Jody's targeted dad for the tough stuff

She's young, and she loves getting outdoors and shooting things.

Jody McLean, 23, can't wait to dust off her shooting gear for the Rotorua Rod and Gun Club's annual pre-season shoot ahead of the May 5 opening of the duck shooting season.

"I've been waiting for it all year," Miss McLean said.

While it's clay targets she will have in her sights at the Rod and Gun Club's Game Shooters Pre-Season Sporting Clay Shoot on Sunday, it's the real thing she's really looking forward to.

"Shooting clays all the time, you want to go out and ... see if you can shoot something real," she said.

Not too keen on traditional women's sports, Miss McLean has always been drawn to the rougher stuff.

While she played netball at primary school, she progressed to soccer at intermediate and then rugby at high school before taking up shooting as her chosen sport.

"I didn't just want to do what the girls do, I want to be in there and doing hard stuff."

She was introduced to shooting about five years ago by her father David McLean. Every year since, she has taken part in the pre-season shoots.

"My Dad's pretty tough so I just wanted to be like him."

This weekend she wants to go one better.

She wants to beat him.

This will be Miss McLean's second duck shooting season and probably her last for a while as she plans to join the New Zealand Army.

One of the organisers of the pre-season shoot, Tony Truss, said about 150 shooters, from children to those in their 80s and everything in between, were expected to take part. The event has been running for about 40 years to help sharpen up keen shooters and get them "out there and hitting as many birds that they can and having a bit of fun".

Mr Truss said the clay targets were pretty easy to hit and it was a great event to get shooters primed for the duck shooting season.

Between $7000 and $8000 worth of spot prizes are up for grabs at Sunday's meeting, which starts at 8.30am, at the Rotorua Rod and Gun Club grounds near the Rotorua landfill.

Those interested can enter on the day.