Palmyra BB Gun team wins states, aims for national title
Palmyra BB Gun team wins states, aims for national title
By Tyler Frantz
There once existed an era when it was the norm for youngsters to grow up with a BB gun, casually plinking cans in rural backyard lots, with no worries or second thoughts about it coming from their parents.
Unfortunately over the years, backyards have shrunk, society has changed and parents have become increasingly over-protective of their children and the things they permit them to do in their spare time. There’s no doubt that fewer and fewer kids have the opportunity to enjoy the shooting sports than mere decades ago- even the innocence of owning, or even firing a BB gun at a paper bulls-eye target in a controlled, supervised setting.
But thanks to an excellent program co-sponsored by the Palmyra Sportsmen’s Association and the Palmyra Lions Club, this tradition has not been lost, as there are plenty of youth still reaping the benefits of competitive BB gun shooting, as well as the merits of teamwork, gun safety and instruction that come with it.
For 31 years, Frank Pulli has coached the Palmyra BB Gun Team, following the Daisy BB Gun Company’s Shooting Education Program- a strict 10-lesson curriculum, through which youth marksmen ages eight through fifteen are taught the essentials of gun safety, proper handling and advanced shooting form. “We start our kids in early January and meet twice a week for two hours per night,” said Pulli. “First and foremost, we instruct the kids on gun safety, which is most important, but they also learn the four shooting positions (prone, standing, sitting and kneeling) and lessons on the NRA rule book, equipment, distances and match regulations.”
“The primary goal of the program is gun safety, without a doubt,” said Pulli. “With everything that is going on in this world, gun safety is number one. Our kids learn how to respect a firearm, and how to responsibly handle a situation if they’re ever at a friend’s house and come across a gun. They know not to let anyone touch it and to go tell an adult. This knowledge alone could prevent something tragic.”
“Beyond safety, the youth participants learn patience, teamwork, self-discipline and responsible study habits- all traits they can apply to different areas of life when becoming young adults,” Pulli added. At the close of the course, the coaching staff administers both a written test and a shooting performance test to the kids. The two scores are then combined, and of the 30+ annual participants, the top 21 qualify to represent the team in match competition.
Three teams of 7 marksmen shoot identical open-sight guns from a distance of 5 meters at a “Winter Match” in February, a “Spring Fling Match” in March, the “State Match” in April, and also a “Postal Match” in April, which gets mailed to NRA headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia.
In recent years, Pulli’s team has done very well, winning state championships in 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2013- the same year they later advanced and won the national title.
This year, Palmyra hosted the “State Match” at their home clubhouse and again won the 2015 State Championship, qualifying their team for the 50thAnnual Daisy National BB Gun Championship Match in Rogers, Arkansas in July. Members representing the Palmyra A-team at nationals will include Coral Hetrick, Gillian Stewart, Nick Suhr, McKenna Logan, Hunter Anderson, Logan Cavalier and Overall Individual Champion shooter from this year’s state title match- Matthew Weaver.
“This is a very disciplined sport that we take very seriously and professionally,” said Pulli. “The kids work really hard to be patient and in control of themselves when it counts- everything from avoiding caffeine and sugar to steady their hold to mastering study skills to earn a perfect 100% on the written test.”
“Each team member needs to do what he or she can to pick up their other teammates if they have a bad round. I always preach that the kids must be committed and practice how they want to perform in the matches,” he said. And it’s not only the kids who need to show commitment, but also the parents. Parents are right up on the line in a 1:1 ratio loading and spotting for their sons and daughters every time they shoot.
“We hold a clinic and class for the parents to learn what we expect of them right from the beginning, and they invest the time to be there for their kids. We want the parents to load for their children. It’s a perfect opportunity for one-on-one bonding time with their sons and daughters.”
Though Pulli has invested countless volunteer hours over his 31-year coaching career, he says the time has been well served.
“My reward is seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces when they get their awards for working hard and doing a good job,” Pulli said. “It’s really neat seeing each of them improve and make progress towards a common goal.”
Time will tell how the team fares at nationals, but they already collectively topped their all-time best score of 2374 from their 2013 national championship with an impressive 2390 at this year’s state match. If all goes well, the team just might get a shot at victory once more. The Palmyra BB Gun Team is currently fundraising to support their Nationals trip to Arkansas over the July 4th weekend. Anyone interested in making a donation can contact Coach Pulli at 717-813-2196, or send a check made out to “Palmyra Lions Club” to the attention of Frank Pulli at 35 North Prince Street, Palmyra, PA 17078.
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