4-H Teens Shoot Nationals in Nebraska

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Three teenagers from Ashe County, North Carolina just competed at the 4-H Shooting Sports National Championships against 731 kids from 42 states. Muzzleloader, pistol, air pistol — these aren't kids plinking at cans. They're doing serious work.

"Imagine trying to shoot a ram at 100 yards, 11 inches high, while standing up."

That's coach Charles Young describing the muzzleloader silhouette event — and he's not exaggerating the difficulty. Standing unsupported at 100 yards with a muzzleloader, on a timed stage, against competitors who've been doing this since they were single digits in age. That's a real marksmanship test by any standard.

"A lot of the technique stays the same. All of the fundamentals are essentially the same."

He's right, and this is something you figure out fast if you shoot multiple disciplines. The grip, the trigger press, the sight picture — they don't care what's in your hands. The shooters who struggle to cross over are usually the ones who've been compensating for bad fundamentals with a familiar platform.

The part worth noting: the national format requires competitors to cross over into other disciplines once they qualify. That's not just logistically interesting — it's genuinely good for developing shooters. Nothing exposes a weakness in your fundamentals faster than picking up an unfamiliar gun.

Did you come up through a youth shooting program, or were you self-taught or range-taught as an adult — and looking back, which do you think built better fundamentals?

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Read the full article in The Handbook → | By Steve Duskett