Outdoor Guide
Page 20
March-April 2021
Do I need a shooting instructor?
By LEN PATTON
To the question, “Do I need a shooting instructor?” Todd Bender would say YES! He should know – he is a world champion skeet shooter and conducts classes and individual lessons all over the country and also has published several CDs about skeet shooting. Todd, as good as he is, still has a shooting coach. A coach will notice little things that make a difference in winning or losing a match. He points out that one doesn’t have to be a good shot to be a good teacher. A teacher does have to be able to communicate and diagnose shooting problems. HOW TO FIND ONE Here are some suggestions that may be helpful in finding an instructor. First, get some
Todd Bender with legendary Olympics shooter Kim Rhode.
recommendations and then set up a meeting, or at least a telephone conference with that individual. Tell the coach why you feel professional instruction would be helpful. Perhaps you are seeking help, not for yourself, but for a youngster
or a female shooter. During this conference, it is appropriate for the client to ask the instructor about his or her background, including instructing professionally, and also hunting and shooting. If the intent is to just learn how to shoot skeet or trap,
Relax!
then fine, but in some cases, learning how to prepare for an upcoming hunting experience is what is needed. Then perhaps another instructor would be better. Sometime in this conference, the instructor and the student need to discuss the length of time and when and where the instruction would take place. Instructors have to arrange for use of a range and how long they may need to use it. This is also the time to discuss cost. Instructors will vary as to how much they charge. The student may be expected to furnish his or her own shells and gun and perhaps even pay for range time. Shotgun shooting is not an inexpensive sport. THE ANSWER Should I still get shooting instruction? The answer is
yes. I mentored with three different instructors for two years before I ever taught a class, and I still seek help from time to time. I never charge for instruction. This is my way of encouraging people to learn how to shoot and hunt. I must confess that as an instructor, I truly enjoy sharing in the moment when a student breaks
his first target or reports the success he has had on his first hunting experience. When this happens, I know I have done my job. This article is dedicated to my friend, mentor, coach, and teacher Willis Corbet, a member of the American Trap Shooter Association’s Hall of Fame and the Missouri association’s hall of fame as well.
Todd Bender gives a lesson to a young shooter.
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