First Ever Indoor Competition!

[Desert Archer]

This weekend was the Arizona NFAA Indoor Championship and it was the first indoor competition I ever participated in. It was quite an experience and educational in a number of ways.

The facility used was a pro shop and indoor range called "Straight 'n' Arrow" located on the West side of Phoenix. Got there about 8am for an 8:30 start. Wasn't much to the sign in as I pre-registered so mostly it was get the stuff out of the truck and wait for things to get rolling.

They had something like 12 lanes (two shooters per lane) and twice that many shooters so they ran two lines, two shooters/line. First line shot the bottom targets and second line shot the top. Very crowded conditions as the two in each "lane" had about 3' to 3.5' of space. Getting arrows in your quiver caught in or on someone else was a constant problem. Bow had to be held vertically in front of you both while you loaded the arrow and set up your stance. I cant a little and didn't have any problem with that but an Asbell style shooter would have just been out of luck, i.e. simply not enough room.

We got two ends (5 arrows) to warm up and then it was time to start. Shot 6 ends then switched upper targets to lower and vice versa. I started on an upper target so the switch ment I finished on the lower. I was told the lower line always goes first and I looked it up later and it's in the rules (LOL) but I didn't know that ahead of time.

The crowded conditions and the newness of it all made me kind of edegy. Can't say I was nervous, 'cause I didn't expect to win anything. Just couldn't relax. Did worse than all but my first practice round and tied that with 244 out of the possible 300. Was told everyone shoots better in practice than in tournaments. Could be but can't prove it by me. I was supposed to come back on Sunday to shoot the second round but they had only 8 people sighed up for the afternoon. I asked if I could just shoot the second round then and skip Sunday and the folks running it said sure so after a lunch break and some time to relax I shot again.

This time there was more room and I had the morning experience behind me. I shot my own personal best on the indoor 300 round with a score of 260. That made the whole thing worth while, no matter the outcome.

Interestingly there were only 3 recurve shooters signed up for this tourney and no longbows of any kind. One recurve shooter was a guy I know from target competition and he shoots an Olympic recurve complete with sights and stabilizers. He shot Saturday morning. The other one (besides you humble correspondant) was a nationally known Barebow shooter who showed up Saturday afternoon and was using this as a warm up for the Nationals in Louisville. He is a string walker and so was the only one in my class (Barebow) so I have no doubt he beat me after Sunday in raw score. I did manage to edge him out on Saturday afternoon which I felt was an accomplishment, no matter the final result.

As with every tournament I have participated in, the accuracy and complexity of the compounds just dumbfounds me. The best shooters are devistated when they don't shoot an "X". A couple fives and they claim they are out of the running. The sights and stabilizers and limb silencers and releases and rests and, and, and...well it was like watching a car accident. It isn't pretty and you don't really want to see it but you can't take your eyes away (LOL).

After I settled down and started dropping some of my 2214 X7s in the five ring I actually got complemented by a couple guys shooting compounds. One older fellow (had to be in his late '70s at least) said something to the effect of - that's how we all used to do it. I got a kick out of that one.

I sure can say that formal competition is so different from shooting on my patio that I would have never realized had I not given this a try. Will I shoot it again? I already asked when it will be next year. Same place but no date set yet (LOL). As soon as I know it will be back to the patio for more practice.

I'm still amazed how something so hard to do (well) can be so much fun!!

Dave

[Pinelander]

Thanks for the report, Dave. Very nice description from a participant's view. I've experienced difficulty shooting at the local 12-lane range when things get crowded and it's not even in competition.

Your personal best of 260 is an oustanding score for sure, especially in a competitive atmosphere.
Congratulations... and onward to the outdoor events.

:highfive:

[Viper]

Dave -

Pretttty nice shootin' there!

Yup, indoor can get crowded. We had about 2' person at my old range, usualy 2 deep, top and borrom target, with about 22 points IIRC, been a while. Belt quivers were the norm, and yes you could easily bother the guy infront of you! :goodvevil (Glad I used a back quiver then!) After a bit you did get used to it, and it stopped bothering you.

Congrats again :highfive: !

Viper out.

[swampy]

Congrads on that 260 !!Thats some awesome shootin right there.

Yea it does get crowded.I seem to have a hard time with that myself.The shop was packed on Sat when I went in for a practice round.I had a couple ends where I let it get the best of me,think I need to do that more often if I ever wanna try a competition like that.

[Desert Archer]

Swamp,

I'm pretty sure the less crowded conditions on Saturday afternoon contributed to my shooting the 260. If I had waited until Sunday it would have been even worse. Everyone signed up would have been trying to finish.

Really didn't like it (the crowding). Even behind the shooting line there was very little room. To be polite I either stood still or got out of there before the next line started shooting. You couldn't move behind the line without bumping into someone.

As you said, guess I'll have get get used to it as from what I am told it is pretty common at indoor shoots.

Dave

[Viper]

Dave -

I guess we were pretty lucky, always had room to mill about behind the lines. Even had a "lunch bar", coffee, donuts, burger etc. Heck we even had a wet bar in the back lounge, no joke. I really miss that place!

Viper out.

[Desert Archer]

I really miss that place!

Viper,

I remember as a teenager in the '60s reading Bow & Arrow magazine and seeing archery ranges that looked like bowling alleys. They had automated target holders that would bring the target back to you for pulling arrows, a lounge area for spectators, snack bar and everything. I was blown away living in a small mid-Western town where I was the only archer. It was my dream to go to a place like that but I never got the chance. That was a far cry from the range where I shot the 300 round.

I don't mean to knock the place in Phoenix as I would go there more often if it wasn't such a long drive on the freeway (several freeways actually). Just doesn't live up to the memory I have of that article in that old magazine from the Golden Age.

Sounds like you had a club more like the one I saw in the magazine.

Dave

[Bob Gordon]

Nice shooting Dave, that's a pretty good score for your first time doing it in competition with all the noise, stress, etc. I know what you mean about being shoulder to shoulder with little room. When I used to shoot Vegas I used a old hip pocket quiver that would keep the arrows upright and straight up my back, easy to get one out and nock it without bumping anyone beside me. If you want to feel pressure shoot Vegas and look down the shooting line and see 300 archers all doing the same thing and a big crowd behind them still is fun though when they hand you a nice check for shooting well. Keep up the good shooting....warf

[Viper]

Dave -

We didn't have those move-able targets, and there was only about 20' behind the shooting lines, but we never got that crowded feeling. We had a little counter in the corner with the coffee maker, a grill, sink and microwave, yes there were microwaves back then! Hard tile floor, and it did have it's share of leaks. It was an old "theather" under an apartment building. We did take care of it though, as it was literally OUR club. The lounge in the back as part on an apartment the building manager sort of threw in, and we fixed up.

No, it didn't look like those bowling alley pictures, I saw those too! But never in person. But this was ours, and at $60 a year for dues, it was the best bargain in town. And if you couldn't afford the $60, we always had a way of "working something out". No one was ever turned away. Had a nice little supply of beginner bows and arrows to rent if some jsut wanted to try it out. The Pro-Shop, was a room a little bigger than a closet, but had all the emergency items you sould need, and could order about any thing else. Even had a guy there who made custom strings, (opps, that was me!). We had a nice JOAD program and used a local college for out outdoor shoots. It really didn't get any better.

There was a real sence of belonging. Guess it was a different time.
Thanks for letting me ramble.

Viper out.

[swampy]

The league I,m shootin on is only crowded at the line when there,s others in there.Sat was open and I had 2 kids in front of me and ??? guys behind me.Ya only get a couple feet at the line.Behind the line is fairly open with lots of room to move.I seem to be in a stall mode at this point.I seem to be haveing trouble gettin beyond 240 with any kind of consistancy.230,s seem to suck anymore and even low 240,s doesn,t seem that good.It feels like I should be in the 250,s consistantly but like I said I seem to have stalled for the time being anyway.

Maybe you should compete more often,I seem to shoot worse when guys are watchin or are right on top of me.

[Viper]

swampy -

That happens, and the higher you get, score wise, the longer you stall. Keep doing what you're doing and try to analyze the GOOD shots, and what lead to them.

Viper out.

[Desert Archer]

... even low 240,s doesn,t seem that good.
Swampy,

I know exactly what you mean. In practicing for this shoot I was getting in the 250s on my patio - lots of room and I shot when I felt like it (LOL). My first round of 244 was really disappointing, but...it was only around Christmas time that I shot my first ever 300 round over 240. Seemed like a big deal at the time. Funny how our expectations change.

Oh, and you're right about competition being good for you. The more you get out there and just shoot the easier it gets. The first time I shot in a formal tournament I was scared to death what other people would think of me. I soon figured out that nobody was paying much attention to me. They were busy worrying about how they were doing.

Viper,

Your club still sounds like a great place, even if it wasn't one of those fancy ones we saw in the magazines. All that good stuff seemed to be in California anyway. Who would want to live there (LOL).

Dave

[Pinelander]

Not sure if they still have it... because I don't frequent that range anymore. But about 10 years ago, a very old archery shop (in bad part of town, worried if I'd still have wheels on my car when I returned) still had the automatic return lanes. What a gas! Press the button, and presto! here comes your target butt! I think I should take a drive up there (during daylight hours) with camera in tow and see if they're still in operation... along with my bow and arrows of course. :)