Advice for your first competition
Taking part in your first archery competition may seem daunting, but you must always remember that there are always other people who are in the same position as you. The following advice should help you out and keep you well prepared for your first competition.
What to bring
Archery competitions can take a few hours, so there are some things you may overlook when preparing for the event. Although your fellow archers may lend a helping hand if you forgot something it is always best to have your own. And because archery is both an indoor and outdoor sport, the places you are shooting and the things you will need to take can vary a lot.
General things to remember:
Equipment - Whether you have your own bow or are borrowing a club bow, this is one thing you will seriously regret leaving behind. You should also check your bowcase has everything in it beforehand just in case. Also check that you have enough arrows to shoot with, including some spares in case of damage.
Food - A long shoot may have a lunchbreak, so you should bring something simple to eat. You should also take some snacks to keep up your energy throughout the day.
Drink - Bring enough fluids to keep your thirst quenched, when shooting outdoors in Summer you will need more than you think so be prepared. Just take a bottle of water or other softdrink.
Money - Archers are social creatures and after a long day flinging arrows migrate to the nearest (or cheapest) public house to invest in beverages and food. It is also useful if you have forgotten to pack the previous two items and have to buy something instead.
Sightmarks - Always useful if you intend to hit the target, try to get accurate sightmarks in the sessions before a competition. This lets you use any sighters you have for fine tuning.
Sun protection - Whether it is sunblock or a bloody great big umbrella to keep those harmful UV rays away, you should protect yourself from sunburn when shooting outdoors. Unless you don't mind having your arm look like a clownfish [BUTTS Outdoors Reference].
Weather protection - Again, the variety of places where competitions take place and the times of year make it quite common to encounter the less pleasant weather. Check the weather forecast for the day you are shooting and plan accordingly. If it is raining then waterproofs are a good idea and for heat you should wear loose comfortable clothes and bring sun protection. Archery will only stop for lightning.
On the day
When you arrive at the shooting range you should find out which target you are shooting on, although many clubs will post a target list up before the day it is always best to check anyway. Once you know where you need to be you should head over to that spot and start setting up your bow. Then check the scoresheet (if available) for your target, make sure that your details are correct before the shooting begins. If you spot any mistakes then find one of the officials or judges for the shoot and ask them for assistance.
You should use any spare time you have before shooting to relax and warm up appropriately as shown during the beginner sessions, you can also take the opportunity to meet the other archers on your target before you begin shooting. It is always good to meet new people, even if you plan on beating them shortly. Although don't say that because it is rude.
A few minutes before the sighters there is usually an announcement by the Range Captain or organisers to introduce the judges, explain the safety procedures and to explain the plans for the shoot. You should always endeavour to listen to these announcements for your own benefit so that you know exactly what to do.
Sighters - Use your sighter arrows wisely, you should already have good sightmarks so use your sighters to make small adjustments to your sight. If you do not have sightmarks then you should ask a fellow club member with a similar draw weight to your own for their sightmarks and improvise off of those. It isn't good practise but it is better than having to guess.
Scoring - After the sighter arrows (how many depends on the choice of the organisers, it is usually 6 arrows) you will begin scoring your arrows. There will be a single person per target responsible for recording the scores onto the scoresheet provided to you, this is traditionally archer C. If you have any doubts on who should be scoring then don't hesitate to ask someone. When scoring your arrows you should announce each score clearly, starting from the highest to the lowest value eg. 10, 9, 8. The image below shows you the different points awarded for hitting each ring, if one of your arrows is breaking the line between two rings then the higher score is awarded. If you cannot tell whether the line is broken then you can always call for a judge to decide the score.
Finishing off - After you have finished shooting all of your arrows wait for the scoring archer to add up all of the scores then check your own score to make sure all of the adding up is correct. Some people write down their own score separately in a notepad just to be sure and to speed everything up at the end of the shooting. If you agree with the scores then sign the scoresheet to show that you agree, if you do not sign it then your score may be disqualified and you will not be counted towards any team scores.
