Glen Brace, 15, a freshman at Montezuma-Cortez High School, will have a chance to make one of his dreams come true. He has been invited to the seventh annual USA Shooting National Championships.

The championships is the qualifying for the 2000 United States Olympic Team which will compete in Sydney, Australia, this summer. The championships will be held at the Tom Lowe Shooting Grounds in Atlanta June 21-July 1. That was the site of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta.

He will shoot in the Prone competition for smallbore (.22) rifles. His personal competition rifle is German made.

"It doesn’t make much difference to me," Brace said. "It is just another match. I can’t get too overly excited about it. Because if I do, I won’t concentrate on what I need to do (practicing) and then I might make myself look like an idiot at the trials. But, yes, I’m pleased that I have received this invitation.

"I don’t really know what the matches will be like. I don’t know how many targets or shots in the course. All I know is that I will shoot metric targets which are harder to hit. I shoot at these targets all the time, they use them for the 3-P (position) National Championships). I also know the top four qualify for the team with next placers as alternates," he explained.

"If I don’t make the team, I won’t be too upset. I’m young and I will get several more opportunities. I was aiming at the 2004 Games so this is only a plus for me to get to qualify for the 2000 Games. Precision shooting is a lifetime sport. There are shooters who are a lot older than me who are still on the team," Brace said.

He said he will start practicing after school gets out May 26. He said he will shoot for an hour or an hour-and-half to two hours per day at the Four Corners Rifle and Pistol Club range. He will shoot 40 to 60 shot courses.

Prior to that, Brace will compete in the National Junior Olympic Championship Three-Position Air Rifle Sporter and Precision Shoot June 8-13 also in Atlanta.

Brace is one of the top 25 sporter and 23 precision shooters ranked nationally. Colorado and 43 other states will be represented with respective teams.

He will also compete in the National Smallbore Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio. He recently qualified for that event which will be held July 17-Aug. 1.

"Shooting is a great sport. Guns don’t kill people. If new laws keep being made, Olympic shooting won’t be much longer. People who are irresponsible with guns give it a bad reputation. If people would start teaching their kids at a younger age about the responsibilities of owning and shooting guns, we might not have some of the gun-related accidents we have today," Brace said.

Because of all the travel and expenses involved, he is looking for some sponsors who would like to help him at 565-1290.