Clay Pigeon Shooting…

So, yesterday went Clay Pidgeon Shooting with my boyfriend’s family and my brother. It was my very first time giving it a go and it was a really fun thing to do! And of course, I took the camera along!! To get those who don’t know anything about it up to speed, you basically shoot a Shotgun at round clay disks being thrown into the air as if they were flying birds, hence the name ‘clay pigeon’. (So don’t worry we no real birds were harmed during the making of this blog post!). So the main aim of the game is to hit them. Jack and my brother Jack go pheasant and duck shooting regularly at the moment so I have managed to pick up the lingo but had never myself shot a gun before going along.

Not being known for my sporting achievements and a bit of a clumsy one I really had no idea what to expect of my novice shooting skills! But I actually ended up not being as horrendous as I had expected. Four of us took part in a taught lesson whilst Jack & my brother Jack went off on their own as they are so say ‘Shooting Experts’. I shot with a Beretta 20 bore gun (a smaller and lighter gun) and the men shot a Beretta 12 bore shotgun (basically a slightly heavier and longer gun). Our instructor was so knowledgeable and knew exactly what advice to give us to hit the clay, for example I am dominant in my right eye so I should shoot with my left eye closed. It was just the little things like that which were very very helpful. We all had a go at a range of different clays flying at different angles and heights, one of which I just couldn’t hit to save my life. Whereas others I could hit a few times during my go.

At the end of our lesson we had a mini competition, 5 shots each and the one who got the most clays wins. We did have a draw between me and Will and had a sudden death situation, but due to the smaller of the guns (the 20 bore one I was using) running out of cartridges I had to swap to the men’s bigger 12 bore (No hope I thought, a bigger and heavier gun, no way José)! But I actually managed to hit the clay! wooo!! I was buzzing from that not going to lie!

I had such a good time and I think Jacks glad too because it means he can take me again as he also loves shooting. He even brought himself a shotgun last week (In the above photo). Seeing as though I went with not much faith in myself I didn’t actually do bad at all for my first go! I defiantly think people should give it a go if they get the chance! I did try to get a picture of the clay exploding mid-air but completely I failed miserably!!

Thanks for reading.

Little Mayfly x