CAMP PERRY, OHIO – For a man who considers himself on the “back side of life” at age 53, Ben Amonette feels fortunate to still be amongst the elite in the world of shooting sports.

Amonette, of Radford, Virginia scored the final four points he needed to earn his Distinguished Rifleman Badge in service rifle in the National Trophy Individual Match on Tuesday, 28 July.

It’s Amonette’s THIRD distinguished badge and arrived 23 years after his International Pistol Badge in 1985 as a US Olympian and his first badge in service pistol in 1980.

The manager of consumer services at Alliant Powder said he’s becoming more mellow about his place in shooting now that he’s beyond the half-century mark.

“I was probably the oldest guy out there the other day shooting in the President’s Match Final,” Amonette said. “I was lucky to finish 19th.” Of course, there were nearly 1,200 other President’s Rifle Match shooters who would gladly trade places.

Amonette, who earned his first service rifle points toward Distinguished in 2001, credited the President’s Match with preparing him for the NTI.

“I hadn’t been shooting enough – not enough matches and I went through a dry spell for about four or five years without getting any points,” he said. “I was getting discouraged and starting to think about quitting, believe it or not.”

He entered more matches, shot well and got his confidence up, he said.

“It’s been a good year,” he added. Amonette earned 16 points in service rifle in the past year and the NTI points he gained during the National Matches put him over the top.

Looking back on the three shooting disciplines Amonette has pursued, each has its own challenges.

“Everything has some good points and hard points. If you think things look easy in life, you better look again.”

“In Olympic or International shooting, the targets are smaller and you’re shooting offhand. In high power you’re often shooting prone, which is better, but now you have wind and mirage to judge,” Amonette pointed out.

Amonette shot international pistol for 20 years, overlapping with conventional pistol for about six years when he competed at Camp Perry from 1978 to 1983 before committing solely to international pistol in preparation for Olympic shooting. Though he did not medal, he placed inside the top 20 in the 1992 Barcelona Games and was the high US shooter in the 1996 Atlanta games in 50-meter Free Pistol. Amonette also competed in air pistol in both Olympics and was the high American shooter in Barcelona.

After checking the figurative boxes in conventional and international pistol, Amonette moved into highpower rifle as his next shooting challenge.

“Highpower rifle requires endurance. It’s physically challenging for me because of the sun, humidity and serving pit duty.”

“But it’s been a lot of fun,” he said, acknowledging that rifle shooting is less intense than Olympic shooting. Amonette pointed out that Olympic shooters only get their chance to shine every four years and as a result, they take their shooting very seriously.

“In Olympic shooting you won’t find the guys sitting around on picnic tables, patting each other on the back and telling stories like you do in highpower – this has been a lot of fun for me,” he said.

“I’m on the back side now and at my age anything I accomplish has got to be fun. Age puts shooting in a different light,” he said.

Amonette admits he’s looking at shooting in a more philosophical perspective at this point in his career.

“Some people think of these rifles as assault weapons and not precision shooting instruments – it’s important for them to know there’s a difference.”

“These days anything that puts competitive shooting in a positive light is a good thing.”

What’s next for America’s most recently crowned three-time Distinguished shooter?

“I may try to shoot revolver and go for my fourth Distinguished badge. It’s always something I’ve wanted to do, and that hasn’t changed.”

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