From vocation to hobby: Nune's 33-year journey as a shooter

When Nune Bonaya began shooting 33 years ago, she never imagined there would come a time more ladies would flock and excel in the sport . 

As we settle down for our interview at Kirigiti Shooting Range in Kiambu, the Kenya Defence Forces officer's eyes light up with excitement as she speaks of the growth of shooting in the country. 

For over a decade, Nune believes she was the only female shooter on the range as many ladies shied away from the sport. 

That the shooting range is nowadays dotted with as many female shooters as male is enough evidence that the gender glass ceiling in the sport has already been shattered. 

"It never used to be this way when I started out. I was the only female shooter on the range but as you can see today, that has all changed. Many more ladies have overcome their fear and are flocking to the sport. They are even performing better than their male counterparts," Nune says. 

As she grew in the sport, Nune's desire was to see many of her female peers experience the thrill of holding a firearm and competing on the shooting range. 

She took matters into her own hands and decided to embark on an awareness campaign to demystify the misconceptions associated with shooting. 

"I would talk to them and encourage them to join the sport. I am glad it all worked out and more and more ladies gathered the courage to embrace the sport. Nowadays, there are the likes of Belinda Akoth and Agatha Muchiri who I consider to be some of the brightest and skilled female shooters around," she says. 

Nune adds: "I like Agatha a lot because she reminds me of myself when I was her age. She is one shooter who can really go places. I started shooting at around her age and there is something extra she has."

Muchiri was one of the big winners at the International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) Africa Championships — held at Kirigiti Shooting Range, Kiambu on September 2-5  this year — where she emerged first in Stock Service Pistol Novice Class ahead of Hillary Angelo and Jeremiah Doki. 

Vocation-turned-hobby

For Nune, what was initially her source of daily bread turned out to be her only hobby that she confesses to sleep, eat and drink. 

As a military officer, she admits there was no way she was not going to hold a firearm at some point in her career. 

"Being part of my job, it was only natural that I perfect myself as a shooter. With time, I grew in love with it and embraced it as a sport. Soon, I was competing in various competitions and have so far won many trophies that I wouldn't be able to list them all," she says. 

Evergreen as she is, Nune has been a mainstay at the various shooting events  held this year and has come away with impressive results. 

At the International Pistol Shooting Confederation (IPSC) women’s championship in July, she clinched stage two of the competition after scoring 45 points, ahead of Muchiri (43.9936 points) and Caroline Kiama (42.4236 points) respectively. 

The event was held at the Jockey Club Shooting Range at Ngong Racecourse. 

She was also one of the outstanding performers at the recent IDPA Africa Championships.  

Previously, she has travelled around the globe to compete in various championships, including eight times in Dubai and once in Zimbabwe.

Trophies aside, her 33-year journey in the world of sport has been a learning experience, which has made her wiser than when she was an upstart. 

"One thing I have learnt is aggressiveness in the pursuit of your passion. You have to, first and foremost, love what you do and want to perfect it to the best. Shooting also requires you to be disciplined, including self-control to know how to react to certain situations," Nune says. 

She adds: "As a soldier, you have to be always physically fit and mentally alert. There is no option; so shooting has really aided me a lot in that way. It is only when you are physically fit that you can fight easy." 

Coaching ambitions 

Admittedly, as age is not on her side, Nune is already considering her retirement plan, which revolves around forging the next generation of shooters. 

"I want to be a trainer so I can mentor as many young shooters as possible. I have been training and competing for over 30 years and now want to pass this knowledge to the younger generation. Shooting is a part of me; my vocation and hobby and I love it so much," she says. 

One of the disciples in her early coaching career is Mohammed Boro, her 15-year old son who she says has taken her by surprise. 

"My daughter is not so much into the sport but my son has really taken after his mother. I have been teaching him for a while and I can see that there is a lot of potential in him to grow into a great shooter. There was one time he assisted me as a range officer and I was really surprised by how effective he was," Nune recalls with a smile. 

Her parting shot to aspiring shooters, whether civilians or from the disciplined forces, is to introspect about it and ensure they have the passion for it. 

This is the first step to growing as a shooter and reaping financially, physically and psychologically.