Sandbagging and Safety

[Hotshot100]

I have finally made a decision on the shoots that I will participate in in the future.

No more 'open' competitions unless they are registered and properly run with the exception of the big ones like the Essex Masters, Clay Shooting Classic and Beretta World.

Time and again I leave these shoots in a winning position only to find later on that my score has been anihilated. The funny thing is that these scores are always shot very late in the day and often by the same people.

How can some one who claims to be a novice shoot 88x100 or a 'C' class shooter 89 when many A and AA shots only got 80 ish.

On one stand I watched a bloke call for a pair of targets, up went the gun, and nothing happened. He turned to the scorer and told her that his safety catch was on, take them again was the reply. He then fiddled with his gun, called 'Pull' and the same thing happened again. He then went on to straight the stand. :crazy:   :crazy:  

In future I will stick to shooting at my local ground where there are no classes only a handicap system for the regulars plus doing more registered shoots and might even try some of the trap disciplines that I have only ever toyed with before.

I know that this means continuing my membership of the CPSA which I wasn't going to do unless we got some decent articles but they are the lesser of two evils.

I won't even mention the safety issues that I saw yesterday. At least the CPSA's safety rules are fit for purpose.

 

[maddmatt]

Open shoots have their places, I only shoot them for practice now and never expect to win anything. Shot a 96 once in AA, and was beaten by a B class shooter who posted a 97, when I raised my eyebrows the ground owner suggested I practice more! Safety is a problem, but in fairness I have seen some shockers at registered shoots, my main gripe is the amount of noobie shooters who are showing their mates how to shoot!

 

[Hawkeye]

Hotshot , a simple solution to your problem , shoot later. As for only shooting your local shoot , that sound's like ' if I can't win I'm not playing so I'll shoot where there's a handicap to give me a chance of winning '.

 

[tiptop]

Open shoots lend themselves to sandbagging, especially those that draw on CPSA classifications.

Once you are in the system you are classified and thats,that. Was at a registered shoot recently a shooter had not shot for 5 years but when he signed on they sad oh mister so and so, A class.

Rules of sandbagging are:

3 x registered shoots.

3 x sh*te scores = C class.

No more registered shoots.

Sit and wait for the big money/prize competitions.You are C class year on year now.

This as i say lends itself to any open comps including The Essex,The Beretta,The Classic.

I never won anything in my sandbagging career as there was always 10 sandbaggers better at it than me :haha:   

 

[Les53]

I used to do what were refered to as "open ball trap shoots" many moons ago. No classification systen in place at all, so basically a scratch comp. I loved the things, if you were good on the day, then you won, simple! None of this stuff about sand bagging and class A shooters getting upset because a C class shooter got the better of them, it was just open warfare and those of us that did it loved it! I went to one of those shoots back in the 1980's and it was won by an old geezer who had never shot a clay before, he was a rough shooter and used what looked like an antique side by side!

 

[Dog Tyred]

Shot a 60 bird non-registered sporting comp at Northall on Saturday. No referees on each stand. Simply shoot and mark your own card ??

One stand had a simo pair of what I would call Teal which came together perfectly at the point you pulled the trigger! Pair killed ??

Lovely ground and the trap layout looked brilliant (didn't shoot it though as not set up).

And the lovely Charlotte was there as well !!

Will go again when in the neigbourhood but won't shoot non-registered comp again.

DT

 

[Hotshot100]

Hotshot , a simple solution to your problem , shoot later. As for only shooting your local shoot , that sound's like ' if I can't win I'm not playing so I'll shoot where there's a handicap to give me a chance of winning '.

Not at all, I shoot at my local shoot because I am with a decent bunch of blokes and we all enjoy our shooting. The handicapping is only for members, as I am not a member it doesn't include me.

As for shooting later it has not been an option as I have had to look after my Father so need to be home by lunchtime otherwise he doesn't get fed.

I remember George Digweed making similar comments a few years back when he said that the only shoots he seemed to win were those that he entered last. 

 

[Hotshot100]

Shot a 60 bird non-registered sporting comp at Northall on Saturday. No referees on each stand. Simply shoot and mark your own card ??

One stand had a simo pair of what I would call Teal which came together perfectly at the point you pulled the trigger! Pair killed ??

Lovely ground and the trap layout looked brilliant (didn't shoot it though as not set up).

And the lovely Charlotte was there as well !!

Will go again when in the neigbourhood but won't shoot non-registered comp again.

DT

Blimey, you were a long way from home D.T.

 

[ips]

For nearly 30 yrs I have categorically stated that I do not like and would not shoot anywere that was not cpsa reg or any competion that was not registered. Until 2 yrs ago I very rarely shot practice as I considered that I did not shoot in the same way unless it was comp therefore it was pointless, however since the demise of my local ground (A6) I now shoot 100 OT practice on sat. I have very recently found a local club less than 20 miles from me that is not reg but they have a great ABT 10 bird pool shoot on a sunday and wed evening and a 25 ABT on sat. (as well as DTL and sporting) so on the occasions that I just cannot be bothered with a 270 mile round trip to shoot a reg OT UT ABT shoot then 20 mins and I can shoot demanding ABT. My point is this, I have changed my mind completely and see no problem with attending a well run and friendly shoot.

I have no connection with this club whatsoever and have only shot there twice but what a great little club run by a very friendly family with excellent ABT (cant comment on the sporting as would not know a good un from a bad un) for a good price, what more could you want other than your scores being registered. So here it is for anyone who is interested and I fully recommend it.

http://www.dolphinclaytargetcentre.co.uk/

 

[Les53]

For nearly 30 yrs I have categorically stated that I do not like and would not shoot anywere that was not cpsa reg or any competion that was not registered. Until 2 yrs ago I very rarely shot practice as I considered that I did not shoot in the same way unless it was comp therefore it was pointless, however since the demise of my local ground (A6) I now shoot 100 OT practice on sat. I have very recently found a local club less than 20 miles from me that is not reg but they have a great ABT 10 bird pool shoot on a sunday and wed evening and a 25 ABT on sat. (as well as DTL and sporting) so on the occasions that I just cannot be bothered with a 270 mile round trip to shoot a reg OT UT ABT shoot then 20 mins and I can shoot demanding ABT. My point is this, I have changed my mind completely and see no problem with attending a well run and friendly shoot.

I have no connection with this club whatsoever and have only shot there twice but what a great little club run by a very friendly family with excellent ABT (cant comment on the sporting as would not know a good un from a bad un) for a good price, what more could you want other than your scores being registered. So here it is for anyone who is interested and I fully recommend it.

http://www.dolphinclaytargetcentre.co.uk/

Ian me old mate, as you now know, there is much to be said for small and almost old fashioned clubs! Many of them have a sort of character or spirit that is often lacking at the larger, more commercial venues. I just wish there were more of those small clubs that had trap layouts, but most of them seem to be aimed at the sporting shooter, even the skeet boys are not well catered for in the little clubs these days! Like a great many shooters, I started shooting clays at a small club, in fact we all knew each other so well that is was almost like a family, yes there was rivalry, but it was also a lot of fun too, it was a social thing and not just shooting! We had barbies, Guy Fawkes parties and all manner of other things, so it was a sort of social club too.

 

[Dog Tyred]

Blimey, you were a long way from home D.T.

Visiting the in-laws. Had to make it worth my while !

DT

 

[ips]

Les

yes you and i have both said before that our opinion is that we will go full circle and all be shooting. Small local clubs before long due to the constant demise of larger grounds and the the cost implications of all the travelling involved now. Support your local club, use em or lose em thats how i feel these days.

 

[Richard59]

Thought the Beretta World is a registered shoot?

As for the A6, had a few afternoons practicing on a skeet range there a few summers back sad to see it had to close.

And regretfully there will always be someone who sees a way of manipulating a score at a shoot where the management / control are a little lax ( or just too nice to want confrontation )

 

[Skeet UK]

I have finally made a decision on the shoots that I will participate in in the future.

No more 'open' competitions unless they are registered and properly run with the exception of the big ones like the Essex Masters, Clay Shooting Classic and Beretta World.

Time and again I leave these shoots in a winning position only to find later on that my score has been anihilated. The funny thing is that these scores are always shot very late in the day and often by the same people.

How can some one who claims to be a novice shoot 88x100 or a 'C' class shooter 89 when many A and AA shots only got 80 ish.

On one stand I watched a bloke call for a pair of targets, up went the gun, and nothing happened. He turned to the scorer and told her that his safety catch was on, take them again was the reply. He then fiddled with his gun, called 'Pull' and the same thing happened again. He then went on to straight the stand. :crazy:   :crazy:

I was there.

The scorers are usually pants, which doesn't help either but...that 88 in Novice was ridiculous.  I had the very same conversation with my shooting buddy on the day.  That particular ground is more of a problem because they are all cash prizes.

The only decent "fair" ground that I shoot locally (Non CPSA), is JJ's.  C class and down is trophies, with carts for the other classes.

That 88 really was disgusting though.  Did you stay to see who it was?

Oh and by Safety...do you mean two girls and a 

  ?

 

[Hotshot100]

Thought the Beretta World is a registered shoot?

As for the A6, had a few afternoons practicing on a skeet range there a few summers back sad to see it had to close.

And regretfully there will always be someone who sees a way of manipulating a score at a shoot where the management / control are a little lax ( or just too nice to want confrontation )

It is and it isn't. Apparently if you're a member your scores get recorded and go towards your averages but G.M.K. don't pay the CPSA to register the shoot or put any levy on to the entry fees.

Don't forget that this shoot is not normally held at a CPSA registered ground.

 

[Hotshot100]

I was there.

The scorers are usually pants, which doesn't help either but...that 88 in Novice was ridiculous.  I had the very same conversation with my shooting buddy on the day.  That particular ground is more of a problem because they are all cash prizes.

The only decent "fair" ground that I shoot locally (Non CPSA), is JJ's.  C class and down is trophies, with carts for the other classes.

That 88 really was disgusting though.  Did you stay to see who it was?

Oh and by Safety...do you mean two girls and a 

  ?

You've got it. Can't remember the name but it's on their website. If you fancy a good mornings sport with some good targets and company why don't you come along to the Oaks one Sunday morning. It's normally only practice but at £20 for a 100 it's great value.

 

[blaser f3]

Dont know if i was at the same shoot as Hotshot , the once a month shoot i was at on Sunday was won with the following scores :

Hg  96 (shot buy two shooters ) 

A class  89

B class 88

C CLASS  Ist   93 !!

 

[Stew]

Shot a 60 bird non-registered sporting comp at Northall on Saturday. No referees on each stand. Simply shoot and mark your own card ??

One stand had a simo pair of what I would call Teal which came together perfectly at the point you pulled the trigger! Pair killed ??

Lovely ground and the trap layout looked brilliant (didn't shoot it though as not set up).

And the lovely Charlotte was there as well !!

Will go again when in the neigbourhood but won't shoot non-registered comp again.

DT

you sound an honest guy, but marking your own card in any event, registered or not is a no, no!

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

Hotshot , a simple solution to your problem , shoot later. As for only shooting your local shoot , that sound's like ' if I can't win I'm not playing so I'll shoot where there's a handicap to give me a chance of winning '.

Sorry Bryan  but you must be living on another planet or you must be so good that it never happens to you! sandbagging is rife at a fair few shoots and it really annoys me to see someone shoot their socks off only to see some scumbag piss all over their parade shooting in the wrong class just to take the money... a good kick up the backside is what they need. :fie: