For more information about the sport of Trap shooting, visit the Amateur Trapshooting Association. For an official description of the game, see the NSSF trap description.

Here's a brief description of how to play Trap from the perspective of an outside observer. I have shot trap before (and have even shot a perfect 25), but I'm not a "regular" shooter (plus I'm a computer geek). If you're a regular shooter, this might not be how you would describe the game.

How to Play Trap

From the picture below, you can get an idea about how the game is played. Each trap field consists of two parts: the clay target thrower and the semi-circular, or radial, field of pathways -- in this case made of concrete. Up to five shooters can participate at once. Each person shoots 25 times, five times each from five positions.

What? Clouds in California? You're looking at Trap #2 on a beautiful winter day.

The Trap House

The trap thrower is inside the dark green trap house in the distance. The house -- the center-point of the semi-circular field -- is mostly below ground and is made of concrete block and/or metal. Unseen, the machine inside swings back and forth in a 90 degree arc (45 degrees to each side). The scorer, who sits behind the shooters on the portable wire-frame bench, presses a button to release the clay target, also called a bird or a pigeon. The clay looks like a little five inch Frisbee and is usually painted bright orange or white.

The Field of Play

Do you see the five radial concrete pathways in the picture above? Each of these points to the trap house, and it is on these pathways -- either closer or farther away -- that the shooters stand. The closest he can stand to the trap house is 16 yards, the farthest is 27 yards.

Each round is played at a similar yardage, like 16-18 yards or 22-24 yards. It is easy to see that one person standing close and one far away would be extremely dangerous for the person standing in front.

Order of Play

Everyone shoots five birds from their assigned yardage on the pathway before moving sideways to the next position. Before the game is over, each person has 25 shots at 25 birds. The better a shooter gets, the farther away he usually stands from the trap house.

With one shell, the shooter loads and raises his shotgun. When ready, he calls, "Pull," and a clay target is released. Quickly, he aims the gun, following the fast-moving target, and fires, trying to hit and break the clay. Of course, it's great to "powder" the clay, but even a single pellet from the shotgun can chip the clay and score a point.

But it isn't easy. There is no way for the shooter to know in which direction the target will fly, and that is one of the reasons trap can be so challenging.

Trap scores are from zero to 25, one point for each bird broken. Good shooters hit 20 or more targets per round, but rarely can someone shoot perfectly all the time.