Treestand Troubadour":2g0hqja8 said:
TNDeerGuy":2g0hqja8 said:
Treestand Troubadour":2g0hqja8 said:
So this might be dumb but how do those shoots work? What's the layout and how's the.points work?
Do you go to any local shoots?
no I haven't been to any
Okay then.....you need to go!
Honestly, it is nothing more than just having some buddies come over for a backyard shooting session—it really is just like that! At the local level, you and your group (friends you come with or people you get grouped with if your alone or they need to get a single or couple slid in somewhere) will go out shoot a target, write down the score and then go to the next target. It really is just like that....really informal, but yet a little structured and the most fun thing you can do in the sport of archery! At the national level, it is still informal but everything is just magnified because you may have 1,800 people shooting in 26 different classes, versus the local level where most clubs will see 50-100 people a day. You may have 100-200 people on the same twenty target range: you shoot, write down the scores and go 30yds to the next target and so on.
Honestly though, I have met some of the best people in the world at the national events and at the local events—many of them have became my closest friends. Regardless of where you are at, local or national shoots, "stake" talk as I call it (the group you are shooting with) is the same—you laugh, cut up and just have a great time. Local shoots are a little better because everyone knows everyone and the laughing flows a little easier because of that, but at the national level it is often like that as you are with people that share the same passion and mindset. However, you may encounter "that guy/gal" that thinks they are the next Levi Morgan or Reo Wilde and is all serious about it, but that type is very rare—most of us (98%) are realistic and accept the fact that we will not be the next World Champion. However, all of us are serious about it and love to compete and learn something from each other—that is why we do it. The ultimate goal for most is to become better archers and have a blast while doing it. Even though I've been slinging arrows for over 30 years now, I still learn or get ideas all the time at these national and local shoots.
Will it make you a better archer? You better believe it will! Most backyard guys that start picking up a bow in late July or early August to get ready for deer season, and I was one of them, are completely satisfied a softball sized group at 30yds—that's enough to kill any deer. However, when your trying to hit something the size of a quarter at 40yds, consistently, it takes a degree of skill, both mental and physical and finely tuned equipment— all which will be honed by competitive shooting and the information you gather while doing so.
Check your local area for shoots—we are lucky here in TN, especially Mid-TN, as archery shoots are a dime a dozen!
