Rifle Team

The rifle team is among the many groups associated with the Linganore JROTC. Commander Lane oversees the team, giving guidance and tips to the members. In his article for The Lance, Cdr. Lane gives detailed information regarding the technical aspects of the team. To see the article, visit: http://my.highschooljournalism.org/md/frederick/lhs/article.cfm?eid=16758&aid=214783

The team is still small, but Kyle, the team captain is hoping new recruits will join for the coming school year. In addition, he hopes that everyone who joins at the beginning of the year is committed to doing their best and dedicated to the team. Dedication is important because at the beginning of the school year, there were about 15 cadets at each practice. As the school year went on, the numbers dwindled. Most recently, practices have had only three or four cadets. This has slowed the team progress.

Despite small practice numbers, individual members have been showing improvement. In the last match, the team had some members place in the top five. Kyle was only two points away from advancing to the national level. This disappointed him a bit, because the day of the match was an “off day” for him. His scores were well under what they could have been. I don’t think he should feel too bad, though, because this is still an achievement and shows that the Linganore Rifle Team has the qualifications to compete with the best in the nation.

Kyle achieved his status through hard work and commitment. Luck may have helped another member of the team, who has shown skill, despite the fact that his practice has not been consistent. Daniel won first place in offhand shooting, a form that is hard to master. As a senior, it is a shame that his aptitude was not tapped previously. It will be difficult to find someone who shows such promise. I can only hope that future members will feel pride in their developing skills and dedicate more time to the team.

Even with only two years of development, their reputation is growing. The father of a seventh grader contacted Commander Lane to get more information on the ROTC program. This student is going to join a recreational shooting team this summer. If he joins the program and the rifle team as a freshman in two years, it would be an asset and a fantastic experience to have him be a part of the group.

Contact Commander Lane if you are interested in this opportunity. henry.lane@fcps.org