A Few Words For Youth Shooters
Posted On: 03-03-2021
Karla Harrison
Duck, quail, deer and many other hunters like to put their targets on the dinner table. There hasn’t yet been a recipe created to make clay targets good to eat. So why shoot them?
The legendary trapshooter, Leo Harrison III always said that trapshooting was just a fun thing. It was a way of life for him and his entire family, beginning at an early age. His 46 years of competition also included several years of coaching clinics before his passing in 2013. Being a big kid at heart, he was always happiest to share his considerable knowledge with young shooters.
As part of his class, he always brought up the other benefits that would be a bonus in addition to learning how to break a clay target…. life lessons!
Personal responsibility is a trait that will carry through a shooting competition, school, work and all aspects of life. To begin, shooters have a responsibility to learn and follow safety rules. Safety is the first rule of clay target shooting.
Shooters must be responsible for being prepared both emotionally and physically while being in control of all their equipment. It takes planning to arrive at the range with everything needed to compete.
All sports strive to instill good sportsmanship and shooting is no exception. Being a good winner can be as difficult as accepting that others scored better on that particular day.
Integrity is just another word for honesty. Scoring a clay target competition can sometimes involve a judgement call. While the official score keeper’s decision is final, squad mates can sometimes offer their perspective on whether or not a target was hit. It takes a lifetime to build a good reputation but only an instant to destroy it.
Good problem-solving skills can be used both on and off the shooting line. Shooters wanting to improve their scores need to be able to recognize what they did wrong and correct it. Fundamentals lay a foundation on which to build, no matter what you’re striving to learn. When trying to solve a shooting problem, always go back to the basic fundamentals.
Trapshooting is a unique sport in that it can be a team effort and at the same time, an individual one. It can be a lifetime pursuit, not limited by age or health conditions.
This summer, young gunners will have an opportunity to build sold skills on the trap field that they can carry away as they become a members of a worldwide shooting family.
Karla and Leo traveled the country and often took the time to provide youth shooting seminars. Leo Harrison III won 26 Grand National championship rings, an ATA record. His high overall score of breaking 993 of 1,000 targets is still a record.