Some changes were made last year, firstly the date was changed due to our event coinciding with a national sporting carnival held in August. This year that particular event will be in another state so we will be back to the third weekend in August 2010. Some competitors were unhappy about the way partners were drawn last year so have we changed that. We can now offer a family prize to encourage juniors and provide a bit of family bonding. Bring your old shooting mate, or choose your own partner for the event. If you cannot find someone to team up with, come along anyway we will soon find a team mate for you. This year we are holding a family teams competition, Father/Son, Husband/Wife, Mother/Daughter, sisters, brothers, immediate family only. Any combination thanks to the generous sponsorship from "The Open Range". Should you wish to nominate twice once with a friend and also your family member we have a special reduction in nominations for you, of course the family team is competing in the open event as well. Shooting starts at 9:30 am. Normal sporting ACTA rules apply for safety and ammunition. Grading will be done on the day using the Lewis system. Each team of two will shoot at 30 targets thrown two, three or four at a time. As last year each set of thirty will be slightly more challenging. More details will be provided on the day. The red grouse is a truly wild game bird found and is only in the British Isles.

A wee drop of history and some interesting facts.

Pheasant

The shooting of game birds, in particular pheasant and grouse, is a popular sport in the UK, on large, traditional driven principles on estates and on small-scale rough shoots. Shooting of game birds is carried out using a shotgun, most often 12 and 20 bore or a .410.

Game birds are shot in different ways: Driven Game shooting, where beaters are employed to drive game towards a line of standing guns through woods and over moors or fields, dependent on the quarry and time of year. The day will be very formal, and gamekeepers or a shoot captain will oversee proceedings. Pickers-up are also employed to make sure all shot game is collected. On such estates, large numbers of pheasants, partridge and duck, but not grouse, may be released to maintain numbers. Rough shooting, where several hunters walk through a woodland, moor or field and shoot the birds their dogs scare out, is increasingly popular. It is often informal and may be funded by several people grouping together to form a "syndicate", paying a certain amount each year towards pheasants, habitat maintenance, etc.

Red Grouse

Grouse - King of the game birds.
The undisputed king of game birds, the red grouse is the only one that is unique to the British Isles. Found on moorlands in Scotland and Northern England, traditionally the better region, driven grouse shooting is normally reckoned to be the pinnacle of driven shooting, a potent mixture of stunning scenery, deep rooted tradition and the ultimate shooting challenge.

                    Shooting.

The shooting takes place on moorlands at elevations between 500' and 3000' above sea level. The grouse are driven across the terrain towards The line of guns, traditionally between 6 and 9, stands in stone or turf 'butts' set wide apart, normally 20 to 35 yards. The birds hug the contours and, when the wind is behind them, can reach speeds upwards to 70 mph!

Period dress is entirely optional.
Shooting had become enormously popular in Victorian times. Led by Queen Victoria’s purchase of Balmoral on Deeside and following the opening of the east and west coast railways, wealthy Victorians poured into Scotland from the beginning of August each year for their sporting holidays. The Twelfth of August, the official date that Queen Victoria took up residence at Balmoral, marked the opening of the grouse season, and became the greatest day in the social calendar. It is still known as 'The Glorious Twelfth'. It technically continues until December 10th, but in all but the most bumper years, effectively comes to an end by the end of September.

Conclusion.

That is where I got some ideas from for a target shoot and a couple of friends as well of course, unfortunately targets don't cook up real well and taste terrible. Maybe one day I'll get to taste a real grouse, but until then I can get some friendly practice in right here in Toowoomba.

By the way there is a local supplier of pheasant and quail, if you're interested in something different, Banyard Game Birds Mr. Ken Orange 0412 336 326 support our local business.

Young grouse are best roasted and served with their traditional accompaniments of rowan jelly, fried breadcrumbs and game chips. Older Grouse should be casseroled.

Many thanks to our sponsor The Open Range, phone 07 4632 1389 and my many helpers. Hope to see you at the Grouse shoot later this year.

...Roger