what got you into shooting

[flickrod]

for me it was my dad ,he used to go wildfowling and rough shooting many many moons ago in the 50s,i was just a boy, but his tales of shooting were infectious and i couldnt wait to join him.When i was nine he bought me my first gun it was a diana mod 15 air rifle which i still have to this day.Sadly he is no longer with us but i will never forget those times we spent shooting together.I shoot clays now and each time i pull the trigger i think of him, happy days.

 

flickrod

[Sco77w]

My story is very similar. I remember having my first air pistol at a very young age. my dad had to load it for me and I'd shoot darts at a dart board with it. I soon progressed onto air rifles having loads including a daisy that you would pump up using the forend and my favourite a hw35 export that I would take rabbiting with him. I've been away from shooting for a while and just got my sgc mostly for clays when finances allow the purchace of a gun. I doubt i'll ever see the likes of the poachers pistol my dad had(a .410 hammer pistol with a stock that screwed into the bottom of the grip)

[JonnyR]

I didn't get into shooting til my 30's! A regular at the pub I used to drink in, invited me to go beating on his shoot. Let me have a go with his side by side on beater's day and I promptly bruised my shoulder to pieces. After that I was hooked! Gotta go as I'm off to shoot some clays.....

 

cheers,

[Mickthemiller]

for me it was my dad ,he used to go wildfowling and rough shooting many many moons ago in the 50s,i was just a boy, but his tales of shooting were infectious and i couldnt wait to join him.When i was nine he bought me my first gun it was a diana mod 15 air rifle which i still have to this day.Sadly he is no longer with us but i will never forget those times we spent shooting together.I shoot clays now and each time i pull the trigger i think of him, happy days.

 

flickrod

[Simon123]

My dad pulled me into shooting, he used to go lamping a lot and went rough shooting quite often and he went on the odd clay shoot, so i wanted to have a go so my dad let ma have a go on the lanber sporter on the clay's and as i shot quite well (especially for the first time on a shottie) so he said to himself "im not going to let this one go to a waste" (as my brother hardly shoot's at all now, maybe once or twice a year) so then at 15 he gave me a lanber field which i still have and will have for many years to come but it just wont be getting used as often as it normally did as i've bought a semi-auto a week ago and as i shoot slightly better with the semi-auto that's the gun which i will be using the most.

:lol:

 

Thankfully my dad's still with me and i still go lamping and rough shooting with him and we enjoy our companies very much when shooting together.

;)

Edited March 19, 2011 by Simon123

[Mickthemiller]

When I was a lad I lived close to the local farm and like most kids those days (early 50,) I was there every minute I could,and what a fantastic experience it was, it is a pity more youngsters dont try it today, the things I learn,t in those days carried me through life, the most important one was wanting to work,showing respect to others, I was desperate to stay on the farm but my father insisted on engineering, and I can,t say he was wrong. But back to the subject, Mr Godber the farmer let me and the other kids shoot under his supervision an air rifle at targets against the hay barn,and all the time he was drumming in safety if you broke the rules no more shots that day he then let us go with him into the fields with a 4.10,same rules on safety.I continued shooting with an old 16 bore it had a matchstick for a sight.I was about twenty when I stopped shooting (bloody Women) I had met my wife, we are still married after 48 years talk about a life sentence. We have always had a dog and they were always springers three years ago I lost my then present 16 year old dog Mothy and bought another one. We formed a strong friendship with Ken who we bought him off and I learnt that he (Ken not the dog)was a fair shot in his day, I was itching to see his gun and eventually he brought it out what a difference to my old 16 bore it was a Beretta EELL.. I immediately had the bug, booked some lessons, just after Christmas, got my certificate which i had applied for in November, boughts myself Beretta 686 and am shooting clays on a regular basis, I keep thinking of all the time Iv,e wasted, but you can't have it all, Ive played cricket,football,rugby. still playing golf, but it is great to have a new interest, and shooting its a bit like riding a bike you never lose it entirely.

 

Mick the Miller

 

Ps Just bought another bike Yamaha Virago, talk about going back to your youth.

[nimms]

I used to play golf with a group of close friends most weekends good banter few drinks after etc. Then I got a permanent knee problem and can no long walk the course, started using a buggy weather permitting. Then friend slowly stopped playing usual things work/family commitments so I needed some other intrest. Anyway my daughter for fathers day took me to our local shooting ground and that was it I am hooked. In a way I find it similar to going to golf I have met some great people and have some friendly banter.

[Son Of Potter]

Mine was through my dad ( mr potter) it started of being dragged with him on a saturday afternoon, i think it was to give my mum a break from me!! I had my first shot with an old 410! Scottish john who taught me and ran the little ground we went to! Great method of teaching, if i missed i would get a clip round the ear!!

Then it progressed from there!

With the birth of grand daughter of potter 6 months ago means shooting is very few and far between at the moment! As soon as i an i will be back out shooting!! I enjoy my shooting as it means u get to spend some time wuth me Dad!!

[spiceychilli57]

My ex-wife :lol:

 

Suppose its because dad had guns and i wasnt allowed anywhere near them so always wanted a go i guess

[Cosmicblue]

I didn't start until 3 years ago, aged 50. A mate of mine went on a 40th birthday weekend where they did some clay shooting, calling me the following Monday all enthused and asking me if I'd go with him for a clay shooting lesson. At that point in my life I'd never picked up, let alone fired a shotgun - though I did have an air rifle/pistol around 16 or 17 years of age (a 1970s BSA Mercury .22 and a BSA .177 Scorpion pistol for the nostalgic).

 

Anyway - we had perhaps 3 or 4 lessons together and he gave up, I was hooked by then, changed clubs to gain access to a better coach amd carried on. Not having anyone at that time to shoot with on a regular basis I just used to have an hour's lesson every Saturday morning....70 Saturdays later one of the club members asked an awkward question; "are you cr*p or something, why do you have so many lessons?". That's the point I bought my 1st gun and haven't really looked back.

[TaxiDriver]

Combination of reasons really, I used to have air pistols and air rifles as a kid, just plinking at tins in the garden, got taken ferreting a few times as a kid.

 

More recently I've wanted to buy an air rifle to do a bit of plinking with my son in the garden, the idea being to get him outdoors & off the games console, and to spend time doing something together, 'Father & Son' time

 

I think owning/using an air rifle is a great tool for teaching my 11yr old to act responsibly, and to think about safety and generally developing good character.

 

I keep chickens and 3 allotments so am interested in shooting anything I can eat as an extension of my 'grow your own' values. It was for this reason I didn't think I'd find sporting clays particularly interesting as I can't eat them, but it's proven to be a very social activity and so far I've met a nice bunch of people who on the whole have been very welcoming.

[apache]

Quite a fun question!

 

I started very young playing completely unsupervised with a cheap Chinese air rifle. Mainly shot at cardboard boxes and tin cans but shot a few pigeons, crows and magpies. Shoot forward a few years and my girlfriends father did some clay shooting and my girlfriend got her SGC and a gun. I went with them a few times and enjoyed it.

 

When we moved in together she brought her shotgun and had a cabinet. I must have had the SGC & FAC application paperwork sat on my desk for 2 years before I finally got it filled in and sent off. Get my SGC and FAC initially to use the humane killer for work. Started just on clays but got a couple of invites shooting some game and enjoyed it. A couple of people let me shoot some crows and bunnies and it became clear that a shotgun was not the weapon of choice for bunnies [1 bang and everything for half a mile goes].

 

Put in for a FAC variation for .22RF and .17HMR and have bothered a fair few bunnies since then. Have done a paid deer stalk and enjoyed that. Booked a second outing and looking into doing my DSC 1. I expect that a variation will go in for a centrefire [or two] sometime before the end of the year.

 

It's bloody addictive. Advice to newbies - get a big cabinet!

[Kes]

Like many others it was my dad who started me off, first with an air rifle - an old Heinel .177 which i inherited at the age of 9. Like most kids I walked the fields with friends, birdsnesting and learnt snaring - went to an old farmers to use the .177, a splendid chap who was keen to show the youngsters the safe way to shoot. Then to my friends farm where we could shoot once we had worked the day on the farm.

Went with my dad to his farmer friends with his heavy side by side, shooting rabbits. I took my first rabbit with that gun aged 11.

From then it was more rabbits, hares etc, mostly sitting, as carts were expensive. Camping on farmers lawns after the hay harvest to catch the sun and the morning rabbits. Wonderful days; cheap and often potentially dangerous guns you treated with great respect.

 

I met someone maybe 30 years later who invited me to shoot clays, I'd been to uni and spent years 'doing what blokes do' career, family, kids but this brought it all back and I started shooting 'flying' targets. Joined a local syndicate with my friends introduction and I'm still shooting. Have 3 guns and two rifles and love the peace and privacy as well as the craik.

I suppose I'm a bit like Harnser now, tend to take the gun out more for the walk than the kill these days but I still like having the odd shot. Helping others enjoy their shooting is probably more important these days.

 

Dad, who reminded me he was marksman rated on most WW II weaponry (including the Boyes), was gradually missing as I got better, it'll be the same for me I have no doubt.

Sadly my dad is no longer showing me how to stalk to within range and theres no more complaining that there aren't as many rabbits as there used to be.

When he was about it did seem like the summers were warmer, the grass greener and so much more wildlife everywhere. A lot changes when you become the oldest surviving generation in your family. Life was lot simpler and I'm sure rabbit tasted better !!!!

[Thunderbird]

My dad wasn't really into shooting but he had an old .22 air rifle kicking around (see list below) and my brother and I used to shoot stuff with that on the estate he worked at. Then I got into more powerful air gunning (pigeons and rabbits) and then shotguns with my best mate at the time. Then I had a 20 year gap and went back to shooting 18 months ago!

[0145wirbelwind]

I think it was shooting with my dad that started things off , but i have always had a love of thing that went bang. I used to shoot pistol and rifles and got quite good with a pitol and then they band it . I then start clay shooting, just local stuff at first. About 3 years ago i joined the cpsa and i have not really looked back. I have had a lot of fun and made some great new friends. All in all i am having the time off my life, but my lad would rather use an x box shame

[slimshooter]

When I was in the Cubs aged 8, British Army SLR was first thing I used at a TA base and won the Trophy for best shot. Some how managed to tuck the gun under my arm! My dad is not a believe in gun owner ship but never stopped me from shooting. So took me to the local gun club at the age of 10, this was age you could join, they learnt me respect for firearms. Shooting air rifles and 22Lr and pistol. Dad let me have and Air Rifle when I was 14. Carried on shooting till 18 then left the local club. Found girls and beer! Always carried on an interest in shooting. When I eventually got my own property I could do what I wanted so have got into clay pigeon shooting a couple of years ago, Glad to be back in the sport, now own couple of shotguns and my Titan Mowhawk from when I was 14.

Edited March 22, 2011 by slimshooter

[figgy]

It was my mate at the time with his gat gun being nine or ten this was a hole step up from my blackwidow catapult,loved it but could not hit a thing with it other than eachother with the corks it came supplied with or the five yard dart board shot.

 

Moved up to webley junior air pistol and then onto air rifles,bought a second hand webley vulcan not the best rifle but with a cheap 4x20 scope and tuned up inside just the job for rabbits and other quarry :blink: , sold it to my brother and moved up to more and more expensive guns so did my brother i regretted selling that webley for years and after a recent conversation so did he .

 

Joined the TA cadets as a lad with my mates and shot all sorts from bren guns and old lee enfields to more modern rifles,this instilled good gun handling and safety.

 

My shooting carried on for years till kids came along and loss of shooting rights and getting a bit bored of it made me give it up and sell the lot,started doing more fishing than shooting at this time.

 

My wifes cousin got me into shotguns years after i had got him into shooting air rifles on rabbits he kept on shooting after i gave it up and he progressed into rough and driven pheasant shooting,gave me an invite a few seasons ago on the pheasant and clays,i have not looked back since. :thumbs:

 

As soon as i had my own sgc and gun took my son out with me and he now shoots most of the time with me and my mates

 

ATB figgy

[The Duncan]

Like many others it was my dad who started me off, first with an air rifle - an old Heinel .177 which i inherited at the age of 9. Like most kids I walked the fields with friends, birdsnesting and learnt snaring - went to an old farmers to use the .177, a splendid chap who was keen to show the youngsters the safe way to shoot. Then to my friends farm where we could shoot once we had worked the day on the farm.

Went with my dad to his farmer friends with his heavy side by side, shooting rabbits. I took my first rabbit with that gun aged 11.

From then it was more rabbits, hares etc, mostly sitting, as carts were expensive. Camping on farmers lawns after the hay harvest to catch the sun and the morning rabbits. Wonderful days; cheap and often potentially dangerous guns you treated with great respect.

 

I met someone maybe 30 years later who invited me to shoot clays, I'd been to uni and spent years 'doing what blokes do' career, family, kids but this brought it all back and I started shooting 'flying' targets. Joined a local syndicate with my friends introduction and I'm still shooting. Have 3 guns and two rifles and love the peace and privacy as well as the craik.

I suppose I'm a bit like Harnser now, tend to take the gun out more for the walk than the kill these days but I still like having the odd shot. Helping others enjoy their shooting is probably more important these days.

 

Dad, who reminded me he was marksman rated on most WW II weaponry (including the Boyes), was gradually missing as I got better, it'll be the same for me I have no doubt.

Sadly my dad is no longer showing me how to stalk to within range and theres no more complaining that there aren't as many rabbits as there used to be.

When he was about it did seem like the summers were warmer, the grass greener and so much more wildlife everywhere. A lot changes when you become the oldest surviving generation in your family. Life was lot simpler and I'm sure rabbit tasted better !!!!

A very poignant account, Kes