Clay target shooting is a fun, exciting and challenging sport that involves flying clay targets, where the shooter uses a shotgun to aim and shoot at them.
It is a sport that calls for the combination of skill, timing and hand-eye coordination and this is what makes it a fun competitive sport for people, regardless of their age and physical ability.
In order to truly enjoy what the sport has to offer; one has to know what clay target shooting truly entails. Here is the nitty-gritty of what clay target shooting is made up of.
The Clay Pigeon
The standard clay pigeon is an upside-down disk, shaped like a saucer, which is 110mm in diameter. The disc, made from a mixture of limestone and pitch, comes in a variety of colors and is used as a target for shooting.
However, the classic color used is usually bright orange and is used in front of darker backgrounds, for ease in visibility.
Clay pigeon trap
This is the term used to refer to the machine that throws the clay pigeons into the air. Traps have the capability to fling the targets out as far as 120 meters away.
For ease in functionality and proper safety, many modern shooting grounds use automatic traps which are operated by the press of a button or through the use of sensors.
Clay shooting Gun
Shotguns are used to aim for the clay pigeons. The guns contain many small metal balls that once fired, become fast moving projectiles. This makes it easy for one to hit and break off the fast-moving clay pigeon.
The most commonly used shotgun is the Over and Under Double Barreled Shotgun, which as the name suggests, has two barrels that are mounted one on top of the other.
In the sport, for a hit on the disc to be recorded, one has to see at least a piece of the clay pigeon broke off. If not, the shot is considered null and void.
Types of Clay Shooting
Clay shooting can be categorized into types known as disciplines, with each discipline having its own set of rules.
The 3 main categories of the disciplines are: Trap, Skeet and Sporting
Trap
In this discipline of shooting, one or more pigeon traps are placed 15 meters in front of the shooter and release discs either as singles or doubles.
The targets are thrown at varying speeds, elevations and angles.
Skeet
In this type of shooting, two traps are placed 40 meters apart on the opposite sides of a semi-circular arc with 7 shooting positions put in place.
The traps release the discs at set speeds and trajectories, making the clays cross each other almost at the center of the semicircle
Sporting
This discipline does not have set rules on elevation of the target, its speed, trajectory or angle. This creates the experience of live quarry shooting.
In the same vein, sporting grounds are usually spread around the countryside where targets can be thrown from bushes, trees and banks.
Safety considerations
Gun control legislations and safety principles set by shooting grounds minimize danger involving firearms.
Other risks that are not as distinct are: noise (minimized by wearing ear plugs and ear muffs), recoil (minimized by practicing correct shooting techniques and stances) and falling clays (minimized by wearing protective gear around the head).