Vermont 4-H’ers proved that they can hold their own in national competition when it comes to knowledge about shooting sports.

Bristol, Colt and Remington Card from Williston and Misha Chirkov, St. Johnsbury, recently competed in the 2025 National 4-H Shooting Sports Quiz Bowl, a virtual competition for 4-H’ers, ages 9 to 19, that attracted 359 individuals and 39 teams representing 31 states. The Vermonters chose to compete individually instead of as a team.

Competitors had one hour to complete the test after logging in during the week of February 17 to 21. Quizzes were comprised of 50 questions for intermediates and seniors, and 25 questions for juniors. Questions covered archery, hunting skills, muzzle loading, pistol, rifle, shotgun, western heritage, 4-H history and other topics relating to 4-H shooting sports. 

Scores were tallied based on the number of correct answers, length of string of correct answers and the time it took to respond to each question. Medallions and ribbons were awarded to the 10 highest scoring teams and individuals in each region, as well as the top 10 teams and individuals overall in each age division.

Misha, Bristol and Remington all competed in the Intermediate Division for ages 12 to 14. There were 122 intermediate competitors nationwide and 26 from the Northeast participating at this level.

Misha, a member of the Caledonia Sharpshooters, placed second in the Northeast and tenth overall in this age group. Bristol was tenth in the region and fifty-fifth overall. Remington placed twelfth in the region and fifty-eighth overall. They are both members of the Sunset Hill 4-H Club as is their sibling, Colt, who competed in the Junior Division for ages 9 to 11.

This division attracted 32 total competitors with 19 in the Northeast region. Colt captured sixth place in the Northeast, coming in twelfth overall.

To learn more about the 4-H Shooting Sports program in Vermont, contact Holly Ferris, University of Vermont Extension 4-H Shooting Sports coordinator, at holly.ferris@uvm.edu.