Annie, get your gun
MORE teenage girls shoot shotguns for fun today than five years ago, two new surveys show.
The number of girls ages 12 to 17 who participate in trap, skeet and clay shooting rose to 208,000, a 56% increase since 1999, according to a National Sporting Goods Assn. report.
Also, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, which offers a clay target program for students, reports that 84% more girls participated this year than last.
“Nationwide, over a third of all female participants in shotgun sports today are under 24,” says foundation spokeswoman Cyndi Dalena.
“Part of the attraction is that girls can compete with boys,” Dalena adds. “Shooting is not all about strength or speed; it’s about coordination and concentration.”
About 1.3 million females of all ages participated in shotgun sports in 2004, up 11% from 1997, and the number of female hunters is up 20% since 1998 to 2.4 million nationwide, the sporting goods association reports.
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-- Scott Doggett
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