Triumph In Adversity
Sporting Shooter|September 2017

When gales and rain flatten Andy’s wheat it is tough to see a bright side, but a memorable day on the pigeons helps ease the pain

Andy Crow
Triumph In Adversity

"It’s been 12 years since I’ve had a field of wheat looking like this,” explains Andy Crow as he shows us round 80 acres of flattened crop. “Modern varieties tend to be shorter and we work with an agronomist to ensure we apply growth regulator at the right time to try to avoid this happening. But nature isn’t always very scientific and when we had a combination of torrential rain and 60-70mph gusts of wind, it just mullered it!”

Pigeons are opportunists and they exploit every advantage to ensure that they feed well. Whether that is a patchy bit of field caused by bad drainage or dry weather, or an entire area of flattened crop, they will home in on it. This field is total heaven. Large areas are accessible to them and the heads of wheat are well advanced. “They just love ‘milky’ wheat: it is full of goodness and much easier for them to digest than when it dries up. So between now and harvest, they will be on this almost non-stop.”

Andy knew he’d have to get out on duty with the gun, but a busy schedule meant he was forced to wait a little while. But he still ensured he kept a close eye on the comings and goings, and soon enough the numbers were building up. Of course, as with all forays after wild birds, luck also plays its part.

“There were never more than a couple of hundred birds on the field, but the morning we were due to shoot it Gary [Andy’s cousin] called me just as I arrived and there must have been a thousand birds on the place. I knew then that we’d be having a really good day.” 

Gary and Andy were also joined by a game dealer friend of Andy’s who is a highly experienced pigeon shot – so it was a team of Guns with well over a century of pigeon shooting knowledge and nous, and not a little talent, that were going in to bat.

Denne historien er fra September 2017-utgaven av Sporting Shooter.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra September 2017-utgaven av Sporting Shooter.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA SPORTING SHOOTERSe alt
RSPB gives mixed message on shooting
Sporting Shooter

RSPB gives mixed message on shooting

Having recently attended the RSPB’s virtual AGM, Conor O’Gorman discusses the outcome of the charity’s year-long review of game bird shooting

time-read
2 mins  |
December 2020
Causeway for concern
Sporting Shooter

Causeway for concern

Alan Jarrett’s renewed interest in reading takes him down memory lane to an offshore island duck flight that very nearly ended in disaster

time-read
4 mins  |
December 2020
Through a purple patch
Sporting Shooter

Through a purple patch

The Garrows Estate is taking a conservation-focused approach to restoring the wildlife populations and biodiversity on the Scottish heather moorland.

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2020
When the wheels fall off
Sporting Shooter

When the wheels fall off

Losing form on a day’s shooting can be infuriating, especially if you’ve been shooting like a god up to that point. Simon O’Leary looks at some common causes and how to remedy them

time-read
4 mins  |
December 2020
Beaches, books & bad behaviour!
Sporting Shooter

Beaches, books & bad behaviour!

The annual Kay family vacation to Northumberland offers a chance to give the cockers a blast on the beach – although they don’t always shower themselves in glory, as Ryan Kay recalls...

time-read
7 mins  |
December 2020
Using the Stop whistle
Sporting Shooter

Using the Stop whistle

Now you’ve instilled the basics, it’s time to up the ante with some more tricky distance work. Howard Kirby explains how to take the core Stop whistle command to the next level

time-read
5 mins  |
December 2020
The humble teal
Sporting Shooter

The humble teal

They may be tiny, but as far as Rupert Butler is concerned, the appeal of this little duck is huge. He recalls some of his most memorable nights in pursuit of these aerial acrobats

time-read
4 mins  |
December 2020
Fab all-rounder
Sporting Shooter

Fab all-rounder

Mike is impressed with the Fabarm Elos B2 Field Notte, which offers great value for money, is suited to fieldwork or clays and is future-proofed for use with steel in all choke constrictions

time-read
5 mins  |
December 2020
CALL OF THE WILD
Sporting Shooter

CALL OF THE WILD

Dom Holtam reconnects with one of the purest forms of shotgun shooting as he walks-up woodcock over pointing dogs in the Scottish Highlands

time-read
8 mins  |
December 2020
A yen for the Fens
Sporting Shooter

A yen for the Fens

Tony Jackson recounts a memorable duck flight over an area of Fenland in Norfolk with his friend and author, the late Alan Savory

time-read
4 mins  |
December 2020