Before COVID came along, the NRA Youth Shooting Clinic at Darnall’s in Bloomington was the nation’s longest-running shooting camp in the nation.
This year the camp returns as two one-day clinics on Saturday, June 24th and Sunday, June 25th 7am – 5pm both days.
Each day provides an opportunity for young people ages 8-16 to learn firearm safety and the fundamentals of multiple shooting disciplines under the close supervision of experienced NRA- and Illinois Department of Natural Resources-certified instructors and shooting coaches.
Kids can sign up for either day or both days, depending on their interest. Tuition is $55 for a day or $80 for both days and covers a light breakfast and lunch. Firearms and ammunition are provided.
Included both days is the perennial favorite of campers, the Pistol station. The GSL DT crew bring music, shade and make it a fun, interactive experience for campers of all ages.
GSL Defense Training has run that station for a number of years now with our instructor team volunteering to teach the fundamentals of shooting rimfire (.22) handguns.
The best shooters in each relay on the pistol line have an opportunity to shoot centerfire handguns including some really fun guns like “The Giggler” – a gun that makes grown men giggle when it’s fired.
Other stations Saturday include Archery, Cowboy Action Shooting and Rifle.
Sunday’s events besides Pistol are Shotgun, Ruger Steel Challenge (basically Cowboy Action with modern .22 semi-auto guns) and Rifle.
Download the application from Darnalls.com or call Alison Darnall at 309-830-4052 or Sue Darnall at 309-379-4331. Adult volunteers are also wanted. Applications and waivers for those slots are also available at Darnalls.com.
The best thing you can teach the youth about guns is to leave this miserable state. Shooting sports is dead here in the People’s Republik of Illinois. You can’t own it, and even if you can own it, you can’t shoot it anywhere, or even take it out of the safe.
Fail to comply, and ISP will be piling into your home 10 deep to make sure you either comply with your communist masters, or die.
The most fun a kid can have, they dont even realize they are learning lifetime safety and responsibility at the same time. I plan to attend again.