Tag Archives: south cheshire

May 10 2016

Shoot report – South Cheshire – May 2016

Traffic jam on motorway

Traffic jam on motorway

Sunday morning we were packed and on our way to South Cheshire shoot early as it’s one of the further shoots and takes about an hour and a half journey time. The problem was the motorway north was down to 1 lane instead of 4 due to an accident so that made for a very stressful drive as we sat in the traffic for 30 minutes waiting our turn. As it was we made the shoot in time to register and by all accounts several others had been delayed in the same incident. Let’s hope the passengers in the van that had crashed and flipped onto it’s side are okay.
South Cheshire

South Cheshire

The weather on Sunday was unseasonably warm with temperatures in the low 20 degree centigrade a complete contrast to recent weeks, this meant I was able to get a few photos.
Second target of the day 3D antelope

Second target of the day 3D antelope

This would be the first outing with my new Black Brook flatbow.
3D fox between the trees

3D fox between the trees

The course was entirely 3d targets and they had painted small pink dots in the centre of the kill zone for every target.
I’m unsure if I like the idea or not. In some ways it means all archers know where the highest scoring zones note just those with sights or access to listing of 3ds, also there are no arguments as to which scoring zones count.
The downside was it appeared to wear off as the day went on so not all archers were as clearly visible later in the day. Possibly the use of different paint would solve this.
3D boar

3D boar

There were some new 3ds including a sea lion and big cat which we hadn’t seen on previous shoots at South Cheshire or other shoots.
Small 3D cat in the sun

Small 3D cat in the sun

Another 3D between trees

Another 3D between trees

There were a number of shots framed between trees and branches making them hard to judge.
3D Turkey shot between trees

3D Turkey shot between trees

I think a few well placed catching nets would have sped the search for arrows up on a couple of targets, especially the ones near the water.
Very long shot at 3D Deer

Very long shot at 3D Deer

My thanks to the two marshals who helped retrieve the wayward arrows in the lake. Glad I could help launch and retrieve the boat, though I think a couple oars might be useful next time.
Discovered that the arrow sock labels I’d put on the night before don’t cope with being in water.
Sharon shot well winning ladies afb and actually scoring higher than the gents did too. Unfortunately my first outing wasn’t a very auspicious one, I really need more practice.
Sharon shooting 3D

Sharon shooting 3D

The journey home was less eventful but looks like we’ve developed an issue with the cars rear breaks, so no doubt that will be pricey to solve. So all in all was not the best day for car journeys.
Thanks for reading.
Sep 2 2013

Shoot report – South Cheshire – September 2013

First day of September started with an autumnal chill in the air and definitely a cool breeze. Fortunately the day remained dry and did brighten up with us quickly warming up as we got into the woods.

The last time I shot  South Cheshire  my shoulder was still causing me issues. Then we shot with Bob and Jim from Black Arrow. Sunday saw us start on peg 13 and shooting with the pair again. This proved to make for a great day filled with laughing and dry humour. Thanks guys.

South Cheshire grounds are over an hour and a half drive (subject to motorway being clear) so was an early start to get there for 9:30.

The course was a mix of 3D and paper targets, with some lovely set targets including a great one on a log.

Jim shooting Mountain lion on log

Jim shooting Mountain lion on log

One thing we found annoying was how some targets had trees behind them. There must have been at least 5 targets that directly behind the animal high score area there was a tree. Often the targets were 3d deer so if you over or under shot, your arrow would end up in a tree. I wasn’t the only one to fall foul of this and it did cost me a broken arrow and Sharon a bent one.

Due to the geography of the woodland South Cheshire have to break for lunch. Having said this it was a very free flowing day with no hold ups I think because numbers were low.

Some of the home made targets weren’t always easy to identify with a few being a little sticky; made for messy arrows. The club made good use of ground with great use of dead ground to trick the archers.

South Cheshire has a reputation for home made targets and one was great, so long as you aren’t arachnophobic as Spider shot was impressive.

spider from red peg

spider from red peg

Here is a close up.

spider close up - sadly my second arrow

spider close up – sadly my second arrow

In all it was a good shot made better by the company. We were the only ones from Severn Valley that were there but both came away with first paces. Bob came second in Longbow too.

Thanks for reading.