This is my first post in this forum....I usually hang out in bowhunting.

Question: In our indoor range.....(34 yds deeP)...we have shot opportunities ranging from 2 yds (they usually throw in a short one) to 43 yds.....with most being in the 15-30yd range. We look to make 10's on everything.....thinking 200 will win (and it almost always would). Is this the right mindset.....or are some of you good enough to aim at a 12 ring from 25 yds?

I'm simply trying to score 10's on everything....and I haven't even done THAT, yet...lol.

with ibo scoring, you would aim at the 11 ring on every shot, it is in the middle.......if you miss, then you still get the 10....aim small, miss small...

At the indoor range,where I shootwww.huntingtonarcheryclub.com The max distance is 30yds. But the targets are usually set no further than 25 and as close as 8yds. They have a pins class and open class. It makes it easier that way you dont have a bunch of classes all shooting the same shots,and spliting up the paybacks. Theyscore 14,12,10,8 and 5,250 is even"10x25=250. But 250 wont get you anything you have to shoot for the 14s that you can hit, and stay in the 12 ring the rest of the time. It usually takes at least300 to winin the pins class. The pins shooters scores are usually higher than the scope shooters, if you are going to shoot pins you cant be conservative you have to go for the big points on at least every other shot. They shoot every saturday night at 7pm $10 entry feewith 50% payback.Go to the web site for directions.

Our targets are scored the same (12, 10, 8, 5)....but if you miss a LITTLE low on the 12 ring (these are 3D animals)....you score 8. Some targets have a 14 ring.....bu miss that by a FRACTION of an inch....and you risk scoring a 5. If you shoot conservatively.....you can aim for center of the 10 ring. I've never shot when 200 wouldn't win (20 targets). Now we also have trees, fences, etc...that add realism.....but they're really not in the mix, so to speak.

I've never seen a shooter good enough to CONSISTANTLY hit a 12 or 14 ring from 25 yds. It's not visible at that yardage.

Their are a lot of shooters that can consistantly hit the 12 and 14 at huntington. Sometimes Iam one of them. The best thing to do is get in a group and make and agreement that everyone in the group is going to shoot for the 14 or 12on every shot. The first guy up may be at a disadvantage but the others in the group can use his or her arrow to gide them. And on the next shotsomeone else will be up first. A good pair of binosare veryhelpfull. Shooting indoors where you feel like everyone is watching you puts you in a high pressure situationand it lets you learn how to keep perfect form and excute the shot under pressure and this will help a great deal when you go to the outdoor shoots in the summer. It really gives you confidence to compete with people in the summer that you may have beat back in the winter.

Im shooting indoor this week end with the scoring 12, 10, 8 , 5 , 0. The target have low 12s mostly. All classes shoot against every one. There are 3 qualifiers, which you must shoot 2. Your top 2 scores are added and the top 128 come back for money ( top64) or troupes(bottom 64). This is in a 30+ yd range. There are trees, loges, fences and any thing else they can drag in. They put color gift/tissue paper over some of the lights to change lighting. It’s really cool, my favorite shoot . For the 1st qualifier in January - 1st place guy shot 352 MCOMP guy, 6th place MBR guy 344, my self MBR 45 place 317, 64 place was 304. So there are a lot of guys that shoot for 12s. And yes it is a tight course. The reason for the high scores is the $3000. in prize money. I think 1st is $1000. It makes people want to drive far.
So anyone that wants to shoot for 12s this week end in NW IL, I’ll see you there, just look for the guy trying to hit all the 12s. http://www.kishwaukeearchers.org

The 12 ring on the targets I'm talking about are the size of a quarter.....and if you hit a LITTLE low ot eh 12 ring.....you score 8.

The 14 ring is in the far end of the 8 ring......WAY away from the 10 ring.....and risking a 5 on that target is likely (or an 8).

I'd just have to see it. I don't doubt it.....but I've just never seen that sort of precision shooting. Is this all with hunting rigs??????

Most guys that shoot competitive have a 3-d bow. There are a few change there set up on there hunting bow for 3-d. You don’t see to many hunting set ups consistently shooting 12s, 14s. As far as seeing the 12 or 14 ring goes, you can’t always see them you just have to know where they are. Yes, you have to do your home work(bummer). Shooting 3-d is made up of 3 basic parts- Shooting accuracy, judging distance, and knowing your target.

Jeff,

There are two major organizations that sanction 3D events on the national level. IBO and ASA. Both use different scoring rings. In the IBO, they use an 11, 10, 8, 5, 0 scoring system. That 11 ring is perfectly in the middle of the 10 ring in the IBO.

ASA uses 14, 12, 10, 8, 5, 0 scoring rings, and the targets you are shooting sound like ASA scoring rings.

For the record, I do not shoot the same bow setup I use for hunting, but I do shoot in hunter class. For accessories I use an 11.5" stabilizer, 4 pin sight, trophy taker spring steel rest, and arrows that use screw in points with 4" vanes (Gold Tip Pro 22's). Not really a whole lot different from my hunting setup except I use a whisker biscuit to hunt with and the same sight with slightly larger .019 pins. The guys that are shooting lenses and long stablizers in open class also have to shoot from a LOT further away than you do in HC, in IBO their max is 50ish yards and in ASA max is 45ish yards.

When shooting ASA, I will shoot at some 12 rings. The only event I shot last year for ASA (NY state championship) did not use targets that had 14 rings, they did have 12's though. I did shoot for 12's on a lot of targets, however I did it in a certain way. If that target was 25 yards or closer, and it was a large to mid size target I aimed for the 12. If it was a smaller target (turkey, rock critter of some sort, etc) I would simply aim for 10's. Now if I knew the yardage and it was out there a bit (30-35 yards) and I was able to actually glass the target and could see the 12 through my binocs, I would aim for the 11 oclock position of that 12 ring. If I shot a bit low, I hit solid 12, if I hit a bit high, solid 10, either way not a problem. Now if it was a target I couldn't see the 12 ring on, or only part of the 10 ring, or if I wasn't confident that I picked the right yardage number I would absolutely shoot for a strong dead center 10 ring.

Even at the national level, you will still see guys shoot an 8 from time to time, but on those targets that are close and if you have the confidence in your shooting ability you can really put some distance between other guys and yourself by nailing some 12's and 14's. I will be shooting the NY and VT ASA state championships this year and do plan to shoot for quite a few 12's and some 14's as well. Last year I was a bit conservative on this and did manage to win the event in NY but could have really shot a higher score if I was a bit more confident in my abilities and shot for more 12's.

Rick:

Thank you for an honest and in-depth report. I really appreciate it.

I, too, shoot for a "couple" of 12 rings.....and I hit a few....honestly just aiming for the 10. In my time shooting 3D at our course.....there's only been 1 might that 200 wouldn't win. GRANTED.....I live in somewhat rural NC .... ....but we still have some guys who can sling their arrows.

Again....I appreciate your response. That was VERY informative.