Public High School Rifle Teams

[vt_shooter]

Just curious - do any public high schools still have rifle teams? My former Connecticut high school did, up until at least the late 70's, you could "letter" in it. I was just reading that my old school's coach from that era just passed away, and I found myself thinking what a shame that the sport isn't in high schools anymore, or at a minimum it's not at my former school. It was a wonderful discipline for students to learn, and there was practically no anti-gun sentiment back then, even in a state like Connecticut. How times have changed. Anyone here shoot on their old high school's rifle team? How long ago?

 

[Rustyt1953]

At least some folks are trying to keep it going:

Starting Up High School or College Shooting Program | USA Shooting

 

[rockquarry]

'65 through '67 in Wichita Falls, TX. Don't know for sure, but I doubt they have had such a program for a long time.

 

[daddio202]

Talking to gentlmen at my gun club from the midwest some of the highschools have trap and sporting clays programs. Not the same as rifle teams but still a shooting sport.

 

[bigolddave]

When I was in high school (class of 60) there was a rifle team, but it was strictly through the ROTC.

 

[jscheck]

I shot with my high school ROTC unit a bit in the late 70's. Afraid I wasn't a consistently good shot though.

 

[k22fan]

There are two ways students can compete in our local high school's .22 LR rifle matches. There is the regular team and they can join Navy ROTC. Either way they compete side by side against three other public high schools' teams. The big yellow buses take them to matches away from home.

Members of local sportsmen's clubs coach the teams. They use our club's and another club's indoor ranges and an indoor range on a city park. A few years ago the NRA bought new Anschutz rifles for the local school which are stored in our indoor range.

While unlike football it is not publicized in urban areas, students who excel are sought after by colleges. They can win full scholarships to expensive, even ivy league, universities. Since far fewer students try for those scholarships they are much more likely to get one than students trying for football scholarships.

A girl from one of the other schools in the league went on to gold metal in the Olympics. In a related sport another girl from the same school gold metaled in trap.

For decades there was a league for adult teams from the same areas. I competed but stunk. Prone is easy. Sitting and kneeling are awkward positions for big bellied old geezers to get into. Offhand separates serious competitors who have been practicing a lot for a long time from those who have not. The adult league fell apart by 2010.

 

[DWalt]

When I was a kid, several local high schools fielded rifle teams (all co-ed) as extracurricular activities at a single 50' range not on school property and with no direct school involvement. I was on one of them. None of the local High Schools (seven of them in the county, not counting one Catholic HS and another just across the river in Kentucky) had a ROTC program when I was there, so no help from ROTC.

 

[TomkinsSP]

My soon to be Sainted wife (she has a fast track qualifcation as as a martyr having been with me these several decades) and her mere mortal of a brother took riflery classes for phys. ed. credits in High School ca. late seventies early eighties. The school they both graduated from still offers riflery, although they have replaced the Springfield .22s with .177 air rifles.

 

[harleyvato]

In our area the only one that offers rifle competition is the 4-H club. They have had several shooters compete on the national level.

 

[pawngal]

I'm not aware that there have been any school rifle teams around here.
There is a very active youth trap team but it isn't school sponsored.
The team competes state and national. One girl is on a college scholarship, she also was invited to the last Olympic trials.

 

[sar4937]

We have a thriving High School Trap program at our range. At least a dozen High school teams. We try to encourage youth shooting at the rifle range, but there are requirements for adult supervision that are extreme. It's a bad day if a student palms a bullet and takes it to school.

 

[hittman77]

My small Midwestern town still has one.
The coach (not me) is also a really super guy who goes way above and beyond what I'm sure he HAS to do. He's also President of our local FNRA event.

 

[Masterbuck54]

One of our members is quite active in coaching the high school team in Rossville, GA.

Ridgeland High School.

Carl Gentry aka MSgt G here on the forum.

 

[Tom Beavert]

Our local HS has a team, co-ed, recently won a national title.
223 at 600 yd.
Our club supports them, as does our only LGS.
Tom B.

 

[steveno]

these days I would be surprised if the teachers now even knew a rifle range was in the basement. during hunting season the teachers of today would go berserk for all of the guns in cars in the parking lot

 

[keith44spl]

My grandson is on the ROTC rifle team at his high school.

.

 

[biku324]

Yes - Capitan, NM.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Pennsylvania still fields several H.S. teams. I've bought several of their Kimber trade ins when they went to Anschutz. The Winchester 52's and Remington 37's bring too much money for the way they shoot. (collector's items!)

The last batch I saw was of 5 Clackamas Kimber Government Models. They were stenciled 1 thru 5. The first evening they were available, numbers 1, 3, 4, & 5 sold (I bought #3). #2 was like brand new! Q: Why would a High School rifle be like brand new when the others all showed plenty of wear? A: Because it didn't shoot well! A close friend bought it at a reduced price, and it wouldn't shoot an Inch at 50Yards! He ended up doing some tricks and rebedding the action and a pressure point under the barrel! After that It would shoot just wonderful! He could light 5/5 matches at 50 yards!

Ivan

 

[tops]

Schools in this area compete in the YHEC (Youth Hunter Education Challenge). The local school has a range at the school. They have .22 rifle, bow and shotgun shooting. There are also events in compass reading and and animal identification. I'm not actively involved so I don't know all the details. Larry

 

[inspcalahan]

I did it all through High School. Currently, almost all high schools in our district still do have rifle teams. Our daughters school has two, a precision and a sporter class team. They are doing so well in fact, that we just got back from regionals down south where she and her team placed well enough, that we're headed to Anniston for the Nationals in a few weeks. She placed 4th individually in regionals and is currently sitting in 16th nationwide among her competition. Not sure how long they'll keep them going but they are holding on for now, with my full support. They also letter in the sport, after enough years of training and attaining certain score results.

 

[Hamster65]

My old high school ROTC class had a rifle team (which I was on) back in the late 70's/early 80's that would compete against other schools. We had our own indoor rifle range and used some old school single shot, bolt action 22LR rifles that weighed about 9.5 pounds.
As far as I know, all that still exists and they still compete.

 

[H Richard]

Yes, our High School still has a rifle team, it is a qualified varsity sport. They have recently transitioned to only air rifle, but still shoot on the (since 1932) range located in the basement of the school. (20 point 50 ft range with trolley type return targets). They shoot postal and shoulder to shoulder match's, and travel to several out of state match's.

Our pistol club also shoots on this range one night a week, and we provide all the targets the Rifle Team needs.

 

[292]

Youth Hunter Education Skills Tournament Information - YHEST

I coached shotgun for a few years and now I run a trap range at the district tournament. I wish they had it when I was in school.

 

[mike from st pete]

Ginny Thrasher?

West Virginia Mountaineers took a gold medal in the past summer olympics, 10 meter air rifle IIRC.

Attachment is Drexel Woman's Rifle team.

 

[dougb1946]

About 350 high school sporting clays teams in MN with about 12000 kids involved.

 

[flagman1776]

When I was in Jr High in upstate NY (Clarence), the JH had a shooting team or club... that shot at the High School range, cast under the swimming pool. I think I even brought my own 22 in a few times but there was a hassle... had to be turned in at the office on arrival at school & the coach would get them after dismissal. My gun was a Sears / Marlin bolt action. Chromed bolt & slick action... wish I had kept it... I traded it toward a Ruger Mk I that's gone now too.
I earned my first awards... think I still have them somewhere.

My Dad got us a bullet trap that we set up in the basement... he had to relight the gas pilot every time we shot.

 

[MSgt G]

I started our Riflery team a few years ago. We're in our fourth year right now. I coach both our School (Georgia High School Association) team and our Air Force Junior ROTC teams. Our school and County have been so impressed that they're building us a new range right now. It will be one of the nicest around. We are excited.

I have both Precision and Sporter teams. In Precision my athletes wear shooting coats, trousers, and shoes. They use the same rifles as in the Olympics. The NRA Foundation gave us some Feinwerkbau 800x precision air rifles last year. We have others also. The new ones are about $3,000 each. My one senior athlete this year has been offered a $40,000 to shoot for a university in Texas.

My Sporter team uses different rifles that have to cost less than about $600 each. The only special equipment they use is a glove.

I met with our "feeder" middle school Athletic Directors a few weeks ago about starting teams there when our range is finished. I want to be able to teach firearms safety and training to as many in our community as possible.

The MidwayUSA Foundation is THE organization every team in the Country needs to know about. They manage an endowment trust fund for many teams. They give free items such as firearms, coolers, knives, game cameras, and much more for teams to use as they'd like to raise money. All money deposited into your Team account is matched! This assures sustainability for the team for LIFE! The remaining money raised stays with the team to use now. In our short time being a team, we had over $133,000 in our account a few weeks ago. We can use 5% each year, which creates at least $6,600 yearly for LIFE! I'm hoping to have $250,000 in our account before I retire in five years. That would give my team $12,500 yearly. With kids here worrying where their next meal is coming from and whether or not their electricity will be turned off, I'll be able to pay for everything for them, equipment, fees, travel, lodging, training, meals, etc. I'm trying my best to make a difference in their lives.

Pete, Masterbuck54, has been doing raffles for us for several years. He's responsible for at least $30,000 that's gone into our account. And I've only recently met him for the first time! He asked to help my young athletes and just can't seem to stop! He's currently raffling a M1 that the MidwayUSA Foundation got from the CMP. Let him know if you'd like a ticket.

If any of you believe in youth shooting sports, and would like to make a difference in the lives of young athletes now and 50 years from now, here's the link to our team's endowment account :

Team Profile - MidwayUSA Foundation

 

[Highlands]

I shot on my HS rifle team. The range was in a school building - of course that would have been 50+ years ago in WI.

I am now in upstate NY. My club has been hosting a junior club for at least that long. We supply all the equipment for the kids and set aside 2 hrs on Sun night and 2 hrs on Tue night for practice. I help coach them. They shoot .22 and air rifle precision as well as air pistol.

We have a local charter Catholic school that also shoots at our club on Tue afternoon. We provide all the equipment. I coach them on precision air rifle. This is in the Rochester, NY area.

West of us in the Buffalo NY area there are in school rifle teams. Last I knew there were 6 teams in the area. 3 shoot .22 and air rifle. And the other three shoot air rifle.

Additionally there is an active American Legion sporterifle and precision air rifle team in the Rochester area.

 

[onebadvet]

My school Far Rockaway HS had a rifle team, but I have to say they closed the school due to age, but when I graduated in 1966, they still had the team, and we had some great shooters. Here is picture of the team, and article.