Once you think you have form down fairly well, I think getting into competitive indoor 5-spot and outdoor field spot shooting can help immensely.

There are no excuses- the yardage is known, and the target center bull is in plain view. Shooting 60 arrows at an indoor 5 spot while keeping score will definitely let you know if you're improving. Just keep a running log of your scores to see the trend. If you change something (draw length tweak, peep height adjustment, different release, etc) mark it down in the log so you can see if that change helped or hurt.

There is no wind to blow your arrow off-target, and the lighting stays the same and is consistent through the entire round. The only variable in the equation is YOU and your form. The bow stays the same and the arrows are the same.

3D shooting doesn't give you these controlled circumstances. Lighting can be different every shot. The wind can be blowing. You may not know ring placement on the target. Uphill, downhill, sidehill. You're estimating yardage, "did I estimate short but hit high, or estimate long and hit low for that perfect arrow placement"? Don't get me wrong- I think 3D can be a great shooting experience. But for really getting technical on form and execution I think having as many controlled variables as possible is the key.

Just my opinion.

Edited by - Black Frog on 02/15/2002 12:01:39