Anyone want to help a newbie?

[Rock_Steady]

Morgantown, WV - I want to try some clay sports, apparently there are a few places around, but I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about any of them, except you shoot at the clay discs and try not to pepper your mates with birdshot. I'll go spend $70 for a lesson at the local resort, but I'd rather just find a mentor. One who doesn't mind teaching a guy with a 870 ExpSupMag how to play with the high-dollar crowd.

Anyone?

[mete]

I would suggest sporting clays. Anything you spend on lessons will be worth every penny, shorter learning curve, less frustration no bad habits.This should be individual lessons .Then it's a matter of applying the lessons . Have fun !!

[David Wile]

Hey Rock,

With no intention of disrespect, I would disagree with Mete's advice about taking formal shooting lessons. For some folks, formal shooting lessons may be the way to go, but I would suspect those same folks would be the ones who would also opt for formal lessons for golf, tennis, bowling, skiing, or even bike riding. I guess that is OK for some, but most of the folks I know learned to do a lot of recreational type skills from other folks who have already learned such knowledge and skill. It could be a father teaching a child how to shoot, but it could also be just a friend from the local gun club teaching another friend how to shoot. The learning process is like standing on the shoulders of the one who came before you.

If you want to try some clay bird sports, look for some gun clubs in your area and visit them all. Talk to all the folks who seem willing to talk, and you will find a number of folks who will be happy to give you advice - and some who will even be willing to be a mentor. Now different folks may have different ideas about how to do some things, but you can take an eclectic approach and learn even more from a diversity of ideas.

If you ever get to the point where you decide you want to really go further in one particular game than you are then able to do, at that point you may find that professional lessons may be a good idea. Me, I've never been that driven to excellence that I felt the need for professional lessons in anything. Most of what I have learned has been from other simple folks and their experience in something.

Morgantown cannot be much different than Mechanicsburg. I would bet there are a lot of folks in the local gun clubs who will be able to get you started and help you as you find your own way.

Like Mete said, "Have fun."

Best wishes,
Dave Wile

[Rock_Steady]

Well, let me get into more of the problem.

THere is one gun club here in town that is members-only. I haven't put up for my membership yet, a $100 application fee and $140 a year. I don't have a problem with spending the money, as I'm sure I can recoup it, but why apply when I can't even get a tour of the club first? Or a sponsor?

Other than that, I guess I could just go to each of the clubs I found on www.claytargetsonline.com and see what they are like - I've got an 870, a vest, and a box of sporting rounds. Should I just go and try to get my feet wet without embarassing myself?

--edited for horrid typos

[Rockrivr1]

You could try looking at the on-line calendars for these clubs. I've noticed that a good amount of these calendars list when there is an open shoot for Trap, Skeet, etc. A lot of clubs have open shoots for Trap or Skeet one day a week and on Sunday mornings. Most will be open to the public as a way to gain new membership. I started that way here in the NE and met some very friendly shooters who were more then willing to give me a few pointers.

Good luck. I think you'll really enjoy shooting Trap.

[Rock_Steady]

from the looks of it, I guess I will be just going out to try it. I'd have really liked to get some shotgunning 101, but if I screw up badly enough, I'm sure someone will correct me. :) It's just hard going in without the etiquette, the what-do-I-do-now, having someone to walk you through. In my line of work, if you don't know what you're doing, you let the folks around you know that so that you or someone else doesn't get killed cause of your own stupidity. Hopefully that will apply here too.

[David Wile]

Hey Rock,

From what you say, it would seem there are a bunch of gun clubs in your area. I cannot imagine a gun club that would not welcome you to look at their facilities in the hope of getting you to join. If you find a club with that attitude, just look into the others. You might find that you like more than one club for different reasons, and you may want to join more than one after you have visited them. Most clubs have weekly open shoots where anyone can pay a small fee (perhaps $5 for 50 claybirds in trap or maybe $10 for 50 claybirds for sporting clays) and shoot trap, skeet, sporting clays, or any number of other events. You may join one club that you like for various reasons and still go to other clubs as a non-member for their open shoots.

If you wanted to try trap, you could go to a club, watch a few squads shoot their rounds, and ask someone about anything you do not understand. When you think you have some idea of how things work, you can go to one of the folks running the squads, tell him you are new to the sport and would like to try a round. I cannot imagine you will find many folks who would not be quite helpful and welcome you to give it a try. Ask how you should do things safely at their club, and you will do just fine.

Best wishes,
Dave Wile

[BozemanMT]

Well, I would disagree and say take A lesson
just one
a. you'll learn the game (s).
b. you'll learn how to shoot a shotgun.
c. you'll learn to look for what you are doing wrong.

the 100/150 bucks you spend will way more pay for itself in saved ammo and time.
easy.

I shoot a lot of shotgun, but I didn't start til about 20 months ago and I took one lesson to start. (and read a ton of stuff). And even only in a month or two I would go shooting with friends who had been shooting shotguns for years. And i would shoot at least as well as them.

Get the basics, then worry about the subtle stuff. There are a lot of good posts on this, see the stickies at the top of the forum.

[Dave McCracken]

Morgantown is about 90 minutes from PGC.

What are you doing Friday?....

[Rock_Steady]

Dave, thanks for the invite - but unfortunately, I am working a 12 hour shift on friday - saving others from themselves. :) Rain check?

90 mins? I thought PGC was out near Baltimore and DC?

--Rock

[Dave McCracken]

Just off the DC Beltway in Greenbelt. Darn....

Rain check good. Keep in touch.

As for the viability of lessons, I learned more or less by trial and error. That's why I teach.....

[Rock_Steady]

against my better judgement, I will go and have some (hopefully) fun on Sunday with my first round of clays - then if I suck really bad or don't make a friend or two there, I will pay for a lesson at the local "Gouge the tourists" resort. at $100 for an hour, I darn well better learn something. :)

Thanks guys, for feuling another obsession.

--Rock

[Rockrivr1]

Oh you'll have fun. Remember to bring enough ammo for 3 or 4 rounds. You'll do the first and just have to do the second to see if you can do better. An so on and so on. That is until your shoulder hurts. ;)

[Rock_Steady]

I dunno if I can mount that ExSupMag 200 times in one day. :)

--Rock

[RioShooter]

Here are a couple of tips on safety and etiquette:

1. NEVER point your muzzle at another person
2. Do not load your gun until you are at the station
3. Do not load more shells than you need at a station
4. Wear eye and ear protection

Have fun and don't be concerned about embarressing yourself. I recently shot with a newbie who was excited to score 3/25. His friends cheered each time he broke a target.

[Dave McCracken]

Bustin' clays is more addicting than crack,Rock, just legal and less lethal to the user.

As for mounting 200 times, work up to it. Practice mounts at home, with a shotgun KNOWN TO BE EMPTY. You're using some muscles in ways they haven't been used before. Start with 25 a night, then up it to 35, and so on. Make sure each mount is done correctly.

Work on smoothness and consistency. Speed will show up on its own.

The Flashlight drill from the 101s can help here.

HTH....