Ranges that have added skeet fields or sporting clays, what are your experiences?

[bdft]

We are kicking around the idea of overlaying a skeet field over one of our trap fields. Some shooters are interested, some are ambivalent and some are very much opposed to anything other than trap. Their argument is that if you add skeet or sporting clays, no one will shoot trap. Those of us in favour argue that it will bring in younger, different shotgunners who don't shoot trap because they percieve it to be more regimented. More shooters, of any kind, makes for a better stronger club. Any experiences like this across Canada and what was the result?

 

[saskbooknut]

First step would be to get the range design guidelines and do the layout - skeet has a very different safety zone.
Stunning lack of value to Trap, if the Trap shooters believe no one will shoot their game once Skeet is available.
Having a Skeet layout overlaid on Trap field does make it one or the other.

 

[maynard]

We had one skeet field layer over a trap field. Then put another skeet field in over the other trap field. Skeet was that popular. Some days we only run one skeet field others day we run 2 with people waiting to shoot.
Trap at our club runs from about April to October, skeet runs all year round. We also have 5 stand that is set up on the first skeet field that runs about once a month in nicer weather.

 

[Maritime Storm]

My thoughts on this, are if you have the room, look at a Sporting Clays layout, if room is more of a premium, consider a 5-Stand layout, before a skeet field if your goal is to bring a younger demographic. Younger people tend to have shorter attention spans, the repetition of skeet tends to bore some of them and what you will most likely end up with is your trap base moving over to skeet. This is what I see here in the Maritimes. 5-stand set up right is a boatload of fun and bit of a challenge, 5 minutes or so of re-adjusting the machines and immediately have a different course and it's not a huge layout of money and labour to get it running.

 

[scott9001]

Jump up and do it, will bring a whole new group of people to your club, my home club shoots skeet in the winter trap in the summer the fields overlay each other and the guys who come shoot skeet are not the same group who come shoot trap. If you have the room for sporting clays set it up, Sporting clays is growing big time, big expense with machines and man hours tho don't forget.

 

[cosmic]

As above, the skeet template is quite large, something like a 220 m radius. If you have the room, you can easily superimpose a skeet field on to an existing trap field. Another option is 5 stand, which also can be superimposed upon a trap field. We did this at our club, using the trap launcher as one of the 5 stand positions. The advantage is the 5 stand template can be "shaped" to match any existing shotfall constraints. BTW - 5 stand is a hoot, allowing for a great variety of presentations.

 

[stubblejumper]

I went through the same scenario at one of the clubs that I am a member of, we went as far as to bring out the CFO, let him look over the plan, and he approved the field. Then a couple of members of the executive that had never shot skeet, decided that they prefer trap, and since were had trap, we didn't need skeet. They convinced the rest of the executive, and the plan was dropped. My own feeling, is that if the fear is that skeet will draw more shooters than trap, then a skeet field serves more of a benefit than the trap field. The idea is to provide a facility that most members will utilize , so if skeet brings in more people, that is a good thing. Yes skeet requires more area to run , given the much larger shot fallout zone, but you can buy a pair of MEC skeet machines for not a lot more than a good wobble trap machine, actual equipment cost isn't that huge.

 

[Ashcroft]

I can see where the skeet houses could be a problem on your trap field and might distract some shooters, leading to complaints especially at your registered trap shoot(s). Five stand using portable machines is much easier to set up on a trap field, easy set up, easy take down, easily modified presentations with lots of singles and doubles variety. I think you will find the cost of your skeet houses, throwers and walkways will far exceed that of the equipment needed for five stand. And your five stand set up can be completely portable allowing you to move it to your other trap field, your rifle range for a special event or even to set up temporarily at another club. These portable battery operated machines can also be easily reconfigured into a sporting clays course or even something simulating skeet once in awhile.

 

[bdft]

Sounds like my experiences are not that unique. We had not considered the skeet template yet. This is still in the talking stage. We have lots of room and 5 stand has been talked about as well utilizing one or both trap machines and a few more mobile units. Trap is very much an old man's game here in BC and many of them don't want any change.

 

[FarmerDanz]

"if you build it, they will come"

 

[bert pietrangelo]

If your looking to attract new shooters to your club, the 5 stand and sporting clay is the way to go. It will also increase your revenue by quite a bit. All the shooting disciplines are important to most clubs as long as you have the membership that's willing to use them. As mentioned above young new shooters get bored shooting trap and skeet at most clubs. Just look at the average age of trap and skeet shooter. most of them are in their late forties or older. At our club ( Oshawa Clay & Target Club) the majority of the sporting clay shooters are much younger and shoot more often. Sporting clay and 5 stand out pace the revenue from both trap and skeet combine by a lot. The bigger questions that you need answered are, will the C.F.O let you expand on your current club? If so do you have the funds to do the work that will be required to add these disciplines?Last and most important is your membership willing to do all the work that will be needed to make it a success? Once you have those answers then you will have a idea if it is feasible.

 

[Ashcroft]

How many people in your club are really pressing for this enough to support it and shoot skeet regularly? I would bet only a handful of shooters in the Bulkley Valley have ever tried it or even seen it in person. How many current trap shooters will actually actively support both disciplines, or will they drop trap and move over to skeet? And then what? How many new shooters do you actually think you will attract on a regular basis from your area? Total population within an hour drive is only about 20,000 or less and shooters are unlikely to come further on a regular weekly basis. Your present trap shooting base is unlikely to be extended more than a half hour from Smithers. All questions to ponder. Years ago at your club we used to run one or two DU sponsored sporting clay shoots per year and we attracted good turnouts from the trap shooters in Hazleton, Terrace, Kitimat, Prince Rupert and even a few from Burns Lake east. None of these clubs had a skeet field and there was no demand for one but there was a strong push for more sporting clays. Not saying that you can't make a skeet field work there but there are a lot of things to consider before such a large investment by a small club. I don't think there are any places in the north that have been able to support a skeet field, Kelowna, yes, Kamloops, yes but not even Prince George or Quesnel.

 

[emerson]

As a shooter in the middle of life, family, and work, I would shoot something that is relatively quick and easy. I can’t afford to specialize much. Younger people have even less time and $$. If you can get them in the door and actively shooting now, your club will survive the next 25 years. How many present trap shooters will be around then? My folks don’t spend much time caring about 25yrs hence either.

 

[bdft]

How many people in your club are really pressing for this enough to support it and shoot skeet regularly? I would bet only a handful of shooters in the Bulkley Valley have ever tried it or even seen it in person. How many current trap shooters will actually actively support both disciplines, or will they drop trap and move over to skeet? And then what? How many new shooters do you actually think you will attract on a regular basis from your area? Total population within an hour drive is only about 20,000 or less and shooters are unlikely to come further on a regular weekly basis. Your present trap shooting base is unlikely to be extended more than a half hour from Smithers. All questions to ponder. Years ago at your club we used to run one or two DU sponsored spoting clay shoots per year and we attracted good turnouts from the trap shooters in Hazleton, Terrace, Kitimat, Prince Rupert and even a few from Burns Lake east. None of these clubs had a skeet field and there was no demand for one but there was a strong push for more sporting clays. Not saying that you can't make a skeet field work there but there are a lot of things to consider before such a large investment by a small club. I don't think there are any places in the north that have been able to support a skeet field, Kelowna, yes, Kamloops, yes but not even Prince George or Quesnel.

You make some good points. Of course, that's why I brought it up. 5 stand would probably be more popular and probably easier for us to set up. Proabbly wouldn't cost much more either.

 

[Ashcroft]

Five stand shooting stations can be simple or elaborate, mostly depending on whether it will be portable, movable or permanently positioned. An example of simple is just a squared hoop made of thinwall conduit (EMT) with a foot on each side - may be removable - cheap and easy to make, easy to move or store. More elaborate, heavier, more expensive and more difficult to move would be something made of 2x4 ( PIR might donate) similar to a sort of gazebo. At my present club we use the hoops and set them up as required, stack them aside when not being used. Kamloops has very sturdy wooden shooting stations, they take some effort to move and considerable room to store. Also being wood they need paint and some upkeep.

 

[the spank]

Sounds like my experiences are not that unique. We had not considered the skeet template yet. This is still in the talking stage. We have lots of room and 5 stand has been talked about as well utilizing one or both trap machines and a few more mobile units. Trap is very much an old man's game here in BC and many of them don't want any change.

Why overlay it on a trap field if you have plenty of room? We have a skeet field separate from our trap fields. It's a win-win for the club as skeet can be shot at the same time as trap w/o interrupting one another. Personally I shoot both. We are in our 4th week of this years season and to date I've shot 300 skeet targets and 325 trap. It's great I can walk over to the skeet field after having shot trap or vice versa and enjoy both during an evening out. We shoot monday and thursday evenings and have a dedicated following on both fields each shoot night. I've been trying to convince the "old boys club" to incorporate a 5-stand into the skeet field as there is alot of sporting clays shooters locally who have started coming out to shoot skeet as the price of shooting sporting at a nearby private owned range according to them is much higher and they can shoot 3 times the number of skeet rounds at our current club member prices but the "old boys club" doesn't want it as they feel it would take business away from the sporting clays course owner. My point of argument is that the skeet field is already drawing some away anyways so why not give the shooters another option and encourage more shooters to join our club. We need members and targets thrown to keep the doors open.

 

[cam1936]

I can see where the skeet houses could be a problem on your trap field and might distract some shooters, leading to complaints especially at your registered trap shoot(s). Five stand using portable machines is much easier to set up on a trap field, easy set up, easy take down, easily modified presentations with lots of singles and doubles variety. I think you will find the cost of your skeet houses, throwers and walkways will far exceed that of the equipment needed for five stand. And your five stand set up can be completely portable allowing you to move it to your other trap field, your rifle range for a special event or even to set up temporarily at another club. These portable battery operated machines can also be easily reconfigured into a sporting clays course or even something simulating skeet once in awhile.

Who on earth would be so pedantic as to find the houses on a skeet field, overlaid onto a trap field, distracting?

 

[Potshot21]

Have seen skeet/trap fields overlayed before, worked well because the club had several fields open at a time, however the Trap fields were never that crowded.

If you have the room, time, patience, etc, throw in a sporting clay course. Sporting clay has been some of the most fun I've ever had with a shotgun in my hands. When the club I was with finally opened there's, the only issue was you couldn't get out to shoot on it as their was a small limit for people allowed to shoot at one time.

 

[Galt]

Have seen skeet/trap fields overlayed before, worked well because the club had several fields open at a time, however the Trap fields were never that crowded.

If you have the room, time, patience, etc, throw in a sporting clay course. Sporting clay has been some of the most fun I've ever had with a shotgun in my hands. When the club I was with finally opened there's, the only issue was you couldn't get out to shoot on it as their was a small limit for people allowed to shoot at one time.

our club has overlay skeet and trap fields , no issues.. we dedicate one field for each and open others as needed.
Never have issues or heard that the houses are distracting.

 

[Westward1]

Who on earth would be so pedantic as to find the houses on a skeet field, overlaid onto a trap field, distracting?

I agree. It is actually a common practice in North America. Our Club has two of four fields with both skeet and trap. One of the Skeet/trap fields is often used for 5 Stand.