Skeet Doubles
Doubles is the fastest game in skeet. At registered shoots, the normal five-person squad takes an hour or less for each shooter to shoot 100 targets.
During each round of 25 targets there seems to be someone shooting all the time; it’s a fast but fun event. Of course, it’s more fun if you’re hitting them well.
Skeet shooters are used to shooting doubles on stations 1, 2, 6 and 7, so they have a lot of practice at those stations, but stations 3, 4 and 5 are where they don’t normally shoot doubles. Station 8 is not shot in the doubles event.
Since they get a lot of doubles shooting at stations 1, 2, 6 and 7, most of their practice for the doubles game should concentrate on the ‘middle’ stations.
You’ll often hear that you shoot doubles like they’re just two singles. The problem with this statement is that, in doubles, timing of the individual shots becomes more important. If at station 4, for instance, you shoot the first target of a pair over the center stake, by the time you’ve shifted your eyes to the second target and made your move to it, it is halfway or more to the out-of-bounds marker. While you can shoot it over there, it is a more difficult shot.
A key to doubles is the break point of the first target. If you break the first target late, you’ll, more than likely, break the second target late if at all. If, on the other hand you break the first target about half way to the center stake you can shift your eyes to over the center stake, see the second target and shoot it about where you shot the first target, a much easier shot.
From what I’ve seen there are two good methods used that can be adopted for the pairs at the middle stations. They both involve different hold points and different muzzle speeds than would be used for the same shots in singles. One method has the shooter move their hold points out from their normal singles hold point. This makes the shooter shoot the first target a little later than they normally would, and the eye shift is shorter. The second shot is then shot very quickly.
The other method has the shooter move their hold point for the first target in closer to the house than they do for singles. This makes the first shot very quick and gives the shooter more time to visually acquire and shoot the second target at or near the crossing point.
I’ve found that both methods can work for shooters, but—like other shots—they must be practiced and perfected over time.
Shoot well, shoot often and stay safe.
Barry Hartmann is an NSSA Master Level and NRA Certified shotgun instructor who can help you improve your skills at American Skeet and wingshooting. To contact Barry, email him at threeat8@aol.com or give him a call at (918)803-2393.
