How the ice stock target competition works: rings from 2 to 10 points, four rounds of six attempts — and the technique that makes you hit consistently.
In the target competition you play alone at scoring rings worth 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 points — usually across four rounds of six attempts, so a maximum of 60 points per round and 240 in total [1]. No opponents, no excuses: just you, the stock and a ring on a fixed lane.
That is exactly what makes it the most honest discipline in the sport. The lane and the delivery spot are fixed and nobody plays in between — every miss is yours, not your opponent's. How high the bar hangs is shown by the world record: 209 out of 240 possible points [1] — around 87 percent of a perfect haul.
Briefly on the distinction: this is not curling — no sweeping, no 20-kilo granite stone, and your target is the movable Daube with its rings rather than a painted house [7].
Around the Daube lie scoring rings worth 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 points [1]. The closer to the middle, the more points — scoring follows where your own stock or the target stock comes to rest [2].
Memorise the field before you pick up your first stock: whoever knows where the 10 lies plays differently from someone just shoving "somewhere forward".
In the first round you play six attempts at the central scoring rings, trying to bring your own stock as close as possible to the centre cross [2]. That is the base task of target shooting: hold the line, meter the distance.
In the second round you play six attempts at a target stock that is placed alternately in the marked circles A to F [2]. In the third round it is on ring targets in the rear corners of the target field [2].
This is where it gets uncomfortable — and instructive: you have to transfer the same movement to constantly changing points. The technique doesn't change, only the direction.
The fourth round is called combining: various tasks must be completed on the right and left in which you play your own stock with contact on the target stock toward the Daube — first with the Daube in the middle, then in the rear third of the target field [2].
That is the royal task: you are no longer aiming at a point but at a reaction.
Consistency comes not from talent but from always the same sequence [5]: grip, gaze on the target, calm swing, lunge step, let it glide [8]. Align your whole body and keep your eyes on the target in every phase [8]. The attempt is made from the delivery spot; if the player is not standing on it, the attempt is invalid [9] — so a run-up is out of the question.
Watch for calm, unclenched movements: in action are the upper body, shoulders and wrist, the rest stays in the base stance, and in practice the swing length sits at 60 centimetres to one metre [5] — roughly from the hip to just behind the body, no bigger backswing.
Note your total after every round. 60 points is the maximum per round, 240 across the whole competition [1]. Whoever knows their four round totals sees within a few sessions which round costs them points — and trains exactly that one.
In the target competition stocks and the target stock lie in the field, and that is exactly where accidents happen: never enter the target field while a stock is on its way, and only place new stocks once cleared.
The typical beginner complaints are considered harmless but avoidable: slips on the ice and mild strains from a missing or wrong warm-up [6]. Two minutes loosening legs, hips and the throwing shoulder, firm footwear on — that is all it takes.
And as always: this guide explains the competition and motivates — it never replaces the supervised club or course where an experienced shooter corrects your sequence in real time.
Train the second round deliberately out of order: have a club mate place the target stock randomly in circles A to F instead of working through them in sequence [2]. Whoever only practises the order trains habit — whoever has to read the target point afresh every time trains target shooting. And that is exactly what decides your 60 in competition.
An individual competition at scoring rings worth 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 points [9]. Usual are four rounds of six attempts, so a maximum of 60 points per round and 240 in total [1]. Scoring follows the position of your own stock or the target stock in the rings [2].
With your whole body: line body and gaze up on the target and swing the stock in a straight line toward it [8]. The decisive fix for beginners: keep your eyes on the target in every phase [8]. Then swing, lunge step — with no run-up [9] — and let the stock glide rather than throwing it [3].
Through repetition of the same sequence, not through new tricks [5]. Keep grip, gaze, swing and lunge step identical [3], stay in calm, unclenched movements and keep the swing length at around 60 centimetres to one metre [5]. Note your points per round — consistency only becomes visible once you measure it [1].
Both. In the individual competition one shooter plays all rounds and is scored alone; in the team competition a different player plays each round and the individual results are added up [2]. For you as a beginner that means you can specialise in one round and still score for the team.
From the village pond to Olympic demonstration: a history of ice stock sport