Tag Archives: 3d targets

Jul 7 2015

Shoot Report – Hawk Archers – July 2015

Hawks parking

Hawks parking

Hi all, it seems like ages since I wrote a shoot report so here goes.
Last Sunday saw us heading to South Wales for Hawk Archers shoot (here are links to the 2 shoot reports 2014, 2013 if you fancy a read)
I am amazed that not more people make the journey to this shoot, as it is one of the best set, challenging courses on the NFAS circuit. It offers the archers the opportunity to shoot in beautiful woodland and shots seldom seen elsewhere on the circuit, like 20-40 yard up or downhill targets. This little hidden gem of a course in the Welsh country side is well worth tracking down.
Hawk - uphill 3D deer

Hawk – uphill 3D deer

At Hawk’s grounds they have ample parking spaces in a field a short stroll from administration and unlike some grounds the field was bone dry so you weren’t slipping and sliding trying to park up.
first target of the day - hessian

first target of the day – hessian

On Sunday we would be joined by Scott and Lisa-Marie from Druids to shoot round Hawks course.

Shoot group

Shoot group

So our group would be three flatbow and Sharon on hunting tackle. We had a great laugh and despite  a brief shower just before lunch an otherwise dry and warm day.
3D Deer in the sun

3D Deer in the sun

Considering there were I think 5 people who set this 36 target course it was an amazing achievement. Sadly the club recently lost one of its members to cancer and for this reason they ran a collection in aid of the Sue Ryder fund. The course was comprised of 36 targets, mostly 3d targets with a few paper and hessian targets.

3D Bedded antelope

3D Bedded antelope

One great shot was the double predator prey, where you had to hit both predators before you could take a shot at the prey. I managed only two of the predators so never got to try my hand at the deer.

Sharon studying a shot between the trees

Sharon studying a shot between the trees

Speaking to a couple of archers at other shoots and I mention I’m going to Hawk Archers their response has been “tough shoot or stretched targets.” I feel this is a little unfair, Hawk is a great course to test you and your archery skills. They have well set targets that will have you reaching for your second arrow because you misjudged the distance or misread the ground and not because the target is stretched. The other thing is the atmosphere at the shoot is always relaxed and friendly.
I think Sundays course was one of the best courses I’ve shot there and great fun. Despite Sharon feeling she shot badly she came away with a first place in ladies Hunting Tackle with a very respectable 492, by some miracle I managed 546 which got me a first place in American flat bow.

Thanks for reading.
May 28 2015

Shoot report – NFAS 3D Championships

Flete Estate - 3D champs 2015

Flete Estate – 3D champs 2015

As I started writing this I realised a few things

  1. Firstly it was going to be a long report so I’m breaking it down into two parts. Overview of the event, day one and day two.
  2. Secondly some of my comments maybe read as gripes or criticism based on just not shooting well. That’s not the intention they are my observations, thoughts and opinions.

So here goes,I hope you like this epic.
The late May bank holiday weekend saw us load up the car on Friday morning and head south to just outside Plymouth for the NFAS 3D championships. Unlike others we had a pretty easy drive down and popped into the venue before heading to the hotel. This year we decided against camping and booked into a Premier Inn about 20 minutes drive from the venue. This would prove to be a popular choice of accommodation for many competitors as the restaurant and bar was well stocked with fellow archers in the evening.
The 2015 champs would be the first time we would shoot a 3D championships not held at Osmaston estate, instead it would be at the Flete Park, Devon. I think the extra distance put a few people off travelling, which was a shame as the venue was stunning in parts and relatively easy to get to on the roads (traffic allowing).
This year would also see Sharon defending her championship title in ladies Hunting Tackle. Here is a link to last years shoot report (Link )

40 v 36

Due to these lower numbers of attendees (some 550 rather than 650 or so in previous years) the organisers reduced the courses from the normal 40 3d targets to only 36.
I can understand why they did this, as it made it easier for the course layers but personally I don’t think this was to prove a good idea. The extra few empty targets might have lessened the delays experienced by some archers on the courses.

Start the clock

The other thing which was new was that they instigated a time limit of 8 hours from the start of shooting. Any archers not completing the 36 target course within this time would have to be scored only on the targets they had shot.
This worked with groups being off in good time, but I wonder if this was partly due to

  1. Reduced numbers at the event meant there were less people.
  2. No particularly long walk outs to the courses and corresponding walk backs at end. On some courses at Osmaston the walk back took 30 minutes.
  3. The mostly good weather, which resulted in people not slipping and sliding as much as at past events at Osmaston.

I’m not sure if I like the idea of a time limit. Would it have worked if there had been any problems? Who knows, guess time will tell in the future if they do this again.

Behind the scenes

There is a an awful lot of work that goes on behind the scenes at events like this, not just the setting of the courses but also the sourcing of a venue, organising delivery of 3ds and administration of shooting groups. I’ve been lucky enough to offer some help a couple of times to break down a course. So I’d like to say thanks to all involved.
Top marks to the administration team who, not only coped with last minute drop outs but also managed to get the first day and final results out and on the website within hours of the last people coming off the courses. Well done.

I would also like to say how great it was to meet new people and those readers and followers of this blog who introduced themselves throughout the weekend. Thanks guys.

What are the championships?

For those not familiar with the process of the NFAS championship here is a quick run down.
The championships consist of 2 days of shooting 2 different courses.
X & Y courses were for archers shooting compound bows, crossbows and barebow ie the metal/carbon arrow courses.
A & B were for longbows American flatbow, primitive and hunting tackle ie the wooden arrow courses.
You are randomly allocated to a shooting group. With all archers in the same class shooting the same course on the same day.
So I would shoot B course Saturday with all other flatbow archers and A on Sunday. Sharon was shooting hunting tackle so shot A course first and then B.
Okay so that is all for now. I’ll try and get the other parts written up as soon as I can. In the meantime thanks for reading.

Apr 13 2015

Shoot Report – SVYF – April 2015

SVYF - archers waiting to go out on course

SVYF – archers waiting to go out on course

The weather stayed dry but the wind was ever so present.
SVYF is our club and this means this shoot report will be from the view of the organisers rather than competitors. You can read some earlier reports here Autumn 2014, Spring 2014.
Helping to run a shoot is a lot more tiring than shooting and it gives you a great insight into the work involved in setting courses.
The course this time comprised of 40 targets mostly 3Ds with a few paper faces. I’ve loaded some pictures on my Tumblr site (http://offthearrowshelf.tumblr.com/) already but here are a few more. Sorry there aren’t any action shots was a bit busy.
Predator prey shot

Predator prey shot

3D boar

3D boar

We delayed the start from 10 due to an accident on the motorway that delayed many archers’ arrival. As it was we only had 3 no shows, resulting in over 180 archers attending. It was great to catch up with so many fellow archers, friends and a few readers of this blog. It is always great to meet up with readers of this site so please if you do see us a t a shoot pop over and say hi. (Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery for the shoulder)
Ever present tiger 3D

Ever present tiger 3D

The wood surrounds a couple of over grown ponds and is quite sheltered except on one side where the edge of the wood is exposed to open fields. Archers on this side would be battered by exceedingly strong winds, making the archery challenging to say the least. I think the compound archers suffered the most as their arrows were flicked off their rests.
Frog 3D between the trees

Frog 3D between the trees

Besides the high winds the only other problem which was partly under our control was the running repairs on bridges.
Can you spot the 3D Cobra

Can you spot the 3D Cobra

In SVYF we have over 13 bridges ranging from only a few feet in length to over 100 feet. We run regular checks on the bridges, replacing planks etc, but with over 180 archers trekking across them, plus organisers we had a few planks break. The only problem was they seemed to all go on one bridge, we had seven go on one bridge in the space of 20 minutes. Added to this was that target was 40 shot was across the bridge so we had our work cut out for us, cutting new planks, removing old ones and replacing them.
Bedded deer 3D

Bedded deer 3D

Overall the day seemed to run well, with archers enjoying themselves. Sadly not everyones day went as well due to delays on the course, we finally traced these delays to one group that were being very slow in shooting and scoring.
SVYF next shoot is in early October, hopefully it won’t be so windy.
Thanks for reading