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Shooting Times's top 20 shooting websites

Shooters are too set in their ways to join the Internet highway? Wrong!

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Friday, 21 December 2007

Shooting Times's top 20 shooting websites for shopping, chatting, learning new facts - even finding love!

They said it would never happen. Shooters are too set in their ways to join the Internet highway. Not for the first time, they were wrong. With the eventual roll out of Broadband into rural areas, sporting people are now logging on with gusto, buying any number of articles from aeroplane tickets to woolly stockings. Many of us now renew our magazine or organisation subscriptions online, taking advantage of the reductions available.

Shooting Times has been at the forefront of the industry's blossoming romance with the Internet, providing an extra resource for its readers at www.shootingtimes.co.uk.

The site offers up-to-date news, blogs, recipes and gun reviews, as well as regular instalments from Keith Reynolds' DOG cartoon strip. Members of the Woodcock Club can keep abreast with developments, while visitors can test their skill in the duck shooting game. Watch out for the flying pigs!

ST's main portal site, www.shootinguk.co.uk, is also well worth a look during the long Christmas nights. Aside from news and advice for getting involved with shooting, this portal houses a popular forum where regular visitors bounce ideas off each other and discuss all the latest issues affecting their sport.

The British Association for Shooting and Conservation has a raft of useful data at www.basc.org.uk, including details of its centenary celebrations, as well as authoritative research into gun law and ballistics. Regular features include young Shot days, gundog advice and shooting opportunities on the Go Shooting link.

The Countryside Alliance (www.countryside-alliance.org) also provides news for its members about its important campaigns to secure the countryside's future. A particularly useful feature is the press-cuttings board, which collates a daily summary of the stories in the newspapers. With so little dedicated rural coverage in the media, this is a small gem for those who can't trawl through every paper.

Gamekeepers, portrayed as the most traditional of operators, are increasingly in tune with the information highway, ordering their grain, seeds, hoppers, medicines and even birds online.

The National Gamekeepers' Organisation's site, www. nationalgamekeepers.org.uk, provides plenty of useful tips, as well
as advice on how to find a new job. It currently has a silent auction online to raise funds. Likewise, the Scottish Gamekeepers' Association (www.scottishgamekeepers.co.uk) offers its members relevant information, especially on the raptor issue and the growth in tick-borne diseases.

The National Organisation of Beaters and Pickers-up (www.nobs.org.uk) has become the voice of its previously unrepresented members, with the website being the focal point. It boasts a bustling chatroom, where visitors gain access to new shoots, as well as training tips and reductions on Aigle clothing.

The web is also an excellent place to browse products before you enter the shop floor. All the famous names in British and international gunmaking have impressive sites, as do the larger gun dealers. Many carry interesting information on the history of their company and artisans. For example, both Beretta (www.beretta.com) and Browning (www.browningint.com) are crammed full of videos, downloads and historical trivia. But don't forget to support your local gunshop a comprehensive list of high-street outlets is available at the website www.ukgundealer.com, while the impressive www.guntrader.co.uk is a good place to get a feel for the market.

We could fill five pages with shooting clothing retailers, but suffice to say that each brand will have a website with details of what to buy and where. For an all-round selection, try William Powell (www.william-powell.co.uk) or Scott Country (www.scottcountry.co.uk).

Buying shoot days online is now a simple procedure, especially for shooters who want to investigate a different part of the country or travel abroad. Type "sporting agent" or "driven shooting" and the destination into Google and you'll soon find a number to call. CKD Galbraith in Scotland (www.sportinglets.co.uk) has a lot to offer, as does Strutt & Parker (www.struttandparker.co.uk). The innovative www.gunsonpegs.co.uk can also provide inspiration if you want to find a new place to shoot. One must not rely too heavily on the Internet, however. After all, Shooting Times remains a reliable place to find shooting opportunities! But when it comes to pigeon then Pigeon Watch UK (www.pigeonwatch.co.uk) is a good place to start, as is www.pigeon-decoying.co.uk.

One area to have been given a boost by the Internet is sporting books, which sometimes struggle to gain a foothold in bookshops. Online, they are easily available to dedicated followers. For a broad selection of titles, try www.countrybooksdirect.com. Likewise, game recipe books are flourishing, with the increased exposure from celebrity chefs and the excellent Game-to-Eat campaign (www.gametoeat.co.uk), which houses recipes and books in one easy-to-navigate destination.

In fact, just about anything you need in the shooting world is available on the web. Heck, you might even find your sweetheart online at www.muddy matches.co.uk. Log on for love!

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