The Wing and Clay Flyer:  Spring 2005
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Page 7

Beginners Corner

So you want to introduce a youth to clay target shooting?  It may be your kid, a grandchild, a teenager of a friend, or a group of youth.  Whoever the kids are, there is a very good chance this introduction will be their first experience shooting a shotgun.  First impressions can last a lifetime, so it is of extreme importance the initial outing is fun, successful, comfortable and above all, safe!

How early is too early?
In my shooting clinics, I require youth students to be at least 11 years old to participate.  As some of you parents may know, 11 year olds can come in all shapes and sizes and have differing maturity levels and attention spans.  As a general rule, 11-year-old kids are physically big enough to handle the recoil of a 12 or 20 gauge shotgun (more on gun selection later) and are mature enough to understand the rules of safe gun handling.

Safety First!
As a parent, or supervising adult, it is your responsibility to make the initial outing a safe one.  Make sure your youth shooters understand the basic rules of range safety. 

Keep all ammunition in your possession during the outing (however, do not mix different gauges when working with kids using different gauge guns) and consider

loading the gun for your child.  Small hands sometimes have a difficult time working the actions on many shotguns.  All initial shooting should be done by loading only one cartridge at a time.

Equipment
The goal of the initial outing is to make shooting safe, fun, comfortable and successful.  All of these variables require the right equipment.  Eye and ear protection are mandatory for both the youth and adult supervisor!  Damaged eyes are difficult to repair and hearing loss is permanent.  Needless to say, target chips in the eye or ringing ears do not satisfy the fun and comfort requirements we are looking for!

There is a long-standing tradition of starting kids with a .410 bore shotgun due to the light recoil.  While this covers the comfort variable for an initial outing, it inhibits the success part.  The .410 is a gun best reserved for experienced skeet shooters and has no place in the proper introduction of youth to clay target shooting.  Properly fit guns of 12 or 20 gauge coupled with low-recoil ammunition and open chokes (improved cylinder or skeet) cover the success and comfort variables.  Please note that when dealing with youth, proper gun fit does not always mean perfect gun fit.  Most guns will be a bit too long and have too much drop at the comb for young shooters but can be adjusted to crush targets with some simple modifications.  In addition, today’s gas-operated semi automatics are great tools for further reducing recoil.

 

(Continued on page 8)

When and How to Start Youth in the Clay Target Sports

The .410 is a gun best reserved for experienced skeet shooters and has no place in the proper introduction of youth to clay target shooting.