Frequently Asked Questions

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Safety is the first order of business when it comes to shooting sports. That is primarily the reason why the injury rate is 1%! Yes, according to sport injury statistics:  

• More than 775,000 children, ages 14 and younger, are treated in hospital emergency rooms for sports-related injuries each year. Most of the injuries occurred as a result of falls, being struck by an object, collisions, and overexertion during unorganized or informal sports activities.

Shooting sports are one of the safest sports there is! Safer than walking sports! Our goal is knowledge, safety, and respect for all firearms.

As with any sport there are associated costs for equipment, range fees and awards. The cost for Junior Shotgun is $180 and includes the range fee for the 10 weeks, SCTP, NSSA-NSCA, ATA (so you can shoot in competition against other schools and get credit for it) and also includes awards for the end of the season. There is also the cost of ammo and extra costs if you want to shoot more. Really serious and want to become the next Olympic gold medalist or want to shoot more competitive and different disciplines let us know. We'll guide you where you want to go.  Do not let these costs deter you from coming out as you will learn ways to reduce or even eliminate these costs by finding sponsors.

As with any sport there are associated costs for equipment, range fees and awards. We are working on an endowment program to help reduce some of the costs involved. We realize that this won't cover everything and for those who still want to shoot and reduce their costs there are ways to do this. One way we find most effective in the shooting sports is in the use of sponsors. Every shooter is requested to find a sponsor or sponsors to come up with an initial $150. This initial amount helps keep the program running and allows us to purchase nice team shirts. You don't have to stop there, every sponsor you bring in after this, minus shirts and other expenses, will go to the player to reduce their cost of shooting for the season. With enough sponsors you could shoot free for the season. 

Do not go out and buy a gun before talking to a coach! Any shotgun you currently have will do for trap. If you plan on shooting Skeet or Sporting Clays you will want an over-under or automatic shotgun as two rounds are needed (pump action will work but is not as accurate). Required accessories are hearing and eye protection. We will have some extras for those who forget theirs. There may be extra guns available for those who want to try before buying one. Just let us know ahead of time so we can accommodate. As for the ammo, 7 1/2 is the largest shot size for most ranges and most use 7 1/2 or 8 shot. Look for something with around 1200fps.

Shot size is counterintuitive. One would think the larger the number the larger the size. It is actually reversed. So this means a shot size of 9 is smaller than say 7 1/2. The largest size for most American shooting sports is 7 1/2 with 1 1/8 ounce load. Shooting this combination will make a shooter sore and tired by the time they shoot a couple hundred rounds. The ideal combination for most competitions and practice rounds is 1oz load (7/8oz is better) and 8 shot size. FPS or Feet Per Second is also important and keeping under 1200FPS will keep a shooter shooting for longer.

To start out just come and try it out. To be part of the league you will have to become SAFE Certified or have a hunting license. All other training will happen as we go along.

Yes, students may participate in as many other sports they wish. Please let the coaches know so that they can be better prepared when competitions start and can help the student work around other conflicts.

No, all shoots are conducted at our home clubs. If you decide to do events and competitions the  farthest drives are around 2 1/2 -3 hours.  

Anyone from grade 6 to 12, either homeschooled or in school. Even disabled or handicapped are encouraged to come out.  

NO GUNS ALLOWED ON SCHOOL PROPERTY!  Students and parents must return home after school to pick up their guns and ammo. No guns or ammo (real or fake) should ever be brought onto school property. There are exceptions but it's better to be safe than make an "attempt." More info can be found here.

There is no good or bad in shooting sports. There is only an opportunity to learn and get better. As coaches we work hard to figure out where the skills are and the areas that need improvement. As with golf there is also handicaps based on skill. Everyone, once they have a gun in their hand has the opportunity to become very successful. As with anything in life "Practice makes perfect."

• Eye and Ear protection should be in place before you approach the field.
• Make sure you are in hearing distance from the field you are assigned to so when your squad is called you are there and ready with all of your equipment. 
• If you are leading your squad (meaning you are the shooter on post 1 when the round starts) visually check that everyone is at their post and  ready before initiating each round of 5 shots. 
• During the round, if and when you move from post 5 to post 1, make sure to look to the leader of your squad and give him a thumbs up that you are ready. They may be waiting for you to be ready and set before continuing with their own shot. 
• Remain on your post, standing facing the trap quietly, until the fifth man has fired and then move to the next post. 
• During and at the end of the round remain still on your last post facing the trap until the last man has fired the last shot. 
• Do not have a loaded round in your action (regardless if your action is not closed) when walking from one post to another. 
• If using a Semi Auto Action Shotgun: make sure your gun is equipped with a shell catcher. No one likes when spent hulls are flung in their face. 
• Try not to talk or yell out as you may cause a clay to be thrown outside of your turn if the microphones pick up your voice.
• If using a pump or semi auto: try not to close or open your action in front of the microphone as you may cause the machine to throw a target out of turn. Over under shooters that blow the smoke out of their barrel after shooting could cause the same thing to happen.
• Wait till the end of the round to reach down and pick up empty shells from the ground. Movement from other shooters may distract someone who is lining up for their next shot.
• Be mindful of your barrel. Even though you are working on your follow through in order to be the next Olympic hopeful, it tends to make people nervous when looking down the smoking barrel of a shotgun that was just fired and swung to the left or right too dramatically.
• When closing your action make sure to have your barrel pointed down range. A lot of beginner shooters (more specifically pump action shooters) tend to close their action with the gun facing down towards the ground. If an accident were to happen not only would you most likely take off your own foot but you could seriously injure the people around you.