Christmas Shoot - Two Counties 4/12/22

After a two-week break that did me a lot of good, I was down at Two Counties Shooting Ground for their Christmas shoot. What a day to pick to get back out on the range! It was freezing, despite the thermal under layer, 3 more on top of that, and the insulated trousers!

My car told me it was 4 degrees when I left home at around 8am, and the same on the way home at about 4pm. In-between didn't feel much different!

The cold didn't stop 8 squads of like-minded and resilient (I was going to put stubborn :D) shooters from braving the elements, and the day was rather interesting for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, certain numbers of squads on certain numbers of layouts brings about a quirk in the rotation system.

At first, it looked like we were going to have 7 squads, and the decision was made to use three layouts. Shooting had already begun when the 8th was added near the close of entries, so three layouts it remained.

But what isn't immediately obvious is that 8 squads on three layouts runs backwards, like this:

Unless you know that, or manage to work it out, it's perfectly natural to assume that it works as usual i.e. squad 1 starts on layout 1, then goes to layout 2, then 3, then back to 1 again.

I pointed this out to Marilyn and Val who were on the admin desk with me, and they decided to run it as above, except by the time we'd started putting the layout numbers on the cards, everyone had shot 1 round, and the next rotation was under way. Hindsight being 20-20, perhaps I should have kept quiet!

Understandably, we ended up with some squads going the opposite way around the circuit to others, and chaos ensued! But everyone ended up shooting their 100 targets, and everyone shot at least one round from each layout, which is the important thing.

Next time, we'll have the layout numbers on the cards before they go out, but that will mean that shooting won't be able to start until entries have closed. We'll have to see how that pans out because everyone is usually eager to crack on and get going!

The second reason for the day being rather interesting didn't present itself until shooting commenced.

I was helping with the CPSA shoot program in the clubhouse, so didn't see any shooting before my turn (on squad 8). Walking into the layout and setting myself up to shoot, I wasn't expecting anything out of the ordinary.

The referee asked peg 1 to call for a view target, and instead of the usual orange saucer, out came a bright green one!

Some of the ones that got away, clearly showing where pellets have hit.

I knew that Richard (Chapple) was going to experiment with different colour targets to see how well they stood out against the brown, leafless trees, but I wasn't sure when.

Now, bear in mind that the targets leave the trap houses against a background of grass... so although you could see them leave, they looked more like dark blobs! But having said that, my choice of High Intensity Pink lenses probably didn't help.

Many people were saying that they were difficult to pick up, and I agree. You had to keep the gun still until you knew where they were. Moving before meant you were ahead of them and missing in front (as I found out on a hard right hander from peg 4!).

Loads were hit on the top edge, producing a big cloud of dust but no visible piece - which means a zero on the scorecard. Being Laporte targets they were on the tough side, so anyone using 8 shot, or not hitting them with enough of their pattern were struggling to break them.

An opportunity for comparisons presented itself about halfway through the day.

Layout 3 broke down (again - not sure why that trap is giving us so much trouble), so layout 4 was opened up to keep things moving. This one had a full load of the usual orange Laportes in it, and the difference was amazing - they stood out like Beliesha Beacons!

Nearly everyone was hitting them harder and sooner, simply because they could see them better (me included!). Moving back to a layout with green ones after, I definitely found them more challenging to shoot, and a second barrel prompted me to turn the concentration dial up a couple of notches.

The experiment was certainly worthwhile, but the consensus on the day was that green isn't the best option (even though they were smoking really well!). Perhaps bright pink ones would fit the bill! (I've suggested this to Richard, so hopefully we'll get to try them out as well sometime!)

Everyone had fun despite the chaos and shadowy clays, and all the class winners went home with either a tin of Cadbury's Roses, or a box of VIctoria biscuits. On top of that there was a draw - with free entry no less! Everyone received a strip of tickets when they booked in, and it was one prize per strip.

I didn't win anything in it, but didn't mind too much - I'd already secured High Gun with 99/295!

Chris Smyth finished 1st in AA class with 97/290.

Dom Davey enjoyed the green twist on DTL, and won A Class with 95/279. Malcolm Brown wasn't far behind him in 2nd with 94/276.

Jason Dyer, freshly elevated from C Class to B Class with the latest classification issue (congrats Jason!), seized the moment and won B with 91/267. Behind him in 2nd was Paul Cornish on 92/264.

And once again Al Dungey topped C Class, with 84/240!

Well shot all prize winners, and well done to everyone who bagged a draw prize! Thank you to Richard, Marilyn, and everyone involved with running the shoot, both today and throughout the year, and let's toast to a successful 2023 at Two Counties!