Some of the best shooters in the country will be in Aberdeen this weekend as the city hosts the State Amateur Trapshooting Tournament.

According to State President Greg Johnson of Rapid City, the tourney will feature some world-class shooters.

There will be between 100 and 200 competitors in this year’s tournament competing in three different events.

Singles features targets being shot from 16 yards away. The handicap event is where competitors shoot against people with the same handicap based on the distance from the trap, 18-27 yards away. And doubles, where two targets are thrown out at the same time.

Johnson talked about what spectators can expect if they come to watch the tournament.

“A lot of world-class shooters,” Johnson said, “as well as shooters that live here locally. A lot of gunfire, a lot of targets in the air, and a lot of incredible ability of the shooters who are here.”

Johnson said that the tournament is a major event for Aberdeen.

“It brings a lot of people into the area and exposes the community to a whole bunch of people who haven’t been here before,” Johnson said. “People from all over the United States will travel here … (including) from California, Missouri and Nevada.”

With the size of the tournament, Johnson and the rest of the state association have a lot of work to do in preparation for the five-day event.

“The state association actually takes all year to prepare for it,” Johnson said. “As soon as this event is done, the members, zone directors and executive body of the state association will start prepping for next year’s tournament by buying trophies, deciding where it is going to be and what the format is. I’m sure the gun club here locally has been preparing for at least the last two months, making sure all their equipment works properly and that the facility is up to standard.”

After all the work that it takes, the reward is even sweeter, Johnson says.

“It’s huge,” Johnson said. “The members of the board of directors are unpaid; they’re completely volunteers. Getting those thank-yous from the shooters and knowing you put on a world-class event is what we look forward to.”

Aberdeen is on a rotation with two other cities and gets to host the state tourney every three years.

“It’s like a big family reunion,” Johnson said. “A lot of these shooters I’ll see all around the United States in different places; but also all the folks who are from South Dakota itself. … The friends and family that we get to spend that time with and then the competition level, it’s always top-notch.”

Johnson said that trapshooting can be a family sport.

“My daughter started shooting trap when she was in middle school,” Johnson said. “And I decided if a 12-year-old girl can do it, her dad can, too.”

The tournament started Wednesday and will continue into Sunday at the Aberdeen Gun Club.