Top shooters dropping down the pecking order

[Phil Russell]

Firstly .. this post is largely in jest and just reflects my own opinions / observations over many years. I wonder what the peak age is for a HFT competition shooter? There seems to be a period when 'top' shooters are king of the roost and rarely off the trophy list but at the same time they are being chased by younger shooters. Eventually these younger shooters seem to reach the top and the older established figures fall back a bit. Now I cannot believe that these younger shooters are any better than the older ones were in their heyday which must mean that the older shooters are just losing their edge. In time scales I think we are talking over several years.
But why? I was never a top shooter but I was happy with what I did. But over the years I have noticed a slow decline in whatever skill level I had. I am not as steady on aim as I was, largely due to, I think, arthritis and the general ageing process affecting joints and core strength. My eyes are not as keen as they once were so my range finding skills are most likely less sharp. It all leads to a steady but slow decline in shooting ability. I do not consider myself decrepit though.
But back to the original question: What are peoples' views on the golden age for a competition shooter?

Cheers, Phil.
Many years a wrinkly.

[WILBA]

Like anything else phil you can lose the hunger for it.

[rapidresponse1]

as above i did for hunting just do target shooting now

[Faerie]

In your early 30's, I reckon. At that time I could shoot 10p piece sized groups at 30 yards, offhand while standing and with a springer under pretty much any outdoor conditions that didn't make hunting impractical. I couldn't even attempt that now because as you get older your muscle tone goes, fitness levels drop, eyesight begins to get a bit iffy, and your hand/eye coordination isn't what it once was.
In competition little things make a lot of difference - miss a couple of shots you'd once have nailed and suddenly you've been surpassed.

[Muskett]

Highly competitive sports such as rifle target shooting then I suspect 40 is the wall to remain competitive. Shotgun, then a couple of years on that.
However, if the youngsters don't come up to standard then they will get beaten by the old experienced hands. The old hands tend to do well at the beginning of the season too, but lose out at the hight as the young guns get up to speed.

Sadly, I don't consider myself competitive any more. Lack of regular practice and real application doesn't cut the mustard any more. I might pull off one good set of targets but can't keep it together over a more lengthy course of fire.

[mr dink]

I competed in FT and HFT and loved every moment and your post could of been written for me, personally i think HFT has become a lot harder ie smaller targets further away and impossible to bracket the targets these days .

[Bellycrawler]

As with anything, once you have climbed the mountain & seen the views the rest is only downhill.

[ChrisC]

I would say optimum age to be 30 as you've had years to gain some experience but not quite on the slippery slope health wise. I shot FT to AA grade and around 2005 (ish) switched to HFT, in 2008 i was UKAHFT Champion so that would have made me 42 and in the years after was NEFTA HFT champ(multiple times), mids champ, Gathering champ 2014 and 2021, multiple top 10 finishes in the UKAHFT series, multiple top 10 Worlds positions (3 times England team) and British open Champ 2021. Around 54 i was diagnosed with high blood pressure, high cholesterol and pre diabetes which all affected my eyesight, even more so with adjusting medication. I'm now 56 and am currently top 10 UK with 2 rounds to go and finished 5th last weekend at the worlds so age isn't really slowing down my scores.

The key to comp longevity IMHO is getting lots of practice and even more importantly getting a good barrel and matching it to a good batch of pellet. I've seen many different shooters at the top of the tree and the equation below about sums it up.

mechanically sound rifle=good barrel=good pellet batch=practice=confidence=more targets hit.

[Shed tuner]

As with anything, once you have climbed the mountain & seen the views the rest is only downhill.

summs it up for me.. I just lost the drive to put in the practice. Chris's comments I entirely agree with - but the mental side is what drives that practice, and with a young family and other comitments, I just lost the dedication needed to stay at a high level. Or, to put it another way, I chose to prioritse other things (my kids / family), and I don't regret that in the slightest.

For me, mid 30s. But I think if you look after your health, and maintain focus / dedication & therefore practive, that could easily stretch out to 50 years of age.

[gsxrman]

A lot of good comments. Health can be a major factor, age is just a number, for me its all about your mental state.
The willingness to drive on, the motivation to still compete even with complexities trying to hold you back.
This basically means to compete you have to practice more and train harder.
Lots don't though and that is our demise. ChrisC shoots in NEFTA which is littered with World and European Champions and is very competitive.
I found though that (being based in Teesside) the travelling was a royal pain. Hull for instance and Anston were two hour drives away for us to shoot 30 pellets in a field at targets mounted to scaffolding (terrible) or a very dusty windy quarry.
Someone with Chris's dedication would travel and compete every week and strive to be the best at each event. I remember a junior shooter from Sedgefield who became world Champ would turn up every week to shoot a full FT course, but if it wasn't set up at his club his dad drove him to Redfern's or similar so he could shoot a full course. Dedication. We decided to only compete at 3 or 4 clubs we enjoyed visiting. My only motivation then became enjoyment of the sport and therefore stopped practicing as much and then stopped competing. Life, family and other hobbies take over the time previously dedicated.
At 52 I still shoot well. All the years of practice and knowledge doesn't just disappear. I can still score 18-19 on the sillies and hit 35mm (home made) target, free standing with a Rimfire at 75 yards.

[ChrisC]

A lot of good comments. Health can be a major factor, age is just a number, for me its all about your mental state.
The willingness to drive on, the motivation to still compete even with complexities trying to hold you back.
This basically means to compete you have to practice more and train harder.
Lots don't though and that is our demise. ChrisC shoots in NEFTA which is littered with World and European Champions and is very competitive.
I found though that (being based in Teesside) the travelling was a royal pain. Hull for instance and Anston were two hour drives away for us to shoot 30 pellets in a field at targets mounted to scaffolding (terrible) or a very dusty windy quarry.
Someone with Chris's dedication would travel and compete every week and strive to be the best at each event. I remember a junior shooter from Sedgefield who became world Champ would turn up every week to shoot a full FT course, but if it wasn't set up at his club his dad drove him to Redfern's or similar so he could shoot a full course. Dedication. We decided to only compete at 3 or 4 clubs we enjoyed visiting. My only motivation then became enjoyment of the sport and therefore stopped practicing as much and then stopped competing. Life, family and other hobbies take over the time previously dedicated.
At 52 I still shoot well. All the years of practice and knowledge doesn't just disappear. I can still score 18-19 on the sillies and hit 35mm (home made) target, free standing with a Rimfire at 75 yards.

Yep, i try to explain it to new shooters wanting to improve comp scores. Shooting on the plinking range you learn x2, shoot on a course you learn again x5, travel to another club and shoot their ground and learn x10

[Herx77]

As with anything, once you have climbed the mountain & seen the views the rest is only downhill.

Some times its not so good having been relatively successful and have a memory to recall past experiences and successes; but although still doing the same things and with some confidence the same achievements just continue drifting away!
b****r!

HERX77

[Herx77]

mechanically sound rifle=good barrel=good pellet batch=practice=confidence=more targets hit.[/QUOTE]
I would agree with chris completely, but when range finding goes adrift as with age, it becomes a good social day out, and no matter how much practice it doesn't really fully come back.
Mechanically sound rifle, + good consistent ranging ability= all the above.
At 75 I really struggle; but scores go up if the range is known, maybe bench rest?
HERX77

[transporter]

The standard of shooting was a lot better in the 80's.
There was no high powered sights and only spring powered rifles (until the late 80's when pcp started too appear).and they still cleared a course with a well tuned HW 77 and anything from a 4x40 to a 3-9x40 scope,the most popular was the tasco AG 2-7x32 AO with a duplex ret .
So it goes to show you don't need the high power scopes or the expensive pcp to compete .

[Phil Russell]

A fascinating set of comments, thank you. Clearly some people are still at the top of their game, and that is very impressive but I do wonder what will happen as the years go by. I tend to think that everyone is on their own 'performance declining curve' but that the curve is different for different people. Many are acknowledging their decline and Herx 77 comments are particularly apt; I guess I am only a few months behind you in the age stakes.
I do not, however, think that the standard of shooting was better in the 80s. Yes, technology has improved but you have to take into account the fact that target and course specifications have also changed. I wonder how many people would not agree that a UKAHFT course is now more difficult due to smaller kill zones etc than it was 20 years ago? I do not know about FT. Harder courses with smaller kill zones and terrible but impressive use of 'range traps' could well be affecting the scores of older competitors as their eyesight begins to play tricks on them.
Grow old gracefully is clearly the thing to do.
Cheers, Phil