Thanks for putting this up Dan.
I shot it from when it started to a few years back. I absolutely loved it. I couldn't wait for Sunday mornings. I stopped for many reasons. My right eye deteriorated so badly, my knee fell apart and a few other reasons.
I always shot a 77 springer with a Simmons 4-12 scope with 30/30 ret. The whole lot cost originally about £180 second hand. I never missed a target because of kit. I actually knocked quite a lot down.
I must admit I did get a little concerned when the mega kit started coming in. Not out of jealousy. I just worried that courses were getting tougher to test the best and then the best bought better kit to try and steal the odd extra point ... and then course makers made courses even tougher and so on. That's just human nature and has been discussed many times. It was always going to happen. I worried that the front end of the sport would pull so far away from the entry level that people would be put off getting into the sport ... and staying in it long enough to give it a chance. I do think there's a tad of evidence that that has happened a little.
I've looked at the poll results. Only 19 votes so far so not really enough to go on. I can see why a few voted 'I don't like target shooting'. A vast number of air gunners are hunters and that's what they do. I really would say to the hunters that there may be no better way of improving your hunting skills than shooting a year of HFT. That's really not a 'Target shooters are better than hunters' thing.
I also understand people saying they just don't have time. It can be all day on a Sunday if there's a few hours driving and two sessions.
I am seriously absolutely amazed at the ones who have voted ... Don't like the atmosphere or the people.
Anyone reading these threads and thinking of giving HFT a go, or FT, that is absolute b0ll0x. The atmosphere at the comps is brilliant. The people are fantastic. No one is made to feel unwelcome. Everyone will go out of their way to make you welcome. They will let you try their kit. They will show you around. They will advise you. I've been given so much kit for free from people like Chris C and lads from the North West. There isn't a better atmosphere to spend a few hours in on a Sunday morning. So I really don't know where those votes came from.
If you are thinking of giving it a go. Please just go and try it. You really don't need £3000 of kit. As above, I shot for over 10 years with £180 worth of second hand springer and scope. I shot more over 50 scores than under ( mostly club shoots ) and came joint top score in the Worlds Springer class at Kelmarsh one year. The scores don't matter. The friends and memories that I made locally and around the North West and other areas do.
If you do give it a go then please don't be put off if the courses seem beyond you at first and you only score low 30's or even a 20's score. The learning process early on, especially with the help you will get, will be very steep and fast. So within a few shoots you will be finding far more targets easier to knock down and your scores will start to climb, no matter what kit you use, very quickly. When you've reached high 40's it starts to get a bit tougher again and you may wish to upgrade kit or not. That's the beauty of it. It won't ever get too easy, You will keep reaching levels that you then have to work even harder at to get to that next level ... or you may just be happy staying at the level you are on and just work harder at your p1ss taking skills.
Please go and give HFT and FT a try.
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