A confession, and a question or two

Everything you have done in life was at one point “hard or impossible”, got to just drive in, after awhile you will look back and wonder why your held back.

Be realistic, shooting in front of other people naturally brings a little stress. Start close (10yards) and just stay at that range until you feel more confident. You will find that the archery community in general is made up of a bunch of guys and gals that like to help each other, of course there are outliers but who cares what they think.

Your not going to the range to gain other people’s approval, your doing it because it your interest. If someone pokes and prods you due to lack of experience or skill, they can either help you progress or go fly a kite. Those kinds of folks are the same ones who make fun of heavy set folks going to the gym trying to better their selves, no one respects them..

I’ve definitely been there. With my first few bouts of TP my shooting got so bad it was embarrassing. Arrows were hitting under the bale because I would freeze under the spot or to the right of the bale because of massive jerking of the bow. I would hole up in my garage to blind bale or go to the range when it would be empty to work through things, but it would come right back when I went to shoots again or shot indoors with others. I wish there were the resources back then that there are now cause my approach to TP sucked. My advise is to go put yourself out there because that’s the only way it’s going to get better. The more you go the more comfortable you will be, but don’t be surprised if there’s a two-steps-forward-one-step-back kind of thing. Eventually (hopefully) it’ll take fewer and fewer arrows to settle down each outing.

FWIW, the mental management book, With Winning in Mind, helped me.

Here's where the odd part of it is. I've been to the local range before. There's only one here. I used to go and shoot every single weekend. The only time I found it any where near stressful going there, was the one time I showed up to shoot, and the state shoot was going to start. So, it went from it being me on the 10 yard range, over on the side, to me having to move back to 20, and not having any more than 2 feet of space on either side of me. Once that happened, it took about 10 minutes before I packed up and cut things short, just too crowded. I went back several more times after that, before the tear in my tendon on my right elbow started my long layoff.

This afternoon, as I was in the middle of putting in a new light in one of my parents bathrooms, I had a thought, and wonder if by chance this could be the issue that's causing the apprehension. This, I have to admit, is embarrassing. The day after it happened, I reached out to a couple of old military buddies, both of which admitted that it had happened to them as well. Here at home I had an accident, back in August. Could have been very bad, but thankfully, no one was hurt. As such, I there are a few stipulations I have to adhere to, including not having the tools available to effectively protect my house, for a several more months. That's about as far as I'm willing to speak to the issue on a public forum, however, if someone feels they need further details, they are welcome to pm me. I do know that when these stipulations are over, I have an awful lot of work to do, mentally, to get past it. I'm doing what I can until it's over, but when it's over, that's when the real work begins for regaining accuracy with that set of tools. I can say that my confidence with those tools was severely shaken by the accident.

As far as my input on threads, I do hope my posts are helpful. I strive to be "contributing member of society" on the forums I belong to.

This is not to start a conflict or anything else, just my .02, and that's it. I at one time had to take a hiatus from archery to deal with a situation. When we found out my first wife had cancer, it hit us like a ton of bricks. I had always been able to "fix" things. hell, I grew up on a large cattle ranch and we farmed so we could fix just about anything. During her 8 year battle I had to come to the realization that we don't always have the "tools" to fix things. i had some difficulties getting back into archery, and, there were other factors as well, however, I took the advice of a friend and sought counseling. It didn't take long to realize that there are alot of things we can't control, that peoples "perceptions are there realities" and we don't always understand everything. You have to find the right person, but it helped me a lot. Maybe not great advice, but it did help me. I may be overreaching but after 64 years, 4 adopted kids, the situation with my wife, I feel I have a bit of experience. reach out if you want. Life is too short to be alone or miserable and not find peace. The people on here are great and there is so much willingness to help.

Grantmac said:

Holding drills really help certain anxieties for shooting.

As for the rest, I really empathize with that. I've had a terminally ill partner for several years and it just adds up to a lot of stress that you can't escape.

Click to expand...

Thanks. I'll start trying some draw and holding drills. Add them to my fitness schedule.

longbowguy said:

Since you are a veteran there are various resources available. Some you know, there may be others. Find them.

Find a way to do form practice at home. In a garage or basement if you have them. I do not but I have a short hall toward the linen closet (no errant arrow can get past that). The Olympions do a lot of form practice at about 6 feet. So do I.

Further, get some judo points and go roving in some forest or creek bottom. Shoot at stumps, weeds, gopher holes, dead leaves. Enjoy nature. - lbg

Click to expand...

I was talking with someone, it was supposedly just the preliminary appointments, and then forwarded to a more permanent person. Talking at the first appointment she said that she would do the paperwork to get me into the regular program. 3 months/ 4 appointments later she still hadn't done it. So patient advocate it is.

I had read on here at some point, that some people were filling in the worn out spots in their 3D targets with that spray foam insulation. So, I took a box and filled one with it. Will have to see if I have a spot in the house I can set that up. Didn't think about that. Thanks.

I'll see what I can figure out for roaming and stumping. That may be something that had to wait a bit. Will try to figure that out, too.

If you can't find a bit of forest but have access to a bit of gassy hill, my favourite practice aside stumping is taking 3 tennis balls and 2 or 3 arrows for each to a safe and unpopulated slope somewhere, for an hour or two. Judo points work well to stop you losing them, or field points with a washer.

Throw the balls at different distances down or up a grassy slope and give yourself two or three shots on each. If you hit one it'll move, so shoot it again. Once you've shot at all balls, walk over, pick them up one at a time, throw each and start again. Start off from 5-20m throws until you're hitting each of those 3 balls, then throw them further, eventually one of them as far as you can. Practice kneeling shots and shooting with awkward foot placement.

Does wonders for the shooting in my experience, and is well worth the effort.

Carboniac said:

I found your post confusing but it sounds like you have issues beyond archery and the range and the people there. And its out of my depth to comment on that.

But as to bows - if I had to go to a range to shoot - I probably would find a different hobby. Its just my personality. I like going out in my yard and shooting or into the woods and stumping by myself or with a friend or 2. Its probably that Im somewhat introverted by nature.
I deal with people everyday at work and etc, but it it takes a lot of my focus and I enjoy archery better with out that.

Click to expand...

I am also an introvert. I deal with people all day, both in the office, and handling inbound calls. I have to step outside of myself, so to speak, to be able to do my job. In other words, I have to use the non dominant parts of my personality, such as being outgoing, friendly, etc.

Yes, having to go to a range to shoot is not exactly fun. I'd much rather I could shoot in the backyard, but it's not legal to do so here. Odds are, most of my neighbors wouldn't say a wording indid shoot back there. That accident I alluded to earlier did land me in some hot water with the local authorities, temporarily, so I'd rather not take the chance of making things worse. Things will get back to normal for that, early next year.

I have an indoor range about a 20 minute drive from me. That's also, as it happens, about the same amount of time I drive to work. Come to find out, there's also an outdoor range about the same distance to the southwest. It's not being shooting at the range, itself, or the people there since last time the only time someone talkes to me whilenthere was to ask if their kid could try out my recurce, that is the problem. I suspect that the problem I'm running into is that subconsciously, I'm worried that I'll have a similar accident (but with an arrow this time) while at the range, and so I'm making excuses not to go. This is what I'm dealing with and trying to get around. I'm working to convince myself that what happened was a once in a lifetime thing, and won't happen again.

For what it's worth....
By your description, sounds like you have put some serious expectations on your practice sessions. Might even be unrealistic expectations.
Also sounds like you're putting a lot of value in what you think others think about you or how you shoot.
How you shoot is no determination on you as a person or your purpose in life.
Archery does not define a person.
Just like a hot rod or fast car does not make a big man.
If thinking about going to the range brings on some anxiety, you might be putting way too much into it.
You are putting too much thought into what others think of you.
Think about this for a minute...
You are sitting in a park and a few college age kids are tossing a Frisbee around. One kid can really get it right to the other guy and he doesn't ever have to chase it. Whereas the other guy can't throw that thing to save his life and his receiver has to chase it hard every time and usually picks it off the ground. So you see 3 guys of various skill levels. Do you think any of them think less of the less skilled thrower as a person?
Would you suspect any of them think they are a better person because they throw the Frisbee flawlessly every time?
Now, what would you think if you saw the flawless thrower giving the other 2 guys some real flack because they couldn't throw as well as he could?
Maybe you would say to yourself, "what an egotistical jerk."
He might be a decent at throwing a Frisbee, but I bet neither one of those guys goes to sleep thinking about that Frisbee. It's just a pass time. A way to relax, get out and have some fun.
I don't know the reason for when or why some much value is being placed on going to the range.
But I can tell you that right now, your ego is probably in the driver's seat.
And if you read that last line and it really got you steamed up, it hit the nerve.
And by the way, there is nothing to be embarrassed about...nothing at all.
Everybody has a little child deep inside them. When that child is ignored, it acts out, throws a fit, makes up reasons to not go to the range, put unrealistic expectations on activities that are supposed to be pleasant. And when this little child presents itself to others, it looks like an inflated ego.
Once you understand how to put ego in the back seat and make him content there, things will start to have proper prospective.
People don't give other people much more than 2 seconds of thought.
Why? Because most of them are too busy thinking about themselves.
I can say this because, to varying degrees, I have been in your shoes.
Big ego, you bet. A real bad son of a biscuit. A real cocky one.
Yepper, been there, done that.
Until I had a college class mate shined a light onto that little child. Man, did that hurt. It hurt bad and I was so embarrassed. But part of that exposure was finding out that everyone is that way. The work comes in realizing it, recognizing it, and working on fixing it.
Forgiving yourself is key. Making the child content in the back seat is key.
Ego is tough to get under control and it can be painful. But once you realize it's holding you back from enjoying life, you are on the right track.
On of the best book I have ever read was titled, "Maximum Climbing" by Eric Hourst. Yes, it's about the world of rock climbing, but it talks nothing about technique or equipment. It deals totally with the muscle between the ears. Your mind, your thoughts, your self talk, and ego.
A must read...and not just once either.

I hope this helps.
I am not interested if anyone agrees or disagrees.
I offer it for your consideration.

BTW, that classmate made her case while sitting at my dining room table, with my wife and I. She single handedly saved our marriage. And after graduation, we never heard from her again.
God bless you and keep you C.K.