What You Cannot Learn On The Peg
Shooting Times & Country|June 09, 2021
Many of the best Shots started young and had a rural upbringing, but there are other ways to become a good all-rounder, says Tom Payne
Tom Payne
What You Cannot Learn On The Peg

What does it take to be a Top Shot? How do you become an all-rounder? We can all advise accordingly on how to improve your shooting, whether that be practice, finding the right instructor for lessons or having your gun fitted. But there are things that can’t be learned at a clay ground or standing on the peg that really give the top shooters an edge.

When we use the term ‘allrounder’, there is so much to consider. It’s all very well shooting pheasants and partridges but counties vary, topography changes and weather is rarely consistent. Grouse shooting in North Yorkshire is very different from shooting grouse in Inverness or the Angus Glens. Shooting pigeons can vary over different crops, conditions, and times of the year. With wildfowling, you have various species and techniques, flighting ducks of an evening in difficult light or trying for that goose on the coast.

All-rounders are rarer now than during, say, the 1980s and 1990s. The top clay Shots during these periods got into clay shooting off the back of game shooting, pigeon shooting, and walked-up expeditions. It was very much the rural man’s sport.

Reversed

These days many clay Shots don’t shoot game and are from a different background altogether. Many are unfamiliar with rural living, and it is a credit to clay shooting that it is so inclusive and welcoming to all. If anything, clay shooting has created more access to the sport.

This story is from the June 09, 2021 edition of Shooting Times & Country.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the June 09, 2021 edition of Shooting Times & Country.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRYView All
United we stand
Shooting Times & Country

United we stand

Following United Utilities' decision to end grouse shooting on its land, Lindsay Waddell asks what will happen if we ignore our vital moors

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Serious matters
Shooting Times & Country

Serious matters

An old gamebook prompts a contemplation on punt-gunning

time-read
3 mins  |
August 02, 2023
They're not always as easy as they seem
Shooting Times & Country

They're not always as easy as they seem

While coneys of the furry variety don't pose a problem for Blue Zulu, he's left frustrated once again by bolting bunnies of the clay sort

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Debutant gundogs
Shooting Times & Country

Debutant gundogs

There's lots to think about when it comes to making the decision about when to introduce your dog to shooting

time-read
4 mins  |
August 02, 2023
When the going gets rough
Shooting Times & Country

When the going gets rough

Al Gabriel returns to the West London Shooting School to brush up on his rough shooting technique

time-read
5 mins  |
August 02, 2023
The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition
Shooting Times & Country

The Field Guide To British Deer - BDS 60th Anniversary Edition

In this excerpt from the 60th anniversary edition of the BDS's Field Guide To British Deer, Charles Smith-Jones considers the noise they make

time-read
4 mins  |
August 02, 2023
A step too far?
Shooting Times & Country

A step too far?

Simon Garnham wonders whether a new dog, a new gun and two different fields in need of protection might have been asking too much for one afternoon's work

time-read
6 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Two bucks before breakfast
Shooting Times & Country

Two bucks before breakfast

A journey from old South London to rural Hertfordshire to stalk muntjac suggests that the two aren't as far detached as they might seem

time-read
6 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Stalking Diary
Shooting Times & Country

Stalking Diary

Stalkers can be a sentimental bunch, and they often carry a huge attachment to their hill

time-read
2 mins  |
August 02, 2023
Gamekeeper
Shooting Times & Country

Gamekeeper

Alan Edwards believes unique, private experiences can help keepers become more competent and passionate custodians of the countryside

time-read
3 mins  |
August 02, 2023