PROLOGUE

Since man first realized that projectiles, properly aimed and thrown, could be used to stop moving objects, his basic desire for survival was enhanced by the variety of flying wildlife available, and success measured in direct relationship to his ability to score a hit, be it with a stone used in the ancient sling or, with the advent of gunpowder, the modern shotshell.

The skills required to hit a moving target developed with the passing centuries, and the use of firearms advanced, from the basic search for food, into a confrontation pitting man against nature, and in more recent years against himself, in shooting contests using moving targets designed to provide the ultimate test of ability.

Birds have remained the basic challenge, and the hunting instincts in gunning enthusiasts run as strong today as at any time in history...but a new target evolved over the past two centuries to compliment the bird--a small disc of clay composition that has the aerodynamics to be thrown straight and true, yet, like its winged counterpart, be subject to variations in wind velocity and currents. A target that, following a shot, may disintegrate into a cloud of black dust, be chipped, or fly on untouched, depending on the accuracy of the shot charge directed toward it. A target that has tested the skill of gunning sportsmen around the world for over a hundred years...an artificial bird called a "Clay Pigeon."

Prince Edward Island has always been a resting point for the annual migration of wildfowl on the Atlantic Flyway, and this abundance of birdlife has developed generations of skilled, and dedicated, shotgun enthusiasts. It is only natural that many of these Island outdoorsmen would compliment, and enhance, their skills by competing against themselves, and each other, with the clay target.