Amount of shooters at competitions.

[jelenko]

if you have best you automatically win.

I think this has been true for some time and across various sports.
Golf comes to mind as an example.

I played competitive tennis in high school and college. Same thing.

 

[jackieschmidt]

Interestingly, I'm not seeing this in the Precision Rifle Series. It had exploded in popularity among younger shooters and firearm magazine publications have leaned more toward it.

I believe this to be true.

 

[CharlieNC]

I live in Charlotte with approximately a million people in the area. In two weeks we will have a 300yd Fclass match with 6-8 shooters, a few years ago it was 30-40 and most were non members. With over 2500 members and consistently growing, it is the same situation for other matches too. Many shooters, fewer competitors, looks to be an age related interest.

 

[JSH]

I will also say it’s not $$$$ related. Lots of 4x4 side by sides, boats and campers parked in yards. Neighbors have a side by side highly modified, goes out once a year. Other neighbors have campers and go to “the lake” for 1 weekend a year. I know of a couple of boats that have more hours on them being towed from storage to home and then back to storage, than total hours in the water.

I stepped into various shooting sports in the mid 80’s. Newly married and one kid. I scrimped and saved and bought a gun for said discipline. Then later bought my own loading equipment.
Young crowd knows little of wants and needs today. If they want it they will come to the conclusion they need it, no matter what.
I have also seen the, it’s too hard crowd and the crowd that didn’t win a prize. Take their ball and go home.

 

[JFrank]

Might just be too boring for the young crowd.

 

[LuvDog]

I'd say it's a combination of things. Money is certainly one thing that keeps people away.

Another is how people see the sport on social media. All people see are the top level competitors and they think they can't possibly show up and even have a chance to be competitive. They think they'll always be dead last and even a hinderance to the overall competition. No one wants to be the person who slows everyone and everything down in match. Social media can be good to get people interested, but I think it also keeps people away who don't want to be "that guy" who drags it down for everyone.

Lastly Time. For young families with kids in school and sports, that's a huge time commitment. Not like when I was a kid and did sports. My parents didn't have to drive me all around for practices and games for sports in elementary school like they do now. And when I was in highschool, getting to practice and home was easy and getting to games was easy too. And I'm not talking about helicopter parents either, just normal participation in team sports take much more effort than it used to.

So, older people without those family obligations have both more time and money to invest in their hobbies. But that may not be shooting sports anymore - especially PRS where you have to move around a bit and get in to some uncomfortable low positions.

 

[mikecockcroft]

If cost was the reason, PRS and NRL matches that cost $250-300 to shoot wouldn't have 300 shooters and waiting lists to get in. They use $700 tripods for their range finder, $500 bipods, shoot factory ammo, scopes cost double to triple a common benchrest scope, fly to matches, stay three nights at hotels.
Short/mid range benchrest absolutely bores the younger guys to death. You can ask this question every week and no one will come up with an answer on what to do. It's the world we live in. These young guys make more money at 28-35 years old then we ever thought about making. They dont want to come listen to old men talk about their medical problems all day, or talk about how it used to be.

 

[LiveFire]

Its a combination. To some its boring. Thats not to be a put down to either group. Just because someone doesnt like your discipline doesnt mean theyre computer addicted lazy kids. Sometimes people dont like what you like. And the opposite is true, doesnt make an old man a cranky dinosaur because he doesnt like PRS. What we all should be worried about is youth shooting numbers of any discipline. We need to come together and work toward it but ive never seen a bigger group of whiny gotta have it my ways than the 65-80 crowd. Nor have I ever seen a larger group of people my age, (30s) unwilling to humble themselves and learn something. Everybody is a know it all. Kids are suffering from that.

I recently volunteered my time, my guns, my ammo to start a youth shoot at my club. I spoke to 3 match directors. I was told kids today would rather play video games, sit on social media and their parents arent any better Well ok if thats gonna be the attitude then youre driving them away. We should be concerned that numbers in general are dropping. Theyre being programmed to think guns are bad. Its up to mom, dad, grandpa, etc to pass those traditions down.

 

[Bugs]

I will also say it’s not $$$$ related. Lots of 4x4 side by sides, boats and campers parked in yards. Neighbors have a side by side highly modified, goes out once a year. Other neighbors have campers and go to “the lake” for 1 weekend a year. I know of a couple of boats that have more hours on them being towed from storage to home and then back to storage, than total hours in the water.

I stepped into various shooting sports in the mid 80’s. Newly married and one kid. I scrimped and saved and bought a gun for said discipline. Then later bought my own loading equipment.
Young crowd knows little of wants and needs today. If they want it they will come to the conclusion they need it, no matter what.
I have also seen the, it’s too hard crowd and the crowd that didn’t win a prize. Take their ball and go home.

The last sentence speaks volumes. . . . Even if you have top shelf equipment, lots of information from sites like this one and even a good mentor to help you out, the learning curve can still be pretty steep.

 

[shoot4fun]

I don't think money really has anything to do with why people aren't showing up in the bigger numbers of old in some forms of the sport. Many have gotten past the age of being able to keep up as they once could.
I know it's already been pointed out but PRS/NRL draws bigger and bigger numbers each year and those shooters are spending huge amounts of cash for not only guns but truckloads of ancillary "go-fast" gear. They will drop $1500 on a tripod in a second and many now shoot factory ammo. With many matches hitting the 200+ round mark that is quite a load of cash alone.

 

[wasskeet]

Some men (me too, but I've gotten over it) have a hard time in a sport where you can get whooped by women or children or both LOL

 

[R.Morehouse]

When I was young and VERY athletic it was all about training and shooting in combat scenarios with mostly handguns (one-way range )...When I was a bit older the pace slowed with a good amount of positional shooting with rifles ( both semi & bolt ) and shotguns. Now, in this phase of my life, I enjoy SR & LR bench rest shooting and all those " zen " moments making my ammo all I believe it can be.......When I was in those earlier years of my life there was no way I would have signed on for the shooting I so thoroughly enjoy now.,,,,,My Grandkids think my "stuff" is neat, but that's about it. My Son enjoys shooting and moving with his piers, maybe one day, in time, he will enjoy the stuff I do......Like I did.

Regards
Rick

 

[Bronsin]

I believe the expense has a part to play, but I also believe that people will spend their money on what they want to spend it on. ELR is the most expensive one out there, and they get 150 shooters trying to qualify for King of 2 Mile.

I also think that some of these sports are perceived as too difficult. You have to be a competitor to get involved. Those who "just wanna try it out and see" probably won't put in the effort to get better after a few butt kickings.

I go to a monthly club shoot, usually, and it's just a score shoot instead of group, but a couple of these guys have all the best gear, yet this is the most serious shooting they do. I've tried to get them to come to a regional shoot and they just won't hear of it. Too many days, too far away, too expensive, I couldn't compete. Just making excuses imho. There are plenty of people who have the equipment and the ability to compete, but they don't.

All I can do is keep trying to improve and go to matches. The game is what it is. Like Yogi Berra said, "If people do want to go to the ball game, you can't stop 'em".

 

[Rset]

I run a monthly long range silhouette match at my club. It's for 22 LR rifles with metallic animal targets at 50, 100, 150 and 200 meters. It's known simply as a "fun match." There are no winners. Your only competitor is yourself. Do better than last time and you can grin about it. If you don't, then there's always next time.

We see anything from iron-sighted 10/22's to Voodoo's. There is no equipment race because there are no winners. The price of entry is whatever 22 you have and a couples boxes of ammo. Honestly, we're all winners because we seem to have silly grins on our faces. By far, the biggest grins come from Dads when their kids outscore them with Dad's rifle. Not long ago, one Dad got beat by both daughters in one match; with his rifle!. That resulted a bunch of grins from the family and from fellow shooters.

No winners, just grinners. And it takes us back to our childhood of plinking at cans with 22's.

Interestingly, by your own comments, someone wins. Sometimes, there is value in being outscored (beaten), especially by your children or those you have coached.
Many of us can appreciate that I believe. The issue is convincing the younger crowd that participating against yourself can be rewarding and it is OK if others get the trophy and not you as long as you did your best.

 

[Herzo]

At 80 years old, I won't be pulling targets on Viale.

 

[Damfino]

My personal experience with competitive shooting over 40 years is much like the stages of an industry:
Pioneer
Expansion
Stagnation
Decay

I've seen it with Service Rifle, Smallbore Silhouettes, High Power Silhouettes, and now F-Class. Seems to me the common denominator in the decline is the loss of a of a enthusiastic and often charismatic match director who through burn out, health issues, death, etc., quits.

I also think the NRA, despite the heroic efforts of their overworked, understaffed, and under resourced competition shooting division is also more than a little responsible. Much like other shooting organizations, a failure to adapt is never good.

 

[J.d. Popkes]

I live in Charlotte with approximately a million people in the area. In two weeks we will have a 300yd Fclass match with 6-8 shooters, a few years ago it was 30-40 and most were non members. With over 2500 members and consistently growing, it is the same situation for other matches too. Many shooters, fewer competitors, looks to be an age related interest.

Plenty of fun to be had without being in a competition or at a range. Does nobody else just go shoot? Alone or a couple buddies or the kids. They sell targets, and whatever else is available at a range. After 4 threads, could this be the answer, for low attendance? I wouldn’t know. Maybe people are more inclined to shoot what, when, how, and wherever they want, maybe multiple times a day, I do. I do a couple local shoots in the spring but it’s really casual and fun group of people. Maybe I’m not growing the sport but I’m having fun.

 

[Rset]

Its a combination. To some its boring. Thats not to be a put down to either group. Just because someone doesnt like your discipline doesnt mean theyre computer addicted lazy kids. Sometimes people dont like what you like. And the opposite is true, doesnt make an old man a cranky dinosaur because he doesnt like PRS. What we all should be worried about is youth shooting numbers of any discipline. We need to come together and work toward it but ive never seen a bigger group of whiny gotta have it my ways than the 65-80 crowd. Nor have I ever seen a larger group of people my age, (30s) unwilling to humble themselves and learn something. Everybody is a know it all. Kids are suffering from that.

I recently volunteered my time, my guns, my ammo to start a youth shoot at my club. I spoke to 3 match directors. I was told kids today would rather play video games, sit on social media and their parents arent any better Well ok if thats gonna be the attitude then youre driving them away. We should be concerned that numbers in general are dropping. Theyre being programmed to think guns are bad. Its up to mom, dad, grandpa, etc to pass those traditions down.

True on many points. I shoot F-Class so I am not immune. How many matches have you been to that the shooters are complaining about the pit service or the e-targets being out of calibration at every pause in the match?
Is the camaraderie between strings one of community and congratulations, learning, and general good times? Do we congratulate the new shooter on putting up a personal best even though it my be at the bottom of the days scores? Do we ever even take the time to talk to this new shooter and keep him involved?
Some shooting sports are thriving while others are dying. This is not new. The issue we have is that we have less replacements in general. If you want your discipline to survive, make a home for new shooters or move on to a discipline that will accept you as the new shooter.

 

[jackieschmidt]

If cost was the reason, PRS and NRL matches that cost $250-300 to shoot wouldn't have 300 shooters and waiting lists to get in. They use $700 tripods for their range finder, $500 bipods, shoot factory ammo, scopes cost double to triple a common benchrest scope, fly to matches, stay three nights at hotels.
Short/mid range benchrest absolutely bores the younger guys to death. You can ask this question every week and no one will come up with an answer on what to do. It's the world we live in. These young guys make more money at 28-35 years old then we ever thought about making. They dont want to come listen to old men talk about their medical problems all day, or talk about how it used to be.

Mike, I think you are on it.
From what I see at the membership at Tomball, we have a lot of younger shooters, 40 and under, who are heavily in to PRS. Many used to shoot other long range Disciplines at venues such as Bayou Rifles. But have forsaken, F Class, High Power, and Long Range Benchrest for PRS.

It makes me wish I wish I was younger. Time has past us by.

We can keep on doing what we do, because there is very little interest for the younger generation to sit at the bench at 100/200 yards and forsake all other parameters of rifle performance for one single thing, the rifles and shooter’s ability to shoot extremely small Aggs or really high scores.

I can remember way back, when I was young, of being fascinated with Benchrest Rifles. When I finally got other things out of my system, (boat racing, drag bike racing, car showing), I looked at Benchrest as a chance to be part of a competitive endeavor where excellence paid off. It not only stimulated the ones mind, it forced you to strive for excellence and scratched that competitive itch.
It combined rifle building talents, utilizing my machinist skills, with shooting ability.

The younger crowd has as much fascination in the things that interest them as I did when I started shooting Benchrest.

All of this makes me wonder. When we are long dead and gone, and all of these younger people get our age, and find themselves “talking about their ailments all day long or the way it used to be”, will they be wondering, “what happened”?

 

[USMCDOC]

they have changed their format, making it harder to find matches via their medium..

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