Clovis native takes first in shooting competition

A Clovis native is continuing to build his reputation as one of the best collegiate shooters in the country.

James Burroughes, a junior at the United States Military Academy, claimed first for production and centerfire pistol in the Blue Mountain Steel competition held last weekend at the Black Rock Pistol Club in Newburgh, New York.

It was the second of six planned competitions for Burroughes, a junior on the West Point pistol team. He finished third in both categories in his first tournament, and the is off this weekend before facing Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the U.S. Coast Guard in the next two weeks.

Burroughes is coming off a sophomore year where West Point finished third in the nation, and he placed third overall for air pistol and fifth for standard. For his efforts, was named to two spots on the Scholastic Clay Target Program’s All-American Team in April with a second-team nod for International Sport Pistol and an honorable mention for International Air Pistol.

The challenges in meets are typically eight stages, with each stage requiring five rounds fired at five targets five times. The times from each round are added, and the lowest overall time is the winner. Burroughes finished in about 89 seconds, roughly 10 seconds ahead of second place. He noted that was a large win, as most competitions are decided by a few seconds.

Practicing for meets, Burroughes said, usually is a matter of doing dry fires (without ammo) and individual work to create quick draws, fires and holsters. He also cleans his handgun twice a month to avoid mechanical failures in matches.

Any national championship aspirations Burroughes has, however, will be pushed to 2023. He is a civil engineering major with a Russian minor, and he is planning to do his spring semester in the Ukraine.

“My goal is to try to build a good culture here,” Burroughes said, “and also train the new shooters how to compete and handle pressure when it comes to matches.”