Anita North on clay grounds re-opening

Posted on July 29, 2020 by towens — No Comments ↓

Look forward to training and preparing for competitions

It’s great to see that shooters in Scotland and Wales are starting to return to training and fixtures are being added to the calendar. In England, it really has been great to see that county championships are starting to take place with the gradual roll out of grounds opening and registered competitions being scheduled.

British Shooting continue to work on a staged return to shooting. So if you are involved with Olympic Trap or Olympic Skeet, then keep a regular eye on the British Shooting website.

For Pathway, like other coaches, I am working on scheduling group coaching sessions starting in August. Be in no doubt that all the relevant guidance will be followed to ensure a safe and happy return to training.

The international scene is still in a state of flux. Quota places are still up for grabs for the Tokyo Olympics. An updated calendar is expected in late July or August, so it is still a waiting game with lots of whispers of a rescheduled quota place potential European Championships rumoured to happen in the September – let’s see what happens! In the meantime, you can be sure that British shooters will be doing whatever they can to be ready.

On the domestic front, more major competitions are starting to return. In August, East Yorkshire Clay Shooting Ground will hold their first Olympic Trap Grand Prix. With a selection of prizes up for grabs, once the event was confirmed in early June, it was very quickly fully subscribed with 100 competitors booked to take part. There is also a waiting list. All great signs for a great event.

While there is little currently in the Olympic Skeet calendar at present, it looks like September will be a busy time for Olympic Trap. The British Grand Prix and English Open are scheduled to take place in the month, as well as a British Shooting weekend. Competitions will roll on into October with the UK Championships scheduled for the end of October.

Having a blast!

I feel so happy that I can shoot again and get back to coaching, although there are changes in line with social distancing. Writing this article at the end of June, life post-Covid 19 lockdown is starting to take shape.

Just over a week ago, I met up with a friend at Nuthampstead Shooting Ground and we shot some Olympic Trap. I cannot express how happy I felt. Lockdown was the longest time I have been away from my local shooting ground that I can remember.

Anita was thrilled to be back in her ‘office’ coaching again

It was so great to get out and shoot some clays, and it felt that life is getting back to a semblance of normality. There was a different feel to the ground with social distancing measures in place. However, there is still great scope to catch up with friends.

I am looking forward to getting out shooting again and now I have some things to work on following that first shooting session. My routine felt a little rusty, so that’s one thing to focus on. I have other things too, but one bit at a time.

Back to the office

I’ve been back to my office – for me, that means I’ve been coaching. It’s slowly starting, but it felt so great to get back to coaching, albeit limited to one to one sessions. Back to work has meant I got to thinking about adding more tools that might help my observations while maintaining social distance.

And so, I have added a camera on a tripod, controlled via an app on my phone, in addition to my phone, to capture two different viewpoints. Post lockdown social distancing guidance also meant I was thinking and checking myself more throughout each session.

However, it felt so good to get back to doing some work and plan going forward. The coming weeks should see more work, more time on a shooting range – a welcome change.

Happy pupil Veronica Millard at a coaching session with Anita

Until next month…

I hope you really enjoy your shooting. I would love to hear from anyone who does get out. What are you working on now that you are back shooting?

I’m off to do some training – of my eyes (more on that next month) and to plan some shooting time for me, as well as prepping some coaching sessions and training activities besides some work on ideas for future articles. Here’s to everyone staying alert, staying safe and staying well.

Shoot Safe, Stay Safe

Visit www.cpsa.co.uk/staysafe to learn more about how you can stay safe on the stands

A special message – goodbye to a gentleman

I could not complete this month’s article without a personal goodbye. Late June saw the news that Alan Poskitt had passed away. A regular on the competition circuit whose second home was East Yorkshire Shooting Ground, Alan was a gentleman and always had a warm greeting, a friendly smile, words of wisdom and encouragement and support for so many shooters. Alan was held in high regard and was a wonderful ambassador for shooting sport who will be missed by many, including me.