By Raegan Hearn
Hello! Some of you may know me as “Pineapple Shooter”, but my name is Raegan Hearn and I’ve been competitively shooting for a little over 5 years. My dad originally got me into the competitive shooting world when I was 11, and for Christmas that year got me a shooting belt setup and practiced with me until I was ready to get out on the range in April of 2018.
At first, I was kind of nervous and a little timid about getting out on the range and shooting a match for the very first time. I had been to the gun range before with my family, just to plink around and shoot occasionally, and now I’m on the range almost every weekend!
Shooting my first match of Steel Challenge was something that ended up changing my life. Since then, I have branched out into multiple shooting disciplines as well. One of my all-time favorites, has to be Rimfire Challenge! It’s like Steel Challenge in lots of ways, but the stages are never the same anywhere you go! I really enjoy the different challenges and stages that Rimfire Challenge has to offer to both top-tier competitors and your average shooting enthusiast.
Being a competitor in the shooting sports, I’ve had many people ask me how I balance all that I do. Especially when it comes to being a high school student and how I have time to do both. I do travel a lot for shooting sports, but I always make sure to make time for my schoolwork. It travels with me when I’m out and about for shooting. My parents instilled in me from a very young age that your education always comes first, and if I don’t keep up with my work, the privilege of being a part of the shooting sports and the community it has to offer goes away. So as much as I am passionate about the shooting sports, I would say I am a little bit more passionate about my education so I can keep shooting! Along with balancing everything, I also try as much as I can to dry fire practice every weekday, but sometimes my amount of homework can limit how much time I spend practicing for that day.
As a young person in the shooting world, seeing the community that we have and that we are continuing to grow, I think Rimfire Challenge is one of the best ways to get started. Rimfire Challenge is very family oriented and very accepting to new shooters, along with the rest of the other disciplines!
My family and I always make it up to the Rimfire Challenge World Championship every year as well as shooting Rimfire Challenge at a range near us! I think if you’re a young person and want to get involved in the shooting sports community and see what it has to offer to not only you, but to your family and loved ones, find a local club near you that offers Rimfire Challenge and get out there and shoot!
I promise you’ll have the time of your life. The community is ready to help you with equipment, practice techniques, and making new friends and memories with you! People of any age and experience level are always welcome in the shooting sports community – come experience it for yourself!
