What is Simulated Game Shooting?

What is Simulated Game Shooting?

It is has all the characteristics of a game day but you’re shooting clays, not birds. It’s an excellent way for game shots to keep their eye in out of season; it’s a great introduction to driven shooting for novice shots, as well as for anyone who would like to experience the excitement of shooting driven targets for the first time.

Just like any driven day, Guns meet in the morning for the safety talk and coffee, then all head off together in a gun bus or their own vehicles to the first drive. You are set out on your pegs, on drives that would normally be shot on a game day, waiting for the first “bird” to appear.

Depending on the shoot, traps are either automatically or manually operated, which generally means you won’t be able to guess where the clays will be coming from, just like the real thing.

The whole day will be set up to follow the characteristics of a game day, from lining out on your pegs to the hospitality arrangements held in shoot lodges, the only main difference is swapping birds for clays and perhaps shooting 4000 clays instead of 150 birds!

Is it just like going to a clay ground?

No, as much of the day as possible is aimed to feel like a day’s game shooting, which means that the clays are presented in a way that mirrors a bird, whether it be low flying grouse, fast partridges, high pheasant or even standing around a lake waiting for the ducks to come in on the last drive.

If I haven’t shot before, can I still go simulated game shooting?

Absolutely! It’s a lot cheaper than the real thing and if you don’t like the idea of shooting game, then this is an ideal day out for you. Even if you have never picked up a gun before, it’s a great place to learn and a fantastic activity for corporate days, stag and hen parties or just for a group of friends wanting to try something new.

Automatic vs. manual traps - what’s the difference?

Automatic traps have a central carousel, which can hold up to 400 clays and the clays are automatically fired from the trap over the line of guns. Most traps will be set up in a way that the clays won’t fly over the Guns heads in a regular fashion like a clay shooting lesson, but mimic the pattern of a bird’s flight, unpredictable!

Manual traps are clay traps set off by people, where they are able to manually change the flight of the clay as they move the clays up and down the trap’s arm. Some people argue that manual traps are more unpredictable, which gives a more realistic feel for the line of guns. Manual traps are also more flexible in allowing for a "flush of birds" just like you would see with partridges.

However, both traps can equally recreate the unpredictability of a bird, as the traps are usually set up in the area that the beaters would move through on a game day. 

Sim shoots also make use of telehandlers or lifts to raise the traps up high to present some stratospheric targets that even the highest of high bird shoots would be proud of.

Do I need a loader or instructor?

If you have never shot before, shoots, whether they are game or simulated, will generally prefer first time shots to be accompanied by an instructor or an experienced shot.

Some shoots will sometimes also provide loaders, as those clays can come thick and fast! Simulated shooting is a great chance to brush up on your skills and because of the amount of driven targets you will be shooting in a short space of time, it is a great opportunity to have an instructor with you.

How much does it cost?

It costs a fraction of the real thing depending on where you shoot, but will usually range from between £90-£400 and depending on the amount of clays.

Is it as good as the real thing?

Pretty much! It has all the same characteristics of a game day, the camaraderie, hospitality, realistic “birds”, standing on pegs on real drives and the banter of poaching your neighbour’s clay! You also are likely to be shooting in good weather, which you rarely do out game shooting, as well as having the chance to visit estates at a different time of year and appreciate it in a different season. It does maybe lack the buzz that you get when the first pheasant comes over you on a normal day but it makes up for it in the amount of shooting you have in a short space of time!