Sporting Shoots 2021. Reports and discussion.

[Bebo]

Churchills today.  First Reg shoot for me for a few weeks. Was a lovely winter day to be out, actually felt warm for a while in the sun.  Had two poor stands.  Couldn't find one of the targets of the scaffold and totally screwed a sim pair of high curling right to left targets off the bank in the skeet layout at the bottom of the car park.  Those two stands cost me 13 targets.  Was more than happy with the way I shot the rest of the course (if you discount the two crap ones I scored 95%!).

 

[Richard59]

Oxfordshire today, early enough for tea, bit breezy, overall a bit more so than Barbury on Wednesday, some longish faces one being the course setter which didn’t bode well. Usual Oxford chums, started at noon steady start on some teal then dropped a couple of rabbits that thought I should’ve hit. The aforementioned breeze though then played havoc, St3, an “incomer” went backwards, big time, the report a high r-l 1/4ering looper was turned into a pencil. St5 a simo of l-r slow looper with a l-r 1/4ering away looper, the slow bird was being driven to floor so had to be shot first the 1/4ering with wind up its tail flew at lightspeed, it was near impossible to get a second shot off at times, it seems when set (windless) the idea was the 1/4ering could be shot first then the slower bird, on day that was impossible. We all ploughed through, a few moments of triumph amid the disasters, it was a tough day I felt. A very decent mug of tea and big slice of walnut cake was polished off in a pleasantly warm clubhouse. Don’t know scores as none on display, me ended on RAW average, which given conditions & one horror stand is about right on day.

Now do I brave it at Gunsite Sunday

 

[Bebo]

College Farm (Hornet) for me today. Really, really windy. One pair of targets was being pushed so far out that I pulled the trigger, thought I'd missed and then it broke. Scorer estimated it was out at 80 yards. On one stand I struggled to hold the gun steady against the cross wind. Nothing less than 50% on any one stand but far too few straights to compensate for the loses. Finished on 71, with at least half a dozen of the losses down to the wind.

 

[Will Hewland]

Was definitely not feeling the love for shooting of late and performances had dropped correspondingly (which in turn doesn’t make the love return of course). So have shot very little recently. 
 

I tried the registered Compak at EJ Churchill today, as a no-pressure change. The ground was rammed, all shoot spaces taken and car parks full. I quickly brushed up on the CSP rules from squad mates and off we went. Missed first target out, both barrels, just flustered and rusty. 21 on first layout, which had some tricky sim pairs actually. Then 25, 21, 23 to scrape a 90, which is NOWHERE in CSP but it served as a de-rusting shoot. I struggled with the fast edge-on targets, dropping 5 of them, before sussing (with Guy Franklins assistance) that I was looking at the gun to check the picture. Stopped doing that which fixed it.
 

It was my first experience of the voice activated system, which almost works well, needing microphones to be in correct position. Some were off-centre and didn’t work well if you are holding for the target in other direction. Nice to have the audio beep for a miss and to have the live score screen.
 

Anyway, a pleasant afternoon and feeling a bit better about shooting in January now.

 

[jasper]

Not been feeling it either. Which was not helped by a terrible squad at Hodnet Wednesday 100reg sporting.  They turned up late , shot round with no glasses and stood right behind the stand shouting about Xmas etc  . Two sets of ear defenders didn't help.  Total disrespect  for us. Needless to say I was fuming. A rare opportunity  to shoot this lovely ground was ruined by these ignorant folk. Really has made me question why I went. And if I can be that bothered to shoot again for a while. 

It's becoming  tiresome having to deal with these sorts at most of the shoots I go to now. 

Jasper.

 

[Clynt]

Not been feeling it either. Which was not helped by a terrible squad at Hodnet Wednesday 100reg sporting.  They turned up late , shot round with no glasses and stood right behind the stand shouting about Xmas etc  . Two sets of ear defenders didn't help.  Total disrespect  for us. Needless to say I was fuming. A rare opportunity  to shoot this lovely ground was ruined by these ignorant folk. Really has made me question why I went. And if I can be that bothered to shoot again for a while. 

It's becoming  tiresome having to deal with these sorts at most of the shoots I go to now. 

Jasper.

It's been coming since this squading system started  mate , no longer a comp atmosphere ,more a jolly boys outing ,game's changed big time , and not for the better either , prob a age thing hahahaha

 

[jasper]

Yep. Absolutely  spot on mate. And I'm not as old as you. 

Jasper. 

As an aside . I thought a cpsa reg was for cpsa members. Makes you wonder what we're  paying the cpsa for. 

Jasper. 

 

[Westward]

That's where a grown up ref comes in. I've had to ask people to quiet down or move away on many occasions.

Mind, you can hear Clynt coming from 3 stands away. 

 

[paul b]

That's where a grown up ref comes in. I've had to ask people to quiet down or move away on many occasions.

Mind, you can hear Clynt coming from 3 stands away. 

Ive started doing a bit of reffing of late after not doing any for many years and all i can say is i doubt ill be doing much more!

You should have ear protection on shooter,why is the reply,well its the cpsa rules ,well im not in the cpsa .Same conversation over glasses plus some experienced members who have gotten away with not wearing them in the rain for so long apparently im being over strict inforcing it and then you have the endless coaching which appart from slowing the job down loads is plane cheating.Then can i see a pair reff and miraculously the finger goes to the exact right spot for the hold point but they never got to see em before

 

[Westward]

Well yes reffing can be a thankless and sometimes annoying task. But non cpsa shooters are customers too and if the ground lets them enter then it's not the ref's job to piss them off. Theoretically you can refuse to let them shoot If they won't accept cpsa or ground rules but I've never gone that far. You just know they'd go straight to the management and kick up a fuss, your day gets ruined and on ref's pay you really don't want the aggro.

Only joking about Clynt BTW. His squad manners are as good as anyone's and better than many. 

 

[Charliedog]

Ive started doing a bit of reffing of late after not doing any for many years and all i can say is i doubt ill be doing much more!

You should have ear protection on shooter,why is the reply,well its the cpsa rules ,well im not in the cpsa .Same conversation over glasses plus some experienced members who have gotten away with not wearing them in the rain for so long apparently im being over strict inforcing it and then you have the endless coaching which appart from slowing the job down loads is plane cheating.Then can i see a pair reff and miraculously the finger goes to the exact right spot for the hold point but they never got to see em before

The can I see a pair is interesting, we shoot in squads and try and maintain a sensible distance back from the group in front if we catch up, so whilst standing 10 yards back from the cage we have a fairly good idea where the 2 targets are coming from, they can actually look very different from the cage, so I would generally ask to see a pair if first in the squad, which I dont personally see as unreasonable?

 

[Sian]

Did a bit of shooting over Christmas, not improving so it’s a catch 22.  Feel despondent and don’t want to go, don’t go and therefore not improving.  Culminated in a less than fun day out at Southdown, weather worse than predicted and I just went through the motions.  Something has to give, I’m better than this.   

 

[bisondan]

Managed to get out a bit over the festive period.

86 at Hangmanstone on Boxing Day; shot well until about stand 9 where I missed 3 midi driven then all four of the long loopers on stand 10.

84 at Eriswell Lodge on 27th, this was annoying as was booked on at 2, left at 10.20 in the morning but traffic was awful and ended up being 10 minutes late which wasn't ideal preparation.  Some good targets but some daft including an edge on battue at about 20 yards; difficult to see and although I straighten the stand seemed a waste of a battue.  

88 at Barrow Heath on the 28th which was a more sensible round, feels similar to how Gunsite & Hangmanstone is set; 2 or 3 harder stands with some birds that need a gap then 5 or 6 that are a little trickier then the rest that should be straighted.  I quite enjoy shooting here, shame it's 130 miles each way.

90/120 on ESP and 80 on STR at Southdown today.  My first visit here since August, 2/3rds of the sporting stands were enjoyable, the first 10 not so much; felt very samey and even though my eyesight is usually great the Southdown classic of orange clays in grey sky made it harder on some stands, and edge-on going away midi rabbit plus a couple of fast, short window midis diving behind a bank was disappointing.  Sportrap was an odd affair, first layout was steady enough, second full of orange clays which again felt like being beaten by visibility rather than a good target, third was just daft with some silly sim pairs where some on my squad didn't get a second shot off, then the fourth was steady.

 

[Richard59]

Well yes reffing can be a thankless and sometimes annoying task. But non cpsa shooters are customers too and if the ground lets them enter then it's not the ref's job to piss them off. Theoretically you can refuse to let them shoot If they won't accept cpsa or ground rules but I've never gone that far. You just know they'd go straight to the management and kick up a fuss, your day gets ruined and on ref's pay you really don't want the aggro.

Only joking about Clynt BTW. His squad manners are as good as anyone's and better than many. 

Have also reffed the odd shoot (been a while though), inc reg comps where non-members have shot, personally won't let them shoot the stand if no ear or eye protection, I just wont release the targets until they do so, been lucky that never come across a feisty "customer", same stance with the lads & lasses that take glasses off when its raining / drizzling. And yes Clynt is a lovely chap, very competitive and with lofty standards on what's expected at a shoot, bit like us two.

The can I see a pair is interesting, we shoot in squads and try and maintain a sensible distance back from the group in front if we catch up, so whilst standing 10 yards back from the cage we have a fairly good idea where the 2 targets are coming from, they can actually look very different from the cage, so I would generally ask to see a pair if first in the squad, which I dont personally see as unreasonable?

Squads yes, think the post was more aimed at the non-squadded events