Clay Shooting

The Great Game Fairs of Ireland have the top prizes and the best layouts at any Irish Game or Country Fair and now the Game Fair at Shanes Castle has the unique attraction of Gunfitting by Mike Yardley.

Competitions

The All Ireland Game Fair All Comers Championship Final moves to Shanes Castle this year on Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th June.

The Shanes Castle event is also a qualifier for the Barbour All Ireland Novice Clay Pigeon Championships which have their final at the Irish Game & Country Fair at Birr Castle on the 27th & 28th August.

This year for the All Comers Championship the top four shooters at Shanes Castle will meet the top four shooters from Birr 2010 and the top four shooters from the 2011 Ballywalter Game & Country Living Fair in a Grand Final, the winner of which will assume the All Ireland Game Fair Champion.

Top prize is a Beretta 682 Golden worth over £3,000 jointly sponsored by Ardee Sports Ltd and Irish Countrysports and Country Life magazine.

Irish Game Fair Championship at Shanes Castle

Top Gun receives a Bettinsoli Shotgun sponsored by Donal McCloy Guns Unlimited and a pair of Ranger XL Shooting Glasses worth £200 sponsored by Tommy Beattie.

Best unclassified score over the two days wins a pair of Ranger XL Shooting Shooting Glasses worth £200 sponsored by Tommy Beattie

Class prizes Each Day At Shanes Castle

Class A/AA : 1st £50 : 2nd £30 : 3rd £20

Class B/C: 1st £50 : 2nd £30 : 3rd £20

Unclassified : 1st £50 : 2nd £30 : 3rd £20

Side by Side : 1st £50 for top gun each day

Please Note previous winners at Shanes Castle or Birr are ineligible for the unclassified section.

For the Novice Shooter There is a new ALL Ireland Game Fair Novice Championship sponsored by Barbour.

The Northern heat of the championships takes place at Shanes Castle where shooters posting the top four scores over the two days will qualify for the final at Birr Castle and the chance to not only take the title but a special tankard and a Barbour Linhope coat.

Please note this competition is for Novice Shooters only previous winners of any of the events at Shanes Castle or Birr Castle are ineligible.

AND FOR the FIRST TIME IN IRELAND

IRELAND'S LEADING GAME FAIR TO HAVE GUN-FITTING ON SITE

For the first time ever at any Irish game or country Fair, shooting expert Mike Yardley will bring his unique gun-fitting skills to Ireland's leading event at Shanes Castle on 25/26 June 2011.

Mike Yardley

As most shooters know, an ill fitting gun really does not help their scores or put game in the bag. The obvious thing to do is ave your gun shaped to fit you properly and that is exactly what Mike will be doing at Shanes Castle.

Albert Titterington explains: "Mike Yardley is one of the most highly respected authorities on all aspects of gun design, shooting and gun fit and the art of fitting a gun properly to the shooter is one of Mike's particular specialities, having advised several gun makers on stock design, and writing the major work of ‘Gun-fitting: The Quest for Perfection.'

"Now for the first time at any Irish Game Fair, anyone can have a personal fitting session with Mike on both days of the Fair. But the really stunning news is that their own guns can be altered there and then, using a special infra red method, which offers huge advantages over others. So you can get measured, wander off round the best Game Fair in the country and collect your weapon before driving home – all for the very modest fee of just £200. What could be more enjoyable, a better investment or more simple than that!"

Mike Yardley is certainly a shooter with expertise as Albert outlined: "Mike has been an active shooter for more than 40 years, shooting birds and big game all over the world. He has held high averages in various clay disciplines and has won many competitions and championships. He is former British Side by Side Champion, a multiple County Champion and one of The Field magazine's 'Top Shots'. Gun-wise, his particular love is vintage side by sides, but he is also well known for his 32" Guerini 20 bore over and unders and his 32" Beretta 303 semi-autos (one of which has fired more than 100,000 shots!"

With Mike at Shanes Castle will be Chris Symonds, who has worked as a gunsmith for the London trade for many years. His particular specialities include barrel making and stock bending, but he is an active general gunsmith with enormous experience.

Mike Yardley explains more: "It was Chris, in particular, who developed the infrared system of stock bending which offers a number of advantages over conventional techniques and leads typically to less staining of the wood than those methods that use hot oil and he has worked in association with me for many years."

Albert Titterington concluded: "The Shanes Castle Fair provides the largest single and most varied competitive Irish event for shooting, angling and gundog handling. Mike Yardley's appearance at Shanes Castle is yet another one of the amazing reasons for the public to flock to the country's leading Game Fair. With more trade stands including the largest display of guns to be seen at any fair, great new attractions, entertainment and Living History - and a World Record Attempt there is little doubt that this year we will cement our position as the country's No1 Game or Country Fair."

Note :

Mike Yardley's articles on guns and shooting (2000+) have appeared in many sporting periodicals as well as the mainstream press. He has made a number of films for TV, notably, in recent years half a dozen shows for the Discovery and History Channel about famous assassinations (including that of JFK - where with the assistance of the Dallas Police department he was able to stop the traffic in central Dallas to test various theories). He has also been a consultant for the American National Rifle Association in the UK. His new website www.positiveshooting.com links to many of his articles and films.

Ireland's Real Game Fairs