Victories continue with a USPSA Arkansas Section Multigun win in 2014, 2018 Hornady Zombies in the Heartland, Trijicon 3Man3Gun, multiple Gadsden Shotgun Championships, UML Traditional Nationals, Texas 3-Gun Championship, Kalashnicon, and a slew of second to fifth place finishes.
What started as a humble introduction to shooting at a young age transformed into an addiction to 3-Gun and a love for various shooting disciplines. With dedication, he practices weekly, focusing on improving specific skills for upcoming competitions. His goal for 2023 is a podium finish at the IPSC Shotgun World Shoot in Thailand. Now, as a sponsored shooter for Hornady, he embraces the brand he’s trusted for consistency and accuracy throughout his journey. Read on to learn more.
Tell me a little bit about yourself.
I am a lifelong Missouri resident, husband, father of three wonderful kids, and chiropractor in the Kansas City Northland. I’ve been very blessed to have family that raised me on a farm and made that farm available to me as an area to train, including my newly constructed range with high berms and gravel footing.
What age were you when you first started shooting?
I started shooting at a young age with a 22 LR, with my father helping me. At 12-years old my father took me deer hunting and then dove hunting shortly after.
Who introduced you to competitive shooting?
I was a collector and recreational shooter until a friend, Mark, came along and asked if I’d ever heard of 3-Gun. Since I already had all the guns I would need to shoot it, I thought I would give it a go. I’d only heard very little about it, but was easily talked into it. Our egos had us thinking we would show us as the outsiders and win, but after finishing nearly last I was hooked.
I found something difficult, something I could make improvements and work on. It was at least a year or two later before I found out there were matches two hours closer to home and about as long before I learned about United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA). 3-Gun was what got me addicted to shooting competition, but I do enjoy USPSA, hunting, clay pigeon-based shotgun shooting, and even a little Precision Rifle Series (PRS). Being a “3-gunner” means using pistols, rifles, and shotguns… regardless if all in one sport or if in separate individual sports.
What’s been the most valuable lesson you have learned from shooting?
There are so many lessons you can learn within the shooting sports and it is hard to pick just one without picking a timeline of when that lesson was learned. When I started, the importance of increasing confidence from practicing difficult things was a hard-learned lesson. Now I have more experience and maintain that confidence in my abilities. The smaller details of planning and visualizing seem to be more relevant than before.
Why did you choose to specialize in your discipline?
One addictive thing about 3-Gun is that you really haven’t specialized. Within the sport I am likely considered a solid shotgun shooter, a consistent B-A class USPSA pistol shooter, and a decent rifle shooter. Being at those levels with each gun would likely result in being mediocre to decently good in any single gun sport, but in 3-Gun I compete at a high level.
What advice would you give to anyone interested in shooting competitively?
I would recommend picking the shooting sport (or sports) that you enjoy. Then make sure that your drive to get better does not decrease your enjoyment of that sport! Don’t lose the fire, but don’t burnout either.
Tell us about your competition set up.
My 3-Gun load out is as follows:
Rifle:
- ADM receivers, IWI handguard, Bartlein barrel from GA Precision, Rubber City Armory BCG, and Magpul furniture/magazines
- Vortex Razor Gen 3 1–10x in a Warne 1.9” X-Skel
Ammo: 55gr Frontier 223 and 73gr Hornady Match for long range targets
Shotgun:
- Roth Performance receiver with Benelli M2 parts and Briley accessories
- Vortex Defender red dot (6moa)
Ammo: Hornady low recoil slugs
Pistol:
- Phoenix Trinity Honcho
- Vortex Defender red dot (6moa)
- MBX magazines
Ammo: Handloads with Hornady 115gr and 125gr HAP bullets
Belt gear:
How do you prepare for competitions in terms of training and practice?
I try to get live fire practice at least once weekly. I will adjust my practice focus based upon what I expect to see at the next competition. That means practicing single shots on small paper targets like the Zombie heads at Hornady ZITH competition one month, then practicing longer pistol shots and lots of varying positional rifle shooting prior to traveling to larger Texas matches, like the Vortex Shootout and Texas 3-Gun.
What has been your greatest achievement in your shooting career?
Staying competitive in the top five to 10 percent for almost eight years now.
What goals do you have for the future?
Goals for the remainder of 2023 include finishing in the top five-percent at major competitions and a podium finish at the 2023 IPSC Shotgun World Shoot in Thailand.
How long have you been a Hornady sponsored shooter?
2023 is my first year as a sponsored shooter for Hornady. Prior to this year, I have been using Hornady projectiles for more than half of my shooting career to take advantage of the consistency and accuracy they are capable of.
