By Jim Mimiaga

The Journal

Competitive shooter Kayleen Bowie, of Cortez, hit the bull’s-eye this summer when she was awarded a seven-day trip to Washington D.C., courtesy of the National Rifle Association.

Bowie, 17, is a regular at the Four Corners Rifle and Pistol Club and has been competing since age 9. Her dad, Norm Bowie, is the club’s junior instructor.

She was accepted into the NRA’s national Youth Education Summit capital tour because of her success in the sport and academics. The YES program was launched in 1996 to encourage America’s youths to become active and knowledgeable citizens.

“It is a wonderful experience. I’m really honored and learning a lot of history,” Kayleen said in a phone interview Friday from Washington.

Along with other youths who were awarded the trip, she visited George Washington’s Mount Vernon, the Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, U.S. Supreme Court and White House.

Participating in a debate was part of the trip. Her topic was “Sharing economies should be held to the same regulations as corporate counterparts.”

“I had to do some research on that before the trip,” she said.

But one of the best activities was touring the NRA headquarters and spending two hours firing off rounds in their rifle range.

“Their facility is very high-tech,” Kayleen said. “We got to shoot some bigger caliber guns and instructors taught us how to shoot them properly.”

A tour of the National Firearms Museum in Fairfax, Virginia, was also a highlight, she said, with its vast collection of historic and modern guns.

Kayleen said she learned to shoot from her dad. They shot a lot of cans together and went on hunting trips. Then one Friday night, some friends invited her to the local shooting range, and she was hooked.

“It is one of my passions,” Kayleen said. “It is a precision sport that demands quiet focus and a lot of practice.”

She has been an avid competitive shooter for the Four Corners Rifle and Pistol Club for the past eight years, competing with a .22-caliber rifle. She also competes at the National Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs with a .22 rifle and an air rifle.

Kayleen credits her success to persistent practice and good coaching from her dad, who built her a shooting range at their county home.

“It is a way for me to relax, to clear my mind,” she said. “I’m thinking about competing at the college level – my scores keep improving.”