Shooting Times – November 2012

It’s November and the shops are full of optimism and possibilities as even the most dedicated of sportsmen take their eye off the target for a while and stray into the realms of gift buying. If you are looking for an idea or two, Lincolnshire Life will point you in the right direction but if you are still not sure, there are gift membership schemes available at many of our county’s shooting clubs as well as memberships of shooting organisations. You just have to have your eye in!
STILL TIME FOR JUNIORS
Reepham Shooting Centre has announced that the deadline for its Junior Challenge competition has been extended to 24th November. This is for under-25s only but multiple entries are allowed so if at first you don’t succeed you can always have another shot at it, so to speak. Entries are for club rifles only and include .22 and .357 at 25 metres and .22 and .223 at 75 metres.

Anyone wishing to obtain further information should contact Reepham Shooting Centre secretary, Janet Taylor on 01522 750869.

YOUNG SHOTS DAY REPEAT SUCCESS
The Young Shots Day at Riseholme College recently run by the Lincolnshire Countryside Sports Association, in association with Lincolnshire Active Community Network, was once again a brilliant success.

The day was organised for young people aged 7-17 years of age to provide education and training in shooting and country sports and included fifty-minute sessions run by Woodside Falconry, Lincolnshire Salmon Trout Association, Lincoln Archery Club, Gainsborough and Scunthorpe Small Bore Rifle Club and the Lincolnshire Clay Pigeon Association.

It provided opportunities to try air rifle shooting, clay pigeon shooting, fly fishing, gun dog handling, archery, hawking and ferreting.

Dave Carter, managing director at Lincolnshire Active Community Network, said: “We have been very lucky to continue to get the support from the Lincolnshire Countryside Sports Association to hold this event; they were very successful last year and that success was built on this year. It was a good day for everyone.

“The feedback has been nothing short of excellent and we had ten people who have written back and want club information. In addition I also believe that several have approached the clubs from the information which was put into the goodie bags on the day. we are delighted of course.”

ARE YOU USING THE WRONG EYE?
If you are not happy with your shooting could it be that you are using the wrong eye? Yes, really. Most people are right-eyed, a very few have no eye-preference but there is still a good proportion of the population who are left-eyed even though they might not be left-handed.

Obviously, if you take part in any sport that involves aiming at a target then it is useful to know your eye-dominance. Left eyed people should shoot with their left hand and vice versa.

Here is the test. You simply create a circle with your thumb and first finger joined at the tip. With both eyes open look at an object on the wall or in the distance, and centre it inside the circle. Now close one eye, and then the other. What happened?

When you closed your left or right eye you should have found that the object jumps outside the circle. If the object seemed to move when you closed your left eye – then you have left eye dominance. If the object moved more when your right eye was closed, then your right eye is the dominant one.

If you find you have been shooting with the wrong eye all you have to do is change and you will win title after title. Well maybe not the last bit, but you will stand a better chance of actually hitting the target.

BASC INDOOR ROADSHOW
Here’s a date not to be missed as the British Association for Shooting and Conservation stages its Indoor Roadshow at Spalding Ehibition Centre on Sunday, 16th December and this year instead of being just an evening event, it is on for the entire day.

Trade stands will cover shooting, conservation and the countryside with wildfowling, taxidermy, cartridge corner, sporting associations offering advice and information, stick-dressing, ferrets, police firearms licensing and wildlife liaison plus a gundog clinic, accessories and food, sporting books, BASC coach offering advice on Gunfit, Master Eye etc. In addition there will be wildlife artists, sporting goods and clothing on sale.

The new style Roadshow will open at 10am and close at 5pm. There will be two main halls, one will house all the trade stands and the other a new craft centre. It is recommended as an ideal event for those last minute Christmas gifts! Of course there will be a BASC Membership Point with their insurance representative on hand to answer questions. For fun you can test your skills on the new Shooting Simulator, have a crack at the Indoor Laser Clay Pigeon Trophy Shoot, meet the celebrity guests or spend all day in the restaurant and bar if you wish.

Admission is £5 at the door with BASC Young Shots (bring your card) and under 13s free. BASC non-members are more than all welcome and there is free parking. What more could you want?

For further details or trade enquiries please telephone Liz Lamb on 01335 324 507. See you there.

LINCOLNSHIRE AREA UNITED RETRIEVER CLUB
Open Cold Game Working Test at Tumby Woodside on Sunday 23rd September 2012

We held our Open Cold Game Test at Tumby Woodside by kind permission of the Laird Family. The ground was excellent and the sugar beet a good height to test the thirty-three dogs and their handlers. We thank our judges, Steve Polley, Craig Horwill, Ted Fitzjohn and Hayley Drew. Mick Roberts was our chief steward and kept the proceedings brisk, which was just as well, as the weather forecast promised heavy rain for later in the day. The first round retrieves were a mixture of marks and blinds. Poor scent made the blinds difficult and relatively short marks caught out some of the dogs. The second round was of crossed retrieves close to the line with a few blinds thrown in.

As the day went on, scenting conditions improved and the judges took fourteen dogs through to the afternoon. The mix of retrieves was similar, but over a longer distance, and the test was completed just before the rain came!

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