doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Skeet Shooting Incident

Some what off topic. I was shooting a round of skeet last Saturday with my shooting buddy. We were at station 5, he was shooting and I was to the left and behind him pushing the buttons. He fired and hit the high house target at mid field. Simultaneously I felt a sharp stinging on my neck! There was a little abrasion under my chin and a small wound on my neck. A little blood but nothing to stop the activity. Today I was fingering the 'wound' and out came a lead pellet. Flat on one side. There was nothing but target in front of the shooter. No one else around. The pellet must have bounced off the target and came back to hit me. Anyone ever hear of such a thing?? All this as I was cradling my Ithaca NID 5E sheet gun. I am glad the pellet didn't hit the gun--I will heal a lot better then the gun would. Anybody ever question the necessity of shooting glasses??
(He was shooting a M-31 Skeet gun that he had just bought from me--maybe the gun was 'sticking its tongue out at me??)

Walt, that is very strange! Any chance a stray pellet came from another field?

If I understand this correctly Walter you're stating he actually hit the high house? I saw this happen several years ago when a shooter inadvertently did this on Station 8 and was actually hit by a ricocheting pellet of the house.
Jim

James, My mistake, he hit the high house target about mid-field. I don't recall anyone on a field near us. Plus the hit was on the right side of my neck.

I know a guy that had something similar happen. He was shooting H1 when he also felt a sting (on his nose), and wiped off a little blood. The next day, he noticed what looked kind of like a blackhead. He poked at it and "tink", a pellet dropped into the ceramic sink.

And no, I don't question the need for eye protection. And it was the only range open at the time, it didn't come from somewhere else.

Yes I have seen two people hit by stray pellets like you describe. One was standing fourth in line at high eight when a pellet came back from the target and hit his shooting glasses almost dead center on his left eye lens. No doubt it was from the target just shot by the shooter on the station. Second was a shooter who was hit pellet from the load he just shot at station four. Pellet hit him on the fore head about an inch over his right eye. It broke the skin and was in fact still on the surface after breaking the skin. Flat as a plate so it did not penetrate at all. He was not wearing shooting glasses that day and was lucky not to loose an eye or at least suffer serious damage. He does wear glasses all the time now when shooting. He has found safety religion.

Bottom line is that if you shoot long enough you see all types of weird things and almost impossible freak events. Wear ear plugs and eye wear at all times. And stand behind a fat guy when ever you can. He can shield you, protect your gun and make you look thinner at the same time.

Thank you guys! I guess my experience was not at all that unique. I am glad there were no serious injuries, gun or people.

+1

My friend, the late Henry Thomas of Federal Oak Farm, was sitting on the patio in front of the clubhouse at the old Potomac River Gun Club, a single skeet field. The shooters on the field were shooting high eight and a pellet glanced off the target and imbedded itself in Henry's forehead!!

The same thing happened to me.
I was sitting on a bench behind station four watching a squad on station one shoot, when I felt a sting in my left upper arm, I looked and there was blood running down my arm, I had to pry a pellet out with a knife blade. The pellet was flattened on one side. The shooter was shooting high one and broke the target about over the stake. that pellet had to have turned 90 degrees to hit me and must have bounced off the target.
Pete