GUNNING FOR MORE GROWTH

Shannon Kay, director of the Precision Rifle Series, is taking aim at increasing participation this year in the organization’s local, regional and national events following a 33-percent increase in membership growth in 2020.

GUNNING FOR A LONG HAUL

After a year of remarkable growth, Precision Rifle Series director Shannon Kay has set his sights on taking the local, regional and national longrange shooting competitions even further.

As long-range precision rifle shooting continues to grow in popularity, the Precision Rifle Series is expanding rapidly to keep up with demand.

PRS is the sport’s preeminent organizing body for local, regional and national matches, tracking of scores and the growth of the practical, long-range rifle discipline. There are currently more than 40 national Pro Series precision rifle competitions, as well as hundreds of one-day matches from coast to coast, with an ever-growing number of participants.

“With the support of our partners, the number of shooters participating in PRS matches is on the rise and our membership base is continuing to climb,” says Shannon Kay, director of PRS. “In 2020, the PRS realized a remarkable 33-percent increase in memberships compared to the previous year. We project

GUNNING FOR A LONG HAUL

we will exceed the number of scores tracked in the previous season by 25 percent, totaling a massive 25,000 scores tracked in 2021. The PRS is the only series with a truly national footprint and grassroots influence, with over 7,000 participating individuals in 2020.”

Kay first began shooting precision rifle competitions in the early 2000s. He quickly fell in love with the sport and began competing as often as his military career would allow. Over the years he has had numerous first place finishes in the nation’s major PRS precision rifle matches and has led the PRS professional and regional season points standings. Kay still takes part in matches today, but is unable to compete in PRS finales due to his commitments as the organization’s director.

Since becoming the director in 2019, Kay has helped PRS grow to almost three times its size, in terms of both matches and members. His role has many and varied responsibilities, first and foremost of which is promoting and growing

the sport of competitive precision rifle shooting for shooters of all skill levels and ages. As the director, it is Kay’s job to help connect competitors, match directors, or MDs, and industry leaders through their organizational structure and partnerships.

“Each season we work with the PRS Pro Series MDs to organize the nationallevel Pro Series schedule, while working with our PRS partners to help MDs get a good start on their prize tables and bring more support to PRS shooters,” explains Kay. “We spend an enormous amount of organizational energy promoting PRS events, our partners, and recognizing shooter achievements. With the introduction of shooter classifications, shooters are now being recognized even further, not just within their division and categories, but also within their classes.”

PRS IS HOME to the Pro Series, the Regional Series, the elite PRS AG Cup Series, the newly launched PRS Rimfire Series, and the expanding PRS International Series.

“These PRS events are much more than competitions,” says Kay. “Shooters, volunteers, spectators and sponsors mark their calendars every year in anticipation of these mustattend events.”

Here is a breakdown of some of the highly anticipated PRS series:

PRS Pro Series presented by

Kahles Optics. The Pro Bolt Gun Series is the renowned nationallevel championship shooting series comprised of more than 40 of the most highly sought-after two-day precision rifle competitions in the nation. “PRS Pro Series competitors are a diverse and talented group of precision rifle shooters who compete in PRS national-level matches from coast to coast, in a points race culminating in a yearend PRS Pro Series Finale,” explains Kay. “Membership draws those from across the country who wish to compete against the nation’s best professionals, military operators and the many new shooters who are just joining the discipline.”

PRS Regional Series. The Regional Series is home to over 400 one-day matches across the nation. “The series has matured and exploded remarkably in the last few years,” says Kay. “That is mainly due to the outstanding regional directors and match directors working in their regions to promote the sport. The national-level series is well established, but for many shooters, the time, travel and costs can discourage active participation in large two-day-style matches. The PRS Regional Series addresses these concerns that exclude many shooters who want to routinely join us on the firing line. The membership is composed of shooters from juniors to sponsored professionals, as well as match directors and volunteers.”

Kay’s not just the director of long-range shooting competitions but a retired infantry officer who was an instructor at the US Army Sniper School.

SHANNON KAY’S SHOOTING BACKGROUND

In addition to being the director of PRS and an avid competitive shooter, Shannon Kay also recently retired as an infantry officer in the Army. For 20 years he operated in both conventional and special operation units, with multiple deployments in support of the Global War on Terror. Throughout his career, Kay has expertly trained hundreds of students while instructing at the US Army Sniper School and has traveled the country conducting mobile training courses for snipers, designated marksmen and close-quarters marksmanship.

His military background coupled with his long list of competitive successes led Kay to expand his training and start instructing local law enforcement and civilians privately using their own facilities. In 2011, he opened K&M Precision Rifle Training and was the chief designer of the Altus Shooting Center, now recognized as one of the most elite firearms training facilities in the nation. In 2015, Kay designed, built and relocated his operations to his expanded flagship facility, the K&M Shooting Complex in Finger, Tennessee, between Memphis and Nashville.

Throughout the years Kay has also worked in research and development with the industry’s top manufacturers. He has designed reticles for US Optics and Kahles Optics. He has also assisted in numerous other projects across the entire spectrum of the precision rifle discipline, to include R&D for development of the Trigger Tech Diamond Triggers, range design(s), consulting and more.

PRS AG Cup Series presented by

Armageddon Gear. Throughout the year the PRS AG Cup Series pits the most elite shooters against each other for cash payouts, ranks the best

• GA Precision 6GT • Manners PRS-TCS • Kahles 5-25 SKMR4 • Bartlein barrel • Triggertech Diamond • Area 419 Maverick • Armageddon Gear Shmedium bag, python and game changer • Alpha Brass • Swarovski 15x56 binoculars • Federal primers

The PRS director’s equipment includes some of the best names in the long-range shooting industry. shooters and then culminates each winter with the AG Cup hosted by Armageddon Gear. “This is a truly elite series for those that desire to professionalize the sport, crave cash payouts, increase sponsor exposure, like to chase TV time or simply want to be the best among the best! All happening at the matches we already shoot!” says Kay. This year there are nine PRS AG Cup Series matches, with the finale being held December 10-12 at K&M Shooting Complex in Finger, Tennessee.

PRS Rimfire Series presented by

Ruger. The PRS Rimfire Series is both a regional- and club-level series formed by rimfire MDs, shooters and PRS partners. “Precision rimfire is an affordable way for people to enjoy competitive shooting,” explains Kay. “In keeping with PRS tradition and the outlaw nature of our sport, each PRS rimfire match is run differently, focuses on different fundamentals and includes a vast number of stressors; no two PRS matches are the same! This provides for regional variances that are unique and very challenging.” The PRS Rimfire Finale will be held December 4-5 at Texas Precision Matches in Navasota, Texas.

“THE PRS HAS grown rapidly over the past couple of years as we have added new series and new shooters,” sums up Kay. “We truly have a home for everyone, from your most talented national-level elite competitors to those just making their debut on the firing line. The PRS community is truly like a family and you will not meet a nicer or more welcoming group of people or industry partners who would lend a hand to anyone just getting started. We have seen a remarkable increase in juniors, ladies and seniors not only participating but truly excelling within the series.”  Editor’s note: This is the first of an ongoing series on the Precision Rifle Series and its standout competitors. For more information on PRS, visit precisionrifleseries.com.