Tag Archives: centaura bowmen

Sep 24 2015

Shoot Report – Centaura Bowmen – September 2015

Archers gathering

Archers gathering for the shoot at Centaura Bowmen

Sorry guys I’ve been really slow in getting this written up. A fewSunday mornings ago we had  a chilly start, the temperature gauge in the car claiming 7 degrees Celsius. Autumn looks to be on its way. At least it was sunny and dry as we packed the car and headed to the Centaura shoot grounds outside Derby.
The nice thing with heading to Centaura is we have the opportunity to run into friends we haven’t seen since moving from the area. It was great to see Jon C, Jim, Chris and others.
The shoot was well attended, resulting in a very full car park by the time we arrived shortly after nine, with most pegs having 4 archers on them. In interested you can check out a past shoot report here.
We would start on peg one a few yards from the main building, so a very short walk out, the only downside being at lunch break we would be at the furthest part of the wood.
Target 1 - paper face ermin

Target 1 – paper face ermin

The course like many others was a mix of 3d and paper faces, 36 targets in total.
We were joined by Trevor, Catherine and Jacob from Hanson, though only Trevor and Jacob were shooting. (Longbow and hunting tackle respectively )
The now infamous polo shot which Centaura are becoming known for returned on target 36 , this time with a 3D owl target. There was the long shot into the quarry this time with a 3D boar, though it’s hard to make out in the photo.

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Our first shot would be the ermin in a ditch, not a confidence building shot to start with.
Target 8 - a downhill bedded 3D deer

Target 8 – a downhill bedded 3D deer

Another traditional shot they put out is a very short one, 3 feet away. You can see Jacob shooting it.

Very close shot

Very close shot

This was the only one I didn’t like, simply due to the shortness in distance. I think I  would have put it back further and this would be safer, say to about 6 feet as very low poundage junior bows could see the arrow bounce back. I don’t believe there was any problems on the day,with the shoot flowing okay, all the time  with Trevor regaling us with archery stories and believe me he has a few.
Trevor shooting a 3D

Trevor shooting a 3D

Sharon shooting 3D owl between trees

Sharon shooting 3D owl between trees

Lunch break was between 12:30 and 1:30 giving archers ample time to get off the course grab some food and then head back out. Though I think Centaura need to invest in some louder air horns to signal start and lunch breaks.
Didn’t shoot as well in the afternoon and wonder if this was due to it being a  bit slower.

Paper face Racoon in a dip

Paper face Racoon in a dip which is a lot harder than it looks

Overall I think it was was a good shoot with some nicely placed shots like the 3d ram from the top of the hillside.
Long ram off the top of the hillside

Long ram 3D off the top of the hillside

Sharon came away with first in ladies hunting tackle. I managed a placing  in gents afb. Though I didn’t feel I shot very well and still have a long way to go with the flatbow.
Thanks for reading.

Mar 21 2015

Shoot Report – Centaura Bowmen – March 2015

We were a little busy last weekend. Friday night a rock concert in Birmingham, bit of practice Saturday, then back in time to see the 6 nations rugby and off to trophy shoot Sunday.
This meant on a chilly Sunday morning we packed the car and were off north to just outside  Derby for the Centaura shoot.
View of 3D

View of 3D

This was to be a bit different to a normal open shoot as it would be a 36 target wooden arrow only. So no crossbow or compounds, just longbows, afb and recurves in hunting tackle classes. (Sorry nearly forgot the primative class.)  Still it saw over 80 people attend in the mix of classes. Here is a link to last years Trophy shoot report.

Me on the first target of the day

Me on the first target of the day

The course has seen some extensive work at one end of the wood due to essential tree felling after one tree blew down on top of their secondary hut and toilet block leaving only splinters and large logs. The result is it has really opened up the canopy in that part of the wood.
Area by the felled trees

Area by the felled trees

The course itself comprised of some new and some very familiar shots.

The polo shot

The polo shot from behind

The now infamous polo shot returned, this time with a 3D owl target, though I think it was a little too close to the archers as I  think some lower poundage bows might struggle to clear it.

The polo shot from the side

The polo shot from the side

The course was a mix of 3d and paper faces set at sensible distances in the most part.

Sharon on one of the down hill shot

Sharon on one of the down hill shots

With a small shooting group of Sharon, myself and Alan form Pines Park we made good progress with few hold ups prior to lunch. Most groups were only 4 in number which made in all a good day that flowed fairly easily.
Alan shooting

Alan shooting

Lunch break was from 12:30 -1:30 and this slowed down the day a little bit but we’d finished by 3 pm
Despite predictions the rain stayed away but it was a cold day.
Sadly there were no trophies for me this year, not surprising really as am still coming to grips with the flat bow and building my own confidence in it. Sharon won ladies hunting tackle again so the trophy returns for another year.
Thanks for reading

Sep 10 2014

Shoot Report – Centaura- September 2014

Club house with trees behind just turning.

Club house with trees behind just turning.

Over a hundred and twenty archers joined us on a sunny Sunday morning for the Pete Bates Trophy Shoot. We had good weather though you can feel the autumnal nip in the early morning air starting with the leaves just beginning to turn behind the club house.
Centaura has a small wood situated not far from Derby with a course made up of a mix of a few 3d targets but mostly paper faces.
Our shooting group comprised Neil and Mandy from Forest of Arden, joined Sharon and myself.
Our First target was a red squirrel between the trees and I must admit that I did wonder if was going to be a good start.
First Target Of Day - Red squirrel

First Target Of Day – Red squirrel

In fact the day flowed well with few hold ups and there was a very relaxed atmosphere not dissimilar to the wooden arrows shoot they ran a few months back (shoot report can be found here).
In fairness I think we might have started on the small targets as the first 7-8 targets were mostly group fours including the red squirrel, jay, reflective duck, and Partridge.

Duck target

Duck target

The course is situated in mix leaf deciduous woodland with mostly flat terrain,  though there is the quarry section which will see going up and down there steps and presents the opportunity fir some nice down hill shots.

Deer target

Deer target

Due to the nature of the course Centaura operates a lunch break of an hour which gave archers ample time to enjoy the sunshine and have a bite to eat. Sadly the long lunch break did have a negative impact on my shooting as it a while for me to get back into the swing of things again.

Paper face Hare

Paper face Hare

By lunch we had shot 19 targets and had finished shooting the course by 3:30.

Paper face tiger target

Paper face tiger target

Congrats to fellow club members Stephen Parsons and Chris Harley on placing. Congrats also to Sharon who won ladies hunting tackle.

Sadly I only managed second in hunting tackle with a score of 654 30 points behind first. Well done Roger. Guess it’s not too bad considering in the last week I’ve fitted a new string with 2 less strands, made some new arrows, started a new glove, set a different bracing height for the string and obviously had to set a  nocking point.
Only criticism of the course was I think they could have put a wider selection of target faces as there were a number of repeats. With the selection of faces on the market I don’t think clubs need to repeat any.
In all though it was a good shoot and a good day. Thanks to all the club and I’m sure Pete would have been proud of you all.
As always thanks for reading.