Wants another Distinguished Leg from NRA Smallbore Rifle

Port Clinton, Ohio - Anyone who's ever read anything about rifle shooting knows the name Harold "Hap" Rocketto. Writing for NRA publications like Shooting Sports USA, Hap provides the ins and outs on the tournaments, the guns and the competitors. Why does Hap does this? Because he knows what he's talking about. He put that knowledge on display this summer by winning NRA's Robert K. Moore Trophy.

Handed out to the Senior (shooters 65 years of age and older) with the best overall score, Hap managed this feat by shooting a 2194-72x. Where does that stand in the overall? It ranks him as the fifteen best civilian shooter and in the top 25% overall.

More on Hap Rocketto's winning the Smallbore Rifle Championship ...

Smallbore Rifle teams win International Postal competitions

Port Clinton, Ohio - To steal a line from Hap Rocketto, the Americans scored a rare twofer this summer at during NRA's National Rifle & Pistol Championships in Camp Perry. With scores of 7834 and 3994-279x, teams of top American Smallbore rifle shooters won this year's Randle and Dewar Cup matches.

"I receiving an email from England saying that the United States had won both the Randle and the Dewar matches," said NRA National Rifle Manager Howard "H.Q." Moody. "That's just phenomenal because we haven't won them in almost ten years."

More on the United States winning the Dewar and Randle matches ...

Learn about the Programs of NRA with the NRAblog Newsletter

Are you keeping up with the latest events surrounding National Rifle Association? Not by way of the politics or the presidential election — we have NRA-ILA for that. What I'm talking about are the programs the NRA offers. Like what? How about this.

How about tracking America's best shooters at the National Rifle & Pistol Championships every year in Camp Perry? Want to go old school? Then there's the Black Powder Rifle Championships in Raton. Or the National Police Shooting Championships in Albuquerque. Or maybe you're not a competitions kind of person. That's okay ... we have something for you too.

Like following the latest donations to the National Firearms Museum. Refuse to be a Victim classes taught all across the country. The Youth Education Summit, Friends of NRA events, Hunting stories and giveaways. The point is, if you're looking for something related to the NRA, odds are that you're going to find it here.

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Texas teen spends time with rifles on the range and volunteering at the South Texas Cancer Care Center

At the ripe of age of 17, Katie Bridges of Marble Falls, Texas is a grizzled veteran of the shooting game. A veteran with many an accolade.

At the NRA National Smallbore Rifle Championships, for example, she's already experienced success as a member of the Drew Cup Team as well as by winning the Eleanor Dunn and the Stark Memorial trophies. But it's not just about shooting with Katie. Well, a lot of it is, but there is more. A whole lot more.

Bridges builds on experience to center her shot

More on teen Texas shooter Katie Bridges ...

Pennsylvania's Weiss takes 2nd overall during 2nd stop at Smallbore Rifle 3-Position Championships

Port Clinton, Ohio - One of the faces who graced the stage at Camp Perry this summer during the Smallbore 3-Position Smallbore Rifle Championships was that of Kirsten Weiss out of Cornwall, Pennsylvania. It was Kirsten's second trip to Camp Perry. Her second trip in nine years. And apparently she's made the most of her time away.

"I was 16 and came in second place (in the Sharpshooter Category) by one point," said Weiss. "Since then, I've been shooting in the NCAAs and then some USA Shooting for Team Lapua."

More on Kirsten Weiss' 2012 Smallbore 3-Position Championships in Camp Perry ...

Abalo, Kempley, Anti and the rest of this year's NRA Smallbore Prone winners

Port Clinton, Ohio - Coming up just short his previous two years at Camp Perry, Captain Christopher Abalo finally took the podium's top spot at this year's NRA National Smallbore Rifle Prone Championship. The Army captain posted a 4792-352x out of 4800 to clench the win, narrowly edging out shooter Reya Kempley, whose brother Tarl won the Smallbore Position Championship the week prior, by just two points.

See this year's NRA Smallbore Prone Championship winners ...

Florida teenager is the top youth at this year's NRA/Springfield M1A Match

Port Clinton, Ohio - Six years ago the NRA/Springfield M1A match was started at our National Rifle and Pistol Championships to breathe fresh life into a storied competition rifle and that's exactly what it's done.

Despite the rising popularity of AR-style rifles in competition, the M1A Match has done very well for itself and picks up new shooters each year.

Most importantly, the match is drawing in young shooters like James Kinley III, who shot his way to the High Junior award this past August with a 439-2x out of a possible 500.

Kinley, who is 14 and lives in Parrish, Florida, not only picked up shooting four years ago, but began with the M1A. His choice of firearm was of course helped by his father, who has been a Garand collector since the 1990s and attending Camp Perry since the turn of the century.

Once James caught the shooting bug, he joined his father at the National Matches and has shot in the M1A Match the past two years.

More this year's High Junior at the NRA/Springfield M1A Match...

One of the shooting world's best pistol shooters gives us a peek of his equipment

There's no two ways about it, ten-time National Police Shooting Championship winner Phil Hemphill is a shooting legend.

The marksman has made quite the name for himself in the shooting world since first stepping onto the NPSC scene 26 years ago, but until 2011 a win at the NRA National Rifle & Pistol Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, had remained elusive. A year ago Hemphill finally took home gold from the shores of Lake Erie, winning it all in spectacular fashion with a 2632-113x.

Unlike football or basketball where player equipment is almost entirely the same, competitive shooting sees a lot of variation in what competitors use. And as any shooter knows, there's a lot more to choose from than just the gun.

More on the National Police Shooting Championship legend's range bag...

Bernosky, Cooper, Gallagher and everyone else who won in NRA High Power Rifle this year

Port Clinton, Ohio - Carl Bernosky wasn't the only shooter to win an award at the High Power Rifle Championship. The ten-time champ was joined by plenty of other distinguished shooters on stage that night as competitors received awards for High Woman, High Junior, High Senior and so much more.

More on NRA High Power Rifle's awards ...