One of the challenges to fielding a Junior High Power Shooting Team is getting equipment for the shooters. High Power shooting is not an inexpensive sport and the initial investment in equipment is a barrier to Juniors (and their parents). The reasonable question a parent asks is; “Why should I invest a bunch of money in something the Junior might not like?” The members of FWRR and the High Power shooters have been extremely generous in their support of the Junior program and have done a lot to minimize the investment required by our Junior shooters and their families.
Obviously the largest item as an initial expense is a rifle that will let the Junior shoot to their abilities. FWRR has procured two club rifles dedicated to the Junior program and members have made two more rifles available as Junior rifles. Once a rifle is available, the question of ammunition arises. Recent events have made match quality ammunition very expensive. The decision was made to load ammunition for the Juniors and the Club agreed to underwrite half of the cost per round. This summer we are able to provide ammunition to the Juniors for 35-cents a round, approximately half the cost we incur to load a round. (Compare that to $1.37 a round for match quality commercial ammunition – if it is available.) One member has loaded about 2,500 rounds of Junior ammunition for the 2022 season.
I’ll not call you out by name, but Thank You!
Once the ammunition problem is under control (the only thing that Juniors can go through quicker than ammunition is groceries) the incidentals start to mount up. A member who has many contacts throughout the nationwide shooting community was able to donate a number of shooting coats and mats to the Junior Team. Some coats we were able to use with the Juniors and some were sold to benefit the program (they were just ‘way too big for Juniors – we don’t get many Size 44 Juniors). Over the winter we discovered a Size 38 Extra Short coat in the pile, just what we needed for one of our girl shooters. We did a little tailoring, replaced the pads on the coat and it will make a very nice coat for the upcoming season. We are working with a grant from the Indiana Youth Shooting Sports Foundation to obtain two more coats from Creedmoor, including a rare left-handed coat
This same member also donated a number of Champions Choice shooting mats. They were well used and most had non-slip pads that flapped in the breeze. A trip to the tailor and the pads were sewn down, the ripped out grommets were replaced, new tie strings were added and we have plenty of shooting mats for the crew now.
Thank You to this member also!
What we have found is that as the Juniors get more serious about the sport, they replace the club equipment with equipment that better matches their personal needs. Three of our five Juniors have purchased their own rifles. I do not need to explain how having access to a rifle you can call your own improves shooting skills.
Again – Thanks to the members of the Fort Wayne Rifle and Revolver Club for their support of the Junior program; financially, by equipment donation and by the generous contribution of their time.