By Serena Juchnowski, CMP Feature Writer
Mornings are not a favorite for 15-year-old Tyler Fisher of Phoenix, Ariz. His father, Matt Fisher, reported, “He’s not gonna beat me to the truck in the morning, but once he’s on the range, he gets in the zone.”
No matter how long the morning may have seemed, Tyler shot well in the Arizona heat back in March, earning the High Junior award and second place overall in the 2020 Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) Western Games M16 EIC Match, held at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility. Tyler shot a 383-11x, only one point short of the match winning score, a 384-9x. All of this comes from a junior shooter who never expected to shoot highpower.
Tyler starting shooting just for fun with his dad when the Fisher family settled in Arizona in 2012. He was born in Italy, while his dad, a member of the U.S. Air Force, was stationed there. Tyler officially started into marksmanship in September of 2018, when he joined the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association’s (ASRPA) smallbore rifle program. It was not long before his talent was recognized, and he was invited to join the Arizona Scorpions Junior High Power Rifle Team.
Though very reserved, Tyler was quick to point out that his teammates have really had an impact on his shooting experience.
“My favorite thing are the people that I have met along the way,” he said. “My coaches have taught me everything they know, and my teammates encourage me on the way and have become great friends.”
Discipline is the number one thing Tyler has taken from his training, and he knows he has a way to go.
“I am a fairly new shooter, and I have a lot to learn still.”
Having less than two years of experience as a highpower competitor, he is proud to represent the state of Arizona and to have earned his first four Excellence-in-Competition points at the Western CMP Games. He hopes to shoot for at least the next three years as a junior competitor and hopes to earn the Distinguished Rifleman Badge.
Though highpower is his primary discipline, Tyler admits that he enjoys smallbore more. He went on to say that he finds it easier than highpower, and “I also find it a very relaxing thing to do.”
He is on the last levels of the NRA/Winchester Marksmanship Qualification Program for four-position smallbore at his home club. Regardless of what discipline he is shooting, Tyler likes the idea of competition, “the whole concept of the matches,” he said.
Tyler uses an Anschutz .22 for smallbore and started out with a team service rifle, but he received his own as a Christmas present. He uses a White Oak Armament upper assembly with an Aero precision lower and a Magpul UBL generation 1 stock. He uses one of the Arizona Scorpion’s team Hi-Lux scopes. Tyler borrows a jacket from the team, but is incredibly fond of his customized David Tubb style shooting hat with his last name and team name on its sides.
Only a freshman at Sandra Day O’Connor High School, Tyler is unsure where his life will go. He is currently part of his high school’s Air Force ROTC program, though he does not expect to follow in his dad’s footsteps.
Besides shooting, Tyler really enjoys playing video games and freehand drawing. He believes that everyone starting into the shooting sports should go in with a positive mindset.
“Don’t start this sport trying to compete,” he said. “Have fun at first.”
Perhaps for Tyler, this includes the start of afternoon matches.
The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, log onto www.TheCMP.org.
