Brook Bank Shooting Ground 6/8/22

I decided to head North up the M5 today and shoot a Registered DTL at Brook Bank.

Some of my readers will be wondering why I did that instead of going the other way, and shooting the South West Double Rise and 100 DTL at North Cornwall today.

The main reason is that Brook Bank are hosting the English Open and British Open Single Barrel competitions next weekend, and as I haven’t shot there for a long time, I wanted to go and remind myself of what the targets and normal conditions were like.

Conditions today - perfect!

As I am Devon Single Barrel Champion for 2022, I think it’s worth going and seeing what I can do! And remember, preparation is key for success!

Another reason is that after a considerable amount of searching, I’ve finally acquired a proper trap stock for my Krieghoff. It hasn’t been in for a service yet, but I’ve been itching to try it with the “new” stock since it arrived on Tuesday!

Spot the difference...

I think you’ll agree, it’s a definite upgrade!

Swapping the wood set over was very straightforward, and the lack of a recoil pad was solved with a spacer and pad that I had spare. The fit isn’t that good, so I’ll be getting a new spacer and pad soon to do the job properly.

Taking a completely unproven gun setup into a competition situation 1 week before a big event is up there on the “adventurous” scale, but I didn’t throw all my eggs in one basket. The Caesar Guerini went as well, just in case it all went wrong!

If it did, I could still get 75 targets-worth of practice in with the Invictus III.

Also on the squad list, and no doubt also looking for a good dress rehearsal, were Gerald Sweet, and Phil Morgan who had made the trip across the Severn bridge to liven up proceedings.

Standing there on peg 5, about to start my first round, I was a little unsure how this would go. I’d taken time to set the stock up to where I thought it needed to be, and it felt really good. Very familiar in fact.

But there was a good chance that for my first target, I’d get a screaming right-hander – the hardest target for a right-handed shooter on a DTL layout...

... which I got – and smoked it.

And the next 23. Then, having moved through all 5 pegs, I second barrelled the last one of the round, a hard right on peg 4, which was a little frustrating - but I was still pretty happy!

Phil and Gerald also came off with 25/74s, so now it was game on!

Next round, chippy start.

Turns out that if I lose a point, I start trying far too hard. I’d missed one and barrelled two more before this dawned on me. The same thing has happened a few times now, so there had to be a common element. At least I know now, and can work on keeping the focus and intensity while shooting in a more relaxed manner.

As Master Yoda once said, “Do, or do not – there is no try.” I wonder how many 300s he shot in his DTL career?

Anyway, dropping 5 points lost me some ground, but I was still within sight of Phil and Gerald, who were still locked together after another round of 25/74 each.

Now knowing and being aware of what happens if I try to force things, the last two rounds were almost textbook. A 25/75 followed by a 25/74 (during which I hit some targets so hard that there were no pieces left whatsoever) gave me a 99/293 for the day, a share of 2nd in AA class, and of 2nd spot overall on the scoreboard.

Not bad for gun set up at home the night before!

Gerald finished on the same score as me, except that he managed to get his 100 straight. Wesley tried to suggest that he get all the 2nd in AA winnings (instead of sharing them) because he hit more targets. “No he doesn’t!” I said! What cheek, haha! 😀

Phil did what Phil does. Going through the gears, he obliterated his way through the last two rounds with 50/150, topping the board with a 100/298. Well shot sir!

And also well shot to the other class winners from today.

All in all, pretty happy with the result. If you take my second barrels as clean misses then I’ve shot another 95, equalling the score I won the Devon Championship with.

I’ll need a few more than that to bring home one of the trophies next week, but I’m there or thereabouts with a fighting chance.

Just need to remember to turn off the try-hard switch...