St. Johnsbury--The Caledonia Forest and Stream Club in St. Johnsbury hosted the 2022 4-H Shooting Sports Jamboree, July 15-17, an annual event that attracted 67 competitors this year.
4-H'ers from eight 4-H shooting sports clubs competed at the University of Vermont (UVM) Extension 4-H-sponsored event. Local 4-H clubs assisting with the event were the Caledonia 4-H Sharp Shooters and the Green Mountain Shooting Sports 4-H Club, both from St. Johnsbury.
In addition to the two host clubs, other participating clubs were Green Mountain 4-H, Springfield; Mt. Mansfield Pioneers, Jericho; Oxbow Mountain 4-H Shooting Sports Club, Pawlet; Pownal Valley Sharpshooters, Pownal; Sunset Hill 4-H Club, Williston; and Upper Valley Bullseyes 4-H Club, Bradford.
The first day of the event served as a practice session with individual instruction from certified instructors. The competition, arranged by age and discipline, got underway the following morning. Competing at this year's jamboree were 19 seniors (14-18), 21 juniors (11-13) and 27 novices (8-10).
Contests were held for archery, pistol, rifle, Seneca Run (timed events including fire starting, hawk and knife throw, longbow and black powder rifle), shotgun and hunting/wildlife skills. The latter involved hunter safety, a timed compass course and identification of animal furs, feathers, skulls, scat and tracks.
The top three scorers in each discipline, as well as the three highest overall scorers in each age division, received a gold, silver or bronze medal and certificate. The results are as follows:
OVERALL HIGH SCORERS:
- SENIOR: Luke McReynolds, North Danville (first); Colby Butler, Dorset (second); Isaac Osinchuk, Springfield (third)
- JUNIOR: Henry Bradshaw, Jericho (first); Misha Chirkov, Newbury (second); Robert Harris, Poultney (third)
- NOVICE: Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (first); Baylie Smith (second) and Chloe Johnson (third), both from Concord
The top five placements, by age group, in the other disciplines were:
ARCHERY
- SENIOR: Luke McReynolds, North Danville (first); Isaac Osinchuk, Springfield (second); Shelby Decker, Lake George, New York (third); Liam Hill, Poultney (fourth); Abby McReynolds, North Danville (fifth)
- JUNIOR: Misha Chirkov, Newbury (first); Logan Goodridge, Irasburg (second); Lillian Stevenson, Barnet (third); Ivan Osinchuk, Springfield (fourth); Lucia Stevenson, Barnet (fifth)
- NOVICE: Hillerie Gingue Waterford, (first); Chloe Johnson, Concord (second); Ryelee Lanphear, Irasburg (third); Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (fourth); Baylie Smith, Concord (fifth)
HUNTING/WILDLIFE
- SENIOR: Luke McReynolds, North Danville (first); Andy McReynolds, North Danville (second); Colby Butler, Dorset (third); Hayley Michaud, East Hardwick (fourth); Colton Masure, St. Johnsbury (fifth)
- JUNIOR: Misha Chirkov, Newbury (first); Wyatt DeLance, Castleton (second); Lucia Stevenson, Barnet (third); Ivan Osinchuk, Springfield (fourth); Nick McReynolds, North Danville (fifth)
- NOVICE: Beckett Perham, Pawlet (first); Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (second); Ryelee Lanphear, Irasburg (third); Shane Bradley Danville (fourth); Remington Card, Williston (fifth)
PISTOL (.22 pistol or air pistol, depending on competitor's age)
- SENIOR: Taylor Tetreault, Groton (first); Brady Roy, Springfield (second); Luke McReynolds, North Danville (third); Colby Butler, Dorset (fourth); Liam Hill, Poultney (fifth)
- JUNIOR: Henry Bradshaw, Jericho (first); Robert Harris, Poultney (second); Nick McReynolds, North Danville (third); Ivan Osinchuk, Springfield (fourth); Logan Goodridge, Irasburg (fifth)
- NOVICE: Chloe Johnson (first) and Baylie Smith (second), both from Concord; Isabel Osinchuk, Springfield (third); Gwen Bradley, Danville (fourth); Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (fifth)
RIFLE
- SENIOR: Isaac Osinchuk (first) and Justin Roy (second), both from Springfield; Colton Masure, St. Johnsbury (third); Hayley Michaud, East Hardwick (fourth); Christian Aldrich, Lyndonville (fifth)
- JUNIOR: Nick McReynolds, North Danville (first); Jacob Mead, Poultney (second); Jayden Knapp, Bennington (third); Mason Carter, Granville, New York (fourth); Henry Bradshaw, Jericho (fifth)
- NOVICE: Baylie Smith, Concord (first); Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (second); Hillerie Gingue, Waterford (third); Hadley Michaud, East Hardwick (fourth): Colt Card, Williston (fifth)
SENECA RUN
- SENIOR: Andy McReynolds (first) and Luke McReynolds (second), both from North Danville; Jayden Mead, Poultney (third); Hayley Michaud, East Hardwick (fourth); Liam Hill, Poultney (fifth)
- JUNIOR: Henry Bradshaw, Jericho (first); Misha Chirkov, Newbury (second); Ivan Osinchuk, Springfield (third); Noah Buck, Rupert (fourth); Mason Carter, Granville, New York (fifth)
- NOVICE: Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (first); Baylie Smith, Concord (second); Brody Decker, Lake George, New York (third); James Pockette, Fair Haven (fourth); Dani Keafer, St. Johnsbury (fifth)
SHOTGUN
- SENIOR: Colby Butler, Dorset (first); Luke McReynolds, North Danville (second); Christian Aldrich, Lyndonville (third); Andy McReynolds, North Danville (fourth); Jayden Mead, Poultney (fifth)
- JUNIOR: Robert Harris, Poultney (first); Mason Carter, Granville, New York (second); Brooke Flewelling, Rutland (third); Henry Bradshaw, Jericho (fourth); Noah Buck, Rupert (fifth)
- NOVICE: Chloe Johnson (first) and Baylie Smith (second), both from Concord; Fletcher O'Malley, St. Johnsbury (third); Brody Decker, Lake George, New York (fourth); James Pockette, Fair Haven (fifth)
Five 4-H Cloverbuds, ages 5-7, while too young to compete, attended jamboree where they took part in several fun activities relating to the various shooting sports disciplines. They were Jacob Gajewsky and Ember Keary, both from Sandgate; Harper Miller, Hoosick Falls, New York; Samuel St. Martin, Wells; and Holdyn Smith, Concord. Adult volunteer Elisha Smith, Concord, organized the activities for this group.
To learn more about the Vermont Shooting Sports Program, contact Holly Ferris, University of Vermont Extension 4-H Shooting Sports coordinator, at holly.ferris@uvm.edu.