Ohio trap and sporting clays worth trying

There's little question that the summer months Ohio outdoorsmen who hunt and shoot. So, what do you do to while away long featureless days in a profitable manner? You pick up the family shotgun and do some shooting at clay birds. Not only will this activity get you outside and breathing fresh air, but it'll sharpen currently dormant shooting skills, and get your reflexes back to where they ought to be. There are several ways to sharpen that hunting eye, by shooting trap, skeet, or sporting clays, and there are plenty of places around the state to do all three. Trap shooting is a fairly simple business. There are trap ranges at many, even most of the hunting and fishing clubs around Ohio, and you can use them by either joining the club or taking advantage of opportunities for the public to try their luck, usually for a modest fee. The standard trap range will have a number of positions, and shooters will stand at one, make ready to shoot, and yell "Pull!" Then a round clay bird shaped somewhat like a Frizbee will come sailing out, either flying straight ahead and rising, or to the left or right, and still rising. Your job is to get the bead ahead of it and slightly above, and break or even powder the clay pigeon, then move on to the next position. One challenge for shooters is to break all of a set of 25 birds, and at any club there'll be a number of gunners that can do just that. Most times. A second choice is to visit a skeet range. I've tried this sport, but just don't care for it personally. Here the birds fly from two towers, crisscrossing, and you've got to get them both. It demands fast reflexes and a sharp eye, but in my opinion it also leads to too-fast shooting when you're actually hunting something like pheasants, though it might be an aid if you get into ruffed grouse country. I once hunted with the Junior Skeet Champion on a shoot for stocked ringnecks, and he shot so fast that he blew up his birds before they were more than a few feet off the ground. Your third choice is to try your luck on sporting clays, a business that's not only fun, but VERY challenging because it closely imitates real hunting conditions. I tried this sport for the first time at a hunting club in Medina County years ago, and went in pretty cocky because I considered myself a fair shot. That didn't last long. Some of the birds crisscrossed in front of me or held waiting for long seconds after I said "Pull" Some came right at me, passing over my head and demanding an over the shoulder shot, and some came from directly behind to zip over my head. One that helped destroy my confidence was called Run Rabbit Run which sent an oversized clay bird bouncing over the ground. I broke just 14 out of 25 birds and was glad to get them. There's still one more choice, and it's one I've used a number of times, especially when I was training my two young grandsons to shoot. That's to buy a hand trap and a box of clay birds at a nearby sporting good store, head for an open field where you have permission , and start tossing clay pigeons in all directions out front. Which means I could toss low moving daisy cutters, birds almost straight up, more left or right, anything I wished. That was good practice. Where can you do some shooting? First, ask friends if the club they belong to offers open shooting some weekends, or Google up Ohio Trap Shooting Ranges to find lots of potential shooting spots. Check Ohio Sporting Clays, Skeet Shooting, and Trap Shooting and you'll find dozens more. Call first to places you'd like to shoot, then buy extra shells and go. Those summer doldrums should pass very quickly. Dick Martin, a freelance writer from Shelby, is a retired biology teacher who has been writing outdoor columns for more than 30 years. Reach him at richmart@neo.com. You also can visit his blog at outdoorswithmartin.com.