Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - The History Channel’s Top Shot burned up the cable channels during season number 2 … Top Shot Reloaded. Much of that excitement was due to the actions of George Reinas and Ashley Spurlin. While neither walked away with the title, these two shooters captured viewer attention with their sharpshooting skills and electrifying personalities. We experienced a touch of that electricity during the NRA’s Annual Meeting in Pittsburgh.

First to extend his hand in welcome was Air Force sniper George Reinas. The New Jersey native flashed a smile and threw out a, “NRAblog, alright, that’s pretty cool.”

Next in line was Spurlin. Even taller then the 6’ 2” Reinas, Spurlin removed his cap, shook our hands and jumped into a conversation with season 1 Top Shot contestant Caleb Giddings. But something seemed off. A few seconds later it came to me … Spurlin has ditched the beard.

“You should have seen me a few weeks ago when I got back from the Middle East,” said Spurlin. “It made the beard I had on Top Shot look pitiful.”

Conversation soon turned to the show.

“We couldn’t have picked a better team,” explained Spurlin. “Chris (Reed) went for guys with military experience and Jay (Lim) went for competition shooters. It made all the difference in our approach and performance.”

The question now is what are they to follow up the show’s huge success.

“I’ve taught at a few sniper schools and entered some competitions,” said Reinas. “I’m thinking of entering the Pistol Championships at Camp Perry in July. Just as long as I can give Gunny Zins a hard time.”

Special thanks to Caleb Giddings from Gun Nuts Media for making the introductions.