
Q: How did you connect with History's Top Shot?
A: During the very first season of Top Shot, I became more interested in shooting and I started going to my local club regularly. In fact, the AR-15 episode caused me to purchase my first rifle (a Noveske N4 AR-15). I began shooting IDPA matches in 2011 while I was auditioning for Top Shot. For the next five months after auditioning, I was at the range for 25 hours a week, in addition to my work at Google.
Q: Can you summarize the skills needed during Top Shot?
A: Adaptability. Top Shot transcended marksmanship in a couple of ways. We were each given an unfamiliar firearm, told to learn the skills quickly, and then competed at a high level. It was important to be open-minded and comfortable with the unknown, which was exactly the environment I had come from at Google. I had held several positions at Google, where the expectation is to inventory new ideas, form a plan of action and produce a winning solution quickly. Even though I have no law enforcement or military experience, the culture at Google turned out to be excellent preparation for Top Shot, along with my shooting experiences.
Read the full interview at http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nra/ssusa_201309/#/40.