HFT Diary: Spider’s web Targets

One thing’s for sure- Hunter Field Target is continuing to grow in popularity and just lately there seems to be more competitions available than ever. As someone who witnessed the rise and explosion of Field Target (FT), from its very inception through to the present day, the similarities in the way the sports have progressed are becoming quite stark. Just as with FT, HFT is fast becoming a sport that we can take part in every weekend, with a burgeoning events diary, fast filling up.

Just lately, we’ve had round 5 of the National UKAHFT Series, held at Buxted in Sussex, another round of the HFT Masters at Cambridge, the Scottish Masters, and any day now, the English Open! Quite an array of top events, and plenty to keep the most rabid of HFT buffs happy for weeks.

ROUND 5, UKAHFT, NATIONAL SERIES, BUXTED, SUSSEX

I attended the UKAHFT shoot at Buxted, and whilst shooting the course kneeling and standing, to protect my hernia, I still managed to have an extremely enjoyable days sport, shooting along the riverbank, and across the wooded target course. Laughably, I got paired with top shot, Richard Woods, who was fresh from falling out of a tree at his own club. He on crutches, and myself shuffling his kit around, whilst avoiding anything too strenuous!! A right pair we must have made!

Jason Bressington emerged the victor at this one, with an excellent 57ex60, whilst Wayne Pearce went home happy with the Air Arms HFT500 from the raffle! Warm sunshine, good food, and good company, made this one a treat.

As an aside, there’s a minor ruffle of controversy currently doing the rounds, regarding the use of the spiders web style of target. This features the usual kill zone hole set into the centre of the target, but with much of the surrounding face plate made to look like a spider’s web pattern, that means there is effectively a series of holes in the surrounding area. Miss the centre, and your shot then has a near 50/50 chance of hitting either metal, or passing through the front plate altogether; scoring 1 for metal, and of course zero for a complete miss. The fuss focuses on the way this introduces an element of luck into the end result, and scores can be slightly distorted as a result. I can see the argument on both sides, and many will say if you hit the kill zone, then end of story. That said, for a near miss to be subject to a mini lottery, as to whether it scores a one or not, does seem a bit daft when you think about it.

HFT MASTERS, CAMBRIDGE

One man who has made a point of saying he won’t use spiders web style knock down targets for that very reason is Ian Bainbridge, the colourful character who, along with Roger Lait, has spearheaded the HFT Masters events that have sprung up just recently. Their Cambridge round took place on a weekend when foul weather was forecast, yet with luck on their side, just short of 80 or so competitors who gathered, were treated to a challenging course, in almost dry conditions; save for the tail end of the day.

Hawke, BSA, Jack Pyke, Sportsmatch, and the Airgun Centre, all sponsored this event, and with significant cash prizes and some nice trophies, the usual raffle and prize-giving was worth waiting for. The HFT Masters continues to provide additional shoots for enthusiasts and with enough differences from the national events, there’s now a nice contrast between the two. It’s all good for the enthusiast at the end of the day, and as mentioned, we’re now spoilt for choice where shoot schedules are concerned.

NEXT UP….....

With a holiday in between, and a couple of competitions more than likely missed as a result, my next foray will be the double header weekend at Maldon’s M.A.D. Venue. I’ll be back to shooting that normally too, so there’ll be no excuses this time. FTP’s at the ready!

For pre-booking application forms and downloads regarding established UKAHFT events (where bookings are still possible), and all the latest information on anything connected with Hunter Field Target shooting, take a look at the following websites:

https://sites.google.com/site/ukahft/ and www.shooting-the-breeze.com https:// sites.google.com/site/whfta1/

In addition, details of the new HFT Masters events can be seen at www. hftmasters.net