High School Shooting Teams Are Getting Wildly Popular — And the NRA Is Helping

[Alamo]

High School Shooting Teams Are Getting Popular in the U.S. | Time

In much of the country, the words guns and schools do tend to go together more often in horrific headlines than under a senior portrait, wedged between Class Treasurer and Spring Track. But more and more yearbooks are marking competitive shooting as a part of high school life. Even as mass shootings have inspired protests and walkouts in many schools, a growing number—-sometimes the same schools—are sanctioning shooting squads as an extracurricular activity. In 2015, for example, 9,245 students, in 317 schools across three states, participated in the USA High School Clay Target League. Since then, participation has spiked 137%: in 2018, 21,917 students, from 804 teams in 20 states—-including New York and California, as well as Texas—competed.

Much more at link. RTWT

 

[shootersix]

there are 2 high school trap teams in the Evansville (private schools)area that got 5 thousand dollar grants (each) from the friends of the nra

2 public high schools (in eville) had given the ok for trap teams, then the next day the florida school shooting happened, and they said "we better hold off for now"

someone said were just a few generations away from our sport/hobby vanishing, that's why I support and volunteer for the friends of the nra

 

[Clark & Addison]

Archery has gotten big here. I would like to see shooting teams get started too.

 

[Leadeye]

Good news to hear.

 

[SmileDocHill]

I hate to be a Debbie Downer but that is the same time period people in general were more interested in getting into guns. Gun range membership, shooting sports activities, defense class attendance, new gun ownership... All went up. I would even anticipate the rate of increase in the high school demographic is lower than the overall rate of increase in gun related activities/sports/participation.

 

[RaoulHayduke]

No better way to make a teenager interested in something than to have an authority figure tell them it's bad.

 

[SmileDocHill]

No better way to make a teenager interested in something than to have an authority figure tell them it's bad.

I think it is a good thing. Having it present sure beats making all things gun related evil which is the message they are getting currently.

 

[eldirector]

At the Minnesota high school trap-shooting championship, more than 8,000 students from some 300 schools gathered in June to blast flying orange discs out of the sky. Over nine days, the sound of bullets firing—hour after hour after hour—-becomes ambient noise, like a supermarket soundtrack. Pop. Pop. Pop.

Dang, these kids must be sharpshooters! Shooting trap with... bullets.

 

[Clark & Addison]

I just found out that our local high school is starting a trap-shooting team. My kids are not in high school yet, but I'm excited that this is now an option.

 

[ol' poke]

+1 to all of the above! Support your youth programs! Whether they be 4-H, Boy Scouts, Jr. Clubs, etc.

Even if your $'s are short, they can always use dedicated leadership, expertise, and extra hands/eyes around the range to help out. Let's promote the 2nd Amendment and shooting sports!

Just FYI, my club just loaned out their trap range to Harrison HS for their program, and Purdue University's Rifle Team is heading down to Ft. Benning, GA, next week for their National Championships! Boiler Up!

 

[Mongo59]

One of the major manufacturers has a program to where you buy the guns and ammo from them for a set price and after a couple of years they refund the entire price just to motivate interest in shooting sports.

The follow up sales and word of mouth alone will more than support the company. Seems wise to me. I will find out which company and post later. My kids are too old and g-kids too young to be directly involved.

 

[NyleRN]

While I have no problem with schools doing this, I don't believe it helps our cause as much as we think. How many folks who don't think guns are bad but are willing to agree with some "common sense gun laws?" Such as UBCs or banning bumpstocks or mag capacity bans? How many soldiers come home from tours and agree with politicians that weapons of war such as the AR15 don't belong in the hands of civilians? Apologetics is very important. Whether you like guns or not, or whether what your opinion is of who should have what, we should be teaching these kids WHY we have guns and WHY it's important. We should most certainly should be doing the latter without neglecting the former

 

[Hawkeye7br]

While I have no problem with schools doing this, I don't believe it helps our cause as much as we think. How many folks who don't think guns are bad but are willing to agree with some "common sense gun laws?" Such as UBCs or banning bumpstocks or mag capacity bans? How many soldiers come home from tours and agree with politicians that weapons of war such as the AR15 don't belong in the hands of civilians? Apologetics is very important. Whether you like guns or not, or whether what your opinion is of who should have what, we should be teaching these kids WHY we have guns and WHY it's important. We should most certainly should be doing the latter without neglecting the former

Huh? Just to clarify, kids are already on board with the shooting sports, parents too, school board too. At their age and demographic, shooting for fun is what they're focused on. I run our county 4H program, the first thing I tell parents is about the support we get from the NRA. Their parents can (and will, when the time comes) talk about 2A. High school shooting sports should not be about training little Rambo's.

 

[Mgderf]

One more reason to support your local chapter of the FNRA (Friends of the NRA).
That is their entire mission, to support the youth shooting sports.
These (we) are the people who give sponsorships and grants to shooting teams and individuals.

The Friends of the NRA do NOT get money from the NRA.
They (we) raise it at the banquets you keep hearing about, as well as periodic raffles throughout the year.

Please Google your local chapter, and attend a banquet if it suits you.
WE can always use volunteers to work the banquets too...just sayin'.

This concludes todays P.S.A.

 

[Mongo59]

Nyle, anything that gets the game controller out of their hands is a step in the right direction. Which one of us were happy with one type of gun? Or just one gun?

I don't intend to tell them what they should do but I will help them when they ask about what they want to do. Kids and shooting sports are like fish to water...

 

[jwleeper]

KOSKO Shotgun Sports in Warsaw has a youth skeet shooting group that competes. There is help for them from WIN and the NRA. The group also has fund raiser's to help with costs for the families. Anyone interested check in at KOSKO. They shoot Trap, Skeet, and Sporting Clays. We need people in the schools to take the lead here.
Have a great day.
Jim