Thomas Lewison, 14, of Sweet Home placed 13th at a statewide hunting competition held in Marcola on June 23 and June 24, earning him a place representing Oregon at nationals.
He will travel to nationals in Ratón, N.M., at the National Rifle Association’s Whittington Center, a 37,000-acre ranch. He will fly out of Portland to Colorado Springs on July 28 and return on Aug. 4.
The contest, Youth Hunter Education Challenge, is sponsored by the NRA. Among events, it includes muzzle loader, archery, shotgun, .22-caliber, a hunter’s education test, orienteering, wildlife identification and hunter safety training.
Lewis qualified as the fifth junior, ages 14 and under, on the team. The team includes five juniors and five seniors.
Lewison has been rifle hunting most of his life with his father and his father’s friends. He enjoys deer, elk and upland game hunting, normally using a Remington or Savage .270 or .243.
Lewison was pleased with his performance during the contest, especially since most of his exposure to muzzle loaders and archery came in preparation for the contest. He thought he could have used some more practice had he found out about the contest, the first he’s ever competed in, sooner.
His day started with breakfast at 8 a.m. on June 23, then he moved right into competition with the hunter’s safety test. He earned 230 of 300 points on the test.
Archery was next, Lewison said. He is not an archer and didn’t do too well in this contest. He did better with shotgun, hitting 12 of 30 clay pigeons.
Following that, Lewison said he did all right with wildlife identification and the hunter safety trail. On the trail, participants would observe pictures of wildlife and had to decide whether they could shoot the animal. In the identification contest, he had to identify furs and skulls specifically. Participants were not allowed to touch the fur. Mounted heads were also provided, and based on those, contestants had to decide whether a deer was white- or black-tailed.
Orienteering rounded out June 23’s contests. In the event, Lewison had to use a compass and map to maneuver among different stations. He earned 215 of 300 points in one of his strongest events.
On the morning of June 24, Lewison earned 150 of 300 points in muzzle loader, something that he had little practice with. In the contest, participants were required to shoot life-sized pictures of wildlife and hit a “kill zone.” They were allowed 15 minutes to take four shots in three sets. His only exposure to muzzle loaders was in preparing for this contest, but he felt he finished strong.
In the final event, the .22 light rifle, he had to shoot representations of small game.
Lewison said muzzle loader and the hunter’s safety test were his strongest events.
Lewison is the son of Edie and Terry Lewison. The Sweet Home native will be a freshman at Sweet Home High School next year.
Right now he is “practicing more, shooting and getting better to prepare for New Mexico,” Lewison said. At the contest, states compete with states in addition to individual rankings. Lewison would like to place in the top half at nationals.