By Michael Main
FAYETTEVILLE — Twins Jett and Jude Sparks of Fayetteville are lighting up the national rodeo circuit with their sharpshooting abilities.
The pair of 14-year-olds competed in the National Junior High Rodeo Finals in Des Moines, Iowa, at the end of June. In the Light Rifle Championship, Jett earned a spot in the coveted top 20 and Jude finished 32nd out of 131 shooters. Over 4,000 kids around the country compete in the junior high division, and the finals are comprised of the best of the best.
Jett is the current Arkansas junior high state champion and Jude is the current reserve champion, according to their father, Jeremy Sparks. The twins are three-time world finalists, which Jude said is his proudest achievement in the sport.
The competition includes two matches in three shooting stances — prone, standing and kneeling — and the scores are combined to find a winner. This year, Jett tied for first place in prone position shooting, with 116 out of 120 possible points.
The boys took an interest in guns from an early age and also enjoy hunting ducks and deer, their father said.
“Jett killed his first deer when he was 7 years old. Jude killed his first duck when he was 8, so they’ve been shooting a lot,” Sparks said. “When covid came, this was something that kept the kids outside and got them doing something.”
The kids started competing in 2021 and quickly made a name for themselves.
“Jett won his first event, and both of them made the finals in their first year. So it kind of came natural,” Sparks said.
The elder Sparks is a retired bullfighter who spent a decade competing in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, “the most elite rodeo association in the world,” according to his website. He said it’s been great to see his sons follow in his footsteps by competing in rodeo, albeit in a safer way than the bullfighting rings that made him famous.
“It’s super cool to see our kids go to some of the same places we did, meeting some of the same folks of our generation,” he said. “I like that it teaches them some resiliency, how to cope with pressure, how to have patience. There’s so many life skills they’re learning right now through shooting.
“We don’t want them fighting bulls, obviously. What I did was a little dangerous,” Sparks added with a laugh.
At the same time, Sparks said he never wanted to pressure his kids to follow his path. Instead, they’ve blazed their own trail in rodeo with their marksmanship. The twins have picked up nicknames from their parents that they use on the shooting circuit: Smiley and Mischief.
“Since these kids were out of the womb, Jett was always smiling and Jude was always up to something, and it stayed true to this day,” Sparks said.
The boys have traveled to places like Georgia and Iowa for competitions. Jude said his favorite experience in shooting so far was the chance to ride in a limousine with some of his friends at the finals this year.
The Sparks brothers are homeschooled and are entering the ninth grade this fall. The boys also enjoy basketball and flying as hobbies, with the aptly-named Jett working on securing his private pilot’s license with the goal of eventually becoming a fighter pilot in the military.
The twins talked about the difficulties of competing in a mentally intensive sport like shooting, and how they deal with adversity during an off day.
“Don’t focus on the shot you missed,” Jett said. “I know I have a tough time doing that, but I usually try to focus on the next shot. Make it the best one I can.”
Jeremy Sparks, who serves in the Air National Guard, says his sons’ talents shouldn’t be underestimated despite their young age.
“I wouldn’t shoot against these two kids, and I’m in the service, too. They could out-shoot me,” he said with a smile.
Both Jude and Jett said they will continue shooting competitively for as long as they can and see it as something that could be a lifetime hobby.
