At SHOT Show this year, I heard the craziest idea I’d ever heard in my life: someone was going to host a women’s only 3-gun match, and they fully expected to sell out the 200 slots to the match. I laughed because at the time, I could name literally less than 20 women who shoot 3-gun. The concept sounded nice to me, but I never believed they’d get 200 women to sign up. Well, match director Lisa Marie Judy and co-director Kay Miculek have gone and proved me wrong – and I’m thrilled about it! Next weekend is the Brownell’s Lady 3-Gun ProAm in Covington, GA, where a sold-out match will be the first-ever women’s only event in the history of 3-gun . . .
Women from all over the country are coming to this thing. New shooters. Experienced shooters. Mothers, daughters, sisters – the whole deal. Like the baseball players came out of the cornfields in Field of Dreams, the match has been built and the ladies are coming out of the woodwork.
It’s going to be like nothing I’ve ever shot before, much more than just a match. It’s going to be an experience. The weekend opens with pre-match clinics taught by Kay Miculek to provide as many brand new shooters as possible an opportunity to learn a bit about the game before diving right in. There’ll be a wine and cheese social at registration on Thursday. There’s a party Friday night, and there are reports of Halloween costumes and trick-or-treating for the kids who came along. There’s an awards banquet on Saturday night. Oh, right, and in the middle of all of this there’s actual shooting that will take place too.
Judging by the volume of Facebook posts I’m seeing, anticipation for this event is high and the ladies are super excited. There will be tons of smiles, and (hopefully!) no tears.
I’m mostly thrilled at the amount of sponsor support that the match was able to garner. From title sponsors Brownell’s, Benelli, STI, Carbon Arms, Magpul, MGM Targets, ar15goa.com, and ESS – all the way down the various sponsorship levels, I can’t think of a major manufacturer that isn’t on the list. I’m told there are over $300,000 worth of prizes up for grabs at this match, which is more than any match I’ve been to in recent memory. What this says to me is that the industry realizes that women are the future of the sport and are an important growing market segment. I look forward to the demand signal that’s going to come out of these new converts to the sport and how that will drive production to build new products designed by women, and for women…not just colored pink and marketed for the ladies.
Stay tuned for a full report following the match next week!
Perhaps more notable will be what WONT be at the event: egos of the male sort, some of them on occasion large enough to block sunlight ,ruining target visibility for the other competitors. A compelling step forward.
Yes, men are evil and mean, and women have no egos and are always nice.
Say, just as an aside, who made the guns? Were any men involved?
Yes this is Ralf being a but head !!
Learn to spell.
Says someone with apparently no female competition experience, ever
Try going to equestrian competitions some time. Huge egos, all female
Agreed.
Only male virgins put women on that kind of pedestal. Women are awesome, and it’s not because they are magical creatures who never fart or get mad.
I enjoy shooting with the men. Their knowledge of the sport if amazing, all because they have been doing it for years!
That said I am looking forward to seeing so many lady shooters at one event. As a newer competitive shooter I know we all have been to a local match and or major match and other the few lady competitors the ladies are the men’s Sherpa, squad mom, an observer.
It is a shame that ladies need this type of event to go ahead and try competition shooting. However I think that concern with getting into competing is starting to deminish. Yea!!!!
I’ve been waiting for Brownell’s Lady 3Gun all year long. I’ve built a rifle, modded a shotgun, learned how to shoot a shotgun, shot 3GN matches, shot a bunch a bunch of outlaw multi-gun matches. Just getting to this point has been a great learning experience. Can’t wait to hit the stages!
I like it when people look forward to something. It seems as though you have prepared well and I hope you have lots of fun.
It’s awesome that modding the shotgun precedes learning to shoot your shotgun on your list;)
All kidding aside I wish you luck and hope you all have fun!
They kinda came together at the same time. Trying out different methods of loading and different chokes to see what works then making the mods as needed.
This event is about 12 miles from my house. I might bring the wife by to watch. Maybe I’ll see you. Good luck!
The lady gunslinger’s time has come. Everyone can’t be KJW but they all have the right to have fun trying. Inherent sexism is what it is. Don’t really care for it.
Same token, I don’t mind the idea of a side by side competition. But whatever generates more competitors works. If I had the time and resources I would go just to see the different women, veteran and newcomers, running in the same competition.
You can definitely see that…at any other 3 gun match in existence. All of them have both genders and all ages except this one.
What about a men’s only match?
Or, a whites only?
There already was a whites only shooting match- it was called the Anglo-Zulu war. Har har har har….
There already was a whites only shooting match- it was called the Anglo-Zulu war. Har har har har…..
Sammy, yeah, I get your point man. But jeez, lighten the hell up. This is a very good thing and if we’re going to have any success at all changing the current paradigm for the better, we need to explore and take advantage of every means and opportunity available.
Karla, good on ya gal!! I anxiously await your after action report and hope y’all have a marvelous and memorable time in GA. Own it and rock it!! Oh, and spread the gospel far and wide.
Thanks, Greg! Looking forward to it like crazy.
I’ll just bet that you are. It’s going to be epic.
Good idea Sammy! Men are often intimidated to enter into the female dominated world of competitive shooting. Also, men are not quite as strong and fast as the ladies. Its unfair that in a regular match, they are placed into a division with the ladies who just beat up on them. Its tough to watch…makes me feel for them. Its not like every other sport has a men’s and women’s division or anything. Anyway, let me know when your all men’s match is! Sounds awesome. Maybe Jimmy Dean will sponsor it….needs more sausage.
This is good news. I like it. More women shooting=good thing.
We wanted to engage more women in the sport and we did. Welcome all! For those of us involved in the pro gun fight this means more supporters and more votes.
In a practical sense it means more protected citizens and more participation in our sport.
Karla, you had a part in this and we all thank you….Now if we spin the sport into a combination 3 gun / Bunko….Shannon Watts’ organization will cease to exist.
This looks pretty cool. Looking forward to the story after, Karla. Good luck!
Hell yes! I won’t be able to participate this year (Or probably next), but this sounds awesome beyond words.
This is a good thing. Good luck to all.
I am so excited for all of the ladies who are shooting the match and I hope the have a safe and fun time!!!!
The more, the better.
I can’t afford the ammo, myself, but more power to those who can.
Sounds awesome. 😀 Hope all the ladies have fun!
Without giving it too much thought, my first impression was disappointment. I always thought of shooting as one of those rare sports were women and men could compete along-side each other.
Is this going to be televised anywhere? Even online?