk around like a bunch of crotchity old farts complaining about everything, and watch them leave. Treat them like young adults, and credit card or no credit card, they will participate. Clubs in this area, of Pennsylvania, really promote youth shooting. The kids are walking around with shooting vests with a club's name on it and "junior shooting team" or something like that.

 

"Treat them like young adults, and credit card or no credit card, they will participate."

 

Actually members and students involved with 4H. College teams, and High school teams pay $4 a round and non members pay $5. I like to think I’m not an old grumpy fart at 52 years old but I guess I fall into that category. Shooters are going to shoot with or without CC. As I’ve stated before we are doing fine without CC. In the last year we purchased a new mower, rebuilt Trap and Skeet houses, replaced the shingles with metal on our clubhouse and built a new garage. All done with no CC. Cash is King at our little club in KY.

 

Yup, and here in Lehigh County most clubs are run by old farts who probably don't know where the on switch is on the grandkids' computer. All of us enjoy watching those young kids participate but most of us already know when mommy and daddy close the purse they're mostly gone. Let's put it this way, the largest club in Berks County has tremendous difficulty even handling cash and their computer skills are beyond limited. Maybe accepting CC's would speed up the process of entering. Anyway, accepting payment by CC's in incredibly easy today, makes tracking income easier, and CC receipts are not a valuable currency (meaning not easily disappearing like cash). Don't be surprised if the PSSA will soon be going down that route. Anyone go shopping at the grocery store anymore? Many cashiers look at you like you should be on food stamps or something when you pay with cash.

 

Great content in this old thread but the title itself makes me think someone needs more meds.

 

If it's not on the computer, phone or video game there is little interest

 

You obviously don't have any trapshooting kids or know much about todays society. Heck, my oldest earns around $200,000 yearly and seldom carries cash nor do his friends.

 

Someone’s son and friends don’t carry cash so no one will go to the PA State Shoot this year. Yeah, all about the method of payment. Not about the rewards for shooting or location of the ATA flag shoot. It’s not about the cost. It isn’t about easy targets or a broken handicap system. It is all about Ollies kid doesn’t have cash.

 

My wife's son in law and wife who both like to shoot were asked if they would like to go to the Ohio state shoot with me. Neither one ever been to a trap shoot.
They were both impressed by size of it. At the end of the day he asked where are all the money sponsors? I said, ''those days are long gone''...he never asked again to go.

 

Surprise, I was at Elysburg this weekend and paid cash for my son's entries. Obviously, you must live a sheltered life, never go to bars, gas stations, restaurants or maybe even a grocery store. We have all of those where I live and credit cards are very often the preferred method of payment. Probably wear a mask indoors and order door dash too. Never heard of the term "cashless society"?

 

If harder targets will save trapshooting why not put 'em in the 4 hole and the money will magically return. While we're at it pour another 3 or 4 yards of concrete and the big dogs will flounder and sandbagging will disappear. I've been shooting for 59 years and never known Trapshooting to be cheap. If you think Trapshooting is expensive try Sporting Clays but you obviously already know Sporting Clays is dying, Surprisingly, t was very difficult to get onto the course this weekend at Lehigh Valley Sporting Clays as the wait was quite long so I suppose you might want to get out of the house more often.

 

Ollie
The turnout was low yesterday at the Ohio Zone Shoots. Down 75%. It must have been because they weren’t taking credit cards.

And all the ATMs were closed in Ohio.

Mod Edit:
I deleted that last little dig. It was uncalled for.

Flyersarebest
Moderator

 

Maybe it's because people who can't use credit cards aren't qualified to own one because of bad credit. For the rest of us it's a non-issue.

 

That implication is WAY OUT OF LINE!!!

Keep that type of smear up and I'll delete your post.

PS: "dawg". You don't want to test me on this.

Flyersarebest
Moderator

 

Dawg, It is a good idea ,when you can not climb out of the hole, to stop digging. Roger C.

 

I deleted the last 2

I told you not to test me.

 

C'mon Joe. Flyers is actually my best buddy. I never knew until one of his friends related that message to me at a shoot last weekend. Life isn't always as we see it.