MASON — Along U.S. 127 in Mason on July 10, there was gunfire in the air. A lot of gunfire.
That’s because 1,800 high school students from across the nation are competing through the weekend in the USA High School Clay Target League National Championships. The event is hosted by the Michigan Trapshooting Association in Mason.
“This is the safest high school sport,” range safety officer JB Lewis says. “If you do proper gun safety, there won’t be any injuries.”
That’s good news for the local economy.
“Hotels from Jackson to Okemos are full,” Lewis said. “Restaurants are busy. Local vendors are selling food and shooting-related merchandise. It’s a great event and it brings a lot of money to the local economy.”
Lewis said the event will use more than 500,000 clay pigeons over the course of the championship weekend.
Teams and individuals will compete in qualifying rounds July 11-12. The championship rounds are on July 13.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Top high school clay target shooters gather in Mason for national competition
Reporting by Matthew Dae Smith, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
