One-eyed shooters are
supposed to be at a disadvantage when shooting, and that is true if
you don’t know the tricks to overcome the problems inherent in shooting
with just one eye. In reality, a one -eyed shooter can be just as good a
shotgunner as someone shooting with two eyes open. But as with anything,
you have to start from the ground up to make it all work. If one element
is missing or not executed properly, it all begins to fall apart. The same
is true of two-eyed shooters as well.
I see two-eyed shooters missing targets every day, which they shouldn’t.
It usually boils down to just one or two small things as to the cause for
missing the target. Any one of the following could be the cause, or a
combination of them; lack of concentration or mental focus, not focusing
the eyes properly, not focusing on the target, standing improperly, not
holding the gun properly, looking back at the rib or bead, not mounting
the gun properly and not relaxing.
The eyes are what tell the brain what to do. The brain then transmits
electronic commands that make our muscle’s react to the input. It is the
visual input that is all critical. If you wear prescription glasses when
shooting, be sure not to wear bifocals or varifocals. You’re not
interested in seeing your sights; you must focus only on the target. Only
wear your distance prescription when shooting or hunting. If you wear
eyeglasses with a dot or tape on the left lens, take it off. Your better
off without it. One of the secrets to being a good one-eyed shooter is
starting with two eyes open and then closing the left eye once the target
is acquired, you’ll have much better luck. The reason for starting with
two eyes open is that you acquire the target much faster, your field of
vision is much greater and you have depth perception when you need it
most.
For the purpose of illustration, I’m going to be relating things to the
stations, and positions on a skeet field. Most shooters would agree high
station two and low station five are the two hardest stations on a skeet
field. When I started shooting skeet in earnest in 1985, I was shooting
high gun, i.e., the gun mounted at the shoulder. I now shoot all shotgun
sports, including trap, with a low gun i.e., the top of the butt of the
gun below the armpit. I’ll explain why later. The problem was, that if I
held the gun barrel parallel to the side of the high house like your
supposed to, I couldn’t see the high house. If I held the barrel closer to
the high house, I could see the house and window, but when I called for
the bird, the bird would end up being way out in front of my gun barrel
before I started my swing, and I would catch and pass the target late,
past the center stake and end up shooting it late. A bad situation to be
in, especially when you’re shooting doubles. Also, when your shooting
one-eyed high gun and you wear glasses, your nose bridge on the glasses
will block your view to the left if you’re right handed and shoot with the
right eye open. I found I had a slight advantage when I switched to a
single wrap-around lens glass, it gave me better vision to the left, but
it wasn’t the solution. Always wear protective glasses when shooting.
After struggling with it for a few months, and trying different things, I
finally realized what was necessary to overcome the problem of picking up
the target immediately as it left the window of the house, and smoking it
before it reached the center stake. It was a two-part solution, but there
were many other related things, which contributed to success. Another
important point is that the gun must fit. Many new shooters are unaware if
their gun fits them properly, and if you shoot low gun, it’s imperative
the gun fit properly. You’ll never succeed in being a good shooter if you
don’t have a properly fitted gun. Before you buy a shotgun, make sure the
gun shop checks you for gun fit and that they know what they are doing.
The two most important things for a one eyed shooter are, shoot low gun in
any type of competition, and start with both eyes open. Back to high
station two. With your gun below your armpit, your face isn’t married to
the stock. You have freedom of movement with your face and can look in any
direction. The gun should still be parallel to the side of the house, with
the top of the barrel pointed just below the flight path of the bird. The
fore end of the gun should be cradled in the left hand with the index
finger pointing forward on the left side of the fore end, or under if that
is more comfortable. Your now free to turn your head in the direction of
the house. You don’t look at the window; you look at infinity just in
front of the window. You create a soft focus with your eyes on clouds,
blue sky, trees or whatever is in front but past the house window. If you
focus on infinity, your eyes only make one movement to come inward and
pick up and focus on the moving target. If you focus on something closer
than the house window, like the rib or sight on your gun, your eyes will
have to make two movements to catch and focus on the target, which is a
micro second delay. You don’t want that. You can even miss seeing the
target leaving the house if you’re looking at the rib or bead. Eyes or eye
should always focus on the target, nothing else. Speed and proper eye
focus is essential.
When you call for the bird, both eyes are open to enable you to acquire
the bird instantaneously. When you first see the bird in your peripheral
vision, your starting your swing and closing your left eye simultaneously
(this takes some practice). Your swinging the gun at the same speed the
bird is traveling or slightly faster, and your right eye is focused on the
bird. When the gun comes to your face, the gun should be in front of the
bird with the proper lead prior to getting to the center stake. A soon as
that happens, you should be pulling the trigger. The target should be
smoked at or before the stake. Most skeet shooters and even trap and
sporting clay shooters tend to ride the target. They fall in love with it
and tend to miss it. You have to be instinctive in your shooting and react
to the target quickly and instinctively. You have to trust your eyes, or
eye, and pull the trigger when it first looks good. You have to learn to
trust yourself, don’t think about or measure the target, just do it. You
have to develop and trust your natural instinct. It’ll work for you every
time. With practice, you should be able to smoke the target twelve to
fifteen feet before the center stake. It can be done, you just have to
believe it can be done, and consistently while smoking the target, not
just chipping it, and you will do it.
Low gun shooting allows more freedom of movement, which means smoother gun
swing and a more relaxed stance and mental attitude. If you feel any
tension prior to you calling for a bird, just exhale. You’ll feel your
body relax as you do it. Be sure you have the proper mental and visual
focus. Don’t go up to a station and hold the gun at the ready position for
30 seconds or up to a minute while getting ready and then call pull
because your arms will get tired and create tension that will cause you to
be slow or jerky on the swing. Have the gun under your shoulder or at arms
length and relaxed. Do your mental preparation, load the gun, bring it to
the ready position, exhale if necessary, and then call pull when ready.
Don’t stand there all day with the gun in the ready position before you
call pull, it’s a big mistake many shooters make. |
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I see a lot of shooters all
in different stances, and most of them are creating some tension in some
part of their body, because of their stance. Some of them look like they
are preparing for a tank to run into them, or if they’re trying to hold up
a wall. It isn’t necessary to take such an unnatural stance to be
successful in shotgunning. All that funny stance stuff developed from trap
shooting where it really isn’t necessary either. The important thing is to
be natural and relaxed. The more you are, the higher you’ll scores will be
and you’ll bring home more birds from the hunt and smoke more targets on
the course. Do what is comfortable and natural for you. If your taking
instruction, listen to and do what the instructor tells you, but after the
course, feel free to make slight modifications that make you feel more
relaxed and natural, and see what happens. But don’t return to your old
self-defeating bad habits.
Earlier, I said you have to start from the ground up, and I mean that.
Lets take station two high again. Your feet should be planted under you,
no farther apart than your shoulders and either foot should point to one
side of the center stake, or where you intend to break the target. Your
stance should be natural and comfortable. Your upper body should also face
the center stake and be erect. Do not bend over, or hump your shoulders.
You rotate your upper body at the waist to a point where the gun barrel is
parallel to the house. You are now like a coiled spring with stored
energy, waiting to uncoil. You rotate your head to a point where your eyes
are looking right in front of the high house. Your eyes are soft focused
on infinity a foot to the right of the front of the window. You exhale,
relax and call pull. Your eyes pick up the target, as you do, the gun is
coming up to your face; your rotating to the right at the waist, and your
left eye is closing or now closed. Your right eye is focused on the
target, not the sight or rib, and its relationship to the left edge of the
horizontal centerline of the upper barrel. The gun is next to your face,
you see the right amount of space between the target and the barrel, and
you pull the trigger. The target is smoked before the center stake. It’s
all very natural and instinctive, and that’s what shooting has to be, in
order to be successful, consistent and fun.
If you were shooting station two low house, you would not change your foot
position. Your upper body would rotate slightly to the right and the
barrel of the gun would be just in front of the low house. You should
break the target before or at the center stake. Do not ride the target
past the center stake, be instinctive, and shoot the target as soon as you
get the right lead. You’ll learn the right lead by taking instruction or
by trial and error. I’m not going to tell you, you need three or four foot
of lead, because that doesn’t mean anything to a shooter. Everyone’s
reaction time, swing speed and moment of inertia are different, so
obviously the picture (barrel and target relationship) is going to look
different to another shooter.
Whether your shooting skeet, trap or sporting clays, your routine should
always be the same. Start from your feet and work up to your eyes and
brain and make sure everything is in the proper place and order and that
you have the right mental and visual focus. Perform a mental checklist at
every station for every target presentation regardless what shotgun sport
your shooting.
Feet - always pointed to either side of where you’ll break the target
along with the centerline of your upper body pointed at the point where
you will break the target.
Upper body – erect, and rotate at the waist to the hold point in front of
where the eyes will first pick up the target. Gun muzzle held just below
anticipated flight path of bird. Be sure your holding the gun properly.
Head - rotated further to the eye focus point where you’ll first see the
bird.
Eyes - soft focused on infinity in front the area where birds will first
appear, with both eyes open.
Relax - softly exhale just prior to calling for the bird.
Brain - be sure it is clear, and focused on only one thing, the target.
Call –Exhale, relax and call pull.
Eyes - picks up bird in peripheral vision and focus on it, the eyes will
do it naturally. Left eye is closing, gun is swinging and coming up to
cheek, gun touches cheek and the correct lead is established, trigger is
pulled and gun swing is followed through, and another bird disappears. It
could be aliens, but you know the real cause for the disappearance.
It all becomes very natural with a little practice.
If you feel you have a vision problem, and would like to know what can be
done to correct the problem, you should see a doctor of Optometry. Linda
Joy, the top female shooter in the United States, attends eye-training
sessions held by Doctor Richard Glonek in Scottsdale, AZ. She attributes
her success in shotgunning to what she has learned and practiced at Dr.
Glonek’s facility. I also attended a one week course, and came away
impressed and with improved eyesight and reaction time. I was given a
training regimen to continue at home. A worthwhile investment. For
information on their programs or for an appointment, contact Inez Connor
at the facility. It’s located at 10505 North 69th Street, Scottsdale, AZ
85253, Tel 602-483-0711
Skeet is a good way to learn leads, holding points, gun swing, etc.
Anything that is learned on a skeet field can be applied to a sporting
clay field. With novice shooters, I let them learn the basics on a skeet
field, and once they are smoking targets pretty consistently, I’ll take
them to a sporting clay field so they can learn more difficult
presentations. It has worked very well. Some of my one eyed shooting
students have been shooting less than a year, and have taken only six
lessons and are shooting sporting clays in the mid-seventies.
Jerry Sinkovec is the director of the Instinctive Target Interception
Shotgun Shooting School headquartered in Idaho Falls, ID. It’s a Browning
endorsed shooting school. He can be contacted by writing: I.T.I. Shotgun
Shooting School, 5045 Brennan Bend, Idaho Falls, ID 83406. E-mail:
itishooting@msn.com Tel:
208-523-1545. The web site is:
www.itishooting.com He is opening two new school locations in the
Jackson Hole, WY area as well as Sun Valley, ID. Classes are also
conducted in New Mexico and at Rancho Caracol in Mexico.
Bio. on author:
Jerry Sinkovec is an international outdoor/travel writer/photographer who
resides in Idaho Falls, ID. He has written for over thirty-five
publications and newspapers, and has become our shooting and travel
editor. Some of his photographs and articles have won national awards. He
has been instructing in the shotgun sports since 1994 in New Mexico and is
the director of the Instinctive Target Interecption Shotgun Shooting
School. Jerry has also taught skiing, winter survival, rock climbing and
ice climbing at several colleges and universities in the Midwest aside
from operating his own climbing school.
AUTHOR
Jerry Sinkovec
5045 Brennan Bend
Idaho Falls, ID 83406
208-523-1545
photojournalistjerry@msn.com
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