I *finally* got a chance to go back out and shoot again. Between work and crappy weather, I thought I'd never get to have any fun.
The weather was good, and no problems at work, so yesterday afternoon my friend and I left work and headed to the range.
As I'd mentioned before, I have lately been shooting worse on my second round of trap; usually dropping about 3 birds compared to the first round.
Today, I managed to stay exactly the same. I think I have a handle on why I was doing it, and hopefully this will help me get even better.
First, about the middle of the second round, I noticed that my gun mount was getting sloppy. Sometimes the butt of the gun would sit a little high or low from where it should be. This didn't seem to cause too much trouble, but wasn't ideal. But I was also letting the stock hit too far out on my shoulder sometimes. So now my head has to lean over farther, or my sight picture is off.
Once I figured that out, I started pulling my shoulder against the stock, and making sure it was set in the right place before getting set and calling for the bird. It definitely helped. I shot two 21's. Not the best scores ever, but I was happy about the consistency.
And after shooting, I figured out the other problem. Rhythm is supposed to be a good thing when shooting, right? But it can also cause problems. I realised that I was getting into the rhythm and routine of shooting, and I was actually pulling the trigger based on timing, not on aim. Rather than waiting for my eye to catch up with the clay, I was pulling the trigger at the right "time". Even if my eyes were still looking a foot behind the clay. Well that's just dumb.
But now that I've noticed it, I think I can fix it. Just being conscious of the problem will help a lot. But I think I'll also play some "games" on my practice rounds a few times. I'll try shooting fast on one station, slow on the next. Or maybe even alternate between birds instead of stations. But shoot a few rounds like that to keep myself in mind of the fact that I pull the trigger when I'm ready, not reflexively.
The weather was good, and no problems at work, so yesterday afternoon my friend and I left work and headed to the range.
As I'd mentioned before, I have lately been shooting worse on my second round of trap; usually dropping about 3 birds compared to the first round.
Today, I managed to stay exactly the same. I think I have a handle on why I was doing it, and hopefully this will help me get even better.
First, about the middle of the second round, I noticed that my gun mount was getting sloppy. Sometimes the butt of the gun would sit a little high or low from where it should be. This didn't seem to cause too much trouble, but wasn't ideal. But I was also letting the stock hit too far out on my shoulder sometimes. So now my head has to lean over farther, or my sight picture is off.
Once I figured that out, I started pulling my shoulder against the stock, and making sure it was set in the right place before getting set and calling for the bird. It definitely helped. I shot two 21's. Not the best scores ever, but I was happy about the consistency.
And after shooting, I figured out the other problem. Rhythm is supposed to be a good thing when shooting, right? But it can also cause problems. I realised that I was getting into the rhythm and routine of shooting, and I was actually pulling the trigger based on timing, not on aim. Rather than waiting for my eye to catch up with the clay, I was pulling the trigger at the right "time". Even if my eyes were still looking a foot behind the clay. Well that's just dumb.
But now that I've noticed it, I think I can fix it. Just being conscious of the problem will help a lot. But I think I'll also play some "games" on my practice rounds a few times. I'll try shooting fast on one station, slow on the next. Or maybe even alternate between birds instead of stations. But shoot a few rounds like that to keep myself in mind of the fact that I pull the trigger when I'm ready, not reflexively.
