Second archery class!

At the group lessons at DC Archery.

Went to DC Archery again yesterday! After studying all week and taking a test earlier, I really wanted to shoot some arrows. I arrived at 7pm with Erland. He came to take some pictures and watch, which was nice of him. I paid my $15 fee and went to string up my bow. A new coach was present this time as well as the one from before. I got a lot of instruction this time.

Getting tips

                                                                
  I  feel that I improved a bit from the first visit.I started to at least group my arrows in one spot instead of all over the place.I kept shooting towards the right, but they said as long as they are grouped up all I need to do is aim down and to the left so I can actually hit the center of the target. I didn't figure this out until it was time to leave. I was shooting down after they told me to but for some reason I didn't aim left as well. Oh well maybe next time I will actually hit the center of the target. I improved my grip on the bow which really made a difference. My arms were not sore at all after this visit. It's amazing how just a simple change like bow grip can make such a noticeable change.

Trying to aim

Releasing the arrow.

I wish I had more time to shoot and practice. I have a lot of things to work on that just improve with being consistent and repeating the action. I also noticed, from these pictures that I need to work on my form as well. My elbow is way too high and I need to work on keeping it even. I would like to have time to just figure out what aiming technique will work for me. I was given a lot of tips by three different people and I wish i could have worked on figuring out which one works instead of switching between them without getting a rhythm down.

Side view.

I look like a chipmunk here.

 I think once school is over for the semester I may be able to shoot more and possibly at a 24hr type range so that I can go and practice whenever. The membership fees are not to bad for the range considering that they give you a key to the place. I will see how it goes but for now DC archery once a week-every two weeks will have to do!

Retrieving my arrows.

Group lessons.

 Video of me trying to learn:

Hobby #3: Archery

My recurve bow!

Thanks to another awesome birthday present, courtesy of Jamie and Don, I finally have been able to start archery! I have been interested in pursuing archery for a while now. I have taken two intro courses at two different times/locations but, now that I have my own recurve bow, I hope to have a scheduled archery day every week or so.

DC Archery mascots.

Saying hello.

I looked into archery ranges near me that would fit my schedule. There are surprisingly quite a few of them around. Some require membership fees, some are free and some just require a small fee of $10 for rental of a lane at the range. For the time being I have chosen to practice my archery at DC Archery in Sunland, Ca. It is an indoor range which is nice for those really hot days and those rainy days. (rare here in California, but it does happen in the winter.)

The range area

The shop area

I arrived at DC archery (on 9/9/10) an hour early thinking that the group class started at 6pm. A group class did start at 6pm but it was the children's group with the adult group starting at 7pm. I bought some more arrows and had the them show me how to string my bow.Then I decided to wait there for the hour. I took some pictures, looked around and watched the kids.

Kids group.

My bow hanging, waiting for 7pm!

As the time neared 7pm, more people began to show up. Three came with their own equipment in fancy cases making me worried that I was going to look awful shooting next to them. Two other guys also showed up with one being new to archery. As we started to shoot, I asked the coach what I should do.( I forgot to mention the 7pm class is a group class that has a coach watch peoples forms and give tips) The coach instructed me on what to do and off I went. My arrows were going all over the place! The coach took a look at my bow and got the guy at the counter to make some adjustments. It turns out the arrows were not nocking to the string properly because the nock didn't fit! It was too large. After he made adjustments I was ready to get back to shooting. Now my arrows went straight, but I didn't hit the target very well. The coach would instruct me and helped the others as well.

My arrows in the quiver.

It turns out archery requires quite a bit of upper body strength. I believed myself to have decent upper body strength, but soon found out that I do not. My bow has a draw weight of 29lbs. so basically every time I pull back on that string with the arrow that's how much weight I am holding. That's not even a lot! Some people shoot with draw weights of 95lbs! By the end of the hour my arms/shoulders were so tired and sore. I had to really force myself to draw that string back. I am so weak ha ha. We had a balloon round at the end. The three people who came with the fancy bow cases all hit theirs(Turns out they were not pro, they just had more practice under their belt.) while me and the two other guys did not. I know that with practice I will get better. I very much look forward to the day I can hit the target with consistency.




Bonus Video of me stringing and removing the string from my bow. It's good  practice to remove the string when the bow is not in use. It's best to be able to do it without whacking yourself in the face with the bow arms.

Note: I was unable to take photos of the hour I spent shooting. The pictures shown here are from the hour before.