1 Samantha Doster, a member of the only all-female trap-shooting team in the U.S.
Trigger happy
Issue #29
American teenage girls are picking up the most unexpected of sports
By Amber Drea
Published: September 1st, 2006 | 12:00am
When the words “teenage girls” and “shotguns” are mentioned, the first thing that comes to my mind is Denise Richards’ character in the 1999 film Drop Dead Gorgeous. Though a beauty queen who shoots rifles seemed a little far-fetched, a survey conducted by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) says that the number of girls between the ages of 12 and 17 who participate in shotgun sports has risen 56 percent in the last five years (84 percent in 2005 alone).
Word of mouth, coverage in magazines such as Field & Stream, Women & Guns, and HunTeen, and promotion by state natural resources departments all have contributed to this increase in popularity, says Steve Wagner, public relations director at NSSF. “[The sport] gets young people outside,” he explains. “It gets them familiar with firearms, and it helps them understand how to handle a gun safely.”
Through its Scholastic Clay Target Program, NSSF works with shooting ranges and schools to provide children in grades 12 and under with the opportunity to compete and achieve recognition for their skills statewide and nationally. Out of the 40 to 45 states where the program has been established, Arizona, Michigan, Illinois, Georgia, and especially Tennessee see the most participation.
So why do shooting sports appeal to teenage girls in particular? For the same reason they attract non-athletic boys — you don’t have to be big, strong, and fast. All you need is good hand-eye coordination and concentration. “The girls that I’ve talked to say that they like it because, unlike other sports, they can compete on just about equal footing with the guys,” Wagner says.
The lack of separate divisions doesn’t seem to bother the boys whatsoever. “Boys respect us and sometimes even want us to be on their team to make them look better,” says 17-year-old trap shooter Samantha Doster of McKenzie, Tennessee. She’s a member of the only all-female team in the nation.
Parents, on the other hand, like shooting sports because they have the same positive effect on their children that other organized sports do: discipline, focus, teamwork, and confidence. Plus, they have opportunities to win scholarships from the National Rifle Association and can continue to compete into adulthood, whereas the chances of playing baseball or basketball professionally post high school are pretty slim.
In fact, parents are often the people who get their children into shooting sports. Arielle Sypa, a 15-year-old from New York City, was introduced to the world of guns by her stepfather at the age of 7. “First he started me off with a handgun and then when I got a little older we started with rifles,” says Sypa, who is the only girl in the junior category at her shooting range. “And then when I started shooting shotguns, I practically fell in love with them.”
In addition to the fun she gets out of shooting, Sypa enjoys being unique. “The fact that I do something that not the average girl on the block does also gives me that kind of like, ‘Ha, ha, I do something cool feeling.’” She feels secure knowing she can defend herself if need be and plans to purchase her own handgun and license when she turns the legal age.
While both Doster and Sypa hunt for game and foul and eat what they shoot, shooting sports don’t always lead to hunting (or vice versa). Abby Barnes, a12-year-old in Sacramento, California, is a pesca-vegetarian. “I eat fish … but I won’t hunt,” she says.
But with gang and school shootings still a serious problem, one has to wonder if encouraging teenagers to use guns is the best idea. “Learning to have respect for what it’s capable of [is] the first thing that you learn,” Wagner says. “I’ve been really proud so far that I’ve not heard of any students in our program who have taken their gun and used it for the wrong thing.”
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