Tag Archives: hunting tackle

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.

Aug 24 2015

Shoot Report – Wolverine Archers – August 2015

Wolverine - archers getting ready to set off

Wolverine – archers getting ready to set off

So Sunday saw us once again packing the car for a journey north up the motorway towards Stoke on Trent area, this time for the Wolverine Archers NFAS shoot.
Both of us were feeling tired before we even started the shoot, having been at the SVYF wood all Saturday helping set up half of the new course. It was a very warm Saturday to be clearing undergrowth and setting 18 new targets, but it was done and we even managed to shoot it.
Wolverine - archers getting ready

Wolverine – archers getting ready

Anyway on to Wolverine’s shoot, past reviews can be seen here. Sunday morning started dry, warm and sunny and unlike the previous week the motorway wasn’t that slow.
I think some archers may have been put off by the forecast of heavy rain later in the day, as admin at the shoot had to do some rejigging of groups for cancellations and no shows. As it was we ended up shooting with Adrian and his daughter Emily from Lyme Valley club both shooting hunting tackle class. I know some people are not fond of shooting in a group with a child but I must say Emily was a great sport, even when the heavens opened in the afternoon and it was raining she focused on shooting, being a credit to her family and club.

3D deer

3D deer

Wolverine always set a challenging course and Sundays was no exception with our first target  being  a downhill paper face fox. The course was a mix of paper faces and 3D targets and yes, there was Kong in the field.

Adrian shooting a 3D deer

Adrian shooting a 3D deer

Like Lyme Valley, Wolverine operate a lunch break where all shooting stops to allow archers to get safely off the course. This gave us time to grab something to eat and the umbrella.
Adrian shooting a 3D turtle

Adrian shooting a 3D turtle

My luckiest shot of the day I think must have been our first target after the lunch break, which was a small 3D dragon, which I managed to shoot through the mouth. Literally skin of the teeth.

Lucky shoot - 3D dragon

Lucky shoot – 3D dragon

Another tough shot was a 3D owl between a V in two trees. It looked lovely but wasn’t easy.
Slightly out of focus but a 3D owl between trees

Slightly out of focus but a 3D owl between trees

I’m glad we had done most of the course when the bad weather did arrive as I think it would have  gone from challenging to very hard.
The rain that had been forecast rolled in in the afternoon and it got very wet. Hence the lack of afternoon photos as I was more concerned with keeping the phone dry.  Thankfully we were mostly in the woods by this point.

Despite Sharon feeling she hadn’t shot well she won ladies hunting tackle and by some miracle I managed a second place in AFB.
Thanks for reading.