Someone please give me half a clue as to what in the #@*! I'm doing wrong. I've only been shooting traditional for 5 months. In that time I have made steady progress. About 1-2 weeks ago I was shooting great, I was hitting my mark the vast majority of the time from 20 yards and in. Now in the past week I can't seem to be able to hit the broad side of a barn.

I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong, but now my shots are consistently off to the left. Does anyone have any idea about what would cause this??

This is so frustrating. . . . feels like trying to play golf.

Hard (dang near impossible) to say without more information, or actually seeing you shoot. One thing that might help though--start over. Get really close, concentrate on your form. Shoot some close targets. Be positive--you know you can do it, you did it before, and you will do it again. Sooner or later we all hit a slump--sometimes without a clue as to why. Just hang in there and you will figure it out.

Chad

Long Bows Rule!

Dathein,
If your right handed, you could be developing TP. It sounds like your moving you bow hand as you shoot. Hold you hand "Rock Solid" till the arrow hits the target. If you groups get better, it's probably the cause. If not, the next place I'd look is your anchor. Like LBR said, it's hard to tell without seeing you shoot. Dick

I agree with LBR. What I do is get closer to the target and really pay attention to everything I'm doing. I try to clear my mind and pull slowly, reach a solid anchor and release with a bit of an exagerated follow thru on my hand. I'm not thinking about aiming, just pull, anchor, release, get into a smooth rythm. May even want to do it with your eyes closed (close to the target). Then once I've settled down I move back, doing the same thing. I find alot of times it was a mental thing, the dreaded "target panic". Nothing to do but relax and remember to have fun and the shooting will come back. That's what this beginner does.

What I do when that kind of stuff happens to me (and it still happens even after all these years)is get the H-E-double hockeysticks away from the target. No sense in beating yourself up with frustration. I take my bow out into the woods, relax and stroll around doing some stump shooting. Maybe even pot a rabbit or squirrel to roast for lunch.

I believe very strongly in the importance of working to perfect my shooting form, but I have to have myself in the right frame of mind for that kind of work. When I have one of those strings of bad shooting and feel that frustration starting to build, I hit the woods. After a couple of outings in the woods, I'm relaxed and I've made some good shots and I've got my positive attitude back.

It's all about attitude and frame of mind. The act of drawing the bow, pointing and releasing the arrow is only part of the picture.

Maybe you're trying too hard. Don't shoot past the frustration point in your practice sessions. Shoot until your accuracy starts going south and put the bow away till the next day or day after. Even if that's only a dozen arrows or so. Good advice given to me was to practice every other day, as it gives the muscles a chance to heal and regroup. Like Arthur says, get out into the woods and do some stump shooting. It always gets me through and improves the heck outta my attitude. Nothing better to sharpen the old shooting eye.

I also agree with you starting over by getting close to the target, closing your eyes and shooting. Make sure that you've got the proper back tension, a consistent grip on the bow, the same draw length each and every time, the same rock solid anchor each time, the same cant and a rock solid bow arm that's steadily pushing at the target, as you execute a smooth, pull through release. Something I was guilty off when I first starting shooting with fingers, which is all I've ever done, is I plucked the string instead of relaxing my hand as I pulled through.

You've already done what your body needs to do to be accurate. You just need to remember what that was, and getting close and paying strict attention to your form and the mechanics of the shot will possibly help you to figure it out.

Make em sharp and shoot em straight, or leave em home.

Edited by - wahya on 01/03/2003 15:43:23

I slip into a pattern occaisionally were I pick a spot and concentrate on it but at the moment I release I expand my zone of focus to a larger portion of, and sometimes all of, the target. This makes for some really nasty groups. When you have shot an arrow make a concerted effort to see what you are looking at- whole target or spot. Also, as said above, you could be "looking up to see a bad shot"- similar to lifting your head as you swing a golf club. You might be cheating a little to see where your arrow is about to hit.

Above all, relax, it will get better again.

RC

Was my frustration that apparent.<img src=icon_smile_blush.gif border=0 align=middle> Well, thanks for the advice, when I wrote my last post I had just come from a really frustrating session<img src=icon_smile_angry.gif border=0 align=middle>. I was starting to look at my bow as good fire wood.

Anyway, I just came in from another shooting session and seem to have found my grove again.<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle> I did exactly what you all said, I went out relaxed, cleared my mind, and concentrated strictly on my form. Once I found my form again the groups started coming back together.

I think my problem was that I had been reviewing a couple of books and tried to &quot;perfect&quot; my form. Additionally, I ran into another stick shooter at the range last week (who is a fantastic shot) and tried to incorportate some of the pointers he gave me into practice. Trying to put all this perfecting of form into my practice did nothing but jack-up everything I had been doing right and throwing the arrows all over the place. Now that I went back to my basics I seem to be back on track.

Thanks again
Dave

What does @#$%* spell? May be your problem right there. Something wrong with your eyes seeing as how you can't hit the right keys! <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle> <img src=icon_smile_shock.gif border=0 align=middle> <img src=icon_smile_tongue.gif border=0 align=middle> <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

Ted A. Young AKA COB

Cob,

SHADDUP!! <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

Bill

Praise the Lord, He is worthy