The latest episode of the Podcast is now live and answers a listeners question on how to incorporate using binoculars in their shot sequence in Barebow class.
For those that don’t know the National Field archery Society recently voted to allow archers shooting in the barebow class to be able to use binoculars.
Youtube version below or check out Spotify or other podcast players
So, I’m slowly getting back into the hang of writing these shoot reports. I hope you are enjoying reading them. It’s been a very long time since I wrote one for Centaura, looking at my past write up I had to go back to 2018.
Considering the crazy weather we had been having in the preceding week or so running up to the shoot, with rain, snow followed by a rapid thaw the Sunday morning weather was pretty good for an early spring day. Bright, with it not getting cold until about 4 pm.
The club is situated in a small woodland not far from Derby, so just under an hour travel for us despite the motorway being slow. The course would be a twice round 21, being a mix of paper and 3D targets. Normally a twice rounds course are 18 or 20 so, 21 was a little unusual. We would be shooting with Roger and Julie for the first time in what seems like years, both shooting bowhunter.
There was a good turnout on the day with many pegs having 4 or more archers but I know they had some no-shows, which is always a shame for clubs.
Unfortunately part way around the first half I had to escort our son off the course due to him being taken ill. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank the marshals who helped on the day to escort me and my son off the course. (He’s feeling much better now after spending the afternoon wrapped in a blanket in the car with his Mam. Thanks). This would mean Sharon and I each effectively shot half the course or once round, rather than twice round.
Centaura club is housed in a small site, with little space to accommodate all the cars, meaning once you are parked up you are there for the day.
The progress around the course slowed in the afternoon with periods of delays and waiting around. I’m uncertain of the cause. It could be due to numbers per peg, I know there were some new archers there. I’m sure if I could identify what causes events to slow then every club would be beating the way to my door for the secret.
There were some downhill shots at very steep angles. Think shooting off a cliff near straight down, the type of shot you don’t often have the opportunity to shoot. This is thanks to the nature of the terrain as I think the site was once a quarry.
An example of such a shot is the near vertical shot down onto a bedded ram 3D where you shoot all your arrows from the top of the cliff. The marshals collect your arrows, using a rope and pully to hoist your arrows back to you so you can continue along the ridge line to the next shot.
The flip side of this is the number of steps as you climb and descend multiple stairs. It proves to be a good workout for your legs.
Personally, I feel there were a couple of shots on the course that could have worked with a slightly larger target for the distance, like the 3D beaver and 3D badger, but these were in the minority.
Having not been out shooting at many competitions it was great to have the opportunity to meet up with some readers of this site and listeners to the podcast. If you do see me at a shoot pop over and have a chat.
One thing I liked to see was the map at the central gathering point, showing the woodland and the locations of the targets. It’s good for archers to have a rough orientation of the wood but I am sure it would prove invaluable to any emergency services who might be called in an incident.
I decided to shoot the 38lb recurve in hunting tackle class (that is a non compound bow, with wooden arrows, feather fletchings and no sights). I ended up not shooting the full course but I did feel fatigued. The upside was I managed to shoot it with some degree of accuracy and consistency. It is still a long way to go but small steps in the right direction.
If you visit Centaura clubs’ Facebook page you will be able to see a gallery of photos from the day. I’ve chosen one for my new profile picture.
Thanks for reading.
This is the first shoot report I’ve written from the perspective of a competing archer in several years and to be honest I think I’m as rusty in writing this as I was in shooting Harlequins open course the other weekend.
Situated in the Midlands, Harlequin host several competition shoots throughout the year and this was to be their Valentine Day fun shoot. Initially the organisers had set this as a 36 target course, though this was increased to 40 targets due to the numbers wanting to book in.
I’d forgotten how long a NFAS competition day it can be. We started shooting at 10.30 and were not finished shooting until 4.30 pm, leaving the site a little after 5.30pm. Of course, the day started much earlier with us packing the car for the hour-long drive to get there just after 9. This allowed for registration, breakfast, warm up etc.
We started on target 19 with Joy, an old Briar Rose club member, joining us for the day.
Starting on target 19 meant we would shoot over 20 targets before stopping for lunch break when we got to target 40.
The Harlequin’s grounds are set in a mixed deciduous woodland, with areas of thick rhododendron bushes, which were used at times to hide distances of the shots. In fact, there was some really clever use of vegetation to create areas of dead ground on a few shots. All the targets were 3D or large 2D targets, though I think the standing bear could do with some TLC repairs.
To be honest I think this is likely to be something several clubs are going to have to be doing as prices of 3D targets are ever increasing.
I’ve shared this next observational feedback already with Harlequin organiser and it concerns their peg placements for cubs and junior archers. There were some shooting pegs set way too far back or worse still behind obstacles that adults could easily see over but anyone under 4ft tall couldn’t. It’s a simple oversight, especially if the club doesn’t have many junior or cub archers.
To be fair to Harlequin they are supportive of juniors as there was no entrance fee for them and all who attended received a Harlequin keyring, no matter what they scored.
As for other parts of the course, there were some cleverly framed shots between trees, though I do feel there were a few shots I felt were stretched like the 3d tortoise. A target little over 10 to 12 inches in height and width, set at a distance beyond 20 yards is pushing it in my view. Maybe that is just my inexperience talking, though Sharon broke an arrow on this as hit it and deflected off into boss, snapping in half.
They weren’t doing normal prizes, instead there were handmade couples trophies for sighted, unsighted and mixed pairs.
Wasp pegs – I’m a big fan of using wasp pegs for sighted compound and crossbow archers. When used correctly they offer the opportunity for the course layers to give archers in those classes a challenge, with smaller windows etc. Personally, I feel if a club is setting a course and using wasp pegs I think the pegs should be present for all targets. That way you get used to seeing them and not walking to red and then realise there is a wasp further back. Even if on some shots the wasp pegs are next to the red, it means you know they are on every target.
Over recent weeks I’d worked hard to build strength back to enable me to shoot. The week prior to Harlequin I had been able to shoot my 38lb recurve for the first time in nearly 3 years and had chosen to shoot this for the competition in hunting tackle class. I think in hindsight I’d have been better shooting the 30lb flatbow. I kept misjudging distances and I think that’s partly down to good course laying on some shots and partly down to being an instinctive shooter who has not been shooting much with the bow. After all I was shooting a faster bow of different poundage so arrow flights are different. I know I need to spend more time and hone my instincts with shooting the bow. I don’t see that being a quick process and it’s fair to say it has given me a lot to process and think about over the next few weeks.
It was nice to see people again, many of whom I’ve lost touch with in recent years. Joy was great company all day, keeping our spirits up. It was only when speaking to a few, explaining how poorly I’ve been over last 12 months I realised how out of touch with people and things I am. As I said earlier, it’s given me a lot to think about.
Thanks for reading.
My Archery Experiences 