Online boating safety course now available on any device at boat-ed.com

Those seeking a boating license can get certified by taking an online boater safety course on any device at the newly revamped www.boat-ed.com.

“With half of all adults in the U.S. now owning a smartphone, and tablets and e-readers gaining in popularity, it makes sense for boat-ed.com to be mobile ready,” said Edward Cossette, user experience manager for Kalkomey, parent company of boat-ed.com. “The pages at boat-ed.com are automatically resized according to the device used, from a smartphone to Internet TV and everything in between, no app required.”

The training at boat-ed.com is state-approved and covers the same material that’s taught in the classroom. The new mobile-ready site features detailed illustrations, interactive animations and videos.

Another benefit of boat-ed.com being available on any device is students can access the course on the Web even if the only way they have to connect to the Internet is via their smartphone.

“We know people appreciate the convenience of being able to use their down time to take our course as well as benefit from the fast connect we’ve come to expect from our mobile devices,” Cossette said. “In fact, from 2010 to 2011, we saw a 500 percent increase in the number of people visiting boat-ed.com using a mobile device.”
Regardless of what device students use to take the boater safety course, they’ll learn safe boating skills such as casting off and docking, understanding traffic laws on the water, dealing with emergencies and more.

Students who must receive their boater education certificate or boating license pay a one-time fee, which is due only if they pass the course. After passing the course at boat-ed.com, students in most states can print out the temporary certificate and immediately begin enjoying safe boating.

The recognized leader in boating safety, Boat Ed® is an official provider of print and Internet boating safety courses for 49 states, plus the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. For more information, visit www.boat-ed.com.

About Kalkomey
Kalkomey, parent company of Boat Ed® and boat-ed.com, is the official provider of recreational safety education materials for all 50 states. Our print and Internet courses have been providing official safety certification since 1995. We provide safety courses in boating, hunting, bowhunting, and off-road vehicle (ORV) and snowmobile operation. For more information, visit http://www.kalkomey.com/.

Top Air: Sarah Scherer Earns Finals Bid In Milan

Scherer, a Texas Christian University (TCU) junior, earned her way onto the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team after winning the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Airgun in February.  The 22-year-old Massachusetts native has had a triumphant couple of months in the sport stringing together an Olympic berth, NCAA individual and team titles, and now a finals spot against elite-level competition.  She’s the feature athlete in the newest issue of USA Shooting News, and you can read her tragedy to triumph evolution here: http://mag.spectrumprinting.biz/publication/?i=110950

Scherer earned her way into the final of eight shooters after a qualification shoot-off, and then came out and shot the second-best finals score of 104.5 to climb two spots into sixth position and a final score of 501.5 (397+104.5).  Gray, like Scherer, also shot 397 points in qualifying but would be eliminated during the eight-person qualification shoot-off.

The reigning Olympic champion Katerina Emmons (CZE),the wife of USA Shooting Team member Matt Emmons (Colorado Springs, Colo.), won the event.  Emmons made it to the final with an equaled world record of 400 points, tying the mark also shot by Germany’s Sonja Pfeilschifter. Then, shooting consistently from the first to the last shot, she finished with a total score of 505.5 points to out-distance Pfeilschifter, and leave her just one tenth of a point from the current Final World Record of 505.6 points.

“I have been away from the top for so long, that I did not even have a clue of what the Final World Record was!” Emmons said, smiling right after the match.  “I have been doing a lot of work, training hard, and it paid-off. It has been a great match, and the good news is that I feel good and everything worked as it should.”

Twenty-one USA Shooting athletes, including 10 Olympians, are in Italy for their final International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup event before the London 2012 Olympic Games.  For a roster of athletes participating, including the 21-person squad for USA Shooting, click here:http://bit.ly/JPwMcO

Tracy Hughes – WOMA Member

Tracy Lynn Hughes was raised around a hunting family and like most little girls, shot her first pistol with her dad at the age of ten.  The spark turned into a flame about five years ago when she took classes from a female instructor and learned proper shooting fundamentals.   Since then, shooting and teaching others to shoot, especially women, has become a passion.  From getting her Concealed Handgun License to winning the Top Shooter Award in her Citizen’s Police Academy to shooting IDPA competitions, she has pursued learning all about handgun shooting.  In order to share the passion, Tracy decided to become an NRA Certified Instructor and Range Safety Officer.

Tracy joined A Girl and A Gun Club, becoming the Chapter Facilitator for the Greater Houston area, after learning that the organization had a mission that paralleled her own for introducing women to the world of shooting and shooting sports.  In addition to the AG&AG events, Tracy is busy with other ladies only classes.  She is a coordinator/instruction for the Ladies Program at PSC Shooting Club in Pearland and teaches Women on the DRAW (Drill, Revise, Attain, Win) at High Noon Indoor Gun Range in Crosby.  Recently she was selected to be an instructor for The Women’s Safety Academy of Texas.

Tracy has a Bachelors Degree in Emergency and Disaster Management.  As an emergency preparedness specialist, Tracy recently paired her education with her passion for shooting and began a blog that will discuss both firearms and emergency preparedness entitled Is the Shooter Ready? (www.istheshooterready.com).

Tracy and her husband and tactical life partner, Bill Hughes, own Highlander Readiness Training and Consulting, offering firearms and personal preparedness courses.   To exercise her creative spirit, Tracy paired her creativity with handguns, creating Brilliant Backstraps, a company that puts a little “bling” to the grip of a handgun.

3rd Annual Ducks Unlimited Women’s Media Camp

For every hunter out there, nothing can relate to the excitement and the memories made during that first hunt. For Kristen Monroe, her first duck hunt was certainly no exception to this well known fact. Plus to make this hunt even more unforgettable, she got to share it with some of the guys from Ducks Unlimited.

For us hunters, every hunting experience is special for different reasons. There is one particular hunt that comes to mind that I am especially thankful for; my first duck hunt. Not just because of the beautiful pintail drake I took home, but for the new friends and knowledge that was gained. Mike Checkett and Chris Jennings of Ducks Unlimited hosted the 3^rd annual Women’s Media Camp at Bay Flats Lodge in Seadrift, Texas. Understanding the relationship between conservation and hunting has always been important to me. Checkett and Jennings were the perfect teachers. 12 women including myself, walked away from this camp with a better understanding of duck hunting, an appreciation for the value of wetlands, and how Ducks Unlimited works to preserve and restore them.

 

Jennings explained the importance of the healthy wetlands, Ducks Unlimited works year round to protect. Wetlands are the key to keeping the wildlife abundant and crucial for a healthy living environment for people. They help purify the water by removing nitrogen and phosphorus along with any toxic chemicals that may exist. Marshlands are home to more than 900 wildlife species and they also help control soil erosion and subduing floods.

There is nothing comparable to hunting with like-minded individuals and swapping stories for a few days. Ducks Unlimited managed to evoke the love for waterfowl and wetlands in many women media members that didn’t already have it. In 1937, a small group of sportsman started a group with a single mission, habitat conservation. To this day 12 million acres of the most critical habitat for waterfowl has been conserved and restored. Congratulations for becoming one of the most effective conservation groups in the world Ducks Unlimited and Happy 75^th anniversary!

Lee Zeidler – WOMA Member

Lee Zeidler is the Executive Director for the Great Lakes Outdoors Foundation, and lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Lee was the Chairman of the MCRGO Political Action Committee (MCRGOPAC), and is a Life Member of the NRA. Lee is certified to teach NRA Courses in Shotgun, Pistol, Personal Protection in the Home, Reloading (Metallic and Shot shell), Home Firearm Safety, and is a Certified Range Safety Officer. He has taught NRA courses for 9 years in Michigan. An avid hunter of Deer, Black Bear, Upland Birds, Turkey, and other small game. Lee also likes to fish, and enjoys traveling to camp in the Upper Peninsula. In the past Lee has been active in Michigan Firearms issues, and legislation, and also shoots Trap, Skeet and Sporting Clays.

lee@grloutdoors.org

Tammy Sapp – WOMA Member

Tammy Sapp has worked as an outdoor writer, photographer and public relations professional throughout her 25-year career. She worked for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation for more than a decade before accepting the challenge to grow the communications department for the National Wild Turkey Federation. As the NWTF’s vice president of communications, she supervised the production of six national magazines and played a leading role in launching three national television shows and several websites. Today, she coordinates communications and business development efforts for Kalkomey Enterprises, Inc., a leader in outdoor safety education products.

Caitlin Connor – WOMA Ambassador Member

Growing up in the country I have always loved the outdoors. I’ve been hunting and shooting things before I could walk. When I was 15 I joined 4-H Shooing sports in my hometown of Winnfield, La. At 16 I started shooting sporting clays and after a year I changed to International Skeet. I made my first team in 2008. In 2009 I was offered a resident spot at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. As of now I am on the US National Shotgun Team, and this year I am trying to make 2012 Olympic Alternate for Women’s Skeet. I also hope to make the 2016 Olympic Team. I absolutely love the outdoors whether I am hunting or shooting in competition. I love meeting new people everywhere I go I try to convince young women to get involved with the outdoors and shooting sports.

WOMA Members Lanny and Tracy Barnes to be featured at OTIS Booth!

 

Road to Russia: End of Year Summary

The snow is melting and another awesome biathlon season is behind us! We wanted to wrap things up by first thanking you for all your help and support that allowed us to make history once again this winter and bring home some international medals!! We were really happy with how our season went and couldn’t have done it without your help and support! We like to think of you as part of our team and family and we hope you will continue to join us as we push, in just two years, for that first ever Gold Medal for the US in Biathlon.

We made important steps in our training this year to get closer to that medal in the 2014 Olympics by increasing our ski speed and bringing our shooting again to a whole new level. We joined forces this year with Advanced Technology International (ATI) and not only did their support, but their stocks allowed us to find new and inventive ways of challenging our shooting.  As two of the best in the world at shooting, with a heart rate of 180 beats per minute, we have to be creative in reaching new heights for biathlon. One thing we discovered that has help us tremendously is 3-gun or multi-gun events. Similar to mini biathlon, you are shooting while on the fly with rifles, pistols and shotguns. The rifle shooting has been the most beneficial and the best transfer. We’ve been using .223′s provided by Bushmaster for not only competing, but an important training tool for biathlon. We saw instant improvements in our biathlon shooting and were also hooked into this exciting event. We plan to continue our 3-gun training to not only bring our level of shooting up, but to challenge ourselves in yet another endeavor.

As two of the best biathlon shooters in the world, we can’t take all the credit. Our entire careers as biathletes, shooters, and hunters, we’ve been relying on Otis Technology to keep our firearms not only functioning properly, but throwing some of the tightest groups we’ve seen in our barrels in -30 degree temperatures.  Another addition and help to the tight groups is the Teludyne Tech Straight Jacket that wraps around our barrels and makes them more rigid, thus allowing for a straighter bullet trajectory and tighter groups.  These two, along with an awesome dad that coaches us in our shooting, and the opportunity to set up a private range on our fitness coach, Rick Crawford’s land, has given us the edge we need to stay ahead of the game.

Now since biathlon isn’t all about the shooting, we’ve also been working really hard on our skiing, as that is where we are still a small step behind the Europeans, but we are quickly gaining.  We’ve seen a steady improvement every year and were skiing even with the Europeans in several races this year.  By next year we plan to be consistently matching their ski speed as well as having faster split times than them in World Championships with a timed peak.  This means another push in training and at a higher intensity.  We’ve got a great plan set with our coach, Rick Crawford, and have already started our training for next year.

We were able to make huge gains in our skiing and training this year thanks to several things. First, the Enell… this sports bra has allowed us to train in comfort day after day, hour after hour.  When you are pushing yourself to the limit, it helps to have a few things that are comfortable.  Second, We were lucky enough to get our hands on some phenomenal new skis by Atomic. Their new skis not only rock this world, but they have added a riser under the binding to help the skier push off of a flat foot and get in a better forward position.  This makes a huge difference when you think of how many thousands of times you push off of that ski over a 15km loop.  Third, SportLegs… We’ve wanted to keep this our secret for a long time because it works so well, but it’s hard not to share something that has helped our training and racing.  SportLegs eliminates the lactic acid burn and allows us to train long and harder at a lower heart rate.  It’s one of those things you have to try it to believe it.  Fourth, not done yet, when it comes to recovery, one really important tool is ICH (no it’s not German):  Ice, Compression, and Heat all aid in recovery if utilized at the right time.  You’ve heard of ice baths and hot baths, well 110% brings that idea to any place in the world.  Right after a race or workout we can put on 110% compression shorts, tights, arm bands and add alternate ice and heat packs into built in pockets to stimulate blood flow and speed recovery.  Simple, but it works.

A few other really important weapons in our arsenal are Sealskinz waterproof socks and gloves and Smith Optics.  You may ask, why are socks, gloves and sunglasses so important…well because if you’ve ever been in -30 degree weather and can’t feel your fingers or toes and tried to do anything let alone compete in a World Cup, then you can appreciate something that will not only allow you to keep your fingers and toes at the end of the day, but helps you to make precision movements.  Also imagine driving through a snow storm or a heavy rain storm without a windshield in your car or your windshield fogged up… it’s scary.  That’s how we felt before we found Smith Optics. Now we can not only see, but we have the confidence to attack the course in conditions where our competitors are left squinting through the flakes. Smith Optics also has optics in their Elite division that are safety rated and will protect your eyes from just about any accident on the shooting range.

Now to how all of this added up to our results and performances this season:  Lanny reached the podium twice while Tracy made it into the coveted top 10 3 times this season battling more than 100 competitors from all over the world to earn those placings.  Tracy finished the 2011 year with an 8th place in Ridnaun, Italy in the 15km Individual in the International Biathlon Cup.  From there she went into 7th place in the Individual in the IBU Cup in Forni Avoltri, Italy and placed 10th in the Sprint Race in Camore, Alberta Canada.  Lanny had both of her podium finishes on North American soil in Canada. She finished 4th place in the Sprint race and grabbed the silver medal and 2nd place in the Individual. She was beat out for the gold in the final seconds of the race by a Russian who had a later start. All of these results point to the potential for more podium finishes next year and a Gold in the Olympics!!!

So, as the snow leaves we will start running, rollerskiing, biking, and shooting and training even harder for all of you and the hopes of bringing home the gold.  All of you inspire us to push harder and train longer. We are so fortunate to have you as a part of our team and we hope that in 680 days (just under two years) you’ll join us in celebrating not only a fairytale victory in biathlon, but your success.  What you do everyday helps to carry us through the pain and sweat and make this journey worth every minute of it. Thanks again for everything and for helping us to a fantastic season.

-Tracy & Lanny

Editors Note:  Tracy & Lanny Barnes are part of the US Olympic Biathlon team. Their WOMA blog, “Road to Russia” gives wonderful insight into what these talented athletes are going through to take a medal in February 2014 at the Winter Olympics held in Russia. It will be their 3^rd Olympics, along with recently winning the Biathon World Team Challenge Shoot Out to add to their successful biathlon careers. We encourage all the members of the WOMA, along with companies you may know, to help these twin sisters with donations and sponsorships. For more information, or to make a donation, visit their website at www.twinbiathletes.com.

USA Shooting Viewpoint: Men vs. Women in Competitive Shooting

As the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport of Olympic-style shooting in the United States, USA Shooting (USAS) welcomes the dialogue created by the recent article in the Wall Street Journal by Mark Yost titled: Taking Aim at an Old Debate: Can female athletes compete against men? In shooting, yes – but not in the Olympics. In this article, Yost points out several interesting facts and observations about our sport. This dialogue allows us to engage the shooting community, expand our thinking and establish pathways for bettering our sport for the future.

You will get little argument from many of today’s top shooters, both male and female, as to the shooting abilities of women throughout USA Shooting’s ranks. The success of the collegiate programs like TCU and many intercollegiate programs in the U.S. only echo these beliefs as do some of the sport’s elite shooters like Kim Rhode, a four-time Olympic medalist in trap and skeet shooting, or Katy Emmons, a three-time Olympic medalist from the Czech Republic who is married to the USA’s most successful rifle shooter, Matt Emmons.

“I am a born competitor and whether it is men or women I want to win,” said Jamie Gray, a 2008 Olympian in Rifle. “In a sport that is equal between men and women I would most definitely enjoy the competition. I started out only knowing that men and women compete against each other. It wasn’t until I learned shooting was an Olympic sport that I realized men and women didn’t compete against each other. It is exciting to me that there are still sports out there that men and women can be equal, however for other reasons it may be better that there are different categories for each.”

From 1968 through the 1980 Olympic Games, Olympic shooting events were mixed, with opportunities for women and men to participate regardless of gender. At the 1980 Games in Moscow, there were six shooting events contested. At the upcoming Games in London, there will be 15 events contested. Opportunities for women to compete in Olympic shooting have not shrunk with the dissolution of “mixed” events, but rather have grown as a result not only in our brand of shooting but across all platforms of the shooting sports.

Research by the National Sporting Goods Association shows female participation in target shooting grew by 46.5% between 2001 and 2010. And an October 2011 Gallup Poll found 23 percent of women own a gun. According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, from 2001 to 2010, female participation in hunting grew by almost 37 percent.

In Olympic competition, 14 women got the opportunity to compete in shooting at the 1980 and 1976 Olympic Games combined. Since that time, the numbers have risen from 77 in 1984 to 145 female competitors at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Recent history also suggests that woman can perform alongside men in shooting competitions. At the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, female competitor Shan Zhang of China became the Olympic gold medalist that year in mixed-event skeet competition. Over two days of competition she produced a score of 373 out of 375, a new Olympic and world record. She also became the first woman to topple the men in the history of the Olympic Games’ shooting competition. Since that time, no mixed events have been held in an Olympic shooting competition.

“As a proud American female citizen, participating in a sport where gender-specific characteristics are not advantageous, I would overwhelmingly favor a chance to compete in a mixed event – or at least a women’s event with an equal number of targets as the men,” said Kelsey Zauhar, a USA Shooting National Team member in Shotgun. “But my personal opinion is in a sea of thousands of competitors, and I am not going to be seen as more right or more correct than anyone else just because I speak louder with words. I will let my performance speak volumes and hopefully it will inspire some little girl sitting in her living room, three feet from the television with visions of Olympic glory flashing through her eyes. And hopefully she’ll pull at her father’s shirt tail asking him to take her to the shooting range where she can join the other females already participating.”

In large part, equality for woman at the elite level often comes down to participation numbers where men still far exceed women in the sport. Effort to get more women shooting is a collaborative effort for all within the firearms industry. This June, all over the country, young girls will head out to go shoot something. They will be attending the inaugural National Take Your Daughters To The Range Day on June 9. This event will be an opportunity for gun ranges throughout the nation to introduce many young women to a sport that may just become a life-long hobby, or even a profession.

“Boys learn to shoot in Scouts or with their Dads,” National Take Your Daughters to The Range Day co-founder and firearms instructor, Lynne Finch, said. “Often, the girls are left behind because shooting isn’t ‘girly.’ Well, we can, and do shoot, and well. Learning to shoot gives young women confidence, helps to build self-esteem, and introduces them to a sport they can participate in their whole lives.”

“I think that anytime you have competition where size or strength is not a factor, females can absolutely compete with the males,” said USA Shooting National Team Pistol shooter and USAS Board member Sandra Uptagrafft. “The fundamentals of executing a good shot work the same regardless of gender, size or age. The question of why females no longer compete with males or why we have differing number of shots in the same events comes up often when I explain our sport to new people. It does seem sexist, but the fact that we have separate events from males in the Olympics actually is a good thing since more females can compete this way. There can only be so many people on the shooting line at one time. Since I am not tall enough, fast enough or strong enough to compete in most other Olympic sports, I personally am just happy to have a sport like shooting in which I can excel.”

“We now have marketing specifically to attract our demographic and manufacturers are more sensitive to our needs,” Uptagrafft added. “I am particularly happy about this since I can now find weapons, clothing, gear and other accessories made for someone my size.”

A young female competitor competes in USA Shooting’s Progressive Position Pistol event geared toward getting more youth involved in the sport of shooting. For competitive shooters, the debate isn’t centered on whether men and women should be competing on a level playing field however. The changes made to the Olympic program allow more women to compete internationally and likely encourage greater participation among all females at the elite levels of competitive shooting. Getting even more women involved both competitively and within the leadership ranks of the major shooting sports organizations domestically and internationally is the next step. In addition, so to is looking at the match disparities between the two and trying to move toward greater equality in that sense.

“I would love to shoot against the men for all of these reasons,” said Amy Sowash, a USA Shooting National Team member in Rifle. “I think it’s a chance for women to shine in a world often dominated by men. Not only are there sport stereotypes to overcome, but also gun stereotypes. Many people think men are better at shooting just because hunting and military careers are dominated by them. In building role models for young women, I think it’s important to highlight skill sets that are not only good, but world-class. This is a chance for women to be seen in a completely different light where they are not valued based on appearance. In other women’s Olympic sports the focus often drifts to the most attractive players and teams. Men are praised for their skills, women for their looks. Any opportunity for a woman to be judged based on her abilities is positive.”

Mothers, daughters and sisters have more opportunity to experience the shooting sports than ever before given the growth and interest of firearm ownership worldwide. With growth comes greater debate and awareness along with intensifying advocacy. Those ingredients have always provided the foundation for the enhancement of our sport.

To learn more about USA Shooting, click here. To learn more about National Take Your Daughter to the Range Day, click here. The National Rifle Association (NRA) sponsors a variety of programs to get women actively involved in shooting.

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