Solid shooting advice is difficult to come by, sounds like your new buddy is legit.

I was invited to the OTC in the summer of ‘90 for a few weeks to shoot bunker (Olympic Trap). I don’t recall your buddy being on The Team (there was a couple of us from Wa) but I ended up not qualifying. Nevertheless, it was a great experience that I’d worked towards for a long time, plus II got to shoot with the top bunker shooters (not skeet) at the time including several future medal winners for 2 weeks. I’ve probably crossed paths with your new friend in the past if he shot trap in the 90’s.