Lesson 1

Since this sport is a EYE-HAND coordination game I will cover the most fundamental problem in all shotgun shooting.  You can not shoot any better than you can see!  This statement has many different ways to be applied to shooting; however for brevity this review has the primary focus (pun intended) of what must be mastered to shoot shotguns.  I have a 100% proof positive test of the validity of this test that you can conduct for yourself, simply try to shoot with your eyes closed!  This is first and foremost a visually controlled sport your total concentration must be to visually lock on the target, all else will just clutter up the game.  US Army Marksmanship Unit member, USA Shooting Team m ember and holder of numerous world titles and an Olympic Medalist would often comment that this sport is really simple, just "see the target and shoot the target."  Never allow anyone to complicate that statement by applying the test about improved gun control to what item/idea they are selling.

Shotguns do require fitting to the shooter and this task has taken on a reputation of being a "mystical art."  In the most basic form, a shotgun that has been correctly fitted to the shooter will shoot where the shooter has their visual focus.  The usual method applied to shotgun fit is for the shooter to contort their body in such a way that allows the gun to be aimed at where you are looking for the shot to impact.  Sadly in this most common style of fitting a shot gun, the targets that are to be engaged  are moving and do not allow the luxury of that technique to be . In Olympic Trap the target is within shotgun range for a gracious 2/5's of a second, allows the use of two shots at the same target, but none for aiming.  The shooter does not know what target might appear and thus must totally focus on locking their e yes up on the target, fire the first barrel, continue to remain totally focused on t he target or it's pieces and fire the second barrel.  None of these shooters would allow anyone to change their gun fit unless it can be proven to improve gun control as defined by shooting more perfectly to where their eyes are focused/locked.

To distort the late Johnny Cochran's most famous court room quote "If the gun doesn't fit you might as well quit!"  The levels of frustration in shotgun shooting are raised to a level that many Instructors constantly are amazed by what their students have been subjected to before they sought help.

My mantra is borrowed from one of my friends and is shared here to help you master shooting shotguns.  "LOOK at the BIRD!  LOOK at the BIRD!  LOOK at the (use your own adjective) BIRD!"   Notice that there is no comment or even suggestion of looking at the barrel; however if you wish to check the barrel you will almost be guaranteed to hear the word LOST.  The gun that fits will shoot where you are looking and if you are looking at the target you should hear the word 'DEAD.'  Quite often I will muse to my fellow shooters that you need to check your Bird, Bead, Barrel relationship to make the perfect shot!  Anything that distracts you from eye contact with the target will almost always result in a missed target so my advice is true; however it may not have been offered as an aid to better scores.  The statement is very true, but requires gun fi t, not visual conformation of the fact that the 3 B's are aligned, if your shotgun shoots where you are looking then you have 2/3's of the formula mastered and need to only visually focus on the target. 

Shoot with safety first and foremost as your goal.  Keep the game simple, the world is full of instant cures for everything but few really provide the enhanced performance they promise.  Invest wisely in yourself, "It is always the singer and never the song!"