Red Kite & March Hare - good results but fed up of this weather!!

Red Kite Archers in Carmarthenshire put on a Hunter round on the 7^th April so Chris and I drove up there to give their new course a shot and test the new arrows in the field. We arrived nice and early, got set up and took to the course.

Ready to rock and roll!

It was a very cold day, but the biggest hurdle was the wind – it was awful! One half of the course was down in a valley and fairly sheltered, with some high scoring targets but the other half with the longest distances was along a hillside with open fields on either side, with a fierce wind blowing across every target that didn’t let up at all. On many targets it was impossible to keep your peep and scope lined up, never mind keeping the sight on the target! 

I don't think he's going to make it!

A couple of low scoring targets because of the high wind dashed any hopes of a high score, and I finished in 3^rd place with 513.  This is still a good A class score so I was happy with the result, you can’t control the weather and everyone’s scores were lower because of the conditions.

On a good note though, the new arrows performed very well! On the targets where we were sheltered, they flew great and grouped exactly where I put them, cleaning several targets and the extra speed has reduced the amount I need to cut for angles. Worth the money!

Field round at March Hare

A week later, we went up to March Hare Archers in Throckmorton, Worcester to shoot their course. It was a classification shoot so no awards, but their course is pretty much flat so it’s usually a high scorer and worth the drive!

We got signed in, split into groups and went out onto the course, starting on target 3 close to the clubhouse. The course was easy going but again the weather interfered with shooting. It was raining on and off all day, nothing too heavy but it meant extra layers which get in the way a bit and the wind was blustery. Not as bad as Red Kite the week before but enough to make certain shots tricky.

I put in a decent performance, clearing several targets including an XX55 on the 80 yard walk-up which made my day! But in the end I finished on 525, 5 points short of that elusive 530 for the GrandBowMaster award.

I was still really pleased with the score which is only 3 points short of my personal best, shot at the same course as it happens but in glorious weather last summer at the EFAA Nationals. I’m confident that I will break 530 this season and get my GBM title, I just need a day with the weather on my side, which is hard to come by in this country!!

I’m going to give up on chasing the score for now to take the pressure off, and just shoot for fun and see what happens. On several targets I could feel myself getting nervous and tense, fighting to keep the bow steady. When I’m shooting at the club in practice there is none of this – i’m relaxed, the bow floats and the shot is smooth and on target. I need to shoot tournaments with that same mentality and just let the shot happen with confidence. Easier said than done, but I’m going to work on adopting that relaxed approach in the future and see what happens.

The next shoot is a Marked Animal round at Fonmon, stage 1 of the Welsh Field Masters Tour. There is no classification for the Animal round so i’m going to have fun with it and enjoy the day! I’m off on holiday the day after, and then there are no more rounds for a few weeks so I will use the time to relax, get some quality training done and give everything a once over to make sure it's all in perfect tune ready for the rest of the season.

 

New arrows, ready to rock and roll!

Hi everybody!

I’ve been doing some tuning lately to make sure everything on Maya is squared up and ready to go for the Field Archery season which begins in earnest this month.

Everything is going well, but I’ve been thinking that my FMJ arrows may be slowing me down – literally! While they are a fantastic arrow and I like them because they’re skinny and heavy (good in the wind for the reason), it is that weight that is causing me concern.

They come in at 420 grains which for a Target/Field arrow is very heavy. I’ve been looking at different options and see a lot about the Easton Carbon One arrow. They don’t break the bank, they’re tough and lighter due to all carbon shafts. I’ve read many reviews that rate them alongside ACE’s and other top end arrows, and after chatting with Kevin at Wales Archery I decided what the hell and picked up a dozen.

Dressed up in my usual colours!

I built the set, ending up with a final weight of 370 grains with a 0.5 grain spread across the set. That’s about the same spread as my FMJ but 50 grains lighter all-up. They were built in my usual colours and config and I put a slight offset on the fletches to give them a little bit more spin than I usually do.

I don’t have access to a Chrono to check the arrow speed at the moment, so I ran the numbers through Archers Advantage which estimated 270fps – nearly 20fps faster than my FMJ which has given much tighter sightmarks – good for unmarked rounds!

The first test of them was at 35m.I shot 6 of my FMJ to get a comparison and then send 6 C1’s downrange. You can really tell they are lighter! The bow feels more aggressive, and they shot a tighter group than my FMJ but higher up the target as expected due to the extra speed.

I printed off sightmarks and after aligning the pin I went around our mini course at the club and tested them from 15 to 70 yards and the marks are good, grouping very tight in the gold at every distance. This was shot at 50 yards...

A little high, but all in!

 

From what I have seen I am confident that they will group better in the target and hopefully scrape me those few extra points I’m looking for. There is a shoot at Red Kite tomorrow, an IFAA Hunter round on their new course so it will be a good opportunity to debut them and see what they are capable of in the field. Watch this space!