Disabled sport’s profile has risen hugely in recent years, partly driven by the success of British athletes in the Paralympics. I was therefore interested to see how far the disability sport revolution had reached into fieldsports. I sought out some of the UK’s leading practitioners from the worlds of clayshooting,…
Improve your clayshooting
How to improve your visual focus on the clay target
Don’t look at the gun once it is at your cheek and shoulder. All of your attention must be on the target as you pull the trigger. Mount the shotgun to your cheek and eye, not to your shoulder. If you are standing correctly with a well-practised gun mount and the…
Do I need lessons before I get my shotgun licence?
Shotgun licence: I’ve spent some time with a small shoot this season and love it, and I now fancy taking up shooting myself. How do I get started? Can I receive instruction before getting a shotgun licence?
A sure-fire way to improve your shooting skills
I have recommended Skeet before as a great discipline to help hone our shooting skills. It offers a wide variation of angles with predictable target speeds and trajectories, which are so important to help us learn and practice. After all, there is little point in using targets that vary and…
Where I should place my hand on the fore-end of a shotgun? (And other related questions)
I have just come in to shooting and I am getting a bit confused about where I should place my hand on the fore-end wood? I have seen shooters holding it at the front, while others hold it quite close to the back.
Coloured safety glass lenses and targets for clayshooters
My wife bought me a set of clay shooting glasses with different coloured lenses as a birthday present recently.
How to nail shooting doubles
SHOOTING TIPS: Left & rights: Mark from Grimsthorpe Shooting Ground shows you how to tackle those elusive left and rights.
How to hit simultaneous pairs when clayshooting
Mark looks at some of the trickiest simultaneous pairs you're likely to encounter.
Shooting lessons: How to shoot a right and left!
In game shooting terms a right and left is where you successfully kill a bird with each barrel, in quick succession.
How to deal with teal targets – a step by step guide
Would you suggest shooting teal on the way up, or on the way down? I don't hit many as they rise, but other shooters make it look really easy. Can you give me any tips please?
Grouse shooting lessons – practise on clays
Coach Mark Russell of Grimsthorpe Shooting Ground gives us a guide to shooting grouse targets.
Clay pigeon shooting: The perfect ready stance
Mark reveals why a correct ready position when shooting increases your chance of hitting more clays.
Get that grouse – nailing those low, fast targets
A low driven target catches more shooters out than you would expect. A fast target simulating grouse, the wild moorland bird, is not only low and fast but, to add to your difficulties, you might find yourself down in a pit or in a grouse butt. This means the target…
Top techniques for different clays
Interception technique The first method that Graham looked at was the interception technique, which is a simple method. Graham took Giacomo to a simple slow teal target. Graham says, “Interception here is working on one plane, taking the gun to the point of the shot and with very little…
Which clay pigeon shooting discipline is easiest?
A gun club near my home does DTL and Automatic Ball Trap shooting. I’m in the process of buying my first gun and would like to know which of these games is easiest to master?
What exactly is eye dominance and why is it so important?
Eye dominance, sometimes referred to as “master eye”, is the tendency to subconsciously prefer visual input from one eye to the other while maintaining the value of binocular vision. First, let’s clearly understand that shooting well with a shotgun is an art form and not a calculated sport, unlike that…
Manual or automatic clay pigeon trap. Which should you choose?
So you’ve got a piece of land and you’re wanting to break some clays. You’ve got a sensible budget. You’re not going completely wild but you’ve set aside £1,500. What do you need to know and which clay target thrower is best for you? First, you need to make sure…
How to hit the rabbit clay target
Shotgun instruction: Even if you’re an experienced AA-class shooter, it can still be a tricky job to smash EVERY rabbit clay target.
How to deal with clays when they’re different sizes
Clay shooting: The size of clays being thrown can influence your shooting style and hit rate immensely.
How to hit a single driven clay
What I am looking for in a beginner is preferably a calm personality, but in keeping with all shooters, they need to have a good understanding of timing, which is vital. They also need to be able to process information without any panic or haste. It is my job as…