Don Currie's Shooting Tips...
 Jan. 13, 2022
There are usually two issues associated with a shooter’s move when missing a target that is below waist level and going downhill or plunging. First of all, the natural swing of a shooter in a properly balanced, erect shooting stance is 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock or 3 o’clock to 9 o’clock at the elevation of the shooter’s shoulders.
When a target is below your waist, however, you need to change your stance to orient your torso to the same elevation as the target’s breakpoint. If you maintain your normal upright stance in the shooting stand, you will tend to move along a line that is above the line of the target and miss over the top.
The best cure for this problem is to reorient your torso to the level of the target’s breakpoint by forcing your butt back, while maintaining good balance with the balls of your shoulders over the balls of your feet. With this move, you properly orient your torso to the level of the target’s breakpoint. In your scenario, you have the additional challenge of a target that is “plunging” or descending. In these cases, the most common cause of a miss is to set up in the ready position with a muzzle angle that is above the planned breakpoint. In so doing, you must force your barrel toward the breakpoint in a downward direction, frequently occluding the target with the barrel and shooting over the top of the target.
One of the cardinal rules I teach my students is to always set up in the ready position with a muzzle angle no higher than the breakpoint. So, for a target with a line below your waist and plunging, you need to orient your torso to the breakpoint and position your muzzle angle no higher than the planned breakpoint so that you can move laterally to the breakpoint without moving down to the target.
Don Currie is the chief instructor of the National Sporting Clays Association and one of the most sought-after shooting coaches and gunfitter in our sport. Competing in the shooting sports since age 8 and instructing as an apprentice at age 16, Don is that rare combination of Champion, Instructor, Coach and Gunfitter Don regularly propels shotgun enthusiasts of all ages and experience levels to breakthrough performance whether in the field or in competition. He also fits and equips shooters for custom shotguns. His instructional DVD “Focus – Movement – Faith” is the #1 rated sporting clays DVD on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3jEtt1u. For more about Don, visit his web site at https://doncurrie.com.
Don Currie is one of North America’s most respected gunfitters, shotgun coaches and an award-winning author. In his new book “Gunfitting: Achieving the Ideal Fit for the Game and Clay Shot, “Don delivers a groundbreaking reference work on the proper fit of a shotgun based on a lifetime of experience as a shooter, coach, and gunfitter. He takes the reader far beyond the pattern plate, to a detailed description of how the proper point-of-impact is evaluated on moving targets and how the shooter’s stance, mount, shooting discipline, and level of experience all factor into the final dimensions of the properly fitted shotgun.
Don leads us on an informative journey into the stock maker’s workshop, the engraver’s studio, and the gunfitter’s kit bag to round out our understanding of the detail required to achieve the perfect gunfit. Gunfitting will prove to be a highly valued resource and a welcome addition to the book shelf of any shotgun enthusiast, instructor, gunfitter or gunmaker for many years to come.
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Sporting Sentinel
Jan. 13, 2022
