Well, it seemed like hunting season was never going to end this year, and I kind of liked the feeling. Most people who know me know that my life revolves around archery, but archery always comes second when I throw hunting into the mix.
Although I've found some limited success on the archery trail over the years, the success doesn't remotely compare to the things I've gained through hunting. Hunting has given me the ability to write books, give seminars, appear as a guest speaker, write columns for magazines, and offer my opinions on a panel of expert deer hunters. I guess the success I've gained through hunting gives me a different perspective of many of the top archers out there. Some people consider me an expert because I've been lucky enough to take a lot of big deer. Unfortunately, I don't look at myself the same. I think I've just been lucky to take them because I spend an exorbitant amount of time in the woods unlike the vast majority of other hunters. I bust my ass to locate big deer and attempt to kill them. That's what drives me. I enjoy shooting my bow in archery competitions, but I live to hunt. That's what butters my bread.
I still have a few days of hunting season left in New York in the zone I live in, but I started shooting my bow indoors the other day. I just wanted to make sure I could shoot 60 arrows without killing my shoulders and elbow.
After finishing the round on Monday, I felt pretty good. I didn't have any pain in any part of my body, not even my back. My back usually pays the price from standing on the cement floor while shooting. I also didn't have any pain in my elbow. That was the most significant thing I noticed. It was the first time I didn't have elbow pain in the last two years. I pray that it stays that way.
I hung a target and started shooting. I only shot two practice ends and went live. I wanted to see how I could perform on a Lancaster round. When it was all said and done, I shot a 595 with 35 Xs for a 630. I considered that a success since I hadn't touched that bow since early October. I shot a TruBall HBC 4-finger release for the entire round and used SuperDrive 23 arrows.
I went back to the range on Thursday after work to shoot a few more arrows. I wanted to practice maintaining pressure on both ends. During my practice, I gained a lot of confidence. It brought me back to the year I shot 42Xs at the annual Guan Ho Ha 450 Vegas tournament. The feeling in my back was exactly the same as it was the day I shot in that tournament. When I can feel the pressure being maintained in my back, I feel like I can't miss. I will continue to work on that as I move forward. Proven results don't lie, and I know that I shot one of my best rounds ever shooting that way and feeling the pressure stay steady in my back. If I put all of my focus on that, I believe I will be able to turn back time and perform at that level once again.
Since my mind runs wild like a hamster on a spinning wheel, I decided to do something after my practice session to see what would happen. I decided to shoot the release my squeezing my ring finger to fire the release. I've used this method for many years. I maintain back tension and squeeze my ring finger. I wanted to see where the arrow would hit in comparison to shooting the way I've become accustomed to shooting.
Amazingly, I ran off 21 shots this way and missed the baby X twice, both times barely out, one to the left and one to the right. Neither of the SuperDrive 23s cam close to touching the 10 line. I pulled the last three arrows and headed out of the range shaking my head. I guess I can still be a squeezer if I have to be. I'm working to avoid that, but the results don't make it easy. In some ways, it feels good to know that I can activate the release in two entirely different ways and still find the center of the gold regularly.
I'm not sure how much I will be shooting this winter. The shipment of my latest books will be arriving next Monday, and I need to focus all of my efforts this year on promoting and selling my books. If anyone out there can think of someplace that would like to host a seminar along with a book signing afterward, I'd be all ears. I've traveled all over New England and New York doing that type of thing for the last 10 years, and I'm always interested in any potential leads.
I hope everyone has a great indoor season and finds success in whatever they're working on improving. I feel great about the things I changed last year. I have a feeling they will really show this year and help me during crunch time.
No comments:
Post a Comment