Sighting problems
Q. I need advice on problems with my vision whilst clay shooting. I can see the target quite clearly on first looking at it but seems to go quite blurred and difficult to see upon mounting the gun. I am 59 years young, right handed with a right dominant eye but only slightly, I [...]
Back to school
Following on from his coaching day at the Fennes Shooting Ground in Essex with the Helena Romanes School Clay Shooting team, Ben Husthwaite visited the classroom to offer some support to the team ahead of their first entry in the Schools Challenge. The school, whose clay shooting club is organised and driven by teacher Neal [...]
Gunmounting Masterclass
In shotgun shooting, the eye is the back sight. If it is in a different place every time, in relation to the gun barrels, the gun will shoot to a different place every time. A bit like a fairground air rifle with bent sights. Without a precise, consistent gun mount you are not going anywhere. [...]
Under Pressure
Q. I find my nerves getting the better of me at many shoots. Predictable, this seems to happen most when “something is on the line” like during a shoot off or near the end of a round when I am shooting well and it looks like I could win. When I feel this pressure to [...]
Safety issues
Q. I’ve only been shooting for a while but have always taken onboard everything I’ve been told regarding protocol and safety whilst shooting. Imagine my surprise, when at a registered shoot, I witnessed a top shooter remove the choke from his gun and shoot a rabbit stand with no choke in. Is this acceptable practice [...]
How do I deal with distractions when I am shooting?
This will depend on when you are distracted. If the distraction is during the process of taking your shot, then you train yourself to totally ignore them. You can put yourself into a bubble (zone) where noises and happenings cannot penetrate. It takes between 5-10 seconds to take your one shot, so the question you [...]
Phil Coley: Anxiety
You know when you get to a stand you suddenly get sweaty palms, your heart rate increases and you don’t want to lose? It’s the fear of failure. Almost all have experienced it. The fear of failure creeps up on you, and when it does catch up with you, you struggle to shake it off. [...]
Steps to Success
The ambition to progress up a class or classes in your competitive shooting is nothing new. However, unless we devise a strategy and then break it down into specific steps, it’s not going to happen easily. We need to be more specific, goal and time orientated. Lets say that we are a C class shooter [...]
Daydream to shoot better
Sports Psychologist Phil Coley is daydreaming our scores up. Follow his tips for some out of hours training Remember the days at school when you looked out of the window and daydreamed to the point that your teacher shouted at you? Daydreaming is a form of mental imagery – although daydream sounds a little less [...]
What stock finish is best?
Q I am really confused over stock finishes: lots of my friends talk about the finish on their stocks, most say that an oil finish is best, others say a varnish or lacquer. I was told when I bought my gun that it had an oil finish, but it has now gone very dull and [...]