Cowboy clays

[buffalo chip jed]

Hello good morning or evening whenever you read this. I was wondering how cowboy clays worked I shoot trap for my FFA team and for 4h I was wondering if anything was different. Thank you for your time. Have a great day. 😀

Edited November 15, 2025 by buffalo chip jed
Spelling mistake

[watab kid]

well , in my limited experience 'cowboy trap' has been a side match event - only once did we actually shoot a full box of shells , there was an actual trap machine set up and five participants shot at a time 

another experience was a lineup this was set up with about six shooters along a roadway with the target thrown crosswise to the line and shot at anie oaklie style with eliminations 

 

mostly they were not a real trap round as a trap shooter would know it - but it was a fun side match with areal targets that we dont see in main matches , 

 

some of the best fun has been at a club match where they have reactive steel poppers that throw a target when downedc

[Leroy Luck]

May be a bit outdated, but here’s some info. 

Cowboy Clays Handbook Vers 1.4 .pdf

[Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971]

The course of fire varies a bit from event to event.  At the recent Western Regional the clays course was standard, 25 round, 16-yd trap shot under the lights after dark.  At last year's Colorado State, 25 clays were thrown straight down the center of a trap field with shooters rotating through positions 1 through 5.  At Wolverton Mountain shooters stayed in one position at 16-yards and the clays were thrown as usual.  At my home club's annual match, we shoot skeet under the lights at night in teams of two.  Land Run has a 5-Stand side match.  EOT has trap, skeet and Sporting Clays for both smokeless and black powder shooters.  Shooters with longer barreled shotguns and experience busting clays often have respectable scores.  Inexperienced shooters with coach guns usually are frustrated.  I watched a few at the Western Regional unable to bust a single clay.

 

OP, you would probably shoot well at a side match resembling trap.

Edited November 15, 2025 by Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971
EOT info

[watab kid]

i would likin it more to sporting clays in that you dont know what your going to get till you get there , makes it fun , i wish there was more of it just for something different and fun added 

[Eyesa Horg]

I've participated twice. First time it was essentially skeet with a coach gun and the second time was trap with antique Stevens 11a! It was a hoot and my old promotional Federals were way hot!

[Rattlesnake Slim]

So, to sum it all up, Cowboy Clays is a side match. And like all side matches is at the Match Director's discretion. You should check with the individual match that you plan on attending for more information.

[High Spade Mikey Wilson]

Years ago I shot CAS at a club that had a monthly stage on a trap field where you shot shotgun at two standing clay birds, or two KD's,  and then two shots at claybirds thrown from a trap house. I thought it was boring, and apparently so did others, as it eventually faded away.

[Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971]

6 hours ago, High Spade Mikey Wilson said:

Years ago I shot CAS at a club that had a monthly stage on a trap field where you shot shotgun at two standing clay birds, or two KD's,  and then two shots at claybirds thrown from a trap house. I thought it was boring, and apparently so did others, as it eventually faded away.

If you have a trap field, just shoot trap with cowboy shotguns.  Use skeet fields for skeet and 5-Stands for that sport all using the established rules for those sports.  That way cowboy shooters can go to such facilities, take lessons and learn how to successfully shoot cowboy clays side matches.  If your cowboy range lacks an established clay range, I recommend shooting something resembling trap as inexperienced shooters are more likely to break a few clays and leave with a smile.

Edited November 15, 2025 by Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971

[Painted Mohawk SASS 77785]

My idea for cowboy clays is ditch the hard targets , set it up so most shooters bust more than they miss, put a smile on faces & they will come back..not many shoot clays so make their experience enjoyable..

[watab kid]

4 hours ago, Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971 said:

If you have a trap field, just shoot trap with cowboy shotguns.  Use skeet fields for skeet and 5-Stands for that sport all using the established rules for those sports.  That way cowboy shooters can go to such facilities, take lessons and learn how to successfully shoot cowboy clays side matches.  If your cowboy range lacks an established clay range, I recommend shooting something resembling trap as inexperienced shooters are more likely to break a few clays and leave with a smile.

i tend to agree with you here - its better to leave wanting more than to be disgusted and give it up , 

 

i dont care how they throw it i enjoy the shooting of it , i hope more matches add it to their repertoire , its fun and no one will walk away thinking they didnt have a bit of fun trying it , something different and like other side matches a challenge to your skills , 

[Nostrum Damus SASS #110702]

We have two knock-down poppers at one of our stages that we use once in a while at regular club matches, instead of four knock-downs.  You have to knock them down just like any shotgun knock-down, and you then have to engage the flying clay.  Breaking the clay is a 5-second bonus, missing the clay is NOT a miss, and failing to engage the flying clay is a procedural.  If the clay happens to disintegrate upon being launched, the shooter gets the bonus as long as the flying fragments are engaged.