For the first time in the 57-year history of the Daisy National BB Gun Championship Match, competitors will be shooting for a chance to win funds to help defray higher education costs with the new Top Gun Shoot-Off.
The Daisy BB Gun Nationals brings teams of youth shooters ages eight to 15 from around the country to the Rogers Convention Center in Rogers, Arkansas, to compete for the National Championship of BB gun competition. This five-meter, four-position NRA-sanctioned match—now in its 57th year—crowns individual and team national champions.
At the conclusion of the regular Daisy BB Gun Nationals match, the top 10 individual scorers will shoot a 10-shot, standing-position-only match for a chance to win up to $3,000. Each competitor in the Top-Gun Shoot-Off will take home at least $500.
The top three individual aggregate scorers in the regular Daisy BB Gun Nationals match will also win funds—in addition to advancing on to the Top Gun Shoot-Off, the top scorer will get $1,500, while second place will receive $1,000 and third $500.
Additionally, there are prizes for the top three teams in the 2024 Daisy BB Gun Nationals. The 2024 national champion team will receive $3,000 in Daisy credit, and the silver medal team will win $2,000 in credit, with bronze team getting $1,000. These funds will assist these top-performing teams to obtain the equipment they need to compete.
Teams at the Daisy BB Gun Nationals consist of five shooters and two alternates. These teams have practiced and competed all year for the chance to qualify for the Daisy BB Gun Nationals and must place in the top three positions in a state match to get an invitation. At the match, competitors shoot at a target placed at five meters. They shoot 10 shots in standing position, plus 10 sitting, 10 kneeling and 10 prone.
All competitors at the match shoot a Daisy Model 499B five-meter BB gun.
Each shot is worth up to 10 points, for a total of 400 possible, but each competitor must also take a test that covers gun safety and general gun and match knowledge. The test is worth 100 points, so each competitor is shooting for 500 points. The record score at the Daisy BB Gun Nationals was set two years ago by South Dakota’s Zoe Dissing, who shot an incredible 494.
However, it’s not just the competition that makes the Daisy BB Gun Nationals a hit with youth shooters. Events and fun make these three days all about the kids. There are costume, car decorating and other contests sponsored by Academy Sports and Outdoors and Bass Pro Shops, a Barter Bar (an evening of trading items brought from their area), along with a night at the Rogers Aquatic Center.
Teams will travel from as far away as Oregon to compete, with South Dakota, Virginia and Georgia also among the states represented. This year, at least 15 states will be represented at the Daisy BB Gun Nationals. Many of these teams have been competing in the Daisy BB Gun Nationals each summer for the past decade. Any organization can start a BB gun team, but most come from the 4-H Shooting Sports program. No matter where they originate, new teams must complete a 10-hour Daisy Shooting Sports Curriculum before ever picking up a BB gun.
“Some coaches bring their teams every year,” Daisy Public Relations Director Lawrence Taylor said. “I’m not sure the exact count, but I know that Coach Howard Baker has brought his Oregon Timber Beasts to the Nationals for 18 or 19, maybe 20 years in a row.”
Early registration for the 2024 Daisy BB Gun Nationals will begin on June 30, then competitors get their practice time at the line and take the Safety Test on July 1. Competition commences for the next two days with closing ceremonies wrapping up the match on July 3, which is just in time for shooters and their families to head to the Rogers Aquatics Center for the end-of-competition party.
Learn more about the Daisy BB Gun Nationals at daisynationals.com.
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