Vera Koo: Returning to the Huntsman World Senior Games

In this post, originally published by Women’s Outdoor News, Michelle Cerino talked to Vera Koo, former champion action pistol shooter, about what it is like to transition to the world of competitive shotgun shooting in her 70s. Keep reading to find out more about Vera’s journey into this new branch of competitive shooting sports, and learn what she struggles with, and why she doesn’t want to let this opportunity pass her by.

After Vera Koo retired from shooting a pistol and competing at The Bianchi Cup, her friend and mentor, Jim O’Young, suggested she look into the Huntsman World Senior Games in St. George, Utah and compete with a shotgun. Which, if you are familiar with shooting in those two disciplines, you know is very different on each platform. Well, once again, Vera is spending countless hours training for the 2026 Huntsman World Senior Games, and she took the time to share with me the many challenges she’s faced in shotgun sports.

The Beginning

It all started during the pandemic, when Vera was 75 years old. Before she even started learning to shoot, she found a gunsmith in the Bay Area who could teach her and tell her which gun to buy. She needed someone who also knew how to take care of her future guns. To begin, she borrowed a friend’s shotgun, which she later found really didn’t fit her well since it had been modified. But she tried it … which, for Vera, meant shooting 1,500 rounds through it, and she decided to keep it to begin her training. Now she had her first shotgun. However, she didn’t realize the length of pull wasn’t a good fit for her, yet she made it through the pandemic with it.

The Training

Now that she could travel again (the pandemic was over), she hit the door running.

Her first stop was Utah, where the Huntsman World Senior Games take place. Back in her pistol days, she always made sure to practice at the host range for competitions; for shotgun, she planned on doing the same. While there, she took a lesson from a local instructor; he explained to her the importance of shooting in different places to observe the various presentations. Her goal was to add as many of these thousands of presentations to her library … her memory.

Since then, now five years later, Vera has trained with at least six other instructors. She always finds a local instructor at each club willing to work with her, a beginner.

The Struggle

Vera admits to being a slow learner yet very persistent. She said she continues to struggle with her transition from pistol to shotgun, sayin,“It’s like transitioning from baseball to basketball. You know, it’s a different method, a different mentality and different ways to train.”

Ray-BRown-shotgun-coach — Shotgun Coach Ray Brown

Her biggest trouble is that she thinks too much. One of her instructors, Ray Brown, told her there are two groups of people he finds very difficult to teach: architects and pistol shooters. At least Vera recognizes herself in his assessment, and could laugh at that comment when she told me.

Bobby-Fowler-instructor-with-v — Shotgun Coach Bobby Fowler Jr.

After more than three years, Vera bought a new shotgun and began training with Bobby Fowler Jr. in Houston, Texas. He started by helping her get her shotguns to fit by having new stocks made. Also, when she works with Bobby, she understands what he is saying and can put it into action. Now, almost five years later, she has a better understanding of the hold point, but still has difficulty creating her plan. For some reason, whatever Bobby Fowler Jr. tells her she can do, she can make the correction. She continues to go to Texas once a month to train with him.

Final Thoughts from Vera

“I have a theory about the numbers five and 10. It takes 5 years to get your foot in the door. And it takes 10 years just to become good. If you want to be really good, you have to do 15- to 20- years. I don’t have 20 years in front of me. I know that. So, I’m trying to pack it in. I practice as much as I can; I work really, really hard. Sometimes, I can feel my body changing so fast. It’s not following my heart. I’ve pretty much shot 2.5 weeks per month since last August. And because I feel time is running out for me, I want to do it as much as I can, as much as my body can tolerate. And that’s where I’m going. I cannot let the opportunity slip by, because it may never return.”