Surrey Archery Weekend 2013

The weekend of July 13 & 14 saw Surrey Archery Weekend, a two-day event held at Kingston University sports ground in Tolworth, and only half a mile from where we live.  This was the first World Record Status event I had attented and certainly the largest.  Although there was  Double FITA Star over two days, there were a number of single-day rounds with English Archery Federation Championships on Saturday and the Surrey County Championships on Sunday.  Both Mrs EA and EA jnr entered the Surrey Champs but, sadly, I am not quite at the stage where I can shoot the Men's distance of 90m, so I volunteered as Field Crew.

It was an early (7:30) start on Sunday morning, however the journey took less than 5 minutes by bicycle.  All of the fifty bosses were already in place from there previous day, but new faces had to be fixed in the correct position. The other vital job was to fill containers with water and place them along the shooting line.  The forecast temperature was 29°C so they could be used by the competitors to wet towels or hats to keep them cool. By 9am the temperature had already reached 22°C.

Competitors were arriving at the same time as the field crew, but the bulk of them started arriving about 30 minutes later.  I took a few minutes out to unload our car and help EA jnr set up his kit and have it checked by the judges.  They noticed that not all of his arrows were labelled, so we did a quick job with stickers from the toolbox and had them rechecked - OK this time.

As this event was being run under FITA rules, there was a timed practice session and all shooting was electronically timed, with buzzers indicating the start and finish of each end.  The other difference to the club sessions I am used to is that each shot must be marked on the face so that the judges can decide if a bouncer is genuine or not.

Mrs EA was shooting a Ladies FITA (70,60,50,30) while EA jnr was shooting a Metric III (50,40,30,20).  The first two distances were shot on 122cm faces and the final two distances on small 6-ring faces, which only have scoring rings from 6-10.  

Field crew duty during the shoot was confined mainly to locating arrows that had missed the boss and moving the bosses between distances.  The Kingston University ground staff had done a brilliant job of marking-out the field, making moving bosses much easier than it could have been.  At the lunchtime break, all of the bosses needed refacing, with small 6-ring faces being used on most bosses: four per boss for compounds and two per boss for recurve.  The water containers were refreshed, too.  

Scores were collected from the scoresheets on the line and entered into iPads by volunteers from the Metropolitan Police Cadets.  This meant that the running scores for the first two distances could be posted shortly afterwards. EA jnr was pleased to find that after 50m and 40m he was in second place, with another junior from our club close behind.  Lunch for the competitors was a picnic in the shade and my daughter joined us to eat and to watch the afternoon session.

After lunch the temperature soared to 32°C and lots of people took advantage of the water buckets to soak towels or hats. Thankfully there were much fewer misses at the shorter distances so the field crew got a bit of a break.  However after the final distance we had to swing into action to remove the faces, take down the bosses and frames and take them to the waiting transport.  Finally we took down the safety fencing.  During this time the juniors decided to have a fun water fight - perfect for a hot afternoon. 

Field crew duties over, I helped pack away kit into the car before joining the rest of the Nonsuch Bowmen team for the results and presentations.  We also managed to get a team photo in our new club shirts. EA jnr's score qualified him for EAF green (700) and white (800) junior Cross awards and we were able to claim them there and then. It was whilst waiting for the results that my daughter made it known that she had enjoyed the afternoon so much that she would like to do a beginners course. Will this make her EA jnr snr? 

The results and awards took quite some time, given the number of pounds and bow styles.  Although Mrs EA was not placed, she was pleased with her performance and valued th experience. EA jnr, on the other hand, was was surprised to placed in Silver medal position for the boys Metric III having being overtaken by his club-mate in the afternoon.  The boy who was leading throughout was in eligible for an award as he was from out of County.  Unfortunately the organisers only had a Gold medal ready so EA jnr will get his in the post in due course.

Other members of the club were also placed or claimed trophies, and even those who didn't shot well.

Next year I intend to enter as a competitor rather than crew. Although I still won't be able to shoot 90m, I will have had another birthday ando become eligible for the Masters rounds at 70m.  There are clearly some benefits to turning 50 other than Saga holidays or Sun Life funeral plans!

Postscript:

The club has an award for the best handicap-adjusted score by a member shooting in the Surrey Championships.  EA jnr was gobsmacked to be awarded this shield after shooting yesterday!

Adventures at 70m

A couple of weeks ago I decided to  increase the draw weight by winding in the limb bolts from the minimum setting that I had been using since March.  Since then I have not scored any rounds, but spent a few sessions on the practice range trying to improve my draw and release technique, and to get used to the increased poundage.  Music concerts, illness and family holidays also conspired to see me at the club less than I would have otherwise been.

Last night I decided to be adventurous and attempt 70m for the first time, shooting a FITA 70 round.  This was not an altogether rash decision, as I had already shot 60m with the lighter settings, so I was sure that I would be able to at least reach the target.  For the first couple of arrows I got Mrs EA to check where they were landing, and found that I needed to move my sight right in to the riser and on the very lowest vertical setting before I hit the target reliably.

When I say 'reliably', that is overstretching the truth a tad; the scoresheet appears to tell a different story:

Dozen 1 : 2 hits, score 7
Dozen 2 : 6 hits, score 28 [vast improvement]
Dozen 3 : 8 hits, score 30 [even better...]
Dozen 4 : 4 hits, score 19 [hmmmm....]
Dozen 5 : 7 hits, score 31 [bouncing back...]
Dozen 6 : 7 hits, score 28 [getting dark]

Total 143 (62 handicap)

So I scored with less than 50% of my arrows, and most of my misses were low.  In fact I didn't manage any degree of consistency throughout the round and cannot say that I had a 'group' of arrows at any time.  It is fairly clear that I am pushing the capabilities of my current equipment at this distance and I suspect that, at the speed they are travelling, my arrows are much more susceptible to the wind than some thinner, faster arrows. I conclude that the type of arrow and draw I am using and my current draw weight are not really suited to much over 50m, so I will be sticking to shorter distances for the foreseeable future.  It is tempting to rush out and buy some heavier limbs and 'better' arrows to make things a little easier, but then I remember that I have only been at this game for four months and can probably gain more by developing my technique at the shorter distances with my current equipment.  I suspect that this kit will see me to the end of this outdoor season and through the winter indoor season, when I hope to be able to do justice to any upgraded kit.

But it was worth trying!

A Week of Contrasts

It has been an interesting week!  Saturday was the Nonsuch Bowmen new members' day, where everyone shot at shorter distances so that the newer members have a chance to shoot with some of the older hands.  This year, the club decided to seek sponsorship for the event in aid of the charity SeeAbility, who provide residential care for the daughter of two of our club members.  The round for the day was a Short National, plus shorter distances.  I was very happy to shoot a score of 417, which qualified me for my Third Class badge. Following the shoot we had a barbecue, with yours truly on burger-flipping duty and new and old members getting to know each-other.  The latest count indicates that we have raised over £1000 for SeeAbility.

Tuesday started badly, but not as bad as it could have been.  Shortly after dropping my daughter off at school for a GCSE exam, I had a collision with another car with the result that my car was a write-off.  On the positive side nobody was injured, but I felt quite shaken.  I was in two minds whether to shoot on Tuesday evening, but Mrs EA persuaded me that it would take my mind off things.  The round was a Short Metric, which I find quite challenging, being 50m on an 80cm face, but I was glad I turned up as I was awarded my Third Class badge.  We made it a family affair with EA jnr being awarded his First Class badge, and Mrs EA her Six Gold End badge.  I struggled through the round, not enjoying it very much, but when when it came to looking at my total, I found that I had bettered my PB for the round by 40 points and shot below handicap.  Strange how your mind can trick you sometimes!

Wednesday was a bit of an adventure for me.  I had booked a day off work to shoot in the Take-a-Break competition, organised by Guildford Archery Club, and my first experience of shooting away from my home ground.  My round was a Windsor and, being a shorter distance, was not eligible for any of the day's main prizes, but I was there mainly for fun and not for glory.  There were another three gents shooting the same round.  The club was well represented and Mrs EA was shooting at an eligible distance. It was nice to shoot with archers from other clubs, and discover the minor differences in things like calling scores and club organisation.  At the end of the day I scored just below a third class score and just below handicap, which was fine considering the stiff wind and rain later in the day. The whole day was thoroughly enjoyable and it was an experience shooting with around sixty other archers of all abilities and I was to find out later that I had the best score for the gents Windsor, so can be doubly pleased.

Next weekend I plan to 'wind-in' the limbs on my bow to increase the poundage.  I have been shooting the bow with the limbs set to minimum poundage since I first put them on and now that I have achieved my Third Class badge, I feel it is time to make some minor changes.  My arrows were chosen   with a spine at the stiffer end of the range to allow me to move up in poundage, so I am hoping that going heavier will have a positive effect on their flight.  I would also like to start progressing toward longer distances, so gradually moving up in draw weight should help towards this goal.

Sunday is a non-shooting day for me, but I will be supporting from behind the line when Mrs EA and EA jnr take part in a friendly, local inter-club competition.  The event will be tinged with a little sadness, though, as one of the coaches at the host club lost his life in a car accident last week.  He was well known to many local archers and will be sadly missed.  

The Archery Two-Step

(..or one step forward, two steps back)

I admit it. I am a geek (just as well, really - that's how I have earned my living for the last twenty-odd years).  I like numbers.  I like the way that using numbers can tell a story, and target archery really does boil down to numbers in the end, doesn't it?  The really good thing about archery numbers is that they can be quite forgiving of the novice (that's me) but really very hurtful to the expert. I know that sounds a bit odd, but stay with me.....

Since I started shooting scored rounds, I have kept a record of my scores, which are available for all to see!  I have found this really useful in judging my progress; not against anyone else, but against myself.  Sometimes, at the end of a round, it feels as though I haven't really shot to my potential, and that I could have done so much better.  Then I look back at my previous score for the round and find that I have beaten my personal best by some margin. Isn't it strange how the human mind can be so misleading?

This is all a little bit introspective, and it is human nature to want to measure your abilities against others as well as yourself.  Comparing just the scores for a particular round is the obvious way of judging ability, but this clearly favours the more experienced or stronger archer over the novice or someone with the basic inability to pull a 40lb bow.  Whilst it is fine for competitions, it does not recognise progress, which is why handicaps are so great.

Why are they great?  Well, firstly, they level the scoring across the dozens of rounds available to target archers: scoring 371 for a Short Junior Warwick (2 doz arrows at each of 30yds & 20yds) is equivalent of scoring 642 for a Metric II (3 doz arrows at each of 60m, 50m, 40m & 30m).  Both give a handicap of 60, allowing the archer to try different rounds.  Secondly the handicaps can be used to adjust scores in tournaments and competitions, so that archers who shoot above their ability on the day are rewarded, whilst those who are having an off-day may go home with the proverbial wooden spoon (or the aluminium/carbon composite spoon for those who can't resist high-end kit).

In many clubs the records officer will maintain a list of handicaps for each of the scored rounds, and provide each archer with a 'running handicap'.  This figure is the average of the previous running handicap and the handicap for the latest round, if lower.  As the running handicap is rounded up, you need to better your running handicap by 2 or more to get it lower.  An initial running handicap is set as an average of the handicaps of an archer's first three scored rounds and running handicaps are reset at the end of the season to the average of the three best handicaps over that season.  In general, the running handicap for an improving archer will continue to go down, but someone who has lost form or ability may find their running handicap rise at the end of the season.

So what is this about one step forward and two steps back?  My records page has a graph showing the  handicap scored for each round and the running handicap at the time of the round (not after it), against the date of the round.  Here is a snapshot of the graph at the time of writing:

After the first half-dozen rounds, there is a pattern : better handicap; worse handicap; worse handicap. Or one step forward, two steps back.  This is remarkably consistent until the very latest rounds, where it does break down, but the zig-zag nature of the Round Handicap line just goes to show that progress is not linear, and you should expect the odd off-day - there will be a better one round the corner.

Over time the downward slope will flatten out and the two lines will converge, but the zig-zag nature of the round handicap line will still be there.  That's why handicaps are forgiving of the novice - a high-ish handicap will benefit you against someone with a handicap in the teens. Those with very low handicaps need only miss with one arrow and all is lost.  What's that you say? Really good archers never miss?  OK, so they rarely miss, but even good compound archers sometimes hit gold on the wrong boss.....

How many miles?

Last weekend was a Bank Holiday in the UK so I had an extra day off work!  With EA jnr off at scout camp and his sister busy revising for GCSEs, Mrs EA and I could have a guilt-free weekend of archery.  I managed to shoot on Saturday, Sunday and Monday but Mrs EA had a well deserved lie-in on Sunday.

This really was a weekend of firsts for me.  Saturday's scored round on the short range was an American which, confusingly, is a GNAS Imperial round: 5 ends of 6 arrows at each of 60yds, 50yds and 40yds on 122cm faces.  At 90 arrows this was to be the longest round I have yet attempted and weather was sunny and warm so it was nice to shoot in a t-shirt for a change.  Throughout the round I tried to put into practice the techniques that coach Andy had explained a couple of weeks earlier, so that I could use my clicker correctly and avoid clicker-angst.  There were a couple of dodgy ends at 60yds, but my scores were fairly consistent at the shorter distances.  With a final score of 497, this not only produced my best round handicap of 57 (5 below my running handicap) but was my first third-class score.  Very happy!

Sunday morning was a little cooler but still t-shirt weather.  The round was a Short Metric (6 ends of 6 arrows at each of 50m and 30m on 80cm faces), which I have shot three times before. Again, my emphasis was on technique and the first four ends at 50m were fairly consistent, but the final two were a relative disaster.  The 30m ends were mor consistent and I finished with a total of 298, which was a PB for this round and only just above my running handicap, but not a classification score this time.

Bank Holiday Monday was a bit of an adventure, being my first twelve-dozen round, with the first two distances in the morning and the other two after lunch.  I was the most inexperienced archer on the field and the furthest I had shot was 60yds, so I decided to attempt a Metric II round (3 dozen arrows at each of 60m and 50m on 122cm faces,and 3 dozen arrows at each of 40m and 30m on 80cm faces) .  The day started with a stiff breeze, which increased throughout the day, becoming strong and gusty by the end of the round.  It was quite a novelty to shooting the club's long range and I was pleased to score with most arrows fairly quickly, although there were a couple that went very much astray.  By the end of the morning, I was starting to get a little fatigued so the break for lunch was very welcome, although there was some moving of bosses and target faces to be done first. The afternoon session was timed to start at 2pm, so we had a leisurely 90 minute break, during which we went hunting for lost arrows.  The first round of the the afternoon session was shot with 6-arrow ends, but the move to 30m meant that we shot 3-arrow ends, which significantly extended the time taken (and the distance walked!).  My final score was 651, which is big on my running handicap.  I think I can be proud of that, considering the windy conditions and that I was just about fit to drop by the end of the round.

That got me thinking about how far I had walked shooting the three rounds over the weekend, so I did a few sums, remembering that you walk twice the distance of the end when collecting arrows. These are the numbers:

American

2x5x60yds=600yds

2x5x50yds=500yds

2x5x40yds=400yds

Total 1500yds

Short metric

2x6x50m=600m

2x6x30m=360m

Total 960m=1050yds

Metric II

2x6x60m=720m

2x6x50m=600m

2x6x40m=480m

2x12x30m=720m (3 arrow ends)

Total 2520m=2756yds

This gives a total over the three rounds of 5306yds, or a fraction over 3 miles; not a marathon but not  insignificant, either.

Over the weekend a couple of the senior members had noticed that I had become shaky at full draw and advised that moving my clicker forward slightly would probably reduce the shake.  I will give this a try next time out.

Clicker-angst

I think I may have invented a new term : Clicker-angst.  I first noticed clicker-angst a couple of weeks ago, when Mrs EA was shooting the end that resulted in six golds. She was having severe difficulty in drawing past the clicker to get other release point, and had to come down from the set position a few times.  At the next evening shoot another, fairly experienced, archer was having similar difficulties and he decided to stop using his clicker for the rest of the round.

Having set up my clicker the previous Tuesday evening, I was looking forward to trying it in a scored round on Saturday.  This was to be a Short Metric, a round I had shot a couple of times before.  The last few times shooting a scored round I have managed to reduce my handicap, so I was hopeful of a reasonable score.  On the downside, the warm, sunny weather of the previous weekend had been replaced with wind and heavy rain showers, so full waterproofs were in order.  While I was on the short range, Mrs EA was shooting at 70m on the long range, in training for the Surrey County championships, which she had entered a few days earlier.

Although my shooting was not totally bad, I found that I was having similar clicker-angst problems that I described above. I seemed to be letting my front shoulder ride-up, which prevented me drawing the arrow past the clicker.  This seemed to upset my concentration somewhat, and affected my overall performance.  However, my score of 223 was still a PB for the round, but the handicap equivalent was a few points above my best.

As Mrs EA was still busy on the long range, I approached coach Andy to ask his advice about my clicker setting and what may be wrong with my technique.  Not one to duck a challenge, Andy spent the next 30 minutes with me, carefully analysing my stance, shot set-up and drawing style, making some really useful recommendations.  The main problem was, as I expected, that my front shoulder was coming up and Andy tried a number of ways to improve this.  One issue that became clear was that I can not lock down my front arm without rotating my upper body towards the target, so Andy suggested that I pre-draw a short way, locking my front arm and shoulder before raising the bow fully, and then rotating my back shoulder to complete the draw.  The final few millimetres before release should be gained by putting a little extra pressure on the back shoulder.  Another aspect Andy picked up was my basic stance, which should be:

- right-angles to target

- feet shoulder-width apart

- weight slightly forward over balls of feet

- tummy in, bum in

On Sunday morning I spent a couple of hours on the practice range, in an attempt to consolidate the previous day's advice and to improve my consistency.  This was harder than it sounds, as minor differences in any part of the shot set-up resulted in the arrow not going past the clicker, or the clicker going off prematurely.  Clicker-angst! At one point I just walked away for 10 minutes rest, which had a positive effect - the next three arrows were the best I had shot all morning, and they just felt right! Before I started I set myself the goal of getting all six arrows in the gold or red (at 30m), but in the end I was pleased to put three arrows in that zone a couple of times.  I think I will be better prepared to use the clicker on my next round.

Competition and Clicker

After an eventful Saturday, we were back at the field again on Sunday morning for a club competition. This is a handicap competition various distances depending upon age and gender.  For gents it is was a choice of a New or Long National and for ladies a National.  Given that I have never shot further than 60yds, I decided that attempting 100/80yds would be rather foolish, so I joined the Mrs EA with the ladies at 60/50yds.  This meant that I was ineligible for any awards, but I was happy to take part nonetheless.  EA jnr was also on the line shooting a Junior National at 40/30yds.

For once the sun was out and it was very warm - T-shirt weather for a change.  Some members even gave their [hairy] legs an airing, which led to an interesting wager (in aid of charity) later in the day.  My shooting seemed to be a bit erratic, but my final score of 256 seemd to indicate that I had performed as well as could be expected, and better than my running handicap would predict.  However, there had to be a stewards enquiry on my scoresheet, as I had not checked the adding-up carefully enough and had signed for 100 less than I had shot.  As I was ineligible anyway, the committee showed some leniency.  If I had been eligible, I would have ranked sixth with my handicap-adjusted score, which I am really pleased with.  Even better, EA jnr came fourth overall.

The wager I mentioned earlier arose out of a discussion between Martin (shooting Compound) and the ladies.  Martin had managed to score a gold on the wrong target, and was giving himself a verbal kicking, when one of the ladies said that they would be proud to shoot a gold at 80yds, never mid six of them.  Now, the club has organised a shoot later in the year in aid of a charity very close to a couple of members, and Martin offered to have his legs waxed and donate £100 to the charity if any of the group of ladies shot a six-gold end at 70m/80m in a scored round with a recurve bow.  The challenge has been duly accepted!

Although the field was open for shooting on Monday, the EA family had a day off, but we were back there on Tuesday evening.  I wanted to set up my clicker and Mrs EA had a new set of limbs arrive that day, so she wanted help in setting them up and checking the alignment.  As I have been through this two or three times recently I was confident I would do it right but, in the event, the only adjustment needed was with the button to set the centre shot.

There were a couple of other archers on the practice range so I shot with them at 30yds, adjusting the clicker by small degrees and assessing where it went off in relation to my draw.  During this process it became very obvious that keeping the front (left for me) shoulder down has a significant effect on draw length - when it is down, draw length is longer. I eventually found a position that the clicker would 'go' when I was drawn properly with my shoulder down.  If I drew with my shoulder up, it was almost impossible to get the clicker to go, indicating that there is a problem.  In this situation I lowered the bow and started the draw again.

Near the end of the session, after the other archers had finished, Mrs EA suggested I move really close to the target and try releasing with my eyes closed, getting used to the point at which the clickers goes.  This was very odd to start with, but it soon became obvious that it not only gets you used to where in the draw the clicker will go, but also builds confidence.  The grouping of the arrows on the boss showed that the clicker was doing its job.  I look forward to shooting my next scored round to see if it makes a difference.

Over on the long range a couple of the 'wager ladies' were getting in some practice at 70m and doing very well, whilst another of the ladies broke the club record for the distance.  Mrs EA is looking forward to shooting on the long range tonight.  Game on, Martin!

Update Following some discussion on Facebook, another member lowered the bar a little and offered to donate £50 to the charity if any of the four ladies scored 50 or above in any end at 70m/80yds during a scored round.  I thought this was a good idea, so I offered to do the same, and so did Martin, in addition to his original challenge.