While many parents and kids shoot together, the Olds clan redefines what it means to be a shooting family, all taking the stage together at the 2025 National Trophy Rifle Matches. Based out of Zanesville Rifle Club (ZRC) in Chandlersville, Ohio, identical twins Eric and Evan Olds have been neck and neck since they started shooting high power in 2022, now giving their father Randy a run for his money.
Though now 16 years old and taller than their dad, the boys are fondly known across the state as the “Tiny Randys” — giving everyone something to call them when they aren’t sure which twin is which.
Eric explained that they have been around guns all of their life, shooting steel targets and BB guns from an early age, but only starting into competitive marksmanship around age 13. Evan remembers their dad taking them on “little shooting excursions” when they were eight or nine, shooting soda cans before attending their first service rifle match in 2022 at Zanesville Rifle Club.
“I started off shooting off of a sandbag,” Evan recalled, “After a couple of matches, I gained enough courage to try and do the courses of fire correctly. It was a struggle, I could barely hold the gun up and I was lucky to shoot in the 70s when shooting offhand. It took probably a year for me to be able to shoot the whole course-of-fire--and after getting a lighter rifle, and a web sling, I was able to actually finish the matches. Now the scores weren’t pretty, but I was able to finish the match, and have fun. And from there I’ve been developing my techniques, and now I can shoot a match, and have a very competitive score!”
Eric’s beginning was a little different. “My dad basically had to drag me out to matches,” Eric admitted. “After the first few range days and competitions, I was hooked by the community. Hearing all the cool stories and how passionate people were really motivated me to improve.”
“It has been an incredible journey coaching and competing with my boys,” Randy said. “It is a challenge getting two teenagers excited about getting out of bed at 4:00 a.m. to jump in the car and drive three hours to a match. Patience and preparation days before the match were key to keeping kids encouraged and excited to compete. Helping them learn to have the same patience with themselves, if they have made a mistake, is crucial for their continued growth. I still have to remind myself that they still need to be kids and a late night playing video games trumps a Sunday morning match [sometimes].”
Both boys have come a long way, jumping two classifications in a year’s time. Evan and Eric took first and second sharpshooter honors respectively at the September 2023 ZRC Club Championship. Eric claimed top master in the same match a year later.
During the 2025 National Matches, Eric made the coveted President’s 100 and earned his final points towards his Distinguished Rifleman’s Badge, taking second overall non-distinguished. This performance also made him second junior in the National Trophy Individual match for the Golden Eagle Trophy. Evan also earned 10 points, taking him over halfway to his badge.
Eric and Evan teamed up under the mentorship of their father Randy and friend Travis Gilkey to take fourth place in the National Trophy Junior Team match, earning Freedom’s Fire Trophy medals. Eric’s score in this match combined with his President’s 100 and National Trophy Individual match performances earned him a spot on the 2025 National Junior Highpower Rifle Team (Col. Bill Deneke Trophy), one of the top honors possible.
The twins contributed heavily to the best performance Ohio Juniors have had in decades. Their four-man team, ORPA Juniors -DOSJ, claimed top junior team honors in the CMP National Championship 4-Man Team Match. They shot alongside Sabrina Smith and Joe Jordan with their dad as coach. After weather turned the regular schedule on its head, Eric, Evan, Jenna Boykin, Eli Graff, Rylee Greer, and Joe Jordan came together to place second junior team in the National Trophy Rifle Team Match and sixth overall! They finished out the week taking second place in the Magnificent Seven, Junior Infantry Team Trophy, joined by Lilian Bell, Jenna Boykin, Joe Jordan, and Maxx Wolshuck.
Eric and Evan are proud to represent Ohio and to do so among such great friends. “My favorite thing about marksmanship is easily the community,” Eric said. “I have never felt so welcome and supported in any other place.” Evan expressed his appreciation to be spending time with his dad and brother “doing something unique that not everyone does.”
Also impressive is that the “Tiny Randys” share enthusiasm for and appreciation of the shooters who have come before them. They love hearing about Camp Perry and carving their own spot in highpower history. Of course, the funny stories are the best ones. This past year, they embarked on their own story-telling journey, creating a video montage of comical scenes from the 2025 National Matches to share with their teammates.
While shooting is fun, Eric and Evan have invested considerable time and effort into improving their skills, shooting nearly every weekend. Eric explained, “Marksmanship has taught me to analyze myself. When I am doing something wrong, I now take a minute and reflect on what I did and how to improve. Marksmanship has also taught me how important taking notes and remembering details is.”
Evan warns people not to expect greatness right away, and not to think that your gear is the reason you're not reaching your full potential. “Just focus on technique and position. When you find something that works, and works well, do it consistently the same exact way, and you’ll be able to shoot amazing.”
Zanesville Rifle Club has long been very supportive of juniors, and Eric and Evan are no exception. They both use rifles from ZRC with Geissele National Match triggers and Magpul UBR Gen 2 stocks. Eric shoots an Athlon Helos BTR scope, while Evan prefers a Leupold Mark 4HD. Both use Creedmoor coats and have their own short list of must-haves. Eric won a Creedmoor Shooting Cart “Big Blue” at the 2025 National Matches, immediately wanting to pass on his cart to his little sister, who he hopes will join the family on the range.
Outside of shooting, they enjoy video games, airsoft, and love their family cats. (Eric has memorialized a feline friend on his rifle lower, doing the laser engraving himself.) Evan is a 4.0 student and also enjoys mountain biking and riding four-wheelers.
Looking towards the future, Evan wants to earn his Distinguished Rifleman’s Badge, make the President’s 100, and consistently shoot High Master scores. Eric also wants to earn this this classification and to one day shoot on the adult ORPA High Power Team. Both are eager to help Ohio earn top junior team in 2026.
“I get more satisfaction bragging to friends and family about how my boys did during the last match than most of my own accomplishments,” Randy said. This says a lot, given that Randy has earned a myriad of awards, including making the 2025 President’s 100 Shoot-off, earning a spot on the “Elihu Root” National Civilian Rifle Team, and helping the Ohio Rifle and Pistol Association Adult team win the Soldier of Marathon Trophy.
“They have pushed me, as a coach and father, how to overcome struggles and to embrace success. I could not be more proud of those two young men!”
