All,

I was at the trap club this past Sunday doing my duty in the form of a 'work day'. During this 'work time' you just do whatever needs to be done, which includes coaching new shooters to keep them safe and teach them something about trap shooting.

It was cold and rainy so almost everyone was in the warm clubhouse while waiting their turn to shoot. I noticed a father and young daughter standing by the shotgun rack, he had his hand on a Winchester model 12, which I presumed to be his. This girl was about the same age as my daughter, so I paid special attention. Her dad was coaching her on what to expect when their squad is called to shoot. He went to the counter and purchased 12ga 1oz 1350fps loads and handed them to her. She had never fired a shotgun and couldn't be more than 80 pounds dripping wet. I knew if she fired those loads that, more than likely, she would never want to shoot again.

I happened to have my 12 year old daughter's shotgun and her very light loads in the car. I approached the gentleman and explained that I have a daughter about his daughter's age and that if he didn't mind I would like to talk about a possibly better approach to introduce shooting to her. He was very willing, so I explained that I had a shotgun with a much shorter stock and *much* lighter loads that I would let them use. He agreed, so I retrieved the shotgun and loads from the car. We covered the operation of the 870 Remington and practiced shouldering it a couple times.

Her squad was called to shoot, so out into the cold rain we went. I gave a couple tips on safety, but mostly let her dad do the coaching. When the squad was done she was smiling and she even hit 2 targets!! If that doesn't give you a warm-and-fuzzy, then nothing will!

My hope is that everyone will realize fifteen minutes of your time can help welcome a new shooter into the sport, instead of being turned off by their first shooting experience.

Wayne

For the last couple of years, I have donated my time, guns and ammo for "Learn to shoot Skeet" programs at our local club. We have World Champions and "B' shooter's all involved in this worth while cause. It's a full day and a lot of work, but well worth it. Watching the students break a pair at station 7 is very rewarding. The smiles on their faces and the proud looks from mom and dad is what it's all about!

Never shot a lot of shotgun, just a few rounds of Sporting clays. Back at that time 1 1/8 was standard 12ga load. Does 1 oz load recoil worse because of speed? 1 oz 20ga loads in my Citori Lightning are kinda sharp!

Bob

Bob,

I'm not sure what the energy delta is between 1oz@1350fps vs 1 1/8oz@1200fps, but I'm pretty sure the 1oz has considerably more energy. Regardless, either had *way* too much recoil for a 13 year old who had never shot a gun.

Wayne

Wayne - kudos to you for turning what could have been a traumatic experience into a pleasure!

Will she shoot again? Who knows. But at least she didn't go away with negative connotations of the sport. People that have bad experiences early in life rarely ever change their minds about the topic.

I see the same thing happen all the time to motorcyclists and their passengers. Riders will scare the poo out of their passengers, then wonder why people curse the very sight of motorcycles.

I have turned some people away from the shooting sport because I know they do not have the maturity to deal with all the correct decisions one must make. My fear is that someone will blame me for a bad experience (or worse, an accident). When I introduce someone to the sport, it is always a day long exercise in the mental and phsyical experience. I want people to be non-haters, even if they do not ultimately decide to partake in the sport. Fear of the unknown, and bad personal experience, are the major deterrents in anti-gun people.

Keep up the positve work!