Shooting with the Stars

Rain nor snow nor sleet would keep the Dirty Dozen 4-H Shooting Sports club from their appointed field trip with shooting stars (a.k.a. shooting legends). Yes, shooting legends who could all be found at the Annie Oakley Boom Days in Pinehurst, NC. For those of you not familiar with Annie Oakley, she was born in the 1860's and is considered the first female superstar. Travelling with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, Oakley was a sharpshooter and exhibition shooter that was known for her fast shooting, and trick shots with a mirror. In 1922 at the age of 62 Oakley apparently competed in a shooting contest in Pinehurst and shot 100 clays at 16 yards. Thus the contest of this legend continues today as the Annie Oakley Boom Days.

This year the Dirty Dozen 4-H Shooting Sports club worked with the promoters of the event to visit and meet some of the best in the field. They knew they were right on target meeting two members of the USA Olympic Shooting Sports team. Caitlin Connor and Jaiden Grinnell took a few moments to talk with our 4-H members, sign autographs and even take photos. Jaiden shared with us that she started shooting at the age of 12 as part of her local 4-H program. She has been shooting competitively for the past four years. Caitlin was also introduced to shooting as part of a local 4-H program at the age of 15. She has been shooting competitively for the last three years. The group also got a chance to see both of them shoot as part of the Annie Oakley Competition. This is a competition where competitors stand shoulder to shoulder. The first shooter calls pull to release the clay and has one shot to hit it, if they miss the second shooter can shoot at it. If the second shooter hits the clay the first shooter is out. If the second shooter misses it is up to the third shooter. If he or she hits it then the first two shooters are out. If they miss it then no one is out and the competition continues with the next person in line calling pull. This rotation will continue until one person, the winner, is left. Although Caitlin and Jaiden did not win they definitely held their own.

Another interesting part to this event was learning about different types of hunting. A falconer, Chip Gentry, gave us an educational lesson and demonstration of how different birds of prey hunt. He introduced the group to an owl, different types of hawks, and showed us the grace and beauty of how these birds live and interact with humans.

The group was also introduced to different types of hunting dogs. The Sandhills Pointing Breeds club gave a demonstration on what actually occurs when they hunt with dogs. These dogs don't actually find prey and kill it. Many times they find the prey and essentially point it out to their handlers who flush it animals out for the hunters to shoot. Some of the dogs are trained to retrieve, and when they do they do not bite into the what they are retrieving. The dogs are trained to make sure what they are retrieving is not damaged, so that if it is being used for food, it can still be consumed.

After a brief break to warm up and consume some warm beverages (coffee, hot chocolate, hot cider) we headed back outside in the snow. As we watched the biggest snowflakes anyone had ever seen fall from the sky, we were serenaded by the 82nd Airborne All American Chorus. After a brief concert as the snow turned to sleet and rain they were joined by the Pine Crest High School ROTC for the presentation of colors.

The big event of the day was seeing Tom Knapp, exhibition sharp shooter. Knapp didn't let the rain, cold and sleet stop him from showing the audience how much fun shooting can be. Knapp holds three world records for hand thrown clay shooting. Knapp showed the youth how hard work and practice can pay off. He entertained the crowd by ejecting spent shotgun shells into the air and making them targets, making an omelet by letting youth from the audience trow eggs into the air as he shot then and even made a salad by shooting heads of lettuce and other fixings as he tossed them into the air. Through all of this Mr. Knapp was a gentlemen and stressed safety and responsibility, the traits that are stressed in our 4-H Shooting Sports Program. Probably the biggest thrill came with the youth got a chance to shake Mr. Knapp's hand, get his autograph and take a picture with him. The youth then presented him with a small token; a thank you card, 4-H patch and a Robeson County 4-H portable screwdriver set. Mr. Knapp opened the envelope and read the card telling the youth that he was touched and had a special place in his home for gifts from his fans and he would take this home and put it in this special place. The youth thanked him again for sharing his skill and talent with them to help motivate them as they head back to the range to practice for upcoming events.

As everyone warmed up on the way back they said they would like to come back next year. A few even thought they might be ready for the competition shooting rounds. As Tom Knapp would tell them, with hard work and a love for the sport, anything is possible.

We would like to thank Tim and Carla St. Germain for sponsoring our youth and allowing them to be a part of this incredible event. Tim and Carla organized and promoted this event and worked closely with our 4-H program and our 4-H Shooting Sports club to make this incredible day happen.

The Dirty Dozen plans to take a little time off for the holidays and weather. The next meeting for this club will be in February.