Why trap? (Not taking the p*ss here)

[Les53]

A very knowledgeable old timer once told me that in reality peg 3 is the most troublesome peg statistically as you had right and left handers to contend with and that worrying about 1 or 5 was all in the head. I seem to be able to miss the most easy dtl targets from any peg and i put it down to lack of concentration and or boredom. Ha

boring yes easy definately not. If anyone ever comments on dtl being easy my reply is how many 300s have you done ?

Yeh I made such a comment to someone about six or seven years ago! He asked me how many 100/300's I had done, when I told him that I had done eleven he shut up pretty quickly! .!!!! BUT.......easy it is NOT !!!!

I had to give up DTL, because once you have done a 100/300 you feel as though you're in a battle with yourself every time you go out to shoot, and I used to get so pi££ed off if I walked away on say a 296!!! It drove me mad to be blunt about it. DTL shooters need nerves of steel and I take my hat off to them!

 

[ips]

Eleven 300s i am impressed that is eleven more than most, me included. Done a mere six 100s but gave up on the whole thing now.

 

[Les53]

Eleven 300s i am impressed that is eleven more than most, me included. Done a mere six 100s but gave up on the whole thing now.

I know a number of fantastic DTL shooters that gave up DTL, mainly because of the self persecution! I can't say that luck didn't come into my 300's though, because I believe that it did. I was shooting three times a week in those days too, and it still took me about ten years to do them, I have seen guys that can hit 300 almost every time they pick up a gun, makes you sick to see such talent as those guys have. I have seen guys almost in tears because they have walked out of a shoot having hit 296, at first I did not understand it at all, but I got to understand it only too well eventually! That is why I moved onto the faster stuff, because in my head I found DTL far too demanding!

 

[** Pending Removal **]

Yep! And a lot of DTL shooters have a particular peg that they don't like too much. I've seen it a thousand times, they are on their boggey peg waiting for their boggey bird and bingo.......they miss it with both tubes! DTL is a total nightmare of a mind game as far as I'm concerned, OT is easier in as much as all pegs are the same if you know what I mean. When I used to shoot DTL my boggey peg was peg 5 and the boggey was a right hand bird, I knew a great many people that had the same problem. Overcoming it can be very difficult too.

Peg5 going right is my bogey too

 

[Les53]

Peg5 going right is my bogey too

I think only lefties like peg 5. But then they often hate peg 1. .!!!

 

[dyosk]

I always seem to find the straight up in front birds are the bogey target more tham any other..............from any peg

 

[Dog Tyred]

I always seem to find the straight up in front birds are the bogey target more tham any other..............from any peg

I hear that!!

DT

 

[Lock Stock & Barrel]

O..K..

This is a genuine question from a pure hedge-monkey now. I think it is timely, as we have a few trappies on here, including now the very succesful Abbey (who I remember from when she worked at EJ Churchill, taking my practice round money when I first started). Welcome again Ab!

The question is -and I repeat it is a genuine question, not a rhetorical one: Why does a shooter decide to shoot trap in preference to Sporting. I genuinely would love to know.

Trappies: You have the floor:

CSC3

In a word: variety. ESP is all good and varied in itself, but I choose to embrace all forms of clay - including Skeet and no doubt I'll get round to ABT, OT and others at some stage too. Why not?

 

[africacorp]

Ok,

Because of this thread this hedge monkey thought I would go and try dtl out.

It is hard.

When I started missing the head popped off!

Genuine question as I am going to return!

Hold point I am happy with. 3/4 and full worked well but lead? Never hit a bird with the second barrel!

In the end i had confused myself so much i couldnt hit a banjo.

682 gold e sporter with 28g 7 1/2s.

25 to warm up on peg 3 and cant remember how many I hit.

1st 25 19

2nd 25 10 ( ouch )

Thanks guys and girls,

Africacorp

Ps.loved it!!!!

 

[jake.keeling]

Ok,Because of this thread this hedge monkey thought I would go and try dtl out.

It is hard.

When I started missing the head popped off!

Genuine question as I am going to return!

Hold point I am happy with. 3/4 and full worked well but lead? Never hit a bird with the second barrel!

In the end i had confused myself so much i couldnt hit a banjo.

682 gold e sporter with 28g 7 1/2s.

25 to warm up on peg 3 and cant remember how many I hit.

1st 25 19

2nd 25 10 ( ouch )

Thanks guys and girls,

Africacorp

Ps.loved it!!!!

There is a good chance you are shooting over them, you don't need to think about lead especially on peg 3. Just be as instinctive as you can. Are you using a Sporter?

 

[EdSolomons]

No lead at all- get hold point right and shoot straight up it's arse!

 

[ips]

Said it before dtl not as easy as people think IMO you have to be nice and chilled no heroic shoot em too fast scenario. Read my reply on dtl hold point that gives a nice starting point then its just practice and practice routine must be robotic and focus must be absolute. This is one very hard discipline to excel at top level. Dtl easy .... Think again.

 

[Dog Tyred]

IPS

DTL birds are easy, it's the boredom that's the problem....for me anyway.

I really can't see the point of a discipline where you need to hit 100/300 just to be in with a chance to get into final or even semi-final in some cases! Miss a bird on your first squad and you may as well pack up and go home. Where's the fun in that?

I think they (the governing body) missed a trick recently by not making DTL more challenging (faster targets or wider angles) but instead made ABT a bit easier?

Don't get me wrong I have absolutely nothing against those that choose to shoot DTL competively as an awful lot do (or socially as I do when its on at my local club) and having the ability to concentrate 100% for 100 birds is a gift I wish I had but I just don't get it. Maybe its the high scores that attract so many? It's always better to go to work on a Monday having hit 24 ex 25 than 20. Be interesting to hear from anyone that does shoot DTL seriously.

IMO (and it is only my opinion) if you are good enough to hit 100/298 regularly then maybe its time to move on to one of the faster trap disciplines where you miss a target because its so bloody fast rather than because you weren't concentrating and 100 straights are like hens teeth, snake oil, rocking horse poo, a Tory in Scotland, etc.

I'll get my coat

DT

 

[ips]

Your absolutely right Boredom is indeed a big hurdle to get over at DTL. The reason it is such a difficult discipline has been discussed and anylised by every trap shooter that ever lived and I dont think anyone has come up with a definitive conclusion. You stand behind a line and wonder how anyone could ever miss them but they look different looking down the barrel of a gun.

I have shot A LOT of DTL over the years and I believe that the reason its difficult is the mental approach required.

All other trap disciplines you are shooting to hit the target at DTL becuase they are "easy" and you know you need a 100-300 you are shooting not too miss, this negativity imparts pressure and the pressure not too miss is overwhelming for most "normal" folk. Shoot a serious big comp like the world, kriegoff, english etc etc then unless you can overcome the above mental pressure then you are stuffed........... I say again to any new and budding trap shooters or anyone who see's DTL as a walk in the park...........DTL easy....think again.

I have known many many top level DTL shooters personally over the last 27yrs and believe me top level DTL shooters who can and do shoot 100-300 week in week out are super human.

 

[Dog Tyred]

ips

Interesting point about shooting not to miss! Never thought of it like that before. As has been said many times before shooting is 70% in the head and getting the mental approach right is the really difficult bit. How many times have you missed the penultimate or last target in a round of 25 because you started thinking 'I'm on for a straight here". I've done it loads of times.

Scanning a few results on the CPSA website 100/300's are not as common as you might think so you have a point regarding the superhuman bit......but for instance, at one shoot at Faux Degla in August with 152 entries there were 20 100 straights, including three 100/300's and the last 100 straight finished in 47th place due to 9 second barrells!!!!!! I guess with those scores and that amount of entries it must have been a major fixture but the point remains 20 100 straights!! Even the competitor who finished in 100th place hit 97!! 97 at an ABT/OT/UT comp will make you high gun!!

I guess the difference between DTL and other trap disciplines is with the latter you are just trying to hit as many targets as possible with little realistic chance of hitting them all but with DTL you are chasing perfection every time because it is possible and that must be frustrating when you don't do it.

To compare it with darts, can you imagine if the winner of every major championship won ever game with 9 dart finishes?

Not sure of the analogy but......it would pretty tedious after a while so the governing body would do something to stop it happening.

Keep the angles but increase the speed to OT levels.....that's what I say.

DT

 

[ips]

Yep you got it one. Even a couple of second barrels in majors Will get you no were.

I appreciate your view regarding making it harder however with respect there is a discipline to which you refer,- abt

 

[** Pending Removal **]

All disciplines are hard at the top and harder to stay at the top. That is another pressure added to all the rest......when you get there.

No one should say that any discipline is easy unless they have already won big in that discipline.....what ever it is. Until people understand that there is much more to shooting a discipline than just pulling the trigger, they will never move up the ranks. To succeed at any discipline you have to be in full charge of the 'box of tools' and know how to use them.

Then when you get there, you are judged as a good sportsman or woman by your actions......that is where over the years you earn your reputation.....!!

There is a lot more to shooting than just pulling the trigger.

 

[Hamster]

Not courting confrontation but it ought to be possible to have an opinion about a discipline despite not having won big at it, otherwise only a dozen people are left to ponder things. DTL IS easy in the sense that the balance of skill is tilted towards the psychological/mental approach and not so much the out and out shooting ability. This is very different to a lot of other sports out there.

Ultimately it takes a very different shooting skill set to shoot a DTL 100/300 than it does to shoot 95/100 at ESP.

 

[** Pending Removal **]

Did not say your could not have an opinion. Suggest you read it again.

 

[Dog Tyred]

Yep you got it one. Even a couple of second barrels in majors Will get you no were.

I appreciate your view regarding making it harder however with respect there is a discipline to which you refer,- abt

:huh: Tis true.

You've got me thinking now maybe I should strick my head in the lions mouth and actually shoot a few DTL comps to see what it's all about? Watch this space.

DT