Louise : Final session of the beginner's course

After the start of last week's session it was fair to say I was quite nervous about how I'd start off this week. Would I hit the curtain again on my first shot? Would my arrow even stay inside the sports hall? 

These were all genuine worries, but my mind and body seemed to have got the hang of it. It was the last session yesterday.  I helped set up and then strung my bow. I was quite chuffed that I remembered how to do it to be honest, anything after that was a bonus. I paired up with Tim for the final time on the shooting line and we began shooting pretty much straight away. Diccon spent less time getting me to rearrange my arms or my reference point this week which I think meant that I was doing okay! My grouping wasn’t brilliant during the first few ends; it takes me a little time to get my sight lined up, but I eventually started to line up my shots. I’ve noticed that I start to hit the centre of the target, just at different points vertically! I hit mostly black and white rings during the first ¾ ends but eventually broke my streak and hit red. Fiona, a member of my group (in the photo to the left!) had a start similar to mine and then she hit the centre of the target. Another member of the group had perfect grouping on their target. It was good to see how far we’d all come since the beginning when we all thought the bow was heavy and we couldn’t get our reference point etc.

After a number of ends we had a competition. Last week in a smaller competition I came third after two ends (a score out of 60) which I was very happy with. This week our competition was out of 300 points which would be ten ends. Any mention of competition usually puts heaps on pressure on and I don’t do very well, much like in my Have-a-Go session all those months ago. This time, after so many hours and so many shots I seemed to be able to keep my composure. I wasn’t always on target (literally) and my grouping was still a little off, however I scored higher as time went on. In the end I came third again with 152 points! I even managed to get a 10 pointer at one stage.

One final tip that Diccon gave us to help with our shooting was to line up the string in the same place on the bow when the string is pulled back, using your foresight. I was terrible at this, this first time I tried the arrow hit the boss sideways and landed on the floor. I might leave using that trick until a further date!

At the end of the session everyone on the course was presented with a certificate of attendance, to show that we attended the course, spent six hours shooting and understood the basic safety protocols and would be able to join 2020Archery as a club member. Diccon gave us the information on what the next steps would be should we wish to join and everyone in my group seemed quite interested in carrying on with the sport and joining the club. One good thing about joining after the course is that you can request to have a buddy when you first attend a shoot, someone who has been shooting for a while and who can help you settle in quickly which I think is a great idea. There are a number of shooting sessions that we can book onto and equipment hire is included in the price of the session, so I don’t think I’ll be running out and buying all the kit just yet!

I had a great time on the course. Diccon was a great tutor and was very patient with us all and offered great advice and help. I found each week easier to get into shooting and forming my reference point and even the weight of the bow was less noticeable by the middle of this week’s session. I was also in a group of nice people who I hope to meet again at a club session.

So there we have it. The course is completed and now the next step is to join 2020 Archery and fulfil my dream of becoming a superhero.

Oh, and you see that photo of me there? My reference point is wrong. Don’t copy me, I’m only a beginner! Until next time……

To take a look at upcoming dates for the Monday evening course that Louise took go to the website here

http://www.2020archery.co.uk/lessons-courses-2/Monday-Evening-Beginners-Course

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Mark : First Competition! Norwich Stafford

It’s a wintery afternoon on 13th January 2013 and I’m wandering around a near deserted college campus somewhere on the outskirts of Norwich. The sports hall, the venue for the Norfolk Bowmen UKRS (UK Record Status) Stafford, is proving to be difficult to find. I feel okay about this because as soon as I do find it I’m in unknown territory - the elusive world of the archery tournament.

My quest to find the sports hall left me plenty of time to ponder the bigger questions in life: How will I know what to do? What if I don’t know the etiquette? Why does Rule 307 make me feel like I’m back a school? What on earth is a Lady Paramount?

Ah, found the entrance! Deep breath. Here’s what I found out….

• It’s similar to shooting at the club. There are loads of people with bows, a few familiar faces (some of the staff from Clickers in Norwich) and a lot of less familiar faces. But we’re all here to do the same thing.

• It’s really well organised and the judges are here to help. I arrived at the end of the first session, found a judge and blurted out, “This is my first tournament, what do I do?”. 
“Don’t panic!”, came the wisened reply, “Set up your bow and we’ll explain everything”. Which they did, immediately prior to our two ends of sighters.

• Although the signalling system is different to the one used at 2020, it only takes a couple of ends to get used to it. In short: 


• *bleep bleep* first detail to the shooting line 
• 
*bleep* first detail shoot

• *bleep bleep* second detail to the shooting line
• 
*bleep* second detail shoot

• *bleep bleep bleep* safe to score and collect your arrows


• The process then repeats, but if you were on the first detail for the first end you swap to second detail for the second end and so forth. That way, everyone gets to shoot at a blank target face an equal number of times.

If there are four people on a target (A,B,C,D), archer C tends to write the scores, but this can be negotiated. You call your arrows in turn, highest value to lowest, pointing at each one as you call it (but don’t touch any of the arrows or the target face until scoring has finished!). If you aren’t the scorer you should pull your fair share of arrows once the scores have been taken, not just your own arrows.

And so it goes until the end of the round.

I was lucky enough to be on a target with three friendly and more experienced archers so I took the opportunity to ask lots of the questions. In my next post I’ll let you know what I found out about etiquette and preparation.

p.s. the Lady Paramount (or Lord Paramount) appears to be the chief judge. This wasn’t overly clear. I think they should have to wear a special hat or something.

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Heidi : clearly we're doing a bit of work on the blog!

Apologies if the blog is looking a bit messed up at the moment. Our fabulous web-man Daz is making some changes. Hopefully it will be fairly seemless and everything will be new and improved very soon. 

You can still keep up with what's happening on facebook and twitter. 

Happy Shooting!

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Louise : Embedded reporting from Monday night Beginners Course Week 2!

I stood on the line, remembering my T position and my reference point.  I took a deep breath as I picked up my arrow and placed it on my bow. As I drew the string back I breathed in hard, then I let the string slip off my fingers and watched as the arrow sailed through the air, straight past the target on the boss and into the curtain at the end of the sports hall.

Oh...

And so the second session of the Fast-track course began!

http://www.2020archery.co.uk/lessons-courses-2/Monday-Evening-Beginners-Course

Those who arrived a little earlier helped to set up all the equipment and Heidi joined for a short while, giving us tips on how to place and pin the targets to the straw bosses. We started shooting fairly soon into the start of the session after a few refresher tips from Diccon, our course leader. It was fair to say that I didn’t start off well. In fact 2 out of the 3 arrows shot in the first two ends seemed to enjoy missing the boss completely. However it didn’t take long before I started to get back into the swing of things. I started to get used to tuning the sight more this time round, and from the third end, around 70% of my arrows were central on the target! Horizontally rather than vertically, but this was still good progress as far as I was concerned.

I think the most important thing I learned during this session was how to hold the bow, or rather, being reminded how to hold the bow by using my palm rather than trying to balance the bow in-between my thumb and forefinger, putting pressure on the area. I felt much more in control of the bow and my shaking reduced a fair amount too.

There was a lot of shooting practice this time, giving us the chance to work on our technique more and to get used to repeating certain manoeuvres over and over so we were more used to them. Diccon was on hand giving everyone advice and help, pointing out when a shoulder was too high or giving us new things to think about when shooting, such as where in our upper body the power would come from for a shot.

After an hour and a half, it was competition time. Each person would shoot two ends, three arrows in each, and the score would be recorded with a best out of sixty. I remember how during my Have-a-Go session I instantly became awful as soon as I felt any pressure, but I did better this time round. In the first end I scored 8-7-7 totalling 22, and then in the second I scored 9 and 6 scoring 15. The other arrow decided it was a pacifist and wanted no part in the competition. With a total of 37 I was third out of the group which I was very happy with, considering how badly I began the session!

I’m already looking forward to next week. It is quite relaxing and also a little stressful but with more shooting time and practice I think this could be something I really enjoy.

Until next time!

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Mark : From Novice to Competitor.

Alternate title - I am a contender!

Hello! I'm Mark and I've been shooting at 2020 Archery for the last two years. I first used a Recurve bow at a Have A Go stag event and enjoyed it so much that I went on to take a weekend course, joining the club shortly afterwards. After a few months of shooting I started to consider buying my own bow and set myself the goal of scoring 500 on a Portsmouth using a club bow, at which point I would shell out on the new kit. 

Exactly one year after my training weekend I was the proud owner of a Hoyt bow with XX75 arrows, which I bought from Asher at 2020 after testing out a few different bow setups. With the benefit of hindsight, I wish I’d bought my first bow sooner; the fastest way to improve in the beginning is to use the same kit week in, week out, and the only real way to have that sort of control is to own your bow and get to know it intimately.

I decided early in my second year of shooting that I wanted to shoot competitively. A few weeks ago I shot at my first tournament and caught the bug; a week later I was shooting at my second tournament and the third, fourth and fifth have been booked. 

The process of preparing for and then shooting at a tournament certainly bring your practice into focus.  This is the area my blog posts will focus on. I put off entering competitive shoots for some time because I had so many questions about how it all worked, what it was going to be like and how good the other competitors were going to be. I’d like to share my experiences with you, because it’s not as scary as it might seem and it’s loads of fun. Honest!

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Pranava : What made me string a bow… (started shooting post-Olympics 2012)

I always liked stories of beginnings. I am still writing mine in many ways but here is the very beginning.

Before I walked into 2020 archery for a weekend beginners’ course, I had never seen a bow.

I am not much of a sportsperson, actually not at all. I played as a child of course, but stupid games invented in the spur of a moment and I wasn’t very good at that either. If I see something hurling at me, my instinct is to flee, even if it is as tiny as a ping pong ball. Now, I would have thought that is natural but apparently not. So I grew up disliking sports, watching or playing or in whichever way.

Last year during the Olympics, everyone was excited and struggled to lay their hands on tickets to any sport they could think of as long as it was part of the Olympics. I went too, but there's no story there. A few friends of mine went to watch archery hoping to catch my country win a medal. My country didn’t win a medal but the sport won a fan. One of my friends suddenly became very interested in archery. He took up a weekend course and then began shooting, once every week, then twice every week, and then practically any day he could take time off. Every time I met him the conversation would invariably turn to this mysterious sport I never even thought about. A month later, I signed up for a weekend course. The very same day he bought a bow, but just two days before he left London for good. Sadly, I never saw the bow. I had to wait for a few more weeks before I saw one at the course. But since the day I did, I couldn’t miss a weekend of shooting without making up for it with an extra session somehow.

The moral of the story is that archery is not just any sport. Even if you are bad at every other sport you might just be good at this one, as I would like to think I am. So I hope it makes you think about stringing a bow for the first time. Or if you already did, what’s your story?

And - oh - now I can actually watch others sports too! I guess that’s a step forward.

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Josie : Cupid’s Bow (A Valentine's Day special!)

Given the date, I thought I'd explore something relevant to the moment. Let's have a quick look at one of the world's most famous archers: Cupid.

There are many legends surrounding this purveyor of love, with his magic arrows and unnerving aim. Like most legends, Cupid very likely has roots in ancient history, though perhaps not so recognisable from what we see today. The name comes from the Latin "cupere" which means desire. Cupid is mirrored in Greek mythology as Eros (from where the word “arrow” is derived) and is the son of Venus in Roman mythology (Aphrodite in Greek mythology). Exploring why Cupid is an archer brings up some interesting ideas. Cupid has been said to carry arrows of both gold and lead or iron: gold to inspire love and lead/iron to cause distaste (unlove, if you like).

Cupid's factual roots emerge from his parallel with Nimrod, believed to be one and the same being (from "Nimus" which means "son"). King Nimrod (possibly king of the Assyrians) appears in the Christian faith as the great-grandson of Noah (see Genesis 9) and the world's first great conqueror. If you've been paying attention you'll remember that the Assyrians were the first to shoot recurve bows.

Nimrod was a mighty hunter, known for his strength and bowmanship. He built the Tower of Babel sometime between 3600 and 2400BC (according to archaeological record) in an attempt to bring about a great union of men, which was then destroyed and men scattered across the Earth. Archaeology proves the existence of the Tower, though Nimrod's role in its creation is as yet not defined.

There is also a dark side to Nimrod; a hunter of the souls of men who strove to lead them to idolatry and the worship of pagan gods. Nimrod appears in Dante's Inferno as an ice giant (sent there for his part in building the Tower of Babel). Nimrod the giant also features in Hungarian folklore.

The comparatively recent image of Cupid as a chubby infant replaces the older depiction of Cupid as a beautiful male youth which comes from Greek mythology. What about the bow? Practically, a short bow seems more likely and follows through most artistic representations: something along the lines of a Scythian recurve bow. I'm not the right person to talk about traditional bows but there are several people here who may be able to oblige!

So there it is: an extremely brief window into the history of Cupid to tide you over the weekend!

IMAGE: Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss, 1786-93, Antonio Canova (Musée du Louvre)

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Louise : Attending Beginners Course session one!

I arrived at the hall and was greeted by Roger who along with Diccon would be instructing the class.

http://www.2020archery.co.uk/lessons-courses-2/Monday-Evening-Beginners-Course

There were 16 students in total with 8 in one group led by Roger, and 8 (including myself) with Diccon. The Sports Hall is a great venue, giving enough space to two sets of teaching as well as the shooting practice in the centre. I found myself on the right side of the court with the rest of my group. Everyone had different reasons for being there, some influenced by the Olympics and Paralympics, some who had always fancied having a go. 

The group was measured up for our bow and arrows. It turned out that I, along with another two members of the group, were right handed but with a left dominant eye. For the session we were to shoot with right handed bows but we may try out left handed bows next week to see if they felt better.

Our first session focused on shooting safety, such as when it is safe to shoot and when it safe to collect our arrows based on the number of whistle blows, how to collect your arrows from the boards, where to stand when other archers are shooting, and other general tips. We were also instructed on how to stand when shooting, paying attention to our 'T' shape, keeping our shoulders down but arms straight. I have to admit I have a bit of trouble keeping my shoulder down but hopefully my homework of ‘posing in the mirror’ will help me get used to the stance ready for next week’s lesson on the 18^th February.

The most important lesson which Diccon kept drumming into us was our reference point. The reference point along with the use of the sight on the recurve bows that we were using instructs the arrow where to hit the board, making sure the string when pulled back touches the end of our nose and the corner of our chin, keeping our fingers just under the jaw. It took a couple of rounds but soon I started to understand what he meant and how it would help with my shooting and aiming. Aside from a few random arrows that would shoot off in completely the wrong direction, many of my arrows all hit the same area of the board, so hopefully with a bit more work on my sight I should be able to move towards the centre of the board.

There were a number of other people too who were there for shooting time. I enjoyed the fact that there were a large number of 2020 Archery members who were there to practice, as you were able to watch other techniques and styles, and also see that even those who have completed the course need to practice and practice. As Diccon informed us, ‘Archery is the art of repetition’.

Bring on next week!

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Bryn : Can you click it? Yes you can - Part Three

In my last post I took us on a short tour of the different clicker types and their associated pros and cons. This time I'll be talking about how my relationship with clickers has developed and how the clicker figures in my shot cycle.

War and peace

Clicker positioning is the make or break aspect of clicker usage. A poorly placed clicker can completely destroy your form. Too far back and your form will collapse with the strain of trying to get through. Too far forward and it won't be accurate enough to regulate your draw length as you'll be able to draw beyond it to varying degrees.

When I added my first clicker I had read that ideally the clicker needs to be perpendicular to the arrow rather than at an angle. And that probably does help consistency of clicker performance to some degree. However with my spear length arrows this wasn't possible so when I first set up my clicker my aim was to try to increase my draw length to bring the clicker position to a more perpendicular arrangement. I also told myself that this was good for my form as it would force me to use my back muscles more and build up the strength there. I was totally wrong. What actually happened is that my form would collapse whilst trying to get through the clicker, my upper body would twist, my bow arm shoulder would rise up, my nose would start obscuring the sight as I found myself leaning back and twisting. After a few sessions of this I realised the error and wound that clicker out a lot further until now it would sit half on - half off my extension plate about a full inch further forwards than it had been.

The key thing in my experience has been that we shouldn't be fighting the clicker. It should be a pleasantly confirming experience when we click. What I was doing was stacking the bow heavily with my 31+ inch draw and causing my sight to move wildly around the target as a result of all the uncontrolled tensions going on in my form. Again it comes back to my belief that a clicker is to confirm you're ready for an action not to dictate the action.

Relaxing through the clicker

When I finally had the position set correctly I found that it helped me focus on better transfer of power to the back muscles. However, sometimes I still found myself straining those muscles to get through the clicker and the more I would strain the less likely I was to get it to click. I think this is because I was tensing up everything in my form thinking this was how I would expand through the clicker but as we tense muscles we can actually contract our structure it seems, taking us further from the goal.

So recently, and in combination with a breathing cycle, I have learnt that I need to relax through the clicker. It may sound counter-intuitive at first as surely relaxing isn't going to provide the strength need to get through the clicker but I'm finding it's resulting in steadier shots.

Here's my breathing/shot cycle to illustrate:

1. Stand straight but relaxed, knees unlocked, shoulders dropped, back straight but not concave. Take a deep in-out breath.

2. Nock and fit the arrow through the clicker. 

3. Set my grip and hook. Applying an inch or so draw to apply enough tension to secure both.

4. Bring the bow up and breath in fully.

5. Draw back to full draw but pre-clicker and let out 50-70% of the breath slowly at the same time.

6. Get sighted whilst concentrating on making sure it's the back muscles alone that are working.

7. Keep the tension, relax and let the last breath out to execute through the clicker.

So the takeaway is that if you're fighting the clicker then you're fighting yourself. I hope this post has some points that people can relate to and that it helps in some way.

---

In another post I hope to write about my experiences with alternating between barebow and recurve to improve shot cycle, form and accuracy for recurve. But for now, make love not war with your clicker.

Happy clicking!

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Josie: buying a bow

Buying a bow can seem like a daunting venture, but it really needn't be if you follow a few simple rules.

[Please do look at comments for this post as this is a big topic with a lot of different opinions. This is Josie's opinion and I've put (some of) my opinion in the comments - Heidi]

1. Know Your Budget

Obvious, perhaps, but the first key point and probably the most important. There's little point lusting after the W&W Inno CXT if it's way out of your price range. Don't sell yourself short either: out of the whole setup, your limbs and riser are the thing to spend the most money on and really get right. Peripherals can be upgraded much more easily at a later date. The start-up gear will not be cheap. If you can, save up for a little while beforehand to give yourself a more generous budget. It will make a big difference in the long run.

2. Make a Kit List

Josie's bow! 

The first purchase will be complicated and it’s easy to forget little things that may not seem important. For instance, if you’re buying a bow then you will need a stringer, an arm guard, a finger tab and bow stand. None of these require massive investment, the most basic models will do (though the finger tab perhaps not so – ask for advice on tabs and try some at the club. They need to feel right!). Make savings where you can. You don't "need" to buy an expensive sight, clicker and long rod immediately. You can also get away without a quiver for a while; there are floor quivers at the club you can use. A bow square is a very useful thing to have (again, doesn’t have to be an expensive one). If you buy your bow at a shop they will probably fit the nock points for you. If they don’t, you’ll need one of these! Remember you’ll need nock points as well. Check that your riser comes with the necessary allen keys or you may need to invest in a set – hardware shops are often cheapest but check they include the right sizes for your bow.

3. Try Before You Buy.

This is vital. Every bow acts differently with different archers and it's crucial to buy a bow that matches you. A well-matched bow is a seamless extension of the archer. As your first bow, anything other than a wooden bow will probably feel weird, but some will feel better than others. The right bow should feel comfortable in your hand and quite strong: if it’s too easy to draw you will grow out of it very quickly, too heavy and you won’t be able to shoot with it. Try some of the bows on the shooting line first of all (ask beforehand of course!), then it’s a good idea to visit an archery supplier. There are several archery suppliers around the UK, though none in central London. Familiarise yourself with what stock they carry and have an idea what you would like to try. Before you visit, give them a call to check they have what you want to try in stock! If they are low on stock they will likely hold something back for you. Check when would be a good time to visit - if you turn up unannounced at a busy time they may not have enough staff free to give you the time and attention you need. Put half a day aside for this: it will be time well spent - this is the first step along the archery trail so it should be sound. A good bow will make a massive difference not only to your shooting but also your confidence. It could be the difference between deciding it isn't really for you or becoming an archery lifer. I'd advise against buying second-hand from eBay unless you're absolutely sure what you're getting. If something is disturbingly cheap there's usually a reason for it!

4. Get The Right Arrows

Get properly measured for arrows and match them to your bow poundage and draw length. If you buy your bow at a shop they'll probably go through this anyway. Non-matched arrows will not fly properly and will knock your confidence. Get good arrows but be aware you will probably need to upgrade them when you increase poundage which could be as little as 6 months down the line. It isn’t worth spending £300+ on X10 ProTours unless you really have a limitless budget! The 2020 coaches will offer advice if you’re not sure what would be best.

5. Don’t Forget The Case!

If you shoot barebow and don’t want to carry much around you can probably get away with a lightweight carry case. It’s a good place to start if your kit list is small and it won’t set you back much. If your budget is more generous and you plan to get lots of bits for your bow, have a look at what else is available. Good-quality archery backpacks are expensive so have a look on eBay in case there’s a bargain to be found. Sometimes it can be possible to use a non-archery bag, but bear in mind that these are not tailor-made for a bow so will not provide all the support (and pockets) you need. Your case offers storage, protection and portability: a full archery starter kit will cost a fair bit so show it the respect it deserves and keep it safe.

Well, I think that about covers it for now. Happy bow hunting!

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