Shooting at outdoor target tournaments

Next to hunting, shooting my bow outdoors is my favorite archery activity. There is something very satisfying about shooting arrows over a long distance into a multi-colored target. For folks like me, the MSAA offers a complete outdoor target tournament calendar featuring the State Target (900 Round), State Field, and State FITA tournaments. Of course there is a knack to shooting these shoots, and much that we all can do to prepare.

Here is what I have learned over the several years that I have shot these events:

Get your bow set up early. Shooting outdoors brings its own challenges, there is the weather, and there is the weather. It might be raining, windy, or sweltering. You have got to be ready. Typically a bow set up for outdoors shooting will have more poundage set than less and will be shooting slender arrows with very small vanes.

Put as much poundage on as you are comfortable with, doing this will flatten the trajectory of the arrow. A flat trajectory means that a small mistake might not take you out of the gold (center of the target). Moving the poundage up also might mean the difference in arrow clearance under the scope or pin. If your poundage is too low you might not have enough clearance as you bring the sight down for the longest shots – this is especially a concern for FITA shooting where the longest shot is 90 meters (~98.5 yards).

Get a good set of slender carbon arrows. I use ACC 3-28’s, although there are many others nowadays to choose from. On those arrows put the smallest vane possible, I use 1.5 inch, but you can go even smaller. With a good slender arrow and a small vane the wind will have a smaller effect on arrow flight. Make sure that the vanes are secure to the shafts.

Make sure that all of your nocks are in perfect condition, and if any are dinged replace them. You might think that this is a finer point, but I can attest to the fact that a dinged nock will cause inaccuracies – especially at the longer distances. Make sure your arrow points are secure. I was shooting the best FITA of my life and mysteriously sent the first arrow of the last end at 70 meters over the top of the butt. Turns out I forgot to look at my arrow points after the end before and one point was missing. I not only dropped the points for the missed arrow but dropped several more while mentally trying to recover from the mysterious and unexpected miss.

Bring extra arrows. A couple of year’s back I was placed on a butt with a couple of other very good shots. We spent the afternoon dinging each other’s arrows and at the end of the day I had 3 dead ACC’s on the ground and several nocks shot off.

As always, make sure your string and harness are in good condition, and if you have got a D-loop make sure it is tuned with the string and peep, so that the peep comes around without repeated adjustment (if you are not using a device to position it with). Shooting outdoors is an iron man competition. Not only must you maintain your focus but also you must do so for 4 or 5 hours. If you have to fiddle with your bow before every shot the mental impact after 60 or 70 arrows will start to show. Get the peep set so it turns out right on; get that D-loop set so that you don’t have to fiddle with it a bunch.

As always, make sure that everything is tight. In the rain, wind, and heat things will change, make sure that you have got a good start by getting everything snug.

Shoot a lot. Shoot to get the kinks of your setup worked out. It usually takes me several days to get things just right. Shoot to build strength and endurance. At a 900 Round 102 arrows get shot, take into consideration a few letdowns and you have got a long day of tense muscles. Build your strength, so that in the end you can take complete advantage of the closer distances because your stamina will get you there. Shoot in all kinds of weather – especially in the wind. Personally, the wind un-nerves me, does it you? It is tough to hold on and on a windy day back tension becomes more of a curse than a savior. Practice in the wind.

Number your arrows and shoot all of them in practice. Number them in such a way that you will not necessarily catch a glimpse of the number while loading or shooting each one. I number mine on the opposite side of the cock feather, away from my face. Not knowing the number of an arrow before you shoot it will help you more subjectively evaluate the arrow. Find those arrows that are not grouping and repair them or give them to your kids. A lot of times if an arrow is straight it is the nock that is either damaged or simply will not tune, or it is the vanes with a re-fletch as the answer. Sometimes you can tune the arrow by turning the nock some fraction of a turn. At any rate, do the work required to get your arrows to group.

Shoot at every distance that you are going to be competing at. Don’t think that since you are having the most trouble at 60 yards that you can just set your focus there and then expect the other distances to be ready on tournament day. Practice each distance just about the same and then the attitude that you will encounter at each on tournament day will not be a complete surprise.

Remember to approach your practice with a goal in mind. Work on form and not aiming, or the other way around. Maybe shoot a round and keep score, or maybe just work on conditioning and execution. Shoot in relation to the tournament date as it approaches. If the tournament is still some distance off maybe you should be working on the elements and not so much on aiming. If the tournament is coming around shoot for score and work on your aiming. Work on your shot sequence – what are the reminders that you are using to get your form set up before you start aiming? For me it is draw with back tension, low shoulder, and relaxed arms and shoulders – then it is aim, aim, aim. Work on little reminders that will help you out of a slump, or a bad shot. Talk to yourself in practice and bank away those ideas that will help boost your confidence.

Work on the tournament tension that you expect to encounter and learn to use it to your advantage. As you are getting close to the day end your sessions on a high note, and don’t end them in frustration. Most athletes rest the day, or even a couple of days, before competition. This rest helps them become more eager and ready for the tournament day.

As with any tournament come prepared. Bring your tools, binoculars to see your longer shots, sun protection, a chair, and anything else you might think that you will need. One shooter that I know of would bring wipes to keep his hands clean. Avoid anything oily or greasy, and remember if you are planning on it for tournament day you had better have integrated it into your practice routine or at least have thought very carefully about what it is you are bringing or using.

Drink lots of water and take time for a snack. Stay with mild foods. Think about your bathroom routine. There is nothing worse than the distraction caused by having to deal with nature in the middle of a Round. If there is anything that you can do to mitigate the effects of nature do so, and plan ahead, but remember, you have to stay hydrated. The effects of running dry are well documented and you will pay the price if you do not take a preventative approach to not drying out.

On tournament day make sure that you listen while the rules are explained and question an official with any concerns before you start. Get your head on and stay loose before beginning to shoot. Once you start shooting try to developed a rhythm and stay with it. I am not suggesting that you force it, but get settled into a rate of shooting that is regular from arrow to arrow. It has been well documented that shooting with a rhythm results in higher scores.

Also, take a look at the article posted here on shooting the State Indoor. It has got some good advice on what your attitude should be while shooting and how to handle distractions.

Good luck and I will see you outdoors!