Youth Shooting Sports thread.....

[FEETDOWN]

Looks like there's a lot of guys with kids involved in shooting sports on here. Figured I'd start a new thread to post about upcoming shoots and info for anybody wanting to get their kids involved. There are schools and clubs all over the state that need more shooters.

[reeltight]

I started looking into this after you posted about the last event. Looks like the start age is 12 I think. So we'll have to wait a couple more years but certainly something I know my oldest boy will be interested in.

[FEETDOWN]

Where are you seeing the starting age being 12? I wouldn't start a small kid shooting much younger than that but there is no minimum age as far as I know....

[billyjack]

I started my kids shooting at 6 and 7 and I felt like I started them late. They don’t compete of course.

[billyjack]

I saw the skeet shooting thread. Are there any rifle competition organizations for little kids?

[FEETDOWN]

Billyjack, I'm talking about competitively. My kids started shooting as soon as they could hold up a bb gun, my oldest started shooting competitively last year when he was 13 and my youngest is starting this year at 12. The amount of shooting most of these kids do would surprise you, it takes a toll on their shoulders if you start them too soon IMO. We shoot 2 or 3 days a week and go through at least a case of shells each time, more than that most times. It adds up, both physically and financially

[Gander]

That's why I tell parents to stay with a Beretta auto until they get around 18. Lighter in weight and soaks up a lot of recoil.

Some of these kids are really good. And they are very well mannered.

I am not aware of any similar programs for rifle disciplines.

Clay target sports for youths has become huge. And its still growing.

[Sportin' Woodies]

Shooting skeet is like jacking off
Shooting birds is like having sex

[billyjack]

I figured that’s what you meant.

[reeltight]

Where are you seeing the starting age being 12? I wouldn't start a small kid shooting much younger than that but there is no minimum age as far as I know....

I'll have to look it back up. But I'm fairly certain I saw it on the SCYSF website. My 9yo can hit clays flying straight away. He needs a ton of help though. He's fighting the right hand / left eye dominate issue.

[reeltight]

Well hell...I stand corrected. I just saw something new; they have a rookie division starting at 3rd grade.

SCYSF DIVISIONS
a. Rookie – 3
rd, 4th and 5th Grade
i. Any athlete in these grades will be in this division even if athlete participated in previous
year(s). Athlete must be mature, demonstrate safe gun handling, able to load his/her own
gun and be capable of shooting at 100 targets. SCYSF reserves the right to remove
athlete from event if these requirements are not being met on event day.
b. Intermediate 1st Year – 6
th
– 8
th Grades
i. Any athlete in these grades will be in this division if in 6th grade or if participating for the
1
st time.
c. Intermediate Advanced – 7
th
– 8
th Grades
i. Any athlete in these grades will be in this division if participated in previous year as
Intermediate 1st Year.
d. Junior Varsity 1st Year – 9
th
– 10th Grades
i. Any athlete in these grades will be in this division if participating for the 1st time or
participated previous year as Intermediate Advanced.
e. Junior Varsity Advanced – 10th Grade
i. Any athlete in this grade will be in this division if participated in previous year as Junior
Varsity 1st Year.
f. Senior Varsity 1st Year – 11th
– 12th Grades
Page 6 of 7
i. Any athlete in these grades will be in this division if participating for the 1st time or
participated in previous year as Junior Varsity Advanced.
g. Senior Varsity Advanced – 12th Grade
i. Any athlete in this grade will be in this division if participated in previous year as Senior
Varsity 1st year.
h. Alternate Shooter – in some cases a 4th shooter may walk with a squad. This shooter is called
an alternate. He/she must be eligible to shoot on the course with the squad. For example, a
Senior Varsity 1st Year can only shoot on the Senior course whereas a Rookie shooter can shoot
on any course. The shooter score is eligible for individual HOA on the course in which he/she is
shooting. For example, a JV 1st Year shooter can be on the JV course shooting with a JV
Advance team. That shooter’s score would qualify for HOA in the JV 1st Year division. In
addition, one of these squad member’s score cannot be replaced with the alternate shooter score.

[2thDoc]

do whats best for your kid

my daughter started shooting clays at 12. she's not very good but doesnt give a shit. she enjoys it.
son1 started shooting clays later...like maybe 14....but its helping pay for college, so I'm cool with it.

we never practice. it saves a lot of money on shells.

hope this helps

[FEETDOWN]

I'll have to look it back up. But I'm fairly certain I saw it on the SCYSF website. My 9yo can hit clays flying straight away. He needs a ton of help though. He's fighting the right hand / left eye dominate issue.

I’m no instructor, but every one that I’ve ever talked to about that issue will tell you not to fight it. If he’s left eye dominant, he needs to be shooting left handed.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Calibogue]

I’m no instructor, but every one that I’ve ever talked to about that issue will tell you not to fight it. If he’s left eye dominant, he needs to be shooting left handed.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You need to change him ASAP and don't fight the eye dominance.
Get him to a professional and start him right from the beginning.
Jane is 11 and she shot very little last year so this was her first event.

I took the Assistant coaches class a few weeks ago and as a left eye dominant right hand shooter, I volunteered to let Donny Roth dot my left eye.
It was amazing what it did but the next week at 48 years of age, I switched to left hand shooting.
Shot doves three times (three limits shooting LH) and clays just a few.....amazing!

[Calibogue]

https://www.scysf.org/

[Gander]

If cross dominant, switching is the best solution but the hardest to do. You will never reach your full potential until you are shooting from the dominant side.

Chapstick and dots are only temporarily solutions. Just make sure you are truly cross dominant before making the leap. I've had folks come to me claiming to be cross dominant, only to find they didn't understand how to properly focus the eyes for wingshooting.

Conversely, I've had some older gentlemen tell me they were right handed and right eye dominant. But after shooting a few easy outgoing targets, they were clearly left eye dominant.

With kids, they can switch side much easier than the older folks.

[reeltight]

Heck, I'm right handed and right eye dominate but my optic nerve was damaged during eye surgery a few years back and I'm quickly loosing my farsightedness. A may have to switch at some point myself.

[reeltight]

Talk to me about Dots and Chapstick???

[Gander]

The dot or chapstick is used to occlude the left eye so the right eye gets visual focus on the target (right handed shooter). You can still use the left eye for peripheral vision but when the target reaches the kill zone, the right eye gets the steering wheel.

The only issue with that is your binocular vision doesn't get used which impedes your ability to judge distance.

The eyes (and hands to a certain extent) provide the input to the brain to understand speed and distance in order to put the gun in the right place in front of the target. Without good input the brain is handicapped.

[Smilee]

There are air rifle and small bore programs in SC. I shot precision air rifle and smallbore through the Newberry Pistol Club. Most all the shoots were at High Schools hosted by JROTC. Union HS used the cafeteria for air rifle and has a range behind the school for small bore.


Link with contacts. Very good program

http://www.gosc.org/news/the-newberry-pistol-club.html