Once again the subject of people cheating at the National level shoots has come up here at home. These acquasations are being made among shooters that have attended National shoots and have claimed that they have seen people cheating using some device or system to learn the yardage on targets. If these claims are worth making among friends than they should be worth filing an official protest with the IBO. These clains are being made against a top name shooter and none of the individuals that are making these clains have questioned the individual as to what there reasons are for making movements or gestures that could help them determine the yardage to a target.
If there is any justification for claining that anyone is cheating in any way, the individual or person that is making the clain is bound by ethics and concience to report such to the person or persons responsible for investigating these clains..
The accused has the right to a fair hearing and to know who is making the claim and for what reason. The person's name that is being accused should not become public knowledge to be pre-judged by other shooters with out sufficient knoledge of the incindent in question or the circumstances. The person making the claim of cheating against another shooter is just as guilty as the person being accused until such time as the incident is reported to the proper commitee or person responsible for hearing such clains. If the facts are not worth filing an official protest against any person than that person's name should not be run down or slandered in public by another person.
This is a game it is not a life or death situation but ethically we owe it to one another to respect each other. If there are cheater out there than the proper thing to do is to ask for a hearing to eliminate persons found guilty of cheating. Each person has the right to a fair hearing before their name is run into the ground by person or persons who may or may not have justification or may only be a sore looser trying to degrade a winner.
A person signs his score card at the end of the round to say that the score is correct and that means that they have not cheated or been cheated. The other individuals who sign or initial the score cards are saying the same thing and therefor we have to assume that the score is correct and that there are no cheaters in the group.
At the present time there are no cheaters shooting out there and until such people are found out and judged by the proper authority there will be no cheaters out there only people trying to enjoy the game and display their skills.

sad fact is that unless you do your part, they, the folks that are being accused of cheating, will continue to do so. unless you file a protest, or bring it to the attention of a range official on the range and they get caught, nothing will change. waiting til you get home to make a fuss is too late.

that being said, if you do step up and call someone out, make sure you are right....accusing someone of cheating at a national event, and not being right, could be very embarrassing to both parties. the ibo has to prove they are cheating, after you file your protest. kind of a double edge sword.....little johny, did you eat the ice creame? no evidence?

fasstfletch makes a really good point.

If someone truly believes the rules are not being followed, they should officially report the incident andperson(s) involved. Anything else should be considered attempts to damage personal image, and should be acted upon accordingly:

http://www.expertlaw.com/library/personal_injury/defamation.html

All the fuss over cheating seems to always involve the same aspect of 3-D and that is judging distance. First of all I have never shot with anyone on a national level that I suspected of cheating, but even if I did suspect someone in my group of doing some thing illegal but didn't have any proof , what good would a protest do. I know what your thinking. If you don't have proof then keep your mouth shut, and your right.

This is my solution. Since all the cheating accusations revolve around judging distance, lets have a class that eliminates it. I wonder how many people would shoot in a marked yardage class? Make the max yardage at least 50 yards, maybe even farther. No equipment restrictions. Anything legal in any other class could be shot in this class.Sure, scores would be high which might be a good reason to go longer than 50 yards. This would determine the best archer, period. Maybe it would go over like MHC or maybe it would be a hit.

I guess that the only question I have is how would you feel if you knew that you were shooting in the presence of a person that was cheating? If this would not bother you than you would be in the smallest minority of most competitive archers.
In our league which is averaging about 90 shooters each week we have a Range Finder Class. This class has about 5 people each week that shoot the class. The Max shot is approx. 50 yards and you have to shoot with at least one person from another club with or withoug a Rangefinder. The average score each week will average in the low 280's and to date no one has shot a perfect score. We do not use the eleven ring either. It is a choice that each person attending the scheduled shoot has. Publishing the yardage for each shoot is possible but overall the scores have not got any better.
Good Luck.