Yeah, yeah...
About this time of year they start showing up at the clubs to 'tune up' for bird/duck season.
The orange vest is the first giveaway, the complete lack of gun manners the next.
We had one guy last year start stuffing shells in his Benelli (3.5" of course) in the parking lot.
Many average Americans seems to think they are descended from a line of natural born shooters and somehow have innate ability that they very much do not.
After breaking maybe half a dozen at skeet, they proudly announce that this is nothing like the shooting they usually do, and that they seldom if ever miss a bird in the field.
We take their money, wish them luck, and invite them back next year.
It's a tradition.
But, yes, once in a while 'old rusty 1100 guy' will show up and demonstrate that he was likely born with that gun in his hands. Such people are rare, but they do exist.
No offense intended.
At the Club/place I shoot at I am one of the few that uses a hunting strap vest. Most "shooters" are fat over weight slobs that have trouble fitting their big belly's under the steering wheel of their custom built golf cart they use to haul their guns, soft drinks and snacks. Most have never seen the open praries of the Dakotas/Pheasants or the giant Idaho hillsides for Chukars. Their pre mounts and call for pull are so structured that the thought of a wild bird flushing in front of them unexpectedly would no doubt make them pee their pants.
One of the more unexpected happenings would be seeing one of these guys actually walk a round of Sporting Clays.
I shot with a group of the suburban Club shooter guys one time. I was ridiculed for being a bird hunter. How cruel to shoot birds. Turns out that guy owned a chain of Diary Queens. I asked him how he thought his chickens were processed that he sold.
The tricked out guns with the adjustable combs and crazy looking stocks of the Club shooter is almost comedic. Most would be better off shooting with a single shot Stevens.
Talk about gun manners. By and large my experience is that the suburban club shooter is about as uncouth with a gun as they come. I would rather shoot with a hunter any day of the week.
Again, no offense intended.
