The annual 4-H Coconino County Shoot was held in Page for the first time last weekend. The two-day event, which attracted 56 young competitors from across the county, took place at the Page Sportsmans Shooting Range on Border Street. 

Participants in 4-H shooting sports are divided into three different age categories: junior (age 8-10), intermediate (11-13) and senior (14-18). The schedule on Aug. 12 consisted of muzzleloader, rifle, pistol and shotgun competitions, while Aug. 13 was dedicated to archery. The weekend also included a barbeque at the Swim Beach at Lake Powell on Saturday afternoon.    

One of the organizers of the event was Kip Bennett from the Page 4-H Club. Bennett is certified through 4-H to teach small-bore rifle, small-bore pistol, shotgun and archery skills to kids. 

He said that for the past three years, the 4-H Coconino County Shoot has been held in Flagstaff, which has multiple shooting ranges but none that offer areas for all shooting disciplines.

He said that as organizers were holding meetings to plan this year’s event, “we kept saying, it’s too bad we don’t have a range that we could do every discipline. I chimed in on the phone and said, well, we actually have one in Page. Everybody jumped on board and said let’s make it a big event.”

The shooting facility in Page allowed 4-H to hold all the competitions in one weekend, whereas in the past it was held over two or three weekends.

“It made it more simplified for everybody to volunteer just one weekend instead of three weekends,” Bennett said, adding, “We might have also enticed people by saying, let’s also have a lake day with a little barbecue. I think that helps a little bit in drawing a crowd.”

Bennett gave a shoutout to Courtyard by Marriott at Page Lake Powell for providing discounts on rooms for competitors and their families, Four Corners food truck for being onsite throughout the weekend, and everyone who gave donations to help get supplies for the event. 

Josh Farella, the extension agent for 4-H in Coconino County, recruits and supports volunteers all over the county, and also gets youth and volunteers involved in state and national 4-H programs.

He said a big part of 4-H is the social element – getting kids together not only to learn different skill sets but also to learn how to work as a team and how to communicate with each other. He described the support that last weekend’s event received from Page-area volunteers as “amazing.” 

“The community here really steps up. A lot of the 4-H families are big community supporters with the program and with Page as a whole, so we’re happy to have them be part of the program,” Farella said. “We thank the 4-H volunteers. They do tons and tons of work, and they make good things happen for kids and make folks lives better.” 

He said the Page Sportsmans Shooting Range was an “awesome” venue and he was excited that kids from across the county had the opportunity to come to Page this year. 

“Flagstaff tends to be the central spot in Coconino County. When we have big events where the kids are getting together, it tends to be that way,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll be doing more events where we come up to Page and have all the kids congregate out here. The facility is amazing.”