My only comment on Jerry was:
"I don't know who this guy is but he is full of crap if he thinks trigger freeze in clay target sports is a vision problem. "
Now, where did I comment on his abilities? Where? I said I didn't know who he is and I still don't care because to me, who he is, or who anyone else is for that matter, if they think trigger freeze in trap shooting is a vision problem, they are full of crap. Vision problems may be able to be addressed by corrective lenses, surgeries and eye exercises. They can't be corrected by changing a mechanism that you use to fire a gun.
Now, I have said my piece on this and those who want to think trigger freeze is a vision issue can just live in that world to which they have become accustomed. Those of you who, like me, can't figure out how a release trigger helps me see the target better, will just have to rely on the fact that trigger freeze is usually eliminated for those who use a release....as if by magic.
I can help you with the connection between why a flinch starts and the vision system (no magic needed
).
Vision is one of the ways we sense the world around us. Hearing and touch being the other two that are very active in shooting.
We need information into one of our sensors before the brain can act on it and flinch. Otherwise you might end up with the never ending flinches...which could make going to the bathroom and sleeping tough, haha.
I had some thoughts typed but the robot put them together better, and with more insights, so I'll copy it here for everyone to enjoy.
1. Visual Processing and Anticipation
In trap and skeet, flinching often happens
before you pull the trigger. This is usually because:
- Your eyes see the target leave the trap house → brain knows recoil/noise is coming → subconscious muscles “brace” too early.
- If your visual focus isn’t locked on the target itself (instead on the barrel, bead, or house), your brain may get confused and trigger a protective reflex.
This is why instructors emphasize:
eyes on the bird, not the bead.
2. Eye Dominance and Misalignment
If your dominant eye is misaligned with your gun mount:
- Your visual system sends conflicting information (target vs. barrel location).
- This conflict can cause hesitation → hesitation often becomes a flinch.
For example, a right-handed shooter with weak or shifting right-eye dominance may “see” the barrel jump in relation to the target and unconsciously interrupt the trigger pull.
3. Over-Focusing and “Visual Freezing”
Many shooters flinch because they
over-focus:
- Staring too hard at the house, expecting the bird.
- Tracking the barrel instead of trusting peripheral vision.
- Mentally “waiting” for the target to appear → that moment of delay creates a trigger freeze or flinch.
The cure is
soft focus: relax your eyes in a broad zone over the trap house, let the target “pop” into focus, then drive to it smoothly.
4. Noise, Recoil, and the Visual Trigger
Even if recoil pads and hearing protection reduce the physical impact, the
visual cue of the target itself becomes the brain’s signal to expect a “bang.”
- Your eyes say “here it comes” → nervous system fires protective response.
- This explains why dry-firing (no recoil/noise) often shows no flinch — but live fire does.
5. Vision Training to Reduce Flinch
Shotgun coaches use vision techniques to calm the subconscious trigger:
- Soft focus zones: keep eyes above the house, unfocused, so the bird “jumps out.”
- Peripheral vision reliance: trust your eyes to pick up movement without over-aiming.
- Visualization: rehearsing smooth target breaks in the mind’s eye reduces subconscious fear of the shot.
- One-eye training (sometimes): for cross-dominance shooters, occlusion dots or tape help eliminate conflicting visual inputs that trigger hesitation.
Some interesting points in there. I like the general idea of it. Hopefully that was helpful without the need for your magic.
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