Ryan Barnes for Split Reed
As waterfowlers, we have a great appreciation for the guns we shoot, and especially the way we shoot them. Some of the most spectacular shots I’ve ever witnessed have been on teal diving in and out of the decoys or honkers making a break for it, hitting the wind, and trying to make an escape just to get folded up by a wad of steel shot. However, even though us waterfowlers love shooting our shotguns (or any firearm for that matter), most of us don’t realize that the month of August is entirely dedicated to shooting sports. That’s right- August is National Shooting Sports Month, sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), and they’re making efforts all over the country, along with the help of gun manufacturers like Browning Firearms to help get people involved.
If you’re anything like me, you probably know very little about shooting competitions aside from playing “Last Man Standing” with your buddies out camping or a casual round of Annie Oakley at the trap range, and even less about how to get involved with them. Last year at this time, a friend of mine invited me to go to a skeet shooting competition at a local target range. An event being held to help introduce newcomers to shooting sports. Myself, being extremely competitive and having grown up shooting shotguns all year round, figured I might as well ‘give it a shot’.
As I went to my gun case to grab a shotgun for the event, I took a look at my arsenal. My current shotgun is a Browning Maxus, which shoots true every time, and is lethal in the field. But there in the back corner sat ol’ faithful. The gun that had gotten me started hunting. My Browning BPS 12 gauge. The camo finish has worn off in most places, and there isn’t much of a kick-pad left, but that’s only because that gun has been with me everywhere from Canada to Tennessee. It’s chased swans in Utah, ducks in North Dakota, and all sorts of birds in-between. Out of sheer nostalgia, I opted to go with the BPS. Besides, it had hit plenty of live targets for me in the past.
I met my friend at the designated shooting range and quickly realized that I had no idea what I was up against! I had on ripped work jeans, a tee-shirt, work boots, my favorite hat, and a pair of safety glasses that I had rolling around in my truck. The other competitors had on vests with different patches marking different accomplishments that they had achieved throughout their shooting career. They had well-groomed hair and some even had on collared shirts and dress shoes. I couldn’t tell if I was at a shooting range or a business meeting. Then came the really daunting part. Everyone brought out their guns for warm-ups. Custom made over-and-under shotguns, imported Italian side-by-sides, all sorts of well-oiled custom detailed and made-to-order shotguns that had price tags higher than the truck I showed up in did. As I pulled out my beat-up well-used, BPS- I could only imagine what some people thought. No, it wasn’t the Browning Citori, though that would have been nice. It was my Browning BPS. It wasn’t going to win any beauty contests (it may have in its day, but not anymore) but I knew it was going to shoot just as straight as anyone else’s gun.
All shooters got two throws of warm-ups at a station of their choosing. I took mine and after that, I knew I was in business. At the expense of sounding too arrogant here let me say this: I’m pretty confident with a shotgun. Maybe it’s the years and years of ducks, geese, doves, and roosters I’ve shot at. Either way, sighting a moving target downrange of a smoothbore is nothing new to me. During the warm-up, it seemed that everyone struggled except for me and two other gentlemen. There were 13 competitors, all trying for the $1,000 cash prize given to the winner. 2nd and 3rd place received gift cards to a local sporting goods store for significantly less.
Browning Citori CX
The order of shooters was given and I found myself at the bottom. As I watched shooters from all over my home state of Utah break and miss clays, I found myself chatting with the other competitors and joking about my “novice” attire. We joked and laughed as everyone shot, and then my turn came. I jacked shells into my trusty BPS, turned my hat backward, and walked up to the line. I gave the call and the clays were flying. The first single turned to powder, the second single caught enough BB’s to split, then came my double, my high house was a whiff, but I managed to crunch the low house. 4 of 5 to start things off. I was happy with it.
As the group slowly worked their way around the semi-circle the laughing and joking turned into analysis and cussing about which shots should have been made instead of missed. By Station 5, I was tied for 5th place with two other shooters. 1st place was locked up by a shooter that had only missed one shot, and it seemed like that was all he was going to miss. After two “X’s” at station 5, I moved into a tie for 4th place. My Browning was getting the job done like it had so many times before!
By the final station, I was one broken clay away from taking 3rd place (a lot better than I expected to do). But if I happened to choke and miss both (which, if you’ve shot skeet before, you know that’s a very real possibility) there would be a three-way tie for 3rd, requiring a tie-breaker. Neither my shoulder nor my head wanted to go through that. I decided I would use a little strategy and choose the easier of the two targets for me to hit, the high house, and focus on breaking that one. I gave the call, the clays were thrown and I missed it! I completely whiffed the one target I was planning to hit! Luckily for me, I had time to jack-in another shell, find the low- house clay, and managed to break it just in time- giving me a third-place finish!
Having grown up playing sports, and being an extremely competitive person, I can say that the first time out shooting skeet was a great experience! I enjoyed the camaraderie, the challenge, and the fun of it. What made it even better was being able to use my Browning BPS to take home a finish that I never thought I could have.
So if you’re wanting to get out and try something fun this summer, go and find a shooting competition near you, especially this August during the National Shooting Sports Month. There are many efforts being made to increase the volume of people getting into these events. Efforts from the NSSF, and Browning Firearms, to name a couple- dedicated to helping you enjoy more time in the field doing things you enjoy, all the while getting ready for something you love.
If you have an interest in getting involved in shooting sports, please visit the links below. Be safe, shoot straight, and happy hunting!
Anyone who enjoys shooting clays or targets with shotguns is recommended to take a look at the Browning Citori line of shotguns. Don’t forget to enter the Browning GearBox Giveaway for a chance to win a shooting sports package from Browning Firearms, including a Browning Citori CX
August is National Shooting Sports Month, sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation. If you have the chance, try to take a new shooter out as a part of the Plus One Movement!
