Apr 21 2017

Archery club targeted by thefts 

I have some sad news for the archery community in the UK.

Magna Carta hosted its April Open last weekend and had some 3Ds stolen.

From what I understand most of the 3D’s where brand new for that shoot so keep an eye out for any slightly used 3D’s.

10 targets in total.

Small croc, bear on all fours, badger, howling coyote, raccoon,running javelina, small hedgehog and a grazing dappled deer.

Each one had a number in black marker on base. 28,29,30,35,36,37,2,4 and 27 respectively. The bear was 36.

This was one of them Imago sitting bear and is pretty unusual.

Here’s hoping the thieves are caught and 3Ds recovered. Please keep an eye out for the items. Also check the security at your own clubs too.
Thanks for reading.

The view from the valley
Apr 19 2017

Shoot Report – Lyme Valley Archers – April 2017

Lyme Valley - starting biref

Lyme Valley – starting biref

On a beautiful bright spring Sunday morning we loaded up the car for an hour or so drive up the motorway to Lyme Valley Archers NFAS shoot. This would be my first shoot since Spirit of Sherwood in December last year and to be honest I was more than a little nervous.

For those who are interested here is a link to a previous shoot report. Lyme Valley club always put on a challenging course, helped by their ground which is a steep sided wooded valley outside Stoke-on-Trent. Thankfully this year the weather was warm and dry being more like summer shoot conditions than spring, the grounds and paths can be a bit slippery in the wet conditions.

Joining us to form our shooting group would be Paul and Claire from Long Eaton Field Archers, both shooting unlimited (that’s a compound class with all the whistles and bells). They were great company throughout the day which helped make for a relaxing and enjoyable shoot.

The view from the valley

The view from the valley

Lyme valley is always a popular shoot and this day was no different with well over 130 archers attending. I thought it went quite smoothly for us anyway with no real delays or hold ups until the end of the day when I think everyone was feeling a bit tired. Though I know a couple of archers chose to leave at lunch as they were finding it very slow going. It was great to see Jim smiling and enjoying shooting a flatbow again.

Great shot by Sharon

Great shot by Sharon

The event has a lunch break from 12:30 to 1:15 which see all archers stop shooting and walking back to the entrance for lunch. Though this can be disruptive and I’m not a fan of lunch breaks, it is necessary at this clubs grounds due to the geography being such as catering is at one end of the wood and you only pass it once. We were very fortunate in being near catering when the lunch horn went off.

Long down hill shot

Long down hill shot

3D target in valley floor

3D target in valley floor

A couple of shots I think  worth mentioning were the downhill bedded antelope, along with our first target an uphill lion right at the end of the wood.

First shot of the day

First shot of the day, 3D cat between the trees.

The 36 target course was a mix of 3D and paper targets.

3D Dragon emerges from an egg

3D Dragon emerges from an egg

3d fish behind log

3D Fish behind log on the river bank

Speaking with a couple of Lyme Valley club members the course had been set by new coarse layers and I think they did a pretty good job. There were a number of challenging shots, offering up and downhill challenges for all, something that not many clubs can offer. Personally I think with a couple of small changes to the route or standing places for groups it might be even better and feeling less cramped between targets.

Jim chatting with Sharon before we start.

Jim chatting with Sharon before we start.

If you want to experience a different course with ups and downs then Lyme Valley is a good course to go for, just be aware it can be quite physically demanding to be going up and down the slopes. Though I think Sharon and I were feeling tired before starting, having spent the Saturday from walking round Derbyshire woods scouting shots for the 3D championships.

Sharon on the Last shot of the day

Sharon on the Last shot of the day

Despite feeling tired Sharon shot really well, winning ladies AFB. I even managed to scrape a third in gents AFB. Once again our thanks to Paul and Claire for their company and to all of Lyme Valley for their hard work. All contributing to a lovely day out shooting, made it good to be back.

Thanks for reading

Mar 30 2017

Different day at work

Different day at work

Different day at work

Bit of a different day at work one day this week.

Every year an event is run at the university I work for, where staff members are encouraged to demonstrate or promote their hobbies and interests, whether this be cooking, painting etc.

Most of the stalls are housed in one large lecturing room, with a couple of other breakout rooms.

The session runs for a couple of hours over the lunch time and there were people with stands full of homemade cakes, another one on how you can get involved with girl guides organisation. One very popular stall was a sushi stand, where they were letting people have a go at making their own sushi. In other rooms there were sessions on BMI health checks and massages for those feeling stressed? The event is all about staff well being and what the institution can do to promote well being and what staff do themselves.

I had a stall on archery (surprise, surprise), and though I couldn’t bring in any of my bows, I was able to show a selection of arrows, along with fletching set ups and a variety of literature. In hindsight I think I should have printed off some large pictures but I didn’t know I would have had a display board.

Archery stall

Archery stall

I think there were nearly 200 people booked to attend and many more that were just passing by, or maybe they were just after the free lunch provided by the organisers if you booked in advance.  It did feel busy at times, though I think that might have been helped by being near the sushi stall.

What was interesting when talking with a few people were the number who said they’d tried archery at Centre parks or other such holiday camps and really enjoyed it. Makes you wonder if the archery community should try and promote the hobby more?

Thanks for reading.