At the weekend I shot a WA720 League Match, the first 50 metres round I’ve shot in a long time. My goals were to get onto the Whitburn Archers A team for the month and beat my PB of 552.
With a score of 537 I made it onto the A team but was a little off my PB.
Still quite happy with how I am shooting and how I’ve progressed since PB. When I shot 552 I was really settled in with the equipment and setup that I had, essentially shooting the very best I could. At the weekend I was still messing around with things during the round and have lots of wiggle room to improve the score just by being more consistent.
The way I saw the round play out:
– First 3 or 4 ends my sight picture/hold was all over the place. I put this down to nerves and persevered, concentrating on my mental shot routine.
– I then realised that it was due to me forgetting to apply the pull power at the back – pre load some tension as I settle into anchor.
– Once I started pulling correctly things really stabilised and my groupings tightened up nicely, relatively speaking.
– As I’d messed with sight marks during first 3 or 4 ends my groupings were unfortunately in the blues, 5, 6 points area. Gradually into reds, 7, 8 for an end. And then finally over the middle again.
– Last 2 ends I started to run out of steam on the last 2 arrows of each – so I have a good benchmark of where I am in terms of fitness and stamina – hopefully settling down with consistency gives some immediate gains in that area.
So overall I’m really pleased with what I have got to work with and can’t wait to get out and practice it all later today.
My focus is on the push / pull power that I apply, make sure I pull enough, and keep it all moving in positive direction throughout the shot.
