Chris Cheng | |
---|---|
Born | |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles (B.A.) Monterey Institute of International Studies (M.A.) |
Occupation | Professional Marksman & Spokesman for Bass Pro Shops |
Known for | Season 4 Champion of History Channel's Top Shot competition |
Website | www.TopShotChris.com |
Chris Cheng (born December 14, 1979, in Mission Viejo, California) is an American sport shooter and The History Channel's Top Shot Season 4 Champion. [1] In 2012, along with the title of "Top Shot", Cheng won a $100,000 cash prize and a professional marksman contract with the show's sponsor, Bass Pro Shops. [2]
Cheng was born to Maggie and Benjamin Cheng. His mother is Japanese Cuban and his father is Chinese American. He has a younger sister, Allison.
He attended the University of California, Los Angeles from 1998 to 2003 where he majored in Political Science, with a focus on American government and political media. He holds a master's degree in International Policy Studies from the Monterey Institute of International Studies where he specialized in conflict resolution and international negotiations and was President of his class. He is fluent in Spanish. Cheng also holds an Advanced Project Management certification from Stanford University.
Cheng is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity and was a re-founding father of his chapter at UCLA where he served in numerous leadership roles. He was the Grand Sweepstakes winner in UCLA's 2001 Spring Sing talent show competition. [3] In 2003, Cheng served as co-chair of the 26-hour UCLA Dance Marathon where 2,000 students, faculty, and staff raised $54,000 for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, which was noted as "one of the largest college fundraising events on the West Coast." [4] Upon graduating in 2003, he was conferred with the "UCLA Chancellor's Service Award."
Cheng worked for Google Inc. from 2007 to 2012 in many capacities, primarily in technical support for Google Apps, as well as a product lead in Google.org's Google for Nonprofits Program. [5] [6] Chris served on the GoogleEDU leadership faculty where he trained teams and individuals on interpersonal communication and the fundamentals of leadership. He left Google in June 2012 to pursue his professional marksman contract full-time.
Cheng is an NRA News Commentator where he provides his opinions and commentary on a variety of issues. [7] He also tours Bass Pro Shops across the country interacting with customers; shooting in Multi-Gun, USPSA, IDPA, and IPSC competitions, and working with the National Rifle Association of America and National Shooting Sports Foundation on promoting the shooting sport. Cheng is a Lifetime member of the National Rifle Association and is an NRA Certified Pistol, Rifle, and Shotgun Instructor. [8]
Cheng's book "Shoot to Win" reveals how he trained to win Top Shot, as well as how he empowers himself to succeed in life. [1] Cheng is a Staff Writer for The Firearm Blog where he writes about firearms and gear in his post-Top Shot experiences. [9]
Cheng was featured in the Second Amendment documentary Assaulted: Civil Rights Under Fire (2013) alongside Ted Nugent and Ice-T. [10] He was on 13 episodes of Top Shot Season 4, and was a special guest on the premiere and season finale of Top Shot Season 5: All-Stars. [11]
Cheng is an inspirational public speaker, represented by The Harry Walker Agency. [12]
Cheng's website and blog is at TopShotChris.com. His future career plans include running for public office.
Cheng produces a web series called Top Shot Chris Cheng that airs on CarbonTV. [13]
Cheng joined the Board of Directors of the LGBTQ gun rights organization, Pink Pistols in January 2020. [14] [15] In a statement released to the public Cheng said of the decision to join Pink Pistols, "I am excited to bring my technology and business background to Operation Blazing Sword. The next chapter of queer rights has begun with more of our community realizing that the Second Amendment is a way for marginalized communities to protect ourselves from harm..." [16] "Operation Blazing Sword" (another LGBTQ gun rights organization), merged with Pink Pistols in 2018. [17]
Cheng is on the board of directors for the San Francisco Opera BRAVO! Club. [18] He is also a volunteer baritone singer for the San Francisco Symphony Chorus. [19] He played double bass from ages 13–22 in both orchestras and jazz bands.
He is a co-founder of Home for a Home, a nonprofit organization which collects donations from real estate brokers to build homes for those in need. [20]
In December 2013 Cheng publicly came out as gay on his official blog. [21] He did so in the hopes of breaking down stereotypes both about gay people and gun enthusiasts. [22] [23]
The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while continuing to teach firearm safety and competency. The organization also publishes several magazines and sponsors competitive marksmanship events. According to the NRA, it had nearly 5 million members as of December 2018, though that figure has not been independently confirmed.
In the United Kingdom, access by the general public to firearms is subject to strict control measures. Members of the public may own rifles and shotguns, however, they must be properly licensed. Most handguns have been banned in Great Britain since the Dunblane school massacre in 1996. Handguns are permitted in Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man which have their own applicable laws. Scotland imposes its own additional licensing requirements for airguns.
Gun politics in the United States is characterized by two primary opposing ideologies regarding private firearm ownership.
A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard firearms. Gunsmiths do modifications and changes to a firearm that may require a very high level of craftsmanship, requiring the skills of a top-level machinist, a very skilled woodworker, and even an engineer. Gunsmiths perform factory-level repairs and renovations to restore well-used or deteriorated firearms to new condition. They may make alterations to adapt sporting guns to better fit the individual shooter that may require extensive modifications to the firearm's stocks and metal parts. Repairs and redesigns may require fabrication and fitting of unavailable parts and assemblies constructed by smiths themselves. Gunsmiths may also renew metal finishes or apply decorative carvings or engravings to guns. Many gun shops offer gunsmithing service on the premises.
In the United States (U.S.), a marksmanship badge is a U.S. military badge or a civilian badge which is awarded to personnel upon successful completion of a weapons qualification course or high achievement in an official marksmanship competition. The U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps are the only military services that award marksmanship qualification badges. However, marksmanship medals and/or marksmanship ribbons are awarded by the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Air Force for weapons qualifications. For non-military personnel, different U.S. law enforcement organizations and the National Rifle Association (NRA) award marksmanship qualification badges to those involved in law enforcement. Additionally, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) and the NRA award marksmanship qualification badges to U.S. civilians. Most of these organizations and the U.S. National Guard award marksmanship competition badges to the people they support who succeed in official competitions.
A pistol sword is a sword with a pistol or revolver attached, usually alongside the blade. It differs from a rifle with a bayonet attached, in that the weapon is designed primarily for use as a sword, and the firearm component is typically considered a secondary weapon designed to be an addition to the blade, rather than the sword being a secondary addition to the pistol. In addition, the two components of these weapons typically cannot be separated, unlike most bayonets mounted on rifles.
Springfield Armory, Inc., is an American commercial firearms manufacturer and importer based in Geneseo, Illinois. Founded in 1974 by Bob Reese and family, the company produces rifles such as the M1A and imports handguns such as the XD series and Hellcat. The company is unrelated to the like-named former manufacturer of US military firearms in Massachusetts, Springfield Armory.
Metallic silhouette shooting is a group of target shooting disciplines that involves shooting at steel targets representing game animals at varying distances, seeking to knock the metal target over. Metallic silhouette is shot with large bore rifles fired freehand without support out to 500 meters, and with large bore handguns from the prone position with only body support out to 200 meters. Competitions are also held with airguns and black-powder firearms. A related genre is shot with bow and arrow, the metal targets being replaced with cardboard or foam. The targets used are rams, turkeys, pigs, and chickens, which are cut to different scales and set at certain distances from the shooter depending on the specific discipline.
Gun laws in the United States regulate the sale, possession, and use of firearms and ammunition. State laws vary considerably, and are independent of existing federal firearms laws, although they are sometimes broader or more limited in scope than the federal laws.
John Dean "Jeff" Cooper was a United States Marine, the creator of the "modern technique" of handgun shooting, and an expert on the use and history of small arms.
United States Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company, Inc. was a privately held firearms-manufacturing firm based in Hartford, Connecticut. Until 2011, United States Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company, Inc. was known for producing single action revolvers, which were clones of the Colt Single Action Army revolver. The factory was located "Under the Blue Dome", in the East Armory building of the former Colt Armory complex, where Colt's Manufacturing Company produced many of their classic firearms in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The GP100 is a family/line of double action five-, six-, seven-, or ten-shot revolvers made by Sturm, Ruger & Co., manufactured in the United States. Since its introduction, it has been produced with a number of variations including various barrel lengths and profiles, fixed or adjustable sights, and in blued carbon steel or stainless steel.
The Pink Pistols are an LGBTQ gun rights organization in the United States and Canada. Their motto is "Pick on someone your own caliber".
District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), is a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States. It ruled that the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects an individual's right to keep and bear arms—unconnected with service in a militia—for traditionally lawful purposes such as self-defense within the home, and that the District of Columbia's handgun ban and requirement that lawfully owned rifles and shotguns be kept "unloaded and disassembled or bound by a trigger lock" violated this guarantee. It also stated that the right to bear arms is not unlimited and that certain restrictions on guns and gun ownership were permissible. It was the first Supreme Court case to decide whether the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear arms for self-defense or whether the right was only intended for state militias.
Top Shot is an American reality television show that debuted on the History Channel on June 6, 2010. In the show, 16 contestants, split into two teams of eight, compete in various types of shooting challenges. One by one, the contestants are eliminated until only one remains. That contestant receives a $100,000 grand prize and the title of "Top Shot." Survivor Runner Up Colby Donaldson is the host.
The fourth season of the History channel television series Top Shot premiered on February 14, 2012.
Caleb Giddings is a competitive shooter and blogger. He is the founder of Gun Nuts Media, a website and blog among competitive shooters. He is also known for competing in the first season of History Channel's marksmen competition Top Shot.
The National Shooting Centre is the UK's largest shooting sports complex, comprising several shooting ranges as well as the large Bisley Camp complex of accommodation, clubhouses and support services. The centre is located near the village of Bisley in Surrey, from which it takes its colloquial name "Bisley ranges". The site is wholly owned by the National Rifle Association (NRA). The NSC is the trading name of the facility.
The Kel-Tec P50 is a FN 5.7×28mm semi-automatic pistol designed in the United States by Kel-Tec in 2021.
The Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights (CCFR) is a Canadian gun rights organization.