Your Best Practice?

I would like to hear from everyone on this. In your best practice sessions, please give a step by step of each shot. ie., 1. Pick a spot 2. Draw to anchor 3. concentrate on spot 4. Pull thru shot while burning a hole in spot.

Is this close to how you guys do it?

I am practicing a lot on form, and would like your input.

Thanks, Bobby

 

Bobby.

Thats exactly the way I do it.

 

It sure does seem like a lot to do when I write it down but its a pretty smooth transition from 1 - 12.

1. Look at my target
2. Pick a spot
3. Concentrate
4. Raise bow
5. slight tension on the string
6. concentrate on my spot
7. Draw
8. Hit my anchor
9. split second pause
10. pull thru my release
11. hold form while burning a hole
12, watch arrow impact target, wait a second before I break form.


I strongly suggest on holding your form after you watch your arrow impact, it helped me tremendously

 

Thanks for the input guys.

I left out one thing that BHF mentioned. I do follow thru holding form and watching arrow impact. That is probably one of the most important things that has helped me in shooting both compound and recurve.

Anyone else have anything to add, please feel free.

Thanks, Bobby

 

Pretty well said by everyone Bobby! The biggest problem In everything that's been said Is doing It and not just saying It. For many years I've been shooting traditional bows and I know what I'm suppose to do when shooting my recurve but It doesn't always happen the correct way. Get It down early being your new to these traditional bows and It will seem the norm after a while. One thing more I'll add, fix your early bad habits before they become nasty every day habits. I waited to long to fix one bad habit of mine, I have a feeling It's always going to haunt me every now and then.

 

Ok so I learned something new here I think. I have been drawing to my anchor and then holding for a bit, I guess I sit there and think about relaxing the back of my hand for a few seconds before I release, do most of you guys loose the string very shortly afte drawing to your anchor.

 

Cool, thats gonna be part of my little routine now. Thanks Jeff.

 

Usually when I hit my anchor point I hardly hold It at all and the arrow Is on It's way. Would I like to hold It a tad longer, sure. I'm working on that more as we speak. Whatever works for you though, that's what matters. Just don't get Into that short draw habit, not a good habit to have!

 

When you say short draw, you literally mean not drawing all the way to your anchor?

 

Yep

 

I pick the target/spot, eyes never leave it, raise my bow arm and lean into my bowarm towards my spot/target. Draw then anchor, 1 second pause burning a hole into the spot, I use a dead release, my hand never leaves my face as the string drags through my fingers. bow slightly tips forward in my bowhand after arrow is on its way my grip is very relaxed/no torque slightly opened fingers, I see the arrow hit the target before I move bow arm and release hand from face.

 

Jeff I thought LA was asking about our process and form? maybe I misunderstood his post?

and no, I dont literally "THINK" about all of what I stated above, it all comes naturally now, I just was giving a break down of what my form progression would look like. In the beginning of my trad shooting I had to create my own form. (the beauty of traditional shooting, there is no one absolute form there are variations) Today, I really dont think of anything when I shoot, just pick my spot and do my thing.

 

Right on Troy!! Well said.

 

Yep, I actually had to think about what I do so I could type it out! I wrote down a bunch of stuff but it just happens! Only thing I really think about is my spot where my arrow is going to hit!

 

Troy is right, Jeff is right. As Troy said, we all find our own stance? form? when starting out I think. There are some things that are just proper form. I know when I first started shooting this bow, I automatically leaned into the shot. Now, I have learned if I lean into the shot, and hit the anchor point correctly "every" time, my arrows slap the crap out of the target. I believe if you try to perfect the form "T" in trad shooting, you may wind up short drawing and not getting the efficiency, nor the accuracy your bow, and you, are capable of. ( dang, my English teacher would be proud of that sentence) Am I making sense here? If I try to stand up straight like I do shooting my compound, my shots go to poop.

Jeff, I think you have your own style of shooting, but it may turn into snap shooting if you are not careful. Never stop doing what you described about holding at full draw. jmho

I have learned more about back tension with this bow than I ever did with my compound.

Bobby

 

I pick a spot. Try to relax a bit and think about the spot... I raise the bow arm and come to anchor. I then let my back muscles take over while concentrating on the spot, the release is subconscience.

The goal of archery is to hit your spot. Develop your own routine to make sure that is happening.

 

Jeff no problem, I just wanted to clarify what I was trying to explain and trust me guys I wasnt trying to be "right" I just simply trying to explain whats working for me. When I first started shooting I had to get rid of my 25+ years of compound form and retrain myself to make my tradbow an extention of my body or maybe vice versus, my body needed to become an extension of my trad bow! LOL

I was so fugged up early on because I would revert to various components of my compound form. Then I got a huge wake up call when my buddy from Montana who is a hell of a trad shooter came and stayed with me for 4 days and basically broke me down and started me over from scratch. Brett (my montana bud) is a disciple of Howard Hill and he can really shoot. Yet he still let me find my comfort zone in stance, bowarm, lean, anchor and release, he demonstrated several options for me and through the week I found what felt best, then I just took those pieces of the puzzle and combined them and started working on doing the EXACT same thing every time I shot. I think that took me the entire rest of the summer and I shot my arse off almost every day..being off work as a teacher that helped! and I still wasnt very good but I was consistently getting better, then Ryan showed up during elk season and helped me refine things even more, especially my lean, that has really helped me. Anyway, I am finally JUST starting to shoot with a very consistent form and now I notice immediately if I do one component wrong! and I now I dont have "remind" or "think" about what I am doing its just starting to come together, Brett calls me all the time and quizzes me on my form, shooting etc, hes been a great asset and so has Ryan whom I call regularly if I have a question. Finally you guys are a great help, chit I just want to get good at this so I can confidently take my tradbow to the woods, I hope i get to the confidence someday that I dont feel the need to take my compound, the only way I see that happening is if I shoot shoot, shoot and shoot more...with good form.

 

I shoot my best when the following sequence happens without me knowing or thinking about it.
1. Aquire target
2. Raise bow to shooting position.
3. Draw slowly while maintaining focus on target
4. Anchor
5. Release
6. Slight pull thru directly back with release hand.

Very little time is spent at anchor. When it feels right, I release.

 

It all good Jeff. I was just amazed at what I wrote down after I read it!:d

 

This is what I am striving to get to.

This is what has to be ingrained in the back of my mind and happens as described above. (With a kill shot resulting) Which is what matters to me most. If I can do all of this and still not consistently hit the spot I aim for, I am wasting my time.

Bobby