Bradford Shooting Ground 18/3/23

Hello readers!

Thank you once again for your support and interest in the wanderings and adventures of a lowly trap shooter from Devon, and for your patience over recent months.

The written content output has fallen right off, but there are good reasons for that.

Apart from spending 46 hours a week in the day job machining parts to keep ahead of the Valeport Production Assembly department (and clocking on at 7am each day!), I’ve been putting a lot of effort into sorting out a coaching offer.

This is a lot harder (and more tiring!) than it sounds, particularly when you’ve never done it before!

It’s also very, very difficult to get out of worker-bot mode and into “this is my thing – I can do what I want with it” mode, when worker-bot is all you’ve known.

Fortunately, I’m not doing it alone.

I’m working with someone who specialises in helping clients package their skills and expertise into offers targeting specific problems / issues / solutions, and reach the people who it is intended to help.

My offer is aimed at DTL shooters who want to get better, perhaps achieve a personal goal that is important to them, but who are fed up shooting the same low scores all the time, getting nowhere, and they don’t know why - or, they feel like they have lost their way and no matter what they try, they can’t find a solution.

The main structure of it is pretty much done, and I have my first day with clients in April.

Both they and I are really looking forward to it, and I’m sure I’ll learn as much from teaching them as they will from me.

The next task is to write a proper sales page for the website – also a lot harder than it sounds!

On top of that, I’m now on my second temporary shotgun permit, and my guns have spent the last fortnight in RFD storage again (got them back today).

This was purely a precaution – I’m well aware that being in possession of guns without a valid permit is breaking the law, and I didn’t know how long the new temp would take to arrive.

Now, though, I think I understand the process – the new temp is raised and dated for the day after the old one expires, and is posted the following Monday.

As long as you do not receive any official notification that your licence is revoked, you should be OK – in theory (as the Police system says you have a licence).

Next time (assuming that I still don’t have a full licence within 6 months), I’ll probably keep the guns locked away at home during the re-issue.

Of course, all of this means that, over the last year and a half, I haven’t shot anywhere near the number of targets I used to shoot per year before the Covid lockdown.

Interestingly though, I think it suits me better - which is just as well seeing as I’m now booked in to shoot the Fauxdegla DTL Grand Prix in May, and the English and Dougall Weekend at Bywell!

Today was another good day at the office, sharing High Gun and 1st in AA with Ian Moore on 100/297.

Ian is gearing up for an intensive season on the fast trap, and I have no doubt that he’ll get his GB vest far sooner than he thinks he will!

Shooting conditions were near perfect, and we weren’t the only ones taking advantage.

Halfway through, there were 7 shooters on 50/148 or better (including us).

Stuart Taylor was leading the field on the perfect 50/150.

Colin Chidley, Nick Shadrick, and Richard Chapple were on 50/149.

Then it was me and Ian, together with Richard Ryan on 50/148.

Unfortunately, Stuart and Colin dropped a target and 2 barrels in round 3, and they couldn’t recover their momentum.

Amazingly, they both finished on exactly the same score – 98/290!

Nick and Richard (Ryan) went one round further before they too seemed to falter, and amazingly, they also finished on the same score – 291!

I was stood right next to Richard (Chapple) on the line and watched him also miss 1 and barrel 2 in round 3, but as I’d seen everything else disappear in balls of smoke, I was pretty sure he wouldn’t be losing momentum!

And I was right!

He shot a perfect last round to finish on 99/294 and win win A Class comfortably.

2nd in A ended in a three way tie between Stuart, Colin, and Steve Parker – who also shot a 98/290!

Jason Dyer, continuing his rich run of form in recent months, took B Class with a 98/286.

C Class was won by Mick Cunningham with a 93/279, and Bob Deer took 2nd in C with 94/270.

Well shot everybody, and thanks to Matt and Iain at Bradford for another fun day out on the range.