New Champions Crowned at NRA’s 22nd Annual
Youth Hunter Education Challenge
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Buddy Ebell, 18, of Baker City, Ore., fires in the rifle event at the 22nd International Youth Hunter Education Challenge. Ebell’s team, the Oregon Senior Boys Team, captured Oregon’s first-ever YHEC title.
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FAIRFAX, Va. – Amid the rugged grandeur of the southern Rockies, nearly 400 of the nation’s most serious young hunters put their outdoors savvy and marksmanship skills to the test during NRA’s 22nd annual International Youth Hunter Education Challenge (YHEC), held July 23-27 at the NRA Whittington Center in Raton, N.M. A number of new faces surfaced atop the leader board at the conclusion of the weeklong tournament, which marked the pinnacle of the most advanced youth hunter education program in North America.
“The NRA’s Youth Hunter Education Challenge is the foremost program in the country for introducing young people to hunting and retaining their interest in the sport,” said NRA President John Sigler. “The value of YHEC extends far beyond teaching our kids how to hunt and shoot the right way, which it has done for more than two decades. It also builds a bridge to the next generation of hunters who will promote and defend hunting as a shooting sport.”
Often referred to as NRA’s “graduate” program in hunter education, YHEC reaches more than 50,000 youths annually throughout the United States and Canada. The international event, open to all youngsters who have completed a hunter education course and participated in their state or provincial YHEC program, is comprised of eight events that test one’s ability to shoot straight, hunt responsibly, and navigate the woods and fields safely.
Participants at the international YHEC rotated through four shooting challenges that gauged their proficiency with shotguns, muzzleloaders, .22-caliber rifles and archery equipment. Other events included map and compass orienteering, wildlife identification, a written hunter responsibility examination, and an event known as Hunter Safety Trail, where kids had to make safety and ethical decisions based on hunting scenarios typically encountered in the field.
YHEC is divided into two age classifications, senior (age 15-18) and junior (age 14 and under), plus two categories, individual and team. For each event, the highest possible individual score is 300; for a five-member team, 1,500. Overall, an individual can score a maximum of 2,400 points in all eight events, with the highest possible team score being 12,000.
For the third consecutive year, the North Carolina Forbush Junior Claybusters captured top honors in the junior team category. After that, the path to the podium was wide open, with new champions crowned in the senior team category and both individual age classifications.
In the senior team category, Oregon tasted YHEC gold for the first time ever, as the Oregon Senior Boys Team won first-place. The Oregon boys beat the defending YHEC champion North Carolina Forbush High School Red Team by an impressive 401 points.
“I’m very proud of these young men,” said Oregon coach Lanny Fujishin of Klamath Falls, Ore. “From all around Oregon they came together as a good, cohesive team. Through a lot of practice they all worked well together and did great this week.”
In the individual standings, 13-year-old Nick Kiter of Yadkinville, N.C., left New Mexico with the first-place trophy in the junior classification. A member of the junior champion North Carolina Forbush Junior Claybusters, Kiter was ecstatic with his showing at the event. “It feels amazing,” he said. “I got ready for this event by practicing with the team and having fun. But I was mainly just having fun. That’s what is most important.”
Garrett Cranney, 17, of Paradise, Utah, won first-place in the senior individual category. Much like his counterpart in the junior standings, Cranney was stunned by his performance. “I’m shaking,” he said as he accepted his award from NRA 1st Vice President Ron Schmeits. “I wasn’t expecting it. I had no idea I would even get this. We practiced twice a week since January. That helped a tremendous amount and obviously paid off.”
Since its inception in 1985, YHEC has helped more than 1.2 million sportsmen and women become the safest, most competent hunters they can be. The program is widely praised for advancing the skill levels of young hunters.
Next year YHEC returns to Mansfield, Pa., which last hosted the international event in 2006. For more information about the YHEC program or how to get involved, contact the NRA Hunter Services Department at (703) 267-1503 or log on to www.nrahq.org/hunting/youthed.asp.
2007 YHEC Overall Aggregate Winners
Junior Individual Overall Winners
1. Nick Kiter, Yadkinville, NC; score: 1640
2. Billy Janos, Yadkinville, NC; score: 1596
3. Ethan Pendry, Booneville, NC; score: 1588
Senior Individual Overall Winners
1. Garrett Cranney, Paradise, UT; score: 1768
2. Aaron Carr, Greers, AR; score: 1728
3. Nathan Leavitt, Springfield, OR; score: 1702
Junior Team Overall Winners
1. North Carolina Forbush Junior Claybusters; score: 7580
Coach: Mike Kiter
Austin Connick, Billy Janos, Nick Kiter, Drew Queen, Tyler Testerman
2. Utah Junior Team 1; score: 6782
Coach: Dave Anderson
Ty Anderson, Bretton Cranney, Cody Hatch, Rachael Hunsaker, Heidi Reeder
3. North Carolina Fall Creek Gray Eagles; score: 6764
Coach: Carson Hobson
Andrew Byrd, Nick McDonald, Anthony McLelland III, Ethan Pendry, Robbie Potts, Jr.
Senior Team Overall Winners
1. Oregon Senior Boys Team; score: 8043
Coach: Lanny Fujishin
Casey Carlson, Brandon Ebell, Brennen Fong, Nathan Leavitt, Daniel Millard
2. North Carolina Forbush High School Red Team; score: 7642
Coach: Dink Reavis
Jordan Collins, A. Jordan Holcomb, Hannah Joyce, Isaac Spillman, Darren Todd
3. Louisiana Bayou Bandits Senior Gold Team; score: 7614
Coach: Jeff DeBlieux IV
Jacob Allen, Cory Cheramie, Jeff DeBlieux V, Hunter Fulton, Matt Hutfles
