This is an interesting book titled “Pigeon Shooting – With Instructions for Beginners and Suggestiosn for those who participate in the Sport of Pigeon Shooting.” They aren’t talking about clay pigeon shooting. This was back when live birds were used.
If the pigeon does not at once leave the trap, a thing which rarely happens where they are fast, as in England, either call, “No bird,” or keep the gun leveled just over the bird’s head, and at the first moment of its flight throw the muzzle ahead of the bird and pull. Remember that, other things being equal, a bird which does not fly as the trap is pulled is a harder bird to shoot than one that does; the reason for this being, that when you say “Pull,” you have your whole being, mind and body, braced up to its full tension, and as the trap opens, you swing to it like lightning; but if the pigeon then fails to rise, you have lost your swing, and should it afterward start with anything like a rapid flight, you are very likely to shoot a little behind it.
Not really any different today with clay pigeons, and a broken clay in the thrower. It’s this particular sport that our legislature is looking to outlaw.
Too bad that the sport has so much bad PR now. It sounds like fun. Any shooter should accept that killing animals(hunting) and birds are part of the sport.Target shooters train for competition but shooting reactive targets is more fun.
Joe’d Boomershoot for long ranch and trap and skeet for shotguns and pigeons fall into the range of being a reactive target. Plus more challenge than hitting clay disks.