Does cigarette smoking affect shooting accuracy?

Many things can affect shooting acuracy, smoking could be one of them!

By John Bidwell

Monday, 26 July 2010

Clay Shooting: Does cigarette smoking affect shooting accuracy? The reason I ask is because my fitness instructor says nicotine affects reaction times.

Clay Shooting
JOHN BIDWELL
There’s no doubt that good shooting relies on being able to see targets clearly and quickly enough to enable us to shoot them in the right place, consistently and smoothly, without having to rush our swing or gun mount.

If nicotine from smoking is responsible for slower reaction times then, yes, I would say the habit is likely to – or could have - a detrimental effect on scores.

I say ‘could have’ because there are plenty of folk out there who would shoot better if only they could slow and calm down a little.

In the case of nervy sorts, the calming effect of a burning slug of tobacco might actually help!

On balance – and regardless of whether smoking’s good or bad for you – I would say it’s best to kick the habit if you possibly can.

Not only will fresh air taste really good again, the money you save from giving up will allow you to do a lot more shooting.

It’s a no-brainer really!