This summer, Wayne County 4-H Air Rifle Team aimed high and traveled to compete in the National 4-H Shooting Sports Invitational in San Antonio, Texas. The team had a strong showing and placed fifth in the 3-Position Division.

Dylan Fields, 15; Sydney Smith, 15; Caleb Stanley, 15; and Natasha Napier, 14, represented West Virginia and competed in three events in Texas: Air Rifle 3-Position, Air Rifle Standing and Air Rifle Silhouette.

Over the past few years, the Wayne County teams, lead by 4-H volunteer leader and coach Bruce Crockett, have experienced great success. Their achievements include winning the West Virginia State 4-H Rifle Competition and traveling to compete at the national level both in 2008 and 2011.

This year at nationals, the team had their best result during the 3-Position Competition; where they took aim in the prone, standing and kneeling positions. They impressively placed sixth in the Air Rifle Standing Competition, where they were allowed 40 shots at a target in solely the standing position.

The also team placed sixth during the final event, the Air Silhouette Competition, which took the team outdoors while they took aim at targets in the form of chickens, pigs, turkeys and rams at various distances.

“Shooting outside during the Air Silhouette Competition was a different experience in Texas,” Crockett said. “There were many new variables, including lots of wind, which plays a major factor in the way that gun shoots.”

The Wayne County 4-H Air Rifle Team is relatively new.

When Crockett began volunteering with Wayne County 4-H, there was no shooting sports program. Over the past eight years, Crockett has strived to form an exemplary program. The program has grown and now hosts the Wayne County Air Rifle Invitational each year, with seven teams traveling from across the state to test their shooting skills.

The program teaches students how to take aim in all areas of their lives, beyond the target that stands in front of them.
“The shooting sports program goes beyond giving kids a well-rounded perspective on shooting sports. It promotes the importance of safety and gives them a new perspective on how they do all things,” Crockett said.

Although the team has built a reputation for winning, Crockett says that is not the most important factor in the program.
“It’s not really about the competition. Instead, the focus is on building self-esteem, self-discipline and life skill,” Crockett added.

For more information on the Wayne County 4-H Shooting Sports Program, e-mail Wayne County Extension Agent Julie Tritz at julie.tritz@mail.wvu.edu or contact 304-272-6839.

—WVU-ES—

eb 11/21/11