Summer is a great time for archery, lots of outdoor shoots, weekends away for two day competitions and lots more. I love 2 day competitions, camping for a few days and conversations into the night round the campfire.
Children have long holidays away from school with lots to do.
Sadly there is a flip side to this for some.
Not everyone is willing to undertake fun activities that aren’t detrimental to others.
There is an old saying “the devil makes work for ideal hands“
With the start of holidays many archery clubs see a rise in thefts and vandalism.
Just last week we found signs of illegal camping and abandoned campire, with exploded gas canisters.
Sadly we also had a couple of target bosses vandalised with the banding cut in several places and foam ripped out.
This is quite minor compared to other clubs experiences but is still demoralising and repairing costs time and money.
So what can we do?
- We can all keep an eye out for suspicious characters at our clubs or woods.
- Cultivate links with other local clubs and groups, so you can share news and alerts.
- We can be careful how we promote the clubs locations on public websites.
- Securing the huts, sheds etc seems like common sense, but having been a victim of thieves I know that simply putting a lock on the door is not always enough. When we were last broken into they got past the lock and quality padlock by forcing panels out of the door.
- Think about marking your equipment with club name, or branding the 3Ds with club name is something I know a few clubs have done. You could invest in smart water option too for the more expensive items.
- If we see deals that appear too good to be true on sites like eBay or offered locally, be suspicious.
- I know some clubs have invested in security systems, whether these be alarms or cameras. Inexpensive trail cameras, the sort used for wildlife monitoring can prove an effective way of monitoring who actually visits your woodland. If you do use these, I think you have to post signs stating CCTV is in use, but not all clubs are allowed to dependent on who else uses site.
If you have any other suggestions why not share them.
Here’s hoping everyone has a great summer of shooting.
Thanks for reading.
