Aiming For The Future
The future of clay pigeon shooting as a sport relies on the next generation of shooters. We spoke to Alfie Tibbles, aged 15, to see exactly why he enjoys this sport and how it has affected his life at such a young age.
Alfie started shooting at 11 years old with a ‘Have A Go’ session at a local shooting ground.
We asked Alfie why he first started and it was a rather unusual answer –
“I fainted and had to go to hospital for a check-up so my dad booked a 25 target taster session as a treat. He probably regrets it now as I have shot about 50,000 targets since!
When I first had a go I was more excited than scared as I had a very good trained instructor and I felt safe with him and my dad. It was a very fun time as I had never shot before and when I left the session I just wanted to go back for more.
I love the actual shooting part of the sport but it’s not just about pulling the trigger for me; when you go to a shoot you see loads of great shooters and you make loads of great friends.
Shooting is my escape from school work. I am so happy to go to around 40 competitions a year and go through thousands of shots as I love it and it is how I like to spend my time.
My goal is to achieve a few world titles as a junior and a senior. I am working on this with Ben Husthwaite my coach. I am still a colt (aged 15) so I have 5 years as a junior and lots of time as a senior."
There is a small selection of incredibly talented young shots in the sport of clay pigeon shooting and Alfie is certainly one of them. Over the past 4 years Alfie has made huge progress and is now recognised and respected on the competition circuit… we certainly love seeing him at the AGL shooting ground.
Fortunately, more and more children are having a go at clay pigeon shooting. It is a fantastic sport that teaches focus and concentration, boosts confidence and promotes friendship, respect and healthy competition. By encouraging and supporting the next generation of shooters we can aim for an exciting future for our sport.
We are currently hosting an Easter Young Shots Event on Saturday 20th April and The British Schools & Young Shots Championships on Saturday 4th May. Head to the Events section of our website for more information.
We wish Alfie all the best of luck with his upcoming competitions.