MID ATLANTIC RIFLE CONFERENCE Since 1978

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Jim Thorp Memorial Sevice - September 11,2010 (more details...)

IN MEMORIAM: JIM THORP

VMI HEAD RIFLE COACH

Jim Thorp, Head Varsity Rifle Coach of Virginia Military Institute for nearly 30 years passed away July 2010.

Amongst the many honors Thorp earned were the NRA Service to Collegiate Shooting Award, the MAC Robert S. Ketzner Service Award, and two-time MAC Coach of the Year. He will be remembered for not only being a fundamentally sound coach, but a visionary of the sport by establishing three separate varsity teams while maintaining a ROTC team through a time where military marksmanship squads were dwindling in number.

MSGT Thorp was initially assigned to VMI Army ROTC back in 1979.  He started his association with the Rifle team in the capacity of head coach in 1981, the founding year of the VMI NCAA rifle team.  MSGT Thorp then served as VMI’s head rifle coach for the following 27 years, retiring from the head position after the 2008 rifle season. 

During MSGT Thorp’s long tenure in the head coach capacity, he was able to showcase VMI as site for the NCAA Rifle Championships on four different occasions (1982, 1988, 1990 and 1992).  Further, over these many years he coached rifle to upwards of 600 VMI cadets.   Thorp was a notable college rifle coaching personality on the national level. He was a member of the NCAA Rifle Committee for four years (one year as Chair), a regular official and attendee at the National Championships held each July at Camp Perry Ohio and he served on the MAC Executive Committee as a Member-at-Large for sixteen years.

MSGT Thorp served as VMI’s assistant rifle coach in 2009, where his legacy still continues and where he was prominently involved and associated with VMI’s rifle program.  However, in the assistant coach capacity he had more free time for leisure pursuits. 

Prior to his work with VMI’s rifle team, MSGT Thorp served 21 years in the United States Army.  In that regard, while on active duty he served primarily in Armor and Artillery units.  He spent 1½ tours fighting in Vietnam, a tour in Korea and three tours in Germany.  MSGT Thorp developed a reputation as a “troop oriented field soldier” spending over 4 ½ years in the capacity of company First Sergeant.

Besides his work with the VMI rifle team, MSGT Thorp ran the local 4H Rifle program from 1983-2004, and was a Hunter Safety Instructor, as well as an NRA Instructor and Training counselor in numerous shooting disciplines.  In his spare time, MSGT Thorp was a small arms weapons enthusiast and collector as well as an amateur historian of note. 

Longtime coaching colleague Paul Klimitas of the University of the Sciences Varsity Rifle Team offered a few comments after learning of Thorp’s passing. “Jim was old school. His world was either ‘this’ or ‘that’. The term ‘grey area’ was not in his vocabulary. This is a tremendous loss for VMI, his shooters, and the collegiate rifle world. If you were turned-off by his rough and gruff personality – then you missed it! No, he wasn’t soft and cuddly; no, he didn’t use fifteen letter words; but he loved his shooters and he loved the sport. Jim Thorp was one of those unique personalities in our sport. The sports world calls these people colorful. I am not only fortunate that I was able to coach against his teams for many years and work with him on conference and NCAA business, but I am honored to have counted him as a friend. I am sure that there will be many Jim Thorp stories that will be told for a long time; I know that I have a few. He will be missed.”

 A memorial service will take place on the VMI campus once students return.