Marathon grad excels at marksmanship

By Casey Krautkramer

Casey Hollenbeck of Marathon discovered competitive gun shooting in seventh grade when he began smallbore rifle shooting with a .22 caliber long rifle at the Medford Rifle Club. Smallbore coach Randy Gregory of Medford saw Hollenbeck’s potential to become a skilled marksman right away. Gregory is president of the Wisconsin chapter of the Civilian Marksmanship Program.

Hollenbeck became so good at smallbore shooting that he won a first place gold medal in February at the state championships in Kenosha, which qualified him to compete in April for the Junior Olympics at the U.S. Olympic & Paraplegic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

He placed 27th among 68 competitors in smallbore rifle shooting, which was a great performance considering it was his first time. Hollenbeck broke two of his personal shooting records at the Junior Olympic trials in Colorado Springs. The smallbore competition consists of shooting at targets a little over 50 yards away while standing, kneeling and prone (lying down). The top eight place winners in smallbore rifle shooting advanced to the World Athletics U20 Championships on Aug. 27-31 in Lima, Peru.

“It didn’t really matter how great I shot there because it was the experience that was more valuable to me,” Hollenbeck said.

He was still attending Marathon High School (MHS) in April while competing against many college students on scholarships for their shooting skills at the Junior Olympic trials. He graduated from MHS in May. He received scholarships to shoot for the college teams at Texas A& M and Georgia Military College, but he decided to remain working as a welder at A& B Process Systems in Stratford. He fabricated his own metal shooting stand while at MHS and he learned a lot while working at A& B Process Systems through his school’s apprenticeship program.

Hollenbeck shot trap, which consists of using a shotgun to shoot clay pigeons, on Wednesdays and smallbore rifle on Saturdays during the school year at Medford Rifle Club. His trap shooting coaches were Lee and Jessica Sherfield of Medford.

He shot a high-power AR-15 during 10 days of national shooting competitions at Camp Perry, a U.S. Army National Guard training facility on the shores of Lake Erie in northern Ohio near Port Clinton, at the end of July into early August. Hollenbeck was required to take two shots at the target and then load another magazine of bullets into the gun and take eight more shots at the target. His Wisconsin Junior Service rifle team, Wisconsin Cheddar, broke two national records while winning the first place Infantry trophy.

Hollenbeck also utilizes a Palma .308 bolt-action rifle with a peep site for midand long-range shooting at a range in Lodi. He also knows how to shoot a vintage M1 Grand semi-automatic rifle that was used by the U.S. Army during World War II and the Korean War.

In the future, Hollenbeck wants to experience shooting at the Junior Olympic trials again in Colorado Springs. This past spring, he met boxer Richard Torres Jr. and Paralympian Jenna Fesemyer while staying at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center. Hollenbeck turns 19 years old this month, so he has two more years to qualify for the Junior Olympics before he is considered an adult for the Olympics. He is determined to win the state championship in smallbore rifle shooting again so he can qualify for the Junior Olympic trials, which he would take more seriously this time. He knows exactly what he needs to do to finish in the top eight smallbore rifle competitors to qualify for the U.S. Junior Olympic team.

“I need to clean my targets and shoot perfect scores,” he said.

DISTINGUISHED SHOOTER - Casey Hollenbeck is shown in his parents’ home in the town of Marathon with the rifles that he’s used to win the numerous medals and plaques displayed on the table in front of him. Hollenbeck is holding a smallbore rifle while an AR-15 is on the chair to his left and ta Palma mid- and long-range rifle is on the chair to his right. The Civilian Marksmanship Program has named Hollenbeck a Distinguished Rifleman.

STAFF PHOTO/CASEY KRAUTKRAMER