How do you like to practice?

fnshtr · June 02, 2017, 10:36:00 AM

I love to stump and rove. Leaves, flowers, plastic cups/bottles, plastic golf balls, etc. Recently I've added a "300 round" (outdoors) every other day to gauge improvement.

Terry Green · June 02, 2017, 11:24:00 AM

The reason they went to a 5 spot Target is because of Arrow deflection off of nocks you can tell if your field points fly the same as your broadheads by shooting us five spot as well.

They started looking at this years ago when the guy taught me how to shoot got knocked out of the Olympics because of Arrow deflection off of a Nook.... I'm talking 40 years ago and he was ranked third in the nation and also hunted with Dan Quillian.

Just a little history.

Draven · June 02, 2017, 12:23:00 PM

Thanks for sharing it

Bud B. · June 02, 2017, 12:49:00 PM

I haven't read all the responses and I am sure there is sound advice in them.

For me, when I want to focus on form, I either blind bale or blank bale shoot. One arrow. Retrieve. Repeat.

A good mentor is excellent, or surround yourself with good shooters if you can and pick traits from them to try. Not everything that works for them will work for you. Eventually you will find your course for your archery journey. Start out correctly, and the journey will be enjoyable. Start our incorrectly and it can and will be frustrating with some fun mixed in between.

The stumping or roving with a judo advice is excellent prep for hunting, and you might get some good scouting in as well.

Nrcheek16 · June 02, 2017, 01:54:00 PM

Awesome. I picked up some judos to try out . Now I need more arrows. (Broke two this morning by robinhood ) I was mad and happy st same time. So I need more now

June 02, 2017, 02:12:00 PM

Judos are very handy when grass is involved, but I do not like how they go in and out of a back quiver, I changed to hammers, have not lost one yet, but it does help to be shooting at a slope of bare dirt. For target work, I use a 4' by 4' target, I rarely try to shoot groups, I figure that deer do not have a nice yellow dot to aim at. What really gets my hiny in a bind is when I miss my mark and Robin Hood arrows that I am not shooting at, at least not consciously shooting at.

Gordon Jabben · June 02, 2017, 05:16:00 PM

A group of us shoot once a week during the nonhunting months at a local NFAA range with 28 bales. We don't shoot the target faces much, instead we shoot at different size balloons at distances up to seventy yards or so and through openings in the brush. The person that breaks the balloon picks the next shot. We also practice shooting from setting and kneeling positions.

RJonesRCRV · June 02, 2017, 08:03:00 PM

I find that shooting too many arrows at once between retrievals doesnt work so well. My first 3 shots are generally good, after that not so great. Retrieving the arrows kinda lets me reset for a few seconds, and then start again.

longbow fanatic 1 · June 02, 2017, 08:18:00 PM

Typically, I practice four to five days a week. I don't keep track of the number of arrows I shoot. Sometimes I shoot for an hour. Sometimes between two to three hours, depending on what I'm working on at the time. In the winter, I shoot spot targets mostly to keep my shooting form. Once I can get outside, I shoot at fixed yardages out to 45-50 yards mostly. Then, I begin shooting Walk Backs. I start at 5 yards and shoot one arrow. Then, 10 yards and one arrow. So on and so forth out to 40-50 yards. I also shoot the (15 ) 3-d targets our club leaves out in the summer. Lastly, I try to shoot a 3-d event each weekend throughout the summer. Sometimes they're too far away, but I usually get to about three per month.

Stumpkiller · June 02, 2017, 09:16:00 PM

Stumps are my favorite (big surprise there). My bowhunting mentor observed I'd rather stump shoot than hunt - hence my camp name.

I have a 20 yard range in my basement I shoot most - bag stuffed with Nylon window screening.

I shoot Douglas fir and they hold up to stumps. We have rotted stumps (it rains a lot here and the frost/freeze further degrades the wood).

A few broken arrows. That happens on soft targets, too (if you shoot more than one). Well . . . sometimes.

batbow · June 02, 2017, 09:53:00 PM

I guess I need to up my game! Practice out to 50 yds and even 70,?! Wow!
I was feeling good cause in the last month I am finally shooting 3 arrows in the center at 30 ydsNot breaking nocks at 30 yet, but often 2 are touching.
To the question, I have 2 deer, a turkey, groundhog, rabbit, muskrat, and prairie dog and three butts set up around my property. I try to shoot all of these daily at random distances, angles and elevations out to 30 yds.
I also usually shoot 3 arrows then pull them. But when shooting at the 3D targets I will move to a different position/distance and shoot up to 4 arrows at the same animal before retrieving the arrows.
Every shot I am working on my form, verify sight picture, verify anchor add tension release and follow thru.
Started shooting at 9 yrs old, shot a bit in college, did not shoot again till late 30s, never could get consistent with trad gear so took a detour into training wheels, got bored with them quit shooting altogether for a couple years now I am back at it.
Figured out all the reasons I was never any good with trad gear, and have learned to tune arrows to the bow/me and have learned what a proper form should be. Thanks in a very large part to the trad gang!

ChuckC · June 02, 2017, 09:56:00 PM

No doubt about it, i like roving (stump shooting) best.

Gooserbat · June 03, 2017, 06:04:00 PM

I stand at my target and toss an arrow in the random direction I want to shoot from. Then I walk to that arrow and toss another. I repeat this until I have 5-6 arrows laying about. I then stand with my foot on the place where the tip was lying and take the shot moving from arrow to arrow. It's way to rocky to stump where I live so this is my backyard routine.

Keith Westbrook · June 04, 2017, 10:23:00 AM

stump shooting pretty much exclusively

yeager · June 04, 2017, 02:37:00 PM

I do a lot of my practice on 3D targets, especially when hunting season is just around the corner. I rarely shoot for the scoring rings, concentrating more on where I would shoot that animal given the current situation, especially on quartering and up/downhill shots. Also, I normally only shoot one arrow as if I am actually hunting.

Sam McMichael · June 04, 2017, 05:12:00 PM

Most of my practice is on a 3D deer or a foam target. I like stump shooting, but in the heat of summer its just hotter than I am willing to try to tolerate. I never shoot more than two arrows at a time, often only one.

Pointer · June 05, 2017, 06:12:00 PM

I try to mix it up. I shoot in the back yard couple times a week at distances that range from 10 to about 25 yards. I might only shoot 15-20 arrows if I am shooting well or I may shoot a hundred if I want to work on something. On the weekends I like to head out to my club for some 3D work in the woods and all distances.