Confidence.............where does it come from? What's the best way to get it? What makes it disappear? When we lose it, is there a chance that it will never come back? When we have it, it feels like we aren't capable of making a bad shot, and if we do make bad shots, we know they will hit in the highest scoring area.
If any of you are like me, you have battled with the little confidence demon many times. This year has been a struggle for me, as any of you who have been reading this on a weekly basis know. I've been fairly confident in my own space this year while practicing but not to the point where I think I can go to a tournament and not miss. I can honestly say that it has been a long time since that has happened to me. Over the course of the last three years, I feel like I'm going to win every time I decide to hop in the car and drive to a shoot. Unfortunately, I haven't had that feeling too often this year. I have had it a few times, and those couple of times are the tournaments that I have been lucky enough to have great rounds. I've been having an incredibly difficult time going to tournaments and tackling them with the "I don't give a crap" attitude. However, looking back at my past performances, the tournaments in which I have been able to focus on having fun and shooting good shots have been the ones I have been able to perform at my best.
I took the picture above after changing arrows this week and shooting that group at 40 yards. I've been struggling all year and haven't been able to figure out what is causing some of the issues. After sitting down and thinking about it, I realized that I've been shooting arrows that spine out right on the borderline of being too weak. I've been shooting Gold Tip 500 Pierce Platinums at 27 1/2 inches with 100 grain points. This week I changed back to my old reliable arrows, which are Lightspeed 3D 500s at 26 1/2 inches and 100 grain points. Out of the gate, I started shooting better groups. The first night I made the change, I shot eights arrows from 80 yards at the 122 cm target. I shot six 10s and two 8s, and the 8s were due to making less-than-perfect shots. I made the change on Monday night and continued shooting throughout the week. The groups opened up a little bit as the days moved forward, but I still felt better about the choice to change arrows. On Wednesday night, I put the arrows to the test and shot in my weekly 3D league at Hudson Falls Fish and Game Club. I executed some great shots and ended the 15 target course without shooting an 8. I felt like I didn't shoot any better or worse than I had shot all year. It made me believe that the arrows were a little more forgiving on the shots that weren't executed perfectly. Here's the card from that night, even though it's a mess. Keep in mind that every lane we shot was a new lane. This league has been giving me great practice because nothing is ever the same. Compliments to Gary Wood and the archery committee for being on top of this. As you can see, I can't add too well, but I caught the mistake.
I've noticed that I've been shooting a lot better on target faces this summer than I have on 3Ds. I've been having a hard time engaging in my shot on the 3Ds, and I think it's because I don't have a defined aiming spot. I've never had that problem in all the years I've shot. Although today seemed much better, I know it's an issue I have to pay attention to.
I couldn't decide what I wanted to do this weekend, so I eventually decided to go to a local marked yardage money shoot. It was titled "The Extreme Challenge," so I didn't know what to expect. The max yardage was advertised as 75 yards, and there wouldn't be any dots on the targets. Since I knew all of the targets were going to be Rineharts, I figured I would go to get some practice on the targets that are shot at IBO events. It's always good to see those targets as much as possible.
I started off with an 8 on a dinosaur that was set at about 50 yards. In the beginning, I was shaking profusely, and it made it hard to hold the pin in the 10 ring. Unlike when I go to other shoots, I drank two ice teas on my way to the shoot and took an allergy pill. The combination of the two things made it very difficult to hold the bow steady in the beginning. As the day moved forward, my hold got steadier, and I began executing good shots. The shoot fit the advertisement of "extreme." The majority of targets, big or small, were shot at distances beyond 50 yards. Having a lot of terrain to work with made it difficult to shoot good shots. There were uphill, downhill and side hill shots throughout the day. I noticed that I'm still having the most difficult time with uphill shots as compared to all others. If I'm on flat ground or a slight downhill, it seems that I can shoot great shots.
About a third of the way into the course, I discovered something I haven't been doing over the last few weeks. My bow arm has gotten a little loose. When I discovered the problem and got it so it was in a position that locked the bones, I started executing some great shots. Throughout the day, I felt like Jesse Broadwater on some shots, and I felt like I had never shot a bow in my life on other shots. It was a really odd day. My good shots were absolutely fantastic, and my bad shots seemed to be somewhat okay. When I did miss the higher scoring rings, I barely missed. On the way home, my dad commented on the fact that he couldn't believe how close my misses were when I missed. I also held my line for the better part of the day. I think I missed one target to the right, but I couldn't identify my aiming spot, and I think the arrow hit behind the pin. I need to take the bow arm with me going into the next few weeks and make sure to keep it solid.
When I talked to Sean Roberts today, we talked about he bow arm. He said that he thinks he finally got his draw length in the right place so he can maintain solid pressure up front and in the back, which will allow him to relax in the other areas. As soon as he said that, I realized that I shoot my best when I can replicate that feeling. Unfortunately, the feeling seems fleeting. On a positive note, I did replicate it often today, so that it is a good thing.
I'm going to skip the archer's profile part for this week. I'm also going to try to avoid shooting many arrows this week to give my body some time to heal and relax. I'd like a fresh start. I don't know what to anticipate for the New England Trail Shoot. It's not a game I will prepare for, so when I don't prepare, I usually get what's to be expected. Although I could pull off a good day, it's tough if you're not shooting at the orange dots, or even field targets, to prepare. I didn't want to change my 3D setup for the game, which will probably hurt a little bit. For me to shoot field archery dots, I usually need to use a higher power lens in my scope. I have a really hard time with 3X and a small fiber. It makes it look like the pin is doing jumping jacks as I'm trying to aim. I'm sure many of you will read that and think that the 3X works fine for you. Well, that's where everyone is different. My setup works great for the 50-yard 3D game. When I've played field archery, I have always shot higher magnification and used a dot on the lens instead of a fiber. Therefore, I'll do my best and see what happens. I'm not expecting any miracles.
In the next few weeks, I'm going to try to work on my numbers a little bit since I will be attending the last leg of the IBO National Triple Crown in Pennsylvania in early July. I'd like to go and make a good showing. I'm still undecided what class I will shoot. I enjoy shooting with pins, and I enjoy shooting a moveable. Since there's a slim possibility I might go to the IBO World, I'm unsure if I would like to shoot a moveable or if I would like to shoot pins and see if I can repeat some of my success I've had there in the past. I do know that there aren't many people left in that class, but the ones who are left are some of the best who have ever shot pins from long distances. All of them are hard to beat, especially at that level. And the way this year has gone, I'd be happy just to shoot a respectable score. I have a few weeks to make that choice. Anyone have any opinions? What would you do..............defend a title............or show up with moveable and shoot the equipment that has brought you the most success since the early '90s? It's a tough call for me, especially with all of the form changes I've made.
One more note before I sign off for the night. I'm headed to the eye doctor's office on Tuesday morning. It's to check on a a few inner-eye problems I've had for a while and to make sure my diabetes isn't claiming a new victim along the way. I'm hoping for good news, but I never know what will happen when I head into these appointments.
--------------------------------> practice hard, have fun, never quit and give it your best shot.
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