Red Kite Archers in Carmarthenshire put on a Hunter round on
the 7th 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.
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| 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!
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| 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 3rd 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.
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