Crazy Quail! The Wildest Shotgun & Clays Game

I’ve been a clay target shooter for most of my adult life, but nothing adequately prepared me for my first experience shooting Crazy Quail. All other clay games are much slower by comparison, and there’s no need to yell, “Pull,” because a flurry of 108-millimeter targets are already filling the sky as you load your shotgun. To say Crazy Quail is exciting is an understatement, and as I was fishing the last shells from my rapidly emptying box, I couldn’t help but think that this was the most fast paced and exhilarating clay target shooting I’d ever experienced.

You may not be familiar with Crazy Quail even if you are an experienced shooter, but that’s no shock since the sport is relatively new. The game revolves around specialized clay target throwers designed by businessman Barry Bourdage, and introduced at the 2012 SHOT Show. Other clay games like trap and skeet have been around for well over a century. Even sporting clays shoots, which add some variety to the standard shot presentations and more closely mimics hunting birds in the field, have been around since the early 1900s after being introduced in England. As shotgun games go, Crazy Quail is in its infancy.

I will assure you, though, that there’s no clay game which tests the acuity of a shooter like Crazy Quail. If standard skeet shooting is the equivalent of a lazy day of late-season dove hunting, then Crazy Quail is like a trip to Argentina where the sky is black with birds and there are so many opportunities to fire that you simply cannot slow down. A single Crazy Quail machine can toss crossers, incoming targets, outgoing targets, springing teal, and low birds that skim over the surface of the ground in a matter of seconds. If there are two of these machines running simultaneously, you’d better pack your shooting gloves because it won’t take long for the barrel of your shotgun to become uncomfortably hot.

Crazy Quail History

When Illinoian Barry Bourdage wasn’t pouring time into his business ventures, he was at the clays range. While he loved clay target shooting, he thought that there must be a way to make the sport even more exciting. Bourdage’s entrepreneurial spirit prompted him to begin experimenting with new technologies that could be incorporated into traditional clay target machines that might change the shooting game. He also happened to own a company that was involved with drone technology, and he saw the potential for a marriage between drones and clay targets.

I can imagine what you’re thinking, and no, he didn’t start tossing clays from drones. Instead, he used the “brain” of a drone, which manages pitch, angle, and rotation, and coupled that technology with an automatic clay target thrower. The new product used radio waves to send signals from the operator to the clay target machine so that the thrower operated from a fixed position much like a drone operates its camera while flying, adjusting and switching angles.

The drone technology was available, but Bourdage needed a clay target thrower to bring the vision to reality. For that he turned to Simon Hurley who worked for Promatic and later founded Apex Clay Target Enterprises. The objective was to make a target thrower that could rapidly fire targets in most any direction, substantially speeding up the clay target game. Software was developed that would allow the operator to use a tablet and send directions to the thrower from a distance up to 2.5 miles away. It was a crazy idea, but it became Crazy Quail — and shooters quickly took note.

Burning Ammo

I met with Barry Bourdage at the Outdoor Sportsman Group’s annual Roundtable event in Colorado, and after shooting a few rounds of Crazy Quail (and realizing just how rusty my shotgun skills had become) I sat down with him while he discussed his invention, a product that is rapidly changing the clay shooting game.

“Each machine can throw 45 targets per minute,” Bourdage told me as targets crisscrossed the air in front of us. Bourdage showed me how he could manipulate target presentations using the tablet he held in his lap which was communicating with the Crazy Quail Mini machine tucked behind a rock ridge in front of the shooters. “The machines rotate 360 degrees, elevate 40 degrees, and roll 60 degrees.”

As seemingly complex as the directions might seem (I’ve owned — and crashed — several drones), the tablet provides an interface which is simple to operate. With the tap of a button on the screen, Bourdage could send a clay flying up toward the shooting line. Then, 1.5 seconds later, that same machine could pitch a target directly away or straight up in the air. Orientation could be adjusted on the tablet using a dial that works in much the same way as a volume control on a speaker, moving the orientation left or right to control all three presentation angles. Bourdage calls it “Tap to Throw” technology, and if you can master the basic controls of a cell phone you can control a Crazy Quail machine.

Since each of the Minis holds 300 targets, there’s no need to stop the action and send someone downrange to feed the machine. Four shooters on the line simply couldn’t keep pace with the flurry of targets flying in every direction. For non-stop shooting action there’s nothing to match Crazy Quail.

“How many machines do you think we’re running?” Bourdage asked me. I watched clays falling from every direction as the shooters on the line — all experienced shotgunners — fumbled to feed rounds into their guns.

“I’d guess six machines,” I said. Bourdage smiled.

“It’s three, actually.”

I wouldn’t profess Bourdage to be a liar, but it seemed impossible. Three machines throwing targets in every direction at a pace that four experienced shotgunners couldn’t match seemed downright impossible. But when there was a break in the action, I rode downrange with Bourdage to see the machines in person. Three battery-operated Crazy Quail Minis were indeed perched behind the rock wall. Each was built with a battery compartment and the machines all rested on wheeled trailers for easy transport. Within five minutes, Bourdage and his assistant could feed a total of 900 clays into the machines while the exasperated shooters were taking a water break and busting open more boxes of shotshells.

The Practical Side of Crazy Quail

If you want to liven up your clays game, then a Crazy Quail machine is the solution. They aren’t inexpensive, priced at $11,500 each, but for shooting clubs looking to add a lot of fun to their range, this is the simplest and most economical solution. If you have the space and capital, adding a Crazy Quail Mini turns any property into a clay shooting mecca.

Setup is exceedingly simple. The Crazy Quail ships directly to your home, club, or business, and after unboxing you simply hook the trailer hitch to an ATV or similar machine and position the Crazy Quail where you’d like it to be. You can place it in front of the shooting line like a traditional trap thrower if you’d like, but to take full advantage of the machine’s capabilities it’s better to set it far enough away that shooters can engage incoming and outgoing targets without the risk of 108mm clays landing on their noses. The trailer makes the thrower mobile, and the jack stands allow you to lower or elevate as needed. Load the machine with clays, install the battery, program for flight, and you’re ready to play the most fast-paced clay target game around. Bourdage says that, with a bit of homework — you can watch setup videos online — you can go from unboxing to clay breaking in under five minutes.

There’s a practical side to all this fun, too. For example, bunker trap (or international trap) requires clubs to install a clay target bunker that is large and may cost up to $100,000. As a result, very few shooters ever practice the sport. I’m one of them. When I was shooting on my college’s trap and skeet team, I had never tried my hand at international trap until we attended the national shoot in San Antonio. Because Crazy Quail can be programmed to mimic bunker trap there’s a more affordable solution for clubs who want to give their members a taste of the sport.

If you’re a wild bird hunter there’s simply no better training than shooting targets from a Crazy Quail. Real birds may fly in any direction, but you can mimic each presentation with a single machine. What’s more, you don’t have to reset the angle of the shot or use multiple throwers. One machine can, in a matter of seconds, present a target that mimics crossing doves, incoming ducks, quick-rising teal, and outgoing upland birds.

If you’re seeking to add some excitement to your clay target shoots, there’s no one-stop solution that can match a Crazy Quail machine. It’s a fast-paced sport that’s extremely fun, and you’ll sharpen your shotgun game as you furiously feed shells into your gun. Whether you want to practice the same target presentation over and over in anticipation of a competitive shoot, or want to experience the thrill of engaging multiple targets from every imaginable angle, Crazy Quail is the answer.

For more information visit crazyquail.com

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