Most all Clay & Wing shooters desire to shoot better. But for many, shooting mistakes create frustration during competition, in the field, and even during practice sessions. Dan Schindler teaches shooters, from all skill levels, a shooting process that creates more consistency and proficiency by eliminating mistakes both before and during the shot. Each month, Dan provides a new shooting tip to help you be more consistent in the shooting box and on your scoresheet.
As you would expect, I field a lot of questions about shooting methods.
Which is best, where and why. 30 years of sporting and watching literally
millions of targets from behind the trigger has taught me this.
No one
shooting method is best for all targets. The wide diversity of target
presentations in sporting clays strongly suggests we have more than one
shooting method in our skill inventory.
For instance, what method would you
use on a fast, left to right, 40 yard crossing target off a tower? Well for
starters, what breakpoint have you chosen on this bird? An early breakpoint
will likely mean the speed of the bird is up, requiring a suitable lead.
Midway through the flight the bird speed has slowed, changing the lead.
Eventually running out of speed the bird is still a crosser, but the lead
has again changed.......
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I hear this frequently when my student first calls to inquire about
taking lessons with me at his club or River Bend. My caller is
(understandably?) disappointed over breaking fewer of his or her targets
than the group‘s 70% or 80%, maybe a 90%.
When I ask how long he’s been in sporting clays, the answer is usually less
than a year or two. We can all relate, it’s human nature to compare
ourselves to those ahead of us, sometimes forgetting they’ve been shooting
4, 8, maybe 15 years or more........
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Have you noticed how the really good ones make it look so easy? Gymnasts,
skateboarders, cyclists, runners, shooters—the ones in the lead—all have an
easy, rhythmic stride or stroke.
Too many shooters approach the shot anxiously, the swing is much too fast
and the shot is launched, more with hope than confidence. Their
tempo—the first T—is too fast, putting
the gun out of control. Contrast that with the advanced, experienced shooter
who has this almost “syrupy” swing, a slow, fluid, graceful swing that
delivers the XX. Why is this slower tempo so effective?........
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What if I told you I had the “secret” to advanced shooting skills—an
irrefutable truth. Before you say, “Yeah, sure you do Dan,” take a minute to
consider this.
The road to advancement has to 2 toll booths. No one advances without paying
the 2 tolls.
The 1st toll is that we search and find what needs
changing in our game. We must first
learn—specifically—what is holding us back, causing our inconsistencies and
current plateau........
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Sporting clays is the ultimate test, pitting ourselves against targets down gullies and through trees at countless unknown speeds, angles and distances. We spend thousands of dollars on equipment, books, videos and training all to master basic, rudimentary skills. Some shooters do, and they have the skills to show for it. But why is it that skills don’t always match scores?........ more>>
In late 2007 I made some important changes to my shooting. That meant I was putting my attention on those changes during practice. Early this year I was still working diligently on those changes, even during my tournaments. As a result of that, my attention riveted on specific parts of my shooting, I slipped and made errors I don’t usually make........ more>>
Preparing for competition ahead of time puts your mind at ease, knowing that what you need will be there when you need it. That includes your attention, which you can now put on the target in front of you, unnecessary distractions eliminated because you prepared ahead of time. Here’s a short list of things I ask my students to do as they prepare for competition........ more>>
What is POI? It’s Point of Impact and there are multiple ways to look at
POI. The first is the nature of your barrels to shoot straight and a second
refers to proper gun fit.
Do your barrels actually send the shotstring on a straight line to the
target? From a bench rest, as you would a rifle, does your shotstring hit
the bulls-eye dead on, with 50% distribution on the top, bottom, left and
right? Or is it slightly high, low or off center? If score is a priority in
your game, this is an important piece of information........
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The fastest way to take random gun movement (RGM) out of your swing is to pre-mount your gun. As sporting clays shooters - when shooting gun up - it’s important that we not forget to raise our head and relax the shoulders. Head up allows us to see - and shoulders down keeps much needed body movement in the swing. Gun up works in sporting clays........ more>>
I commonly hear stories of my student shooting a station very well, or a course very well, and suddenly concentration is gone. Result: 00 or worse. It is frustrating and usually occurs without notice. Why does this happen?........ more>>
As you would expect, the “best” shooting method is and always has been a hotly debated topic. Shooters who frequent the tournament circuit are always looking for that “1 thing” that might give them more X’s, hence the “best” shooting method invariably rises to the top of the discussion checklist........ more>>
As you would expect, the “best” shooting method is and always has been a hotly debated topic. Shooters who frequent the tournament circuit are always looking for that “1 thing” that might give them more X’s, hence the “best” shooting method invariably rises to the top of the discussion checklist........ more>>
Surely you’ve noticed. On game day, the rivals clash on the field as we watch. It won’t be long before one team gets momentum on their side. This can also apply to a player in tennis, golf and shooting. More than just an energy, momentum can be a force....... more>>
Because I see this counterproductive habit everywhere, I feel it deserves our attention. How many times have you seen a shooter get upset over a miss? There are two reasons for getting upset, one valid, one not. Let’s first talk about the one that’s valid........ more>>
Well, 2, of course. Right? That depends. If we’re counting, 2 is the
right number. And that’s why, when 2 shells go into the gun, the trouble
begins.
2 birds and 2 shells equals 2 shots. Sounds right. But here’s the problem.
When the first trap fires, your eyes lock on
one bird. When you pull the trigger one
shell fires. You then move your eyes to the one
remaining bird. When you pull the trigger, one
shell fires. Regardless of how many traps fire, or quail take wing,
one bird requires
one shell,
one shot........
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Though I can’t really say this is common, it does happen enough times
during my lessons that I feel it’s worth mentioning here. And, it does
happen at all skill levels.
Here,…my student and I are primarily working on getting his set-up correct
before each shot. Doing so correctly eliminates wasted time and wasted gun
movements........
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Here’s another small step in our set-up that’s often forgotten, then
costs us a target. Or more.
Before the target leaves the trap, hopefully your muzzle is very still,
motionless before you call for the bird. When the trap fires, your muzzle
begins to move. It slowly accelerates, building speed to match the target’s
speed and possibly accelerating even further to create forward
allowance........
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His name is Jerry Meyers and he was one of my Examiners at my NSCA Level I instructors certification class many long years ago. Wise and reassuringly competent, he provided our class with a pearl of information that has served me, and my students, very well over the years. It’s such a little pearl in the overall scheme of things, but can literally keep that long run going or maybe pick your chin up on this field after a rough performance on the last field........ more>>
All of you who know what self-talk is, raise your hand. That’s right, it’s that little voice in our head,…carrying on a dialogue with us. More specifically, that voice is you,…speaking to yourself. All too often, that little voice is saying something negative. It’s chastising us, maybe even criticizing. While self-talk can be positive and uplifting, many times the dialogue is negative and can be harmful to our performance in the shooting box........ more>>
It was a bright, sunny day in early 2006 and my practice session was going exceptionally well. Looking into the sky I was startled to see a very large, black, shadowy mass,…which disappeared when I closed my left eye. I stopped shooting and called my eye doctor, Michael Holmes who said come in now. Immediately........ more>>
While certainly not easy by any means, sporting clays is not a complex sport. But we can make it harder than it really is. If you were to ask me to give you one tip that could drastically improve your performance in the box, starting tomorrow, it would be this........ more>>
Teal shots are not overly difficult, and, like every other shot, they require planning. The shooting method you choose on a teal should be determined by the breakpoint you choose........ more>>
Try as we might to score X’s, those O’s do add up on the score sheet.
We constantly battle misses with equipment, strategies, equipment, practice,
tournaments, physical and mental preparation. And still, at times, it seems
the misses are winning. We just can’t get our scores up to where we believe
they should be. Here’s one way you can - quickly........
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I'm frequently asked, “Should I change chokes or stay with my favorite?” There are 2 schools of thought on this........ more>>
A coach can help you accelerate your progress. How? By providing information. Useful information. Your processing this information into advanced skills, however, takes more than a little time and effort....... more>>
We’re on the last station at the Open in Minnesota, shooting the Prelim. A fur and feather, right to left, downhill. Confident, I scored a convincing, no doubt about it 8. As we all examined our scorecards I see a 5 on this field........ more>>
I’ve just returned from the Meadows near Atlanta, attending the “Turkey” shoot. We had max attendance with registration held to 550. Though misses can arrive at any random spot around the target, watching competitors at every tournament, I see 80% of misses falling behind. That’s a huge number........ more>>
Your muzzle-hold-point, or MHP, is very important in your set-up before calling for the target........ more>>
Tournament pressure is real but doesn’t have to be debilitating. Acknowledge its presence first then understand that what you are feeling is normal. These feelings are part of you and not the enemy........ more>>
