Shooter Interviews

This edition of Shooter's Profile will feature Colt Hatcher. Colt introduced me to 3 gun in the beginning of 2014 and is a great shooting partner, friend, and competitor. Colt possesses a great love for our Lord, his family and friends, and shooting sports. Check out his YouTube channel for match videos.

1)      When did you start shooting? What was your first competition and discipline? 

"I have been hunting and handling firearms for as long as I can remember. I shot my first competition shooting with the ATA (Armature Trapshooting Association) shooting competitive trap. My first competition was at the age of 10 years old."

2)      Provide an overview of the equipment you use and why you chose it. Include any modifications you made and are planning to make.

"I have been a good example of shoot what you have at first and make adjustments along the way. 

Pistol: Smith and Wesson M&P 9 with custom stippling, Dawson precision fiber optic front sight. I have equipped my magazines with the Taran Tactical +5 basepads and will soon have a Speed Shooters Specialties Magwell.  

Rifle: I currently shoot a Bushmaster XM15 with a Luth AR buttstock and NcStar 4x illuminated scope. I just picked up two sponsors Whiskey Arms out of Texas and Bison Armory out of Washington. They are building me a custom rifle. 

Shotgun: Mossberg JM 930 Pro. The lifter has been enhanced to avoid the ever lingering thumb grab. Eventually I will bevel and extend the loading port. I have also done some custom shaving on the forearm.

Shell Caddies: AP Customs QL8 and the AP Customs 4x4

Belt and Components: I currently use a DSG 1.5" competition belt, with Blade Tech holster, Blade Tech Smith and Wesson mag pouches, and a Blade Tech AR 15 mag pouch. I will be upgrading the belt; it is great for pistol shooting however loading it down with heavy 3 gun equipment you need something a little bit more rigid. 

Accessories- Apparel, Glasses, Earplugs/muffs, etc: I wear the Cabelas and 5.11 tactical pants, UnderArmour shorts, BoomerShooter jersey, the ESS Crossbow glasses, and Just For Ears earplugs"

3)      What type of training do you do for your matches? 

"I train everyday in some type of capacity. That may mean dry fire drills in the living room or live fire action at the range. The main issue that I struggle with right now is rapid target acquisition with my pistol. I have several scaled down models of plate racks and anything in my house that would make a good target, then set a PAR time to get my target acquisition as fast as possible. I also run load four drills and set a PAR time and practice loading until I am under that time. Right now I set my PAR time for 4 seconds weak hand and load our of the 4x4 and set a PAR time of 2 seconds for the load 2 method out of the QL8."

4)      What are your goals? (short and long term) 

"My short term goals are: to make it to all 4 3GN regional matches in 2015 and hopefully qualify for the Pro Series Qualifier, I would like to finish in the top 50% of every match that I shoot in 2015. Long Term Goals: Make the 3GN pro series and compete at a high level there, of course I would like to win the $50,000 Rumble on the Range. My overall goal is to be a great advocate for the sport and shooting sports a whole and represent my sponsors in a manner that would make them proud. I love teaching, so I love spending time with new shooters and young kids who are getting into shooting sports, my philosophy, as cheesy as it sounds, is to leave shooting sports a better place than when I competed."

5)      Sponsors and people that have helped you out in the 3 gun world:  

"The most important thanks, of course, is to my wife Jenna. She is willing to allow me to chase my dream of becoming a 3 Gun Nation Pro Competitor. I cannot leave out Will Blevins. He has been my shooting partner and teammate for as long as I can remember and is always pushing me to achieve my very best. I would like to thank Bison Armory and Whiskey Arms. They make great products and are just all around good people to deal with. Jeremy Moore at The Shooters Source, when I was just starting to get into 3 Gun I think I asked him 5,000 questions and he was always willing to answer every single one of them. AP Customs, they are always on the cutting edge of product development and listen to the shooters and engineer products that will help shave seconds off your time. Jesse Tischauser, he has been a huge help. It is always nice to have someone that is competing on the level in which you want to compete to somewhat run along beside you and be willing to share knowledge and insights on how to improve your own game. The unique thing about this sport is how competitive everyone is but at the end of the day we are take the time to help everyone improve, we are all like-minded people, who want the best for ourselves, each other and most importantly the sport of 3 Gun."