Frequently Asked Questions

 

How long has Burnsville High School had a team?

Burnsville's first trapshooting team was organized in 2011 with approx 30 athletes.  

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Who is eligible to participate?
Students residing in the ISD191 school district, are in grades 6-12, and possess a
State Firearm Safety Training Certificate or the League issued S.A.F.E. certification.

 

 

How long is the season?
Spring League is typically 8 - 10 weeks in the months of March/April/June

The Fall League is typically 6 - 8 weeks in the months of Sept/Oct

 

 

Can I participate if I am handicapped?
Yes. Most shooting ranges are handicap accessible.

 

 

Can both boys and girls participate?
Yes. The League is the only high school sport that is co-ed – boys and girls participate 

on the same team and compete by the same rules.

 

 

Can homeschooled students participate?

Yes. As long as there is a team within the same school district as the student and there is room on the team.

 

 

Do I need to provide a shotgun to participate?
if you are new to shooting trap, the team has a few guns that you can try out before you commit to purchasing a firearm. Using the team guns will allow you to find the best gun fit. Having your own firearm provides you opportunities to practice outside of team shoot times. You must provide a 20 or 12 gauge shotgun.    

 

What else do I need to provide?

• Your own transportation to and from the Gun Club for practices and competitions. Many families are willing to carpool if this is an issue.

• You must have successfully completed a Department of Natural Resources sponsored gun safety course or the league's S.A.F.E (Student Athlete Firearm Education) course

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What is the S.A.F.E (Student Athlete Firearm Education) Course?

The Student Athlete Firearm Education (SAFE) Certification program offered by the USA High School Clay Target League provides an in-depth, interactive and fun learning environment for firearm safety and clay target shooting procedures.

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How much does it cost to join the team?
The participation fee usually runs around $200.  The participation fee varies slightly for each season depending on the number of weeks included, ammunition costs and target costs from the shooting range.

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What does the participation fee include?

The participation fee includes:

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• Ammunition needed for scheduled practices, competitions, and exercises.  Additional ammunition will need to be purchased by the athlete if they wish to participate in the optional activities.

• The cost of rounds at the Gun Club for required practices, competitions, and exercises.  Additional rounds will need to be purchased by the athlete if they wish to participate in the optional activities.

• The Registration Fee that is paid to the Minnesota State High School Clay Target League for administration costs associated with league operations.

•  A Tip for the scorekeepers

• A fundraising fee that you are able to get back by selling tickets to the event or participating in the season fundraisers.

• New Team members will also include mandatory safety instruction and 2 optional practices before the season starts.

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A Burnsville Trap Team shooting vest is provided to all new team members during the Spring season.

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What are the optional activities?

• Optional Captains Practices

• Annie Oakley Fun Shoots

• Private Coaching sessions

• Training Clinics

• Pre-State Warm Up Tournament

• Border Battle Tournament

• Alexandria Championship Tournament

• MN State Tournament

• ETC....

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How safe is trap shooting?

Trap shooting is one of the safest sports available to student-athletes. There have been zero reported injuries and no Gun-Free School Zone violations since the League started in 2001.

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How is competition scored?
Each team competes in their own conference with teams of similar team member size (ie: 1A conference is 5-10 team members, 8A is 45-60 team members). All participants contribute to the team competition with the one round that they shoot. If an athlete shoots the top score (out of 50) on the team, his/her score is used as the “High Gun Score” that contributes 1/3 of the points for the overall team score. “Top Performers” uses the top score average from 50% of your team (minimum of 5) and contributes to 1/3 of the points. Team average uses all scores for the remaining 1/3 of total team scores. A true team scoring system (similar to track and swimming) is used and a team competes against all teams within their conference each week. The highest total of points achieved by the team at the end of the competition is the winner.

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Is this a team competition or individual competition?
Team. Individual performance contributes to the team’s performance. Upon completion of the league, high gun averages for the top male and female in each conference based on average score are recognized. Otherwise, all scores contribute to the team’s overall performance and Team Conference Champions are recognized at the end of the League’s season.

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How many students make up a team?
Five students is the minimum number for a team. There is no maximum number of students that can be on a team. There may be some limitations to team size because of coaching resources and/or gun club capacity.

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Do I have to travel to other shooting ranges to compete?
No. All shooting is done at the local gun club and scores are submitted by the coaches via this website and compared to other schools’ scores within the conference.

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Can I play in other high schools sports?
Yes. The League allows teams to shoot up to two days a week (including weekends) which provides some flexibility to work around practices and games of other sports. The team must schedule these days of the week and must have a coach and safety officer present. Athletes cannot show up at a gun club and shoot their event rounds whenever they want.

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What school grades are eligible to compete?
Teams are made up of students from 6th grade through 12th grade. Middle school students are eligible to participate with high school kids if the team size allows for it.

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Is this league associated with the Minnesota State High School League?
Yes. On December 6, 2012 the Minnesota State High School League approved a sanctioned presenting partner trapshooting State Tournament that was to be held at the Minneapolis Gun Club in Prior Lake on June 14, 2014. This means trap shooting has been recognized the same as all other high school sports and Minnesota is the first and only state high school athletic association to host a trapshooting tournament. The League operates and abides by similar rules as the Minnesota State High School League.

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Are our students or school at risk of violating our gun-free zone policy?
No. The student athletes follow the same state law as all other students. It should be made clear to the students they are not to bring their guns on school property. Students can either go home after school and get their gun or have a parent or someone else bring the gun to the shooting range for them.

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How do schools across the state compete?
Virtually. The League groups schools by team member size in conferences. Each team competes against all other teams within their own conference. School teams shoot at their local shooting range and then submit their scores to the League. Then scores, weekly results and overall standings are posted on the website so students can see how their school stacks up against others across the state. Teams can participate any day of the week.

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Is shooting sports an Olympic sport?
Yes. USA had a team compete in the 2012 London games and the sport continues to the current games.

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Does Burnsville offer a lettering program for this sport?
Yes but only in the Spring League Season and only for students in 7 - 12th grade.

The criteria to letter is this:

• A competitive season average of 19 or higher 

• A score of 24 or 25 at any virtual meet or state meet where the team is officially registered as a competitive squad.  

• Any shooter who scores a 25 at any scheduled practice or meet.

• Three or more years of participation on the team with no more than one unexcused absence in a season. 

• Coaches discretion

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Are participants insured?
Yes. Each student athlete registered with the league is provided an Accident Insurance Policy and each coach and volunteer is provided a Liability Insurance Policy from the League. There is no cost to the student, coaches, or volunteers for this insurance.

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Can my child shoot more practice rounds on their own?
Yes. It’s no different than a member of the golf team going to the driving range and hitting a bucket of balls or a member of the baseball team visiting the batting cage. The more they put into it, the more they’ll get out of it.

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How many coaches are required?
The League requires 1 coach for every 10 student athletes.  As of Spring 2017, the team has 14 NRA Level 1 Shotgun Coaches.  

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How do schools across the state compete?
Virtually. The League groups schools by team member size in conferences. Each team competes against all other teams within their own conference. School teams shoot at their local shooting range and then submit their scores to the League. Then scores, weekly results and overall standings are posted on the website so students can see how their school stacks up against others across the state.

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