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HunterTRW · January 2, 2005, 07:56 PM

I knew that Moxie was a Maine product, and am pleased to learn that it is still manufactured. What does it tastes like? (I've heard that folks either love it or hate it). The next time I am down East I plan to try a bottle.

As for your initial success at the 16-yard line, take heart. The very first time I shot trap (which, in fact, was the very first time I shot a shotgun) I hit only four of 25 targets.

"So that's how it's done," said my father-in-law, Gary, who witnessed this embarrasing feat.

"No," I replied, "that's just how I do it. Now let's see what you can do."

Gary rolled his eyes, and called for his first target which puffed into orange powder at an admirably short distance from the trap. He turned to me, grinning, and said, "I'll do better on the next one." Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. He did do better--on the next 17, missing only numbers 19, 21, and 23 of the 25! During the round he experimented with his stance. "If I had stuck with my original stance I think I could have gotten them all," he said.

"When was the last time you went shooting, Rudy?" I asked, having to explain the joke.

He furrowed his brow and studied on the matter for a moment, then said, "I can't remember, except that it was a long time ago."

My first reaction to his outstanding performance was the desire to tear my hair, roll on the ground and eat dirt, and then run screaming into the brush, never to be seen again...at least in the company of trapshooters. Next, I considered that perhaps I had been witness to one of those rare collisions between nature and fate that entitle some folks to be featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not. (I can see the headline now, "62-year-old man takes up trapshooting on Saturday, becomes high-over-all champion at Grand American the following weekend.") Finally, I had to acknowledge the inevitable, that this man was the possessor of a natural, God-given, capital "T" talent for breaking targets with a shotgun, one that I will never possess, but that I could aspire to.

I think of Gary every time I step up to the line, and I'm encouraged...and a little humbled, too.

Good luck, and good shooting!

January 2, 2005, 07:56 PM	#4
HunterTRW Senior Member Join Date: December 3, 2004 Location: The Lower Forty of Hill Country Posts: 177	I knew that Moxie was a Maine product, and am pleased to learn that it is still manufactured. What does it tastes like? (I've heard that folks either love it or hate it). The next time I am down East I plan to try a bottle. As for your initial success at the 16-yard line, take heart. The very first time I shot trap (which, in fact, was the very first time I shot a shotgun) I hit only four of 25 targets. "So that's how it's done," said my father-in-law, Gary, who witnessed this embarrasing feat. "No," I replied, "that's just how I do it. Now let's see what you can do." Gary rolled his eyes, and called for his first target which puffed into orange powder at an admirably short distance from the trap. He turned to me, grinning, and said, "I'll do better on the next one." Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. He did do better--on the next 17, missing only numbers 19, 21, and 23 of the 25! During the round he experimented with his stance. "If I had stuck with my original stance I think I could have gotten them all," he said. "When was the last time you went shooting, Rudy?" I asked, having to explain the joke. He furrowed his brow and studied on the matter for a moment, then said, "I can't remember, except that it was a long time ago." My first reaction to his outstanding performance was the desire to tear my hair, roll on the ground and eat dirt, and then run screaming into the brush, never to be seen again...at least in the company of trapshooters. Next, I considered that perhaps I had been witness to one of those rare collisions between nature and fate that entitle some folks to be featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not. (I can see the headline now, "62-year-old man takes up trapshooting on Saturday, becomes high-over-all champion at Grand American the following weekend.") Finally, I had to acknowledge the inevitable, that this man was the possessor of a natural, God-given, capital "T" talent for breaking targets with a shotgun, one that I will never possess, but that I could aspire to. I think of Gary every time I step up to the line, and I'm encouraged...and a little humbled, too. Good luck, and good shooting!