Sore arms and happy faces left the Hillsdale College Outdoor Firearms Education Facility Saturday afternoon after 250 Hillsdale College students, faculty, alumni and local members of the National Rifle Association shot 2,700 clay pigeons at the college's new shooting range.
Saturday's shooting festival, organized by Vice President of Administration Rich Péwé and Vice President for Institutional Advancement John Cervini, was specifically geared towards getting students interested in shooting sports, Director of Student Activities Rebekah Dell said.
"This event is event for a really great opportunity to go out to the range and see what we have," Dell said.
Péwé said the event was suggested by William Fraim of Acusport.com and a donor to the College's range, as an annual fall event for students.
"The good of this was to give people a fun activity with some educational value," Péwé said.
Péwé said the college had been looking for a way to promote the shooting range. Constitution Day seemed an appropriate date to expose students to shooting sports.
To do this, the college invited shotgun sharpshooter Devon Harris, a professional shotgun shooter with federalammuniton.com, to instruct and welcome students and newcomers to the world of sporting clays during a day long shooting festival beginning at 9 a.m. in Phillips Auditorium.
"The second amendment has been a source of more misinformation than perhaps any other provision in the bill of rights," Professor of History David Raney said, during his opening speech.
Harris followed Raney and gave an hour-long lecture, teaching participants how to find their dominate eye, shoulder their shotgun, properly aim and distinguish what kind of shotgun they're holding. He also gave some shooting techniques. Afterward, participants were herded into shuttle vans to the shooting range.
Safety concerns were addressed at Phillips and at the range. All attendees who wanted to shoot signed a waiver. Harris also discussed range etiquette, which requires the gun to be unloaded and its action open whenever the participant isn't shooting. Safety instructors were present at each station.
Ear and eye safety was also a concern and protection was provided. Harris said be became partially deaf in both ears after working at a shooting range without wearing protection as a child.
Harris gave a quick run-down of range rules. "In all gun clubs you normally see a sign that says 'open or out'," Harris said. "When you're walking with your gun, it better be open. When you're walking anywhere it should be open, unless it's in a gun rack." The crowd grew silent as Harris yelled the first "Pull!" of the day. Half a second later, the orange disc flew in two separate directions. After shooting five clays in five lanes, Harris turned around and invited the crowd to do the same.
"I think it's a great chance for students to learn about a fun sport and I'm glad Hillsdale offers students the chance to do that," junior Darrell Frost said.
Frost is currently in taking Beginner's Shotgun and didn't shoot that Saturday, but he said he did enjoy the lectures, finding them "good and informative."
Conversely, freshman Margaret Freeland had never shot a shotgun before Saturday, but said she enjoyed the experience.
"I think it's great they have this class," Freeland said. "I think we're the only college that requires a Constitution course. What better way to show dedication to those freedoms by using second amendment rights?" George Haynes, a yearlong member of the NRA and manager of the Jackson County Outdoor Club's shooting range, heard of the day's events through the local NRA's newsletter and decided he wanted to compare two versions of trap shooting. "I'm just trying to figure out what the difference is between international and regular trap," Haynes said. "Right now I don't see a difference."
Harris said he was excited to be at Hillsdale College and talking to students about shotguns.
"It's almost socially unacceptable to shoot, like smoking, and I hate that," Harris said. "But I love being invited to a college that actually says 'Hey, you know what? We're actually going to stand up for something. We're going to stand up for the constitution and we're going to have fun shooting.'"
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