Four ways to better skeet, part I
"Pull!"
"%#@*!"
How many times have you heard something like that said on the skeet field? Better yet, how many times has it been your own voice? Skeet can be a very humbling game, even for experienced shooters. There is no other clay target game that requires more concentration and mental preparedness.
You may ask, how can I make a statement like that? To answer, let's take a quick look at the other two most popular clay target games: Trap and Sporting Clays.
In trap, you call for the bird and do not know in which direction it might come out of the pit. It could be hard right, hard left or somewhere in between. In sporting clays, you step into a shooting station, call for your target and most often have no earthly idea where the target will appear. Perhaps the name of the station, running rabbit or flushing teal, might give you a hint, but the target can come from anywhere.
In skeet, the pattern is set and never varies. I have often said that nobody should ever miss a target on a skeet field. After all, it is the only shotgun game where you know exactly where your target is coming from and exactly what path it will take. Add to that the fact that the target will only be on that path when you call for it and it makes this game a piece of cake ... in theory.
In reality, the mechanical portion of skeet makes it the toughest, yet most fun of all clay target games.
I think it was Yogi Bera who said, "Baseball is 50 percent physical, 50 percent mental and 50 percent mechanical." I could almost apply this concept to skeet. I cannot help you develop your mental ability. I can only advise you to increase your physical strength. However, there are some tips to fine-tune your mechanics. Let's look a few of those ideas:
Head position
"Keep your face on the stock!" How many times have you heard that advice? It sounds so easy, and yet shooting over the top of a skeet target is one of the most common misses.
Looking for the front bead is natural and usually automatic. Lining up the rear bead with the front bead often gets overlooked, especially on doubles. You must focus on your mechanics as you swing through the first target and attempt to acquire the second. You must train yourself to let your eyes find the second target without raising your head off the stock.
This presents a real problem if you shoot with a field gun. If this us your dilemma, then spend a few bucks and have a second bead installed on your rib. It will improve your shooting immediately.
Hand position
I will explain hand position without referring to right or left. This way it will apply to all shooters. I will refer to the "trigger hand" and the "fore hand", for simplicity sake.
The emphasis on hand position for skeet is on the fore hand. I teach young and beginning skeet shooters how to position their fore hand to make swinging their shotgun smooth and efficient. I see most trap shooters hold the fore stock out at the very furthest end. This may make pushing the gun easier, but the gun cannot be pulled smoothly from that position.
Conversely, some skeet shooters choose to hold their gun at, or just in front of the action. This makes pulling the gun easy, but makes pushing it clumsy and slow. Because of opposite direction, double targets on a skeet field, you must be able to push and pull your gun with equal ease and efficiency.
I advise that you place your fore hand on the back half of the fore stock. This gives you maximum control for swings in either direction. And from a mechanics standpoint, I suggest you hold your gun the exact same way for both singles and doubles. I also suggest that you point the index finger of your fore hand straight down the barrel, underneath the fore stock. This allows you to actually point your finger right at your target as you swing and acquire.
• Be right here next week as we complete our lessons to being a better wing shot by shooting skeet properly.</group><group id="F868EDEF-5333-4FF5-8AB1-FBFE0153F565" type="se