National Junior Team Member Wyatt Brown So intent on earning a
spot at World Champion- ships alongside his brother, Will, Wyatt Brown shot left- handed to train for the USA Shooting National Cham- pionships after a fractured wrist left him without any other options. He credits a lot of where he’s at in this sport to Will, a good mentor for sure, but what you’ll fi nd out in reading this Q&A is that Wyatt has personality and perspective distinctly all his own.
What has your brother Will taught you about this sport? Nearly everything I know about shooting can be attributed to my brother Will as well as my father Dan. The most impactful lessons Will has given me have been through example rather than speech (I’m sure you’re well aware that he is a man of few words).
What motivates you? A loaded question, no doubt. A lot of things motivate me but mostly it’s my family, specifi cally my brother, which motivates me. My inner competitive spirit and the stubborn determination to fulfi ll my every potential drives me. The knowledge of all that I have gained as a human being from participating in shooting and notion of there being far more to learn motivates me. This in an incredible sport and by far the most rewarding thing I’ve ever participated in.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever re- ceived about shooting? The Brown family has a rather concise answer to this question: Just hold and squeeze, pumpkin.
What goals have you set for yourself in this sport? As I’ve said before I’m a competitor, and as such
I have my eyes set on the ultimate destination: the Olympic Games. I can think of no greater headline to highlight my shooting career than “Brown Broth- ers Bring Home Olympic Medals.” As far as shooting is concerned, the only thing I want more than to bring home an Olympic gold is to watch Will do it.
What aspects of the shooting game are you concentrating on most now?
Right now I’m continuing
to hone my technical abili- ties and physical condition- ing while focusing on fi nding ways to better prepare my mind for competition. I’m striving to push my mental toughness, something that I fully believe has made my brother who he is and lent a great deal to his early success. I don’t have the mental toughness Will does, but I’m working on it. In the meantime, I’m making
mistakes and learning from my experiences, and that’s all I could ask for.
What you like most about shooting? I think the most compel- ling thing about shooting for someone like me is the challenge. This is an incredibly diffi cult sport, and I think it puts off a lot of newcomers because of this. All my life I’ve been attracted to a challenge, from solving puzzles to rid- ing a unicycle. Shooting has challenged me to not only be a successful shooter, but to be a better person from almost every angle. The les- sons one learns from such a heavily mental sport like shooting apply to everyday life in ways that are as varied as they are impactful. The opportunities I have to represent my country on in- ternational stages are also a big deal to me.
What do you like least about shooting? The lack of popularity it has in the USA. It’s some- thing I don’t understand at all. We love our guns here, but we can’t take pride in marksmanship? It seems the most common explana- tion is that it’s not much of a spectator sport so it’s hard for people to take interest, but take golf for
Wyatt Brown (center) with the medalists from Junior Men’s Free Pistol at this year’s National Championships.
52 USA Shooting News | July 2014
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