Great Responses to Adult Shooter Question

[Tanktrek]

Guys

Your responses so far are great, I am glad to see so many older active shooters.
How many of you actively shoot 3-position SB Rifle or AR competively, at your local club level?

My distractors feel that they do not want to shoot at these events because there are too many kids shooting. Junior matches are just that, junior matches but when the match is open to all comers, why not shoot.

What is your opinions on this?

Ron

[Telecomtodd]

Many of us "older folks" can't do 3P any more. I have endurance limitations and my once-aerobic body is now teardrop-shaped. However, there's a gentleman from Alaska named James who still shoots 3P - and is about 80! He's incredible to watch.

[TennJay]

I shot my first 3p match in 25 years at Camp Perry this year. I plan on shooting more of them if I can find them.

Kneeling killed me at first, but once things got restretched all was well.

[corning]

Guys

My distractors feel that they do not want to shoot at these events because there are too many kids shooting. Junior matches are just that, junior matches but when the match is open to all comers, why not shoot.

What is your opinions on this?

Ron

Interesting thoughts on the part of your detractors. I am always happy to go shoulder to shoulder with the juniors.

I have always worried about the future of the shooting sports. I compete in both smallbore and high power (see post in your other thread).

I was in a philosophical discussion at Camp Perry this year about the "return on investment" that the sport gets for "subsidizing" juniors. To the first order, I think it is great that there is junior involvement in many aspects of the sport. However, I have to wonder how many of these juniors actually continue on as adults, once the subsidies, and "benefits" (reduced cost match entries, etc) run out. Don't get me wrong, I am the product of a junior program myself, but when I look around, I don't see many others that can say this.

Do your detractors recognize the juniors as the future of our sport?

What opinions do they have about that?

John

[Thomas Monto]

If you retain 1 in a 100 juniors into their adult life shooting, then your program is a hugh success. In our mobil society it is often difficult to track juniors.

In many cases juniors take many years off, only to return later in life.

I am aware that similar drop out from junior to adult in other sports is rather high. Look at adult soccer. Our community has litterly hundreds of junior soccer players, but VERY few participate in adult programs.

[Shooter]

The responses to the question have been good. But, how many of you have heard of or entered the various Masters or Veterans events that are held every year, and the World Masters Games held every 4 years? These are games/events for people-shooters over 40 in most cases and the disciplines vary depending on who is putting it on. Do a search for Masters Games and see what you come up with. There are at least 5-6 or so every year, mainly in New Zealand and Australia, but others are held in other sites, like Chech Rep with their Veterans match in June or July every year. I know that many do not want to travel that far to shoot, but they are good fun, the competition is pretty good and you get so see other parts of the world along the way. I have competed in at least 12-15 masters games of all sorts and just competed in the WMG in Sydbey last Oct. You usually compete within your age group instead of skill level, but not always. The next WMG will be in Torino, Italy in 2013 and I hope to be there if I can still handle my rifle. I urge some of you to check out the masters games set up. Too bad the only thing for us older folks in the country do not include shooting events. Maybe if enough of us bugged them, like I have done for years, they my add something. Don in OR.

[Hemmers]

I was in a philosophical discussion at Camp Perry this year about the "return on investment" that the sport gets for "subsidizing" juniors. To the first order, I think it is great that there is junior involvement in many aspects of the sport. However, I have to wonder how many of these juniors actually continue on as adults, once the subsidies, and "benefits" (reduced cost match entries, etc) run out. Don't get me wrong, I am the product of a junior program myself, but when I look around, I don't see many others that can say this.

Of course the benefits are wider than just keeping people in the sport, becoming coaches, having them enter competitions, spend money with dealers, etc.

When someone has spent their childhood shooting, they're not going to vote for tighter gun controls later in life. They're not going to accidentally shoot a friend with an airgun because "it's just a toy" and "it's okay, it's not loaded", and further on down the line they're going to be open to their kids taking up shooting (this is all assuming they had a positive experience of it themselves!).

They actually have some experience of firearms beyond whatever Bruce Willis is doing this week on the big screen, and recognise firearms as sports equipment and tools, not purely as "weapons" because they only ever see them hanging from the belts of Police Officers.
Plus all the other personal benefits we knows about - learning to focus, conscentrate, develop self discipline and personal responsibility.

The question then is how much is being spent on these subsidies, and whether the gain to society and not just the shooting community is worth it? And of course whether the spending is sustainable.
Attrition rates on junior programmes are enormous and you accept that, but equally there's a point where you have to concede the programme isn't doing enough to keep people in the sport as adults and needs reworking. It should be a constant process of review and tweaking.

In my experience, most areas of shooting are reasonably good at ensuring they do pass people on to senior clubs and squads, although in the UK some areas have been slow to modernise to the 21st century, and certainly our performace ladder in England is in dire need of improvement (Wales have a reasonable system, although you have to be in the system to know about it as they have very little by the way of websites or public information), whilst Scotland's system is excellent, which is why a disproportionate number of GB squad members are Scottish!).