{"id":308,"date":"2018-06-18T13:36:03","date_gmt":"2018-06-18T13:36:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/?p=308"},"modified":"2018-06-19T11:06:57","modified_gmt":"2018-06-19T11:06:57","slug":"how-to-clay-shoot-with-the-femmes-fatales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/highlights\/how-to-clay-shoot-with-the-femmes-fatales\/06-2018","title":{"rendered":"How to Clay Shoot with the Femmes Fatales"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lincolnshire Pride magazine is very much a country publication, based in the heart of a naturally beautiful and agricultural county. Country sporting pursuits are therefore a very common occurrence in our magazine, although this month we\u2019re referring to a very different kind of magazine altogether.<\/p>\n

Clay pigeon shooting has been a hobby for many since the late 19th century, and was first invented for people who could not afford the costs of shooting game. Of course only half of the population would shoot; in Victorian times, women were not obliged to participate in such brutal and gentlemanly activities.<\/p>\n

However the tables are certainly turning. Women have a big part to play in the sport, and the Femmes Fatales is a group of women who are strongly supporting their success. Lucy and Heather both started clay shooting around two years ago now and haven\u2019t been able to put their guns down since.<\/p>\n

\"Lucy
Lucy showed us the ropes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI\u2008grew up on a farm in Derbyshire,\u201d says Lucy. \u201cWith a strong agricultural background, I\u2019ve always been around the sport and my father showed me the ropes. After moving to London, it became a smaller part of my life and I\u2008became less involved until I heard of the Femmes Fatales.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat really attracted me to join was the fact that it was all girls.\u2008It\u2019s predominantly a male sport still, and it can be intimidating as men take it very seriously. With the Femmes Fatales, it gave me a new set of really close friends who loved shooting but also loved getting together, having a good chat and just enjoyed a day out together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heather joined with a similar frame of mind. \u201cIt\u2019s alway something I\u2019ve wanted to do,\u201d says Heather. \u201cIt\u2019s a chance to get out into the beautiful countryside in the fresh air and it\u2019s definitely something to tick off a bucket list. It\u2019s now become something a lot more than just that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lydia and Rachel were the brains behind starting the Femmes Fatales several years ago, and they both shared the same thoughts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to share our passion for clay shooting with like-minded women. Women that have a love for fashion, partying, high heels and lipstick, but also like the smell of gun oil and aren\u2019t afraid to get their boots muddy!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

They started the not-for-profit company just a few years ago now with a mission to just get local women into the sport, but it has now grown into a nationwide business and has prompted a conversation about the taboo topic of women in clay shooting. Sophie, the organiser of the shoots at the very beautiful Grimsthorpe Estate Shooting Ground is certainly discussing the subject, and her encouragement for women to get involved has meant that 50% of bookings are made by women at the course.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I love about clay pigeon shooting is that it\u2019s a completely level playing field,\u201d says Sophie. \u201cI\u2008can understand that with rugby, men have the advantage, but strength isn\u2019t a necessity in clay pigeon shooting. You don\u2019t need to be physically fit, it just requires good aim and a steady hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2008love about the Femmes Fatales is how easy and laid back the groups are. It\u2019s just good light-hearted fun and a great way to socialise when you lead a very busy life. There\u2019s no set rules, you don\u2019t have to attend every single time, and if you haven\u2019t been shooting for several months, it\u2019s a sport you can just pick up again.\u2008It\u2019s practical for busy women and it\u2019s a great hobby.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so inclusive too,\u201d says Lucy. \u201cWe have people from the ages of 17 to 70 join us on the shoots, and you don\u2019t have to come from an agricultural background. Before Femmes Fatales, I feel like you had to know someone who knew someone to participate, and all male groups can be quite daunting and sometimes condescending, simply because there aren\u2019t many women doing it still.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s nothing I\u2008love more,\u201d says Heather, \u201cwhen a man underestimates your shooting abilities. It\u2019s happened to me on several occasions when someone has asked if I want them to show me how to do it. It\u2019s very fun to play naive and follow their lead, then pick up your gun and hit every clay.\u201d<\/p>\n

After a brief lesson and a few tongue-in-cheek tips in shooting, Lucy and Heather handed me one of their shotguns (at their own risk). I said \u2018Pull!\u2019 and the clay pigeon came into view. In all honesty, before picking up the gun and shooting a clay disc, I\u2008didn\u2019t see what much of the fuss was about;\u2008I thought it was just a great excuse to get out of the house and have a good girl\u2019s day out.<\/p>\n

However,\u2008I\u2008most definitely caught the shooting bug. I\u2008loved the feel of shattering the clay and the pull back of the gun.\u2008Therefore, I will definitely be coming along to the clay day with the Femmes Fatales at Grimsthorpe in July. The grounds are also beautiful at the shooting grounds and it\u2019s very much like a game of golf; going from trap to trap around a winding course through beautiful countryside. There are around 12 sites at Grimsthorpe varying in difficulty. Try your hand at the sport and join me on Saturday 21st July in the grounds with the Femmes Fatales.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lincolnshire Pride magazine is very much a country publication, based in the heart of a naturally beautiful and agricultural county….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":324,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-308","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-highlights"],"acf":false,"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=308"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":313,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308\/revisions\/313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/324"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pridemagazines.co.uk\/lincolnshire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}