originalgeezer Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 As a brief history, have been shooting just over a year and really enjoy it. Had some lessons along the way too, but generally picked the gun up and had a go. Shoot most weekends and in general really enjoy it. I shoot two grounds consistently at the moment whilst I work on what I see as a current problem. I have been shooting Cross Guns in Kinver and Shugborough. My scores would have been circa high thirties at both, so had another coaching session to try to break the forty zone. Coach I used I have used before and I have trust, respect. However, since my coaching session I have lost the plot. I appear to be over thinking everything, about what I might be doing wrong so much so, by then missed. So I gathered it was the over thinking, now I think I am underthinking, in other words it is now all over the place. On a stand I almost clear it or just about get one or two. I think the answer would to be find somewhere, that I can afford to just blast away a slab of carts and try to relax with it all again, but thats an expensive thing to do as would have to do it in the week too... Gun fit and mount I am happy with , but purely think it is a "head" thing, but the Wheels have well and truly fell off my wagon and wondered if others have had this too? Was hoping this year to begin doing registered shoots as want to not only enjoy the sport but be good at it too.....wish I had never had the coaching now as feel I would have got there on my own just gaining more experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coolhead Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Yes this can happen when learning any new skill. You've got the right idea about disconnecting from it and just having some fun. There are many informal clubs where you just turn up and you are left alone. If you know a land owner you just need a friend to lob for you. Just relax and try to be more instinctive. Enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poontang Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 I take it you're shooting sporting? Get yourself on the skeet range, with someone who knows what they're doing. They're regular targets and not too difficult. It will help with your target acquisition, stance, swing, concentration etc. etc. Once you start banging in decent scores, your confidence will be up and you'll almost certainly see a difference in your sporting scores. Try it, you might be surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berties Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 mate,i have had a month of it been shooting like a ****,just breaking the back again,why?dont know ,i did change carts at a few grounds, may be,missed a few weeks over holiday period,just practice and practice it does come back do not over think a shot take it early take it late just mix it up a bit,i believe its all about confidence if you think yes it will happen,but we all have a off day, my shooting buddy had one this week and made me look even better good luck, shoot with instinct,if your eye sees it your gun will,dont change your gun or carts for a few months and keep with it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
originalgeezer Posted January 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Yes, sorry I should have stated it is shooting sporting...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CZ550Kevlar Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Cut your teeth on DTL, given you muscle memory when shooting, then move onto sporting. I had 2 lessons then decided i wasn`t comfortable shooting their way and i would just do my own thing, it works for me and i found a happy medium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
originalgeezer Posted January 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Also for note, i have kept the same gun (even though between the two I used to shoot pretty much the same I just prefer the Benelli) as I also have kept same carts and stayed at the same two grounds for the time being. There are no particular targets I seem to struggle with more than most, as one week it can be a low to high going away, then a low left to right or right to left but then next I am nailing them and missing something else. Thinking of investing a slab of carts and just going to ground for the day and banging away...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southrop Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 If you are going to bang away bang away with a plan. The skeet range is a good place to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claybuster Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 Also for note, i have kept the same gun (even though between the two I used to shoot pretty much the same I just prefer the Benelli) as I also have kept same carts and stayed at the same two grounds for the time being. There are no particular targets I seem to struggle with more than most, as one week it can be a low to high going away, then a low left to right or right to left but then next I am nailing them and missing something else. Thinking of investing a slab of carts and just going to ground for the day and banging away...... You need to shoot round with some other people who you can judge yourself on to guage how your doing. Take a trip to Doveridge on a saturday & you can shoot anything you like there DTL, Skeet, sporting. You will also meet people who will help you without paying for a coaching lesson because to much to soon just gets your head in a mess. Keep trying but sort one type of bird out at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted January 30, 2011 Report Share Posted January 30, 2011 However, since my coaching session I have lost the plot. I appear to be over thinking everything, about what I might be doing wrong so much so, by then missed. So I gathered it was the over thinking, now I think I am underthinking, in other words it is now all over the place. On a stand I almost clear it or just about get one or two. What's thinking got to do with it? Don't think shoot! It should be instinctive. I have shot at Cross a few times and last time was a disaster I was in a bad mood, slipped in the mud, shot like an idiot went home grumpy having wasted 60 carts.... then went out after new year couple of mates no pressure had a laugh and shot well. Go have some fun and enjoy it (your basically burning £50)... don't worry about the score. Agree some time on a skeet range could work well same birds slight change in angles get a slab of cheap carts most skeet grounds sell cheap steels at £3ish a box and bang away Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex C Posted January 31, 2011 Report Share Posted January 31, 2011 I am in exactly the same boat. I started shooting a year ago by having lessons, coach said i was a natural and had a real eye for it. I then got my own gun and went shooting clays with mates. Now some of these guys have been shooting for decades and i was easily matching their scores, until it all came crashing down about 2 months ago. Dont know why but i cant hit a damned thing now. Scores are right down and its starting to get me down. I seem to get on a stand, miss a couple , get annoyed with myself which makes things 10 times worse then go home sick as a parrot. Think i will go back for a couple of lessons and see if she can start from scratch with me again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisAsh Posted February 1, 2011 Report Share Posted February 1, 2011 A simple piece of advice I was given a few weeks ago for sporting, was to follow the pro's which is watch them study the flights of clays of the others compeditors before them, so that when you get to the stand you already know how much lead an where abouts your going to hit them Before this advice I would watch those in front, but not use the free information available, an only start thinking at the stand which meant i missed many of the early birds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillmouse Posted February 2, 2011 Report Share Posted February 2, 2011 Remember there is a basic routine to all clay target shooting. Break your shots down in to the different pieces you learned with your Instructor and rebuild it all. Then you can often spot where the wheel came off and do something about it. More people worry about the result, missing, than the cause. You miss for a reason and there can be many of those but generally they stem from a basic flaw and working back for the root cause is the most effective cure. Starting at the break zone and working back is not a bad idea. Watch the targets closely and then form a plan before going to the stand. Look at a simple single first and read the zones. Pick a realistic break zone. From this choose a gun hold and visual pick up point. You should not be chasing after the clay or moving the gun back towards it. Both would suggest you need to alter your zones. Get the zones right and aim to be smooth and success will come. Your break zone will set your foot position, remember to allow yourself room to swing on past the break zone to complete the shot. Get comfortable and adjust your balance so you are able to swing smoothly. Too much weight on either foot will limit your ability to swing. Try premounting so you rule out any mismounts. Once you are breaking the targets with a nice smooth pick up, application of lead, succesful shot and follow through then ease the gun out a tiny bit and increase this until you are shooting gun down. Think about all the possible faults in each area. Stance, balance, mount, pick up, gun hold, swing and lead, break zone. Think if you look at the rib, lift your head or other subtle things which can creep in as you develop your own style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pull-bang-miss Posted February 2, 2011 Report Share Posted February 2, 2011 sporting lay outs change from time to time at most grounds. Maybe the layouts have got harder for an upcoming comp, could this be the issue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattr Posted February 3, 2011 Report Share Posted February 3, 2011 I'm a relative newbie, and still learning - but just two thoughts to add to this thread. 1. The muscle memory idea is a good one - turning something from practice to habit takes time but enough perseverance will build up the action into an instinctive behaviour. Shooting Skeet, DTL or even practicing on similar Sporting birds will build up some of that memory. 2. Disconnecting from your thoughts is a challenge - but plenty of sportsmen do it. Try reciting a nursery rhyme or a short tune in your head as you prep for your shot, it'll distract you from over thinking and make you rely on your instincts. Golfers use this technique to get over the yips. Good luck - I'm sure you'll be back to straighting stands soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seamus Posted February 4, 2011 Report Share Posted February 4, 2011 This exact situation happened to me. I booked lessons for my wife and I, she was a complete novice and I'd been shooting clays for about 3-4 years. I was getting late 30's/50 at Sporting (with the occasional 40+) fairly consistently, Skeet I was averaging 23/25 and DTL 22/25. For me I just wanted a few pointers about stance and some general advice. The lesson was on a Skeet layout and the instructor did not like my stance at all, so he advised I adjusted several aspects; weight distribution, body forward etc. My shooting on the day was terrible. Next session at my local ground I shot 19/50, the following week 18/50. Skeet scores also plummeted. This kept on for about 3 months before one of the guys I shoot regularly with pulled me to one side and asked me to go through what I was doing when I entered the cage. I was thinking too much about my stance, when the clay was launched I was still thinking about stance, and then immediately switching to work out lead instead of relying on instincts etc.. Throughout the whole process my body was rigid, I simply wasn't relaxed and as a result not enjoying what I was doing which in itself is counter productive. I went back into the cage (with the blessing of the rest of the squad) for about 20 rounds during which I adopted my old "natural" (for me!) stance, and simply tried to relax and enjoy what I was doing. After that my scores started to climb back up again (it took a few weeks). I don't necessarily think the advice I received was bad, I just don't think it suited me or my style; certainly on the day my wife shot really well with the same advice. My problem was that I thought about it far too much and thought I was doing something wrong that needed to be corrected (which I probably am, but I can live with it!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IKNIGHT167 Posted February 4, 2011 Report Share Posted February 4, 2011 I have only been back into it for about 8 months now and have got nowhere near as good as when when I was a teenager. I shoot at Shugborough and often find stands that I consistantly miss, for whatever reason. However Brian at Shugborough only has to observe once and comment and I guarantee that I hit them next time. Shooting DTL is definatley a way to get your mind into focus but I don't find it anywhere near as challenging as Sporting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acid House Posted February 5, 2011 Report Share Posted February 5, 2011 Note to self Fit wheels then when I get good enough to have a bad day I can blame them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
originalgeezer Posted February 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Well thought I should give a quick update and thank all for posting, making positive comments. I spoke to the coach whom I had my session with and we discussed what I thought was happening, we then discussed through the points we had been through on the day. Then, I arranged to go to Shugborough on Friday morning and shoot 100 bird. I had the whole place to myself, took my time before each stand, thought about what had been discussed before going onto the stand. I mentally rehearsed what I wanted to do, as I wanted to try a few different things to see how they affected me. It was nice to be able to relax and try certain things. By the end of it, whilst I hadn't hit more or less than I am currently I felt I had found somewhat more out about what is going on with my shooting. I then went and spoke to the coach again and discussed my findings and it appears now, that in trying to implement the changes I was over compensating what I was trying to do, so the minor changes the coach had tried to make I was making major. So I followed up by going again on Saturday morning and doing the 50 bird and I managed 33-50. Whilst the score isn't superb I did nearly clear two stands. For some reason I have lost the way on shooting the rabbit or the score would have been a lot better. But all said, I am much happier now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
originalgeezer Posted February 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2011 Update: Shot Shugborough this morning and did 34-50 and even though the score isn't fantastic found I really enjoyed my shooting again as it was more about the challenge of what was presented rather than thinking of what I was doing wrong with stance, mount what I should do etc, as when I missed today I knew why....except my nemesis was on one stand and ruined my card otherwise I would have been on for my top score as it then for awhile shook the shaky confidence i was beginning to build... A going away and driven bird.......a driven that goes over my head I have no issue, but this was dropping around 25yd short from the cage. From 8 I hit a miserable 3......and only the going away bird. But all in, a much better morning given recent times Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.