While at SHOT Show I was able to sit down with Jessie Harrison, Captain of the Taurus shooting team, to catch up on how 2023 went for her and find out what her plans are for 2024 and beyond.
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Let’s catch up with what you did last year. What matches did you win?
I had a very successful shooting season, winning all of my competitions, making 2023 an undefeated season. The major matches were Steel Challenge Nationals and World Championships: High Overall Lady and Ladies Open; USPSA Open Nationals: Ladies Open; US IPSC Nationals: Ladies Open; USPSA Area 1, 3, 4, 8: Ladies Open and the inaugural USPSA Limited Optics Ladies title.
What stands out to you the most from last year?
I would say the Limited Optics and Open National titles, for different reasons. Limited Optics is a new division within USPSA, that I had yet to compete in and I received my new gun about two weeks before the match. I went into a national championship feeling pressures that I wasn’t accustomed to or able to control. I wasn’t familiar with my equipment to the level I prefer to be, and this platform performs differently than the other divisions/platforms I’ve shot. The biggest difference in this division is that you have to have a slide-mounted optic, your optic will cycle with the slide, as opposed to your optic being stationary on a scope mount. I didn’t have the same confidence that I normally have within myself and my gear leading up to a national-level match, but I mentally went through the things I could control, finding confidence in the basics of shooting.
Secondly, would be the Ladies Open National title. I spend the majority of my time in the Open division because that’s where the competition is, so each year that’s my biggest goal. Every match throughout the year leads up to the national championship where I compete against the best ladies in the country. I have to stay on top of my game and continue to find that edge in training to go and perform against them, they make me better!
What are your plans for 2024?
Our IPSC World Shoot is coming up in 2025, so we will continue to qualify for a spot on a US team this year. We’re going to travel and shoot a few international matches, to better prepare ourselves for the shooting style of IPSC. We will still be at the major USPSA matches and nationals but will replace some of our smaller regional matches with international ones.
How about in your personal life? What exciting things have been happening there?
KC [Eusebio, Jessie’s husband] and I are avid hunters; we spent two amazing weeks in Africa in October of 2023, it was the trip of a lifetime. We enjoy the outdoors and hunting so much and love to share it with people and friends, that we started our own hunting agency, Prestige Outdoors Worldwide, LLC [website coming soon]. It’s a travel agency for hunters, recommending places and outfitters to hunt with that we have been to ourselves. Ensuring that you’re going to have the trip of a lifetime with trusted outfitters, assisting with firearm permits and travel plans, since it can be overwhelming if you’re not familiar with the process. We have outfitters in South Africa, New Zealand and a few in the States to start, but looking to add more as we continue to hunt and find those people and places that align with what we want to offer.
Congratulations
Congratulations to Jessie Harrison on all her wins and for opening a travel agency. She is showing how to take what you love and make it even better.
You can follow Jessie at her website, on Instagram at @jessielharrison or on Facebook at jessielharrison.
Nancy Keaton is a retired college administrator, president of her local gun club, competitive shooter and freelance writer whose work has appeared in A Girl and A Gun Women’s Shooting League, "American Shooting Journal," "American Concealed," "Northwest Meetings + Events," and other publications. She enjoys writing about a wide variety of topics and interviewing ordinary people doing amazing things. To see a compilation of her writing, check out her website at www.nancykeaton.com. View all posts by Nancy Keaton
