One eye or two???

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I understand only too well what Hamster is saying as I have middle vision. No eye is actually dominant any more which has the exact effect Hamster explains to us.  It can actually be used as he says but takes enormous concentration to get right consistently.Jon it sounds as if you have intermittent dominance mate which is an absolute bitch to contend with but is quite common in ladies, around 80% of which are said to be left eye dominant but in fact about 10% of those have intermittent dominance.There are really only two ways worth doing to deal with this and that is the patch on the glasses or the two eyes, one eye, BANG! routine, the latter of which I favour every time.I myself have tried the patch several times but its so much hassle.You have to make sure the glasses are on exactly in the correct place every single time and they NEVER are.The glasses can steam up.If it rains you can't see a thing.The vision in the patched eye is no good at all at times when you look away and cause you to trip. So you have to keep taking them off.You can't really wear them in the field because of all of the above.By far the best way is to shut the offending eye as soon as your focussed onto the target. It's very easy unless your one of the very few people that can't wink./wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif

 
And my coach gave me a great analogy for the two eyes, one eye, BANG scenario.He told me this when I was learning to shoot gun down... imagine a fishing line running between your left hand, and your eyelid (assuming you are right handed) - as you move your left hand (and maybe fore finger) towards the moving clay - imagine it pulling your eyelid down. I practised that dry-mounting at home for 10 minutes a time, three or four times a week - and now it's instinctive. I'm still left eye dominant, and occasionally during the first few times I found myself closing the wrong eye...but that seems to have sorted itself out now. YMMV - but it worked wonders for me.

 
Well done mate, keep at it, it will get better./wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif see what I mean ?  /wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-laugh.gif

 
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Cheers Robert :)  I have been doing some reading and it seems to be quite rare in males, particularly under 40's.  I have been looking at my historic scores and I seem to have shot my best just after a holiday and time away from work so stress and spending a lot of time in front of PC monitors could be a contributory factor so time for pirate mode practice :)  Matt, that analogy works for me :) and am going to start trying to shoot more gun down at ESP :)  Jon.

 
Tiredness affects eyesight. Have u noticed if ur scores deteriorate towards the end of the shoot?

 
I was having a mess round on a big louper on saturday, could kill it quite consistently first barrel but not second barrel,(same bird on report) then realised i was leaving the gun in the shoulder,where as on the first shot i had gun down,so dismounted the gun inbetween shots problem solved,i seem to get a better feel for the target when the gun is out of the way.

 
Hawkeye - absolutely yes, I've started taking a drink and something eat round with me - especially when shooting at a busy registered event where you can be 2 or 3 hours going round.I read somewhere that dehydration affects the eyes very early - so keeping hydrated is essential - either water or a Lucozade Lite is my bag every time now.

 
No, normally they improve unless I get distracted and start chasing numbers which i'm getting better at not doing and not looking what scores are in before shooting. I make sure I'm well hydrated and keep glucose tablets handy just in case I need an energy boost or blood sugar starts dropping. Cheers, Jon.

 
Avoid lots of sugar it creates a sudden insulin spike which in turn negatively affects the eyes. If your going to eat make it bananas or a decent cereal bar (not commercial crap loaded with sugar). Decent brekkie like porridge will help give you steady energy through the morning. Save the sweets for your drive home!

 
I absolutely agree with you Ed. go for a banana about 30 mins before shooting and drink some low sugar quash.Water although better than nothing will go straight through you but the squash will hang around and rehydrate you better. The porridge idea is great.

 
ROBERT6500 said:

I absolutely agree with you Ed. go for a banana about 30 mins before shooting and drink some low sugar quash.Water although better than nothing will go straight through you but the squash will hang around and rehydrate you better. The porridge idea is great.
Are you saying,don't go for the big wylye breakfast,have a banana/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-cry.gif,can't imagane driving for 2 hrs and looking forward to a banana! /wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-frown.gif
 
Hawkeye said:

u see , there's more to this game than meets the eye  :)
I totally agree :)  There has been some amazing advice on this thread which as a newish shooter I'm personally finding invaluable and eye opening. Many thanks to everyone for their input and experience :)  Jon.

 
And oh my god - the wylye food is something to reach out for... I'm definitely a 'bacon afterwards' kind of guy...

 
You can have a massive breakfast (I usually do) and I often eat mid shoot. Infact, I eat almost constantly, but it's worth bearing in mind knowing how which foods affect performance/recovery. Not goin to make or break you on a local registered but on days when you want every helping hand you can get, worth bearing in mind.

 
Hi JonI too have tried all the remedies, and currently wear a patch over the left eye and have done for the last 6 months. Both eyes definately didnt work after a few months trial, on some occasions it felt as though I couldnt see any barrels in my peripheral vision so had no idea where the gun was. My dominance like yours changes throughout the day back and forth and depending which finger I point with when testing. The patch is ok after an initial drop in scores, however like Rob says it can get in the way as well as trying too hard and the pressure on the stock increases your left eye can now see more under the patch and start to take over. Not to mention fast LtoR crossers! In fact my scores have dropped quite a bit lately I may try the one eye route again to see if that helps. However be aware for me at least the one eye route did tend to make me aim more and not be so instinctive.

 
Guys, if you have to sit in front of monitors, computer screens all blooming day you will need to get those eyes focussing better by doing some  focussing exercises before you shoot.When you turn up in the car park, start your excercising by focussing on the furthest thing there is away from you. study it / hard focus on it it for at least 15 seconds. Leave it a while and then do it again.Then focus on the back of you hand for 10 seconds and then back out to the object out there in the distance again. Do this as many times as you can stand it.On your way out to shoot do it a few more times as it will work all the muscles necessary for you to focus properly at speed. (muscle memory)Then do the distance focus trick I've mentioned before you call PULL!/wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif

 
Hi Robert, Well I tried that today at Owls lodge and didn't shoot that badly in pirate mode :)  Compact was 17ex25Skeet 21 and 19ex25 it was very windy too with nothing where it should have been :)  Cheers, Jon.

 
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