5 January 2009
BSA: Shooting Day
Posted by admin under: Outings .
Had a shooting event with the Boy Scout troop yesterday. We drove up to the Mojave Desert in a nice canyon and set up a range. I don’t know how those things work, but it’s legal up there and both our advising Scouters are NRA range master and we’ve got council clearance so there you are. The boys always have a lot of fun and we get to have many qualify for rifle and shotgun merit badges. Of course everyone has to do the safety course first and it’s reiterated on the day of the event. This day was a little different in that the weather up there was pretty chilly. I don’t know where the wind was blowing in from, but it felt icy. It wasn’t too bad. It was probably in the mid forties when we got there at 7:30 am and it climbed to somewhere in the low 60’s by the time I bugged out early to attend another meeting.
Our boys participate in the NRA shooting program and with the help of a grant we received from that organization we pay for the medals that they earn when they accomplish each level of proficiency. My son is working on the highest level, Distinguished Expert, but is only about halfway there. One of the other boys, the one who has shot the best at the last two camporees, has a new rifle with a scope on it so he’s burning through the qualifying scores and will probably be the second one from our troop to get to the highest level. Because all of our other troop rifles have peep sights, which have no magnification, but do give an accurate bead on the target, none of the other boys will give him complete credit for being such a good shot. They just start up a chant of “Scope! Scope!” when we announce his latest accomplishment, such as back-to-back perfect 100 scores (10 shots all fired through the 10 point bull’s-eye). He is the best shot, though. I think everyone will acknowledge that. Using his rifle for one round, my son was able to go from an average of 93 or 95 points up to 98 so the scope really does give an advantage, but the NRA states that the scope is valid. Unfortunately, the other boys will have to get to the top tier with their naked eyes.
With the number of rifle merit badges, shotgun merit badges, and NRA recognitions earned just yesterday, the troop’s shooting advisor figures we probably have the most NRA Expert Marksmen than any other troop in the Los Angeles area. Being in a somewhat urban area, though, I guess this is akin to saying you’ve got the condo with the best lawn. Still, it’s better than nuthin’.
The adults generally don’t shoot at all. It’s just fun watching the guys reach higher and higher levels of accomplishment. I let one of the boys borrow my convertible mittens because his teeth were chattering, after I talked to him about dressing appropriately for the weather, and he was so excited to make the Expert level yesterday. The adult sometimes get a bit of time on the shotgun range, though. After the boys earn their shotgun merit badges they generally opt to stay on the .22 range for the NRA awards and also because only one boy can shoot shotgun while 20 can shoot .22. So, I got a chance to try a couple of different shotguns. That was fun. More fun was being the guy on the clay pigeon machine tossing the targets out in front of the others. I don’t know why. I had a little internal contest to see if I could launch the skeet before the person finished saying the word “Pull!”
So, it was fun and here are a couple of pics of the gang. The shotgun pic of this little guy who has only been in the troop a little more than a year seems like the dude is being overbalanced by the shotgun, but he qualified for shotgun in less than an hour.
The only injuries of the day were one dad who didn’t hold on tight and caught a recoil on his nose, nice and bloody, and a few of us watching a demonstration who got caught by a ricochet or spray from a rock hit. No blood, but my tenders were shocked for a bit bringing me to a knee with laughter. Good times.
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2 Comments so far...
Dan - Scouting News Says:
6 January 2009 at 2:13 am.
Sounds like a great time! I miss my days of teaching rifle merit badge and running open shoot at the Boy Scout Camp. It was great seeing the Scouts accomplish the requirements and get so excited over a high scoring target.
It was also fun on the first day of shooting to have all the Scouts complaining that the requirements were impossible with the peep sights. I’d let them have their fun for a bit, then I would clear the range, sit down, and knock out two targets. Not to show off, but rather to let them know it was possible 
Its great seeing Troops having opportunities for Scouts to shoot outside of Resident Camp. The biggest reason Scouts don’t earn the badge is a lack of range time to perfect their skills.
Justin Szlasa Says:
7 January 2009 at 3:22 pm.
Hey Joshua–
I came across your blog this evening and really enjoyed reading about
the shooting event in the desert–it is pretty amazing that you can do
that.
I am writing to let you know about a documentary film about Boy Scout
Troop 759 from Harlem–it is a micro-budget, grassroots effort that I
have been working on for the last two years. You can see the trailer
and learn more about me (I am an Eagle from a family of Eagles) and
the film at http://www.harlemscouts.com We are hoping to premiere the film
this spring in Harlem–within walking distance of where the troop meets.
Thanks for the work you do on your blog,
yours in Scouting,
Justin
Justin Szlasa
director/producer
759: Boy Scouts of Harlem
justin@harlemscouts.com
watch the trailer and join the emailing list at http://www.harlemscouts.com
