Mother & Daughters are growing stronger together! shooting together

Today is Mother’s Day and many families in our community will be doing what we love to do most: shoot steel!

Despite the negative image that the media has tried to imprint on our second amendment society, we know the immensely positive impact of such a discipline. One great example is Team TANDEMKROSS shooter Jenna Jones and her mother Ronda Jones.

Theirs is a true story of love, support, discipline and giving back to our community. A wonderful example of a modern American family practicing traditional American values. Below are some questions and answers they shared with us about how firearms and the shooting sports community have helped strengthen their bond and improved their lives.

1. How long have you been shooting and what got you started?

We have been shooting about 3.5 years. We took some basic NRA classes and decided to buy a .22 pistol for some fun. We plinked around a little and found a steel target competition that looked fun and was close to home. We tried it once and we were hooked!

2. When was the first time you went out shooting together? We first shot together during an NRA rifle class. Jenna enjoyed it and I thought it would be fun to do together. Our first competition was a few months later.

3. What’s the best part of shooting with your mom/daughter?

Ronda: I love watching Jenna focus and learn getting better and better! What started out as a lesson, turned into a hobby and then evolved into something much bigger. I have really enjoyed the road trips and people we’ve met, but most importantly, I’ve loved the time together that shooting together has given us. We have made wonderful memories of accomplishment and fun!

Jenna: It’s fun to spend more time with my Mom and I like that mother/daughter shooting teams are not that common. Most people are shocked when I tell them that my mom loves to buy me guns!

4. What was your first firearm: shot, owned and the one you prefer the most -- and why?

Our first firearm was a Ruger Mark III 22/45 LITE. We bought it at a little gun store in Helotes, TX called The Gun Shack and they happened to be a Tandemkross dealer. We left with a fully #tandemized race pistol! Our favorite guns are still Rugers (Mark IVs and 10/22s) with #tandemized parts, although I don’t think we own a gun we don’t love.

5. How are your shooting styles different or similar?

Jenna shoots a lot more than I do so she is much much faster! I coach a lot so I don’t shoot as much as I used to, but I plan to change that this year. I will never catch up with Jenna but it will be fun to try! Jenna and I both prefer shooting rifles of any kind. However, I love long range precision rifle shooting and Jenna’s favorite is speed steel.

6. Would you recommend this sport to other moms/daughters teams and why?

Absolutely! I know a lot of women are not comfortable with firearms but I think it is because they haven’t shot a .22 rifle or pistol at some steel! That’s a simple and “less scary” way to begin and all it took for me was once! It would be fun to have other moms to shoot with!

7. Will you continue the tradition with your daughter/son (for Jenna) and grandkids (for Ronda)? Why?

I will always encourage my grandchildren to understand basic gun safety and as they get older, to know how to handle a firearm for protection. If they want to compete, that will be a wonderful bonus! Jenna feels the same.

8. Share some advice to all the women/girls and moms/daughters out there!

Our advice is to just try it! With the right safety preparation and instruction, it is a very liberating feeling to understand and enjoy shooting firearms. You don’t have to compete (although we highly recommend that as well!), just get out there and shoot.

It is beautiful to see the true face of our industry and we hope that this article stirs the interest of more women and young girls to join the sport. We hope they decide to take this adventure with the entire family and friends! It will bring them all closer together just like Jenna and I for a long time to come!

We wish everyone a Happy Mother’s Day!