Tag Archives: champs

Sep 24 2014

Shoot report – NFAS National Championships – part 1

Day 1 - Archers mustering

Day 1 – Archers mustering

This two day event would see some 400 archers plus organisers descend from across the UK to Catton Park in Derbyshire for the 2014 NFAS National Championships.
Over the course of the weekend archery skills would be tested on two separate courses across the park grounds. Each course would consist of 40 targets with 30 paper faces and 10 3Ds.
Since Sharon and I would be shooting in the hunting tackle category we would shoot A course Saturday which had been laid by Wolverine Archers. Then B Course Sunday set by a group from Duvelle Bowmen, Cheshire Oak and Lyme Valley Archers.
Due to issues with finding volunteers to lay the courses this year there would only be two courses and places were capped at 400 archers. This resulted in places filling within a few weeks of the booking opening, helped by a very efficient online booking system. I think the difficulty with finding volunteers had arisen because of the 3D championships. The 3Ds event normally has four courses, having been hosted in the East Midlands for the past four years has used up the good will of many clubs. Maybe it’s time to move the event round the country but this means finding a suitable venue and willing volunteers / clubs to set the courses. Anyway back to the shoot report.
It would be fair to say i was feeling really rough on Saturday with my head spinning every time I lowered it. This was not due to a night on the town but I think a head cold that was and still is affecting my ears and sinuses. Not a great way to start the day.
Day 1 A course paper face

Day 1 A course paper face

Saturday was a bit grey and overcast with flat light and light  showers as we set off up the track to the course . A course was situated on a wooded hill a short walk from the mustering point.  This poor light made some of the longer shots very hard to see in the wood. The result was archers taking 3 arrows on many targets as they couldn’t see if they were in or not.
A course - 3D cobra

A course – 3D cobra

I must say a huge thanks to Shirley and the rest of the shooting group who kept my spirits up all day. By half way round I was feeling shattered and grateful to the group for pulling arrows, in return I opted to mark the score cards, which is something I normally try to avoid.
Day 1 - A course paper face wolf

Day 1 – A course paper face wolf

With the poor light and the distances of the targets there were the inevitable delays at some shots, the worse being the downhill rhino at about 50 yards. When we  arrived we were the third group waiting to shoot the target, nearly everyone taking 3 arrows. Later in the day they stationed a marshal down by the target to let people know when their shots were in.
Day 1 Course A 3d deer

Day 1 Course A 3d deer

One of the best shots was a downhill 3D deer where I had a very lucky leg shot.
A course - Lucky leg

A course – Lucky leg

In all I think it was a good course though some people did comment that the junior pegs were a bit long and I think that might be a fare comment for some of the shots.
In all though a good course I just wished I could have done it justice.
Thanks for reading, part 2 will follow shortly.
May 19 2014

For the win?

Challenge or for the win?

Challenge Spirit or for the win?

The NFAS 3D championship is just round the corner and yes I hope to shoot well but in reality I know I am a long way off placing. 
For those not familiar with the event it is a 2 day shoot which sees approximately 600 archers of different styles shooting two courses one each day. It’s called a 3D championship as all targets are 3Ds.  You can see previous year reviews here for 2013 and 2012

This doesn’t mean I don’t want to aim to do well though. This thought got me thinking about how different people measure success.

So here are a couple of questions to all readers. 

How do you measure your own success in archery?

Is the win important or not so important to you as you just want to enjoy the day?

Is it about getting a placing or medal or having a good shoot?

Is it the possibility of recording a personal best or just getting round the course?  I know last year I just wanted to get round following the problems with my shoulder.

For me I think it is nice to place at shoots but in truth I’m competing against myself each time I go out. 
If I start thinking of how others are doing or what my score is it plays with my head and negatively affects my shooting. 
I know I’m very self critical and if I don’t feel I’m shooting well tend to beat myself up. Not good and something I try and get my students to avoid. Easier said than done though. 
I tend to have in mind what I think I should score in total and after each shot. 
These goals have changed over time though. 
When I started I was happy not to blank half the targets on a course. I now get cross with myself if I blank any!
My next goal was to reduce the number of third arrows I was taking.  Still working on that one.

I started looking at average scores for shoots but realised this didn’t factor in the course difficulty, weather etc. We all know some shoots are more challenging than others so averages have to be taken with a pinch of salt. 
Best measure I found was identifying someone in your shooting class who you know shoots consistently that you can match your score against. They become your base line. This gives you a guide to the difficulty level of the course. 
But scoring isn’t the only thing you have to enjoy the day or why do the hobby?

As always thanks for reading and if you have any comments or thoughts let me know.
Mar 13 2014

Course and Target Laying – Distance

In this series of posts I’ve been looking at course laying and shot selection.  The last post covered some thoughts on elevation and in this one I’m going to cover distance.

Society Rules

In the NFAS (National Field Archery Society)  you shoot over unmarked distances so it is down to the archers own skills in distance judgement to calculate how far the target is. You aren’t allowed to use any range finding equipment and only a few classes are allowed to use sights. I know other societies allow the use of range finders or shoot marked distances. Likewise some societies specify you have to have x number of 30 yard shots, y number of 40 yard etc.
On this topic some would say the role of the course layer is to try and make the judgement of distance difficult by using dead ground or the like. Personally I would say a good course layer should be able to lay a course that encourages sighted archers to change their sight marks or pins.

What effect does distance have?

Well the further the shot the longer time in air the arrow has and therefore more chance for environment to effect the arrows flight. What I mean by environment is  maybe gust of wind or when  shooting in the rain. The other thing to consider is a shot can’t be too close.
Why?
Well think of the archers paradox, you need to give the arrow chance to straighten, for this reason I would say never put a shot in closer that 3 yards. Look at this weasel shot form the 2013 Nationals.
Paper Ermin

Paper Ermin

It was only a few yards away from the shooting pegs but the level it was set at and height off the ground along with proximity to the stumps made you think.  It goes to show that a long distance relative to target size is obvious but sometimes a close shot can challenging.

Below is a good example of a medium shot of just about 30 yards. The reason I include this here is it also highlights the effect tree branches can have. If you putting a longish shot in keep a thought for overhanging tree branches, you might need to clear a few to ensure the shot is safe.

First view from Red peg

First view from Red peg

Stretched shot

I can’t cover distance without saying a word or two on stretched shots. Stretched shot are not challenging, simply beyond the distance it should be. This differs from a long shot, which can be challenging if there is a good chance of hitting.
The 3d tiger was a long shot as far as distance is concerned being over 50 yards but as it’s a large target its still hittable.
3D tiger from red peg

3D tiger from red peg

Wolverine Archers are famous for their long shot Kong. Just to give you an idea here is a video of the distance
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What is long or is considered long varies. Personally I think anything over 40 yards is boarding on long for most archers. Don’t get me wrong I like the occasional longer shot, so long as the target size is appropriate.

In the next post on course and target planning I will address the ideas and issues associated with identifying suitable target size.

If you find this useful or have any questions then please contact me.

As always thanks for reading.