So I’m at work on Monday, in a meeting with my manager and get a missed call from my cousin Leigh. He runs and keepers on a small local syndicate. I call him back after my meeting and have a chat with him. He tells me he has his first day coming up this Thursday and 5 of his guns can’t make it for whatever reason. There is usually 14 of them and they beat one stand one and have 6 drives in the day. He asks if I could get the day off work and come along and take one of the spare places. I’m up for it, I tell him, but I need to just run it past my manager. Luckily for me my boss is a shooting man himself, so he says no problem. We are in business. I call back my cousin and to say I will see you Thursday, but instead of me shooting can my boy Finley shoot. Finley has shoot a lot of clays with me but never game. Leigh says that fine if Finley wants to shoot but bring your gun as well and you can back gun for him.
Thursday morning comes around we draw pegs and off to the first drive of the day and Finley and I are shooting first. I’m quite nervous for him at this point but he same absolutely fine. He sets himself up on peg and asks a few questions about where the birds are coming from and how to know which birds to take, I give him as much advice as I can and make sure he is comfortable and happy to stand on his own. I then stand back with my iPhone camera at the ready. The drive starts and there’s birds going out to all the pegs apart from his, then a hen bird gets up out of the game crop and flys over an oak tree in front of him then quarters off to the left. Finley puts up the gun, nice and smooth into his shoulder and bang brings down the hen bird with his first barrel.
I’m over the moon for him a proper proud dad moment !!!!. The drive comes to an end and that was the only bird that came near him. We have a chat after and he is beaming from ear to ear. 3rd drive he shoot’s again, he has 6 or 7 shots but doesn’t connect. Then he shoots on the 5th drive of the day and manages to connect with a straight driven cock bird.
He has now got the bug for game shooting!!!
My self and Leigh used to beat on this same ground 30 odd years ago and both shot our first pheasants there. The land has changed hands a lot over the years but now our children are managing to do the same as we once did. Proper circle of life stuff.
Thursday morning comes around we draw pegs and off to the first drive of the day and Finley and I are shooting first. I’m quite nervous for him at this point but he same absolutely fine. He sets himself up on peg and asks a few questions about where the birds are coming from and how to know which birds to take, I give him as much advice as I can and make sure he is comfortable and happy to stand on his own. I then stand back with my iPhone camera at the ready. The drive starts and there’s birds going out to all the pegs apart from his, then a hen bird gets up out of the game crop and flys over an oak tree in front of him then quarters off to the left. Finley puts up the gun, nice and smooth into his shoulder and bang brings down the hen bird with his first barrel.
I’m over the moon for him a proper proud dad moment !!!!. The drive comes to an end and that was the only bird that came near him. We have a chat after and he is beaming from ear to ear. 3rd drive he shoot’s again, he has 6 or 7 shots but doesn’t connect. Then he shoots on the 5th drive of the day and manages to connect with a straight driven cock bird.
He has now got the bug for game shooting!!!
My self and Leigh used to beat on this same ground 30 odd years ago and both shot our first pheasants there. The land has changed hands a lot over the years but now our children are managing to do the same as we once did. Proper circle of life stuff.
