Archery, driven by rage is a thing, Period!
However, it is up to you to decide the muse. You can either let the frenzy motivate the archer within or invest the energy to learn the tricks of the trade, better than the peers.
Considering you already know a hell lot about the sport and the physics behind the same, we will keep this discussion restricted to skill whetting. Although we are tempted to talk more about the multi-faceted survival technique that eventually evolved into an Olympic-level sport, for now, we will cut the gibberish and start with the expositions.
What to Expect?
Each of the 7 elements that are to be enlisted can be applied to almost any level of archery. Be it indulging in a recreational field event or practicing Target Archery for an event, these elements are expected to fit in, regardless of the reason you draw the string.
Aiming Off-The Art to Imperfection
Let’s not fret over how ‘Aiming Off’ sounds like a counterintuitive archery technique. Instead, it concerns responding to the wind movements or the lack thereof. Wind can be a surprising ally or a bane, depending on your aiming skills. Despite having the requisite draw length and poundage on the Recurve, amateurs and even professionals end up missing the mark during practice.
Therefore, to account for the wind, aiming off is necessary. Most archers unwittingly aim at the middle when the scores readily adhere to the edges. This means, if you are targeting the edge of 9, try and aim inwards for the 10 and let the wind take care of the rest. However, you need to practice in a wide range of climatic conditions to master this technique.
Timing- Saving for the Long Haul
In most cases, excellent qualifying results do not translate into credible in-match performances. While some might blame lack of practice for the same, we would tag complacency. A good approach to get ahead of the competitors is to cut the qualifying shot time to half.
Instead of taking up the entire 40 seconds, you must aim to get the shot out by 20. This is one of the few archery techniques that steady you during the match. As pre-drawing and drawing take up a lot of time, try to accommodate within 20 seconds to avoid hasty shots.
Quantity- Not equal to Quality
Shooting more in archery doesn’t always translate to better aims and scores. While we aren’t complaining as long as you nook the arrow in time, having several resources to send through can make you feel at ease. Instead, restrict the number to a maximum of 15 each day and concentrate on perfecting the stance and better positioning of the drawing hand.
Stretch Bands- Strength Matters
We understand that you are restricted to Recurve Bows for competitions, which often translates to maximum poundage of 50lbs. However, to reach the maximum limit and get in more flatter and powerful shots, you need to work on the string draw length.
This is why professionals and even enthused shooters resort to stretch bands before every practice session, specifically for achieving better muscular stimulations.
Also, this technique works better if you are practicing in colder terrains, where the hand tends to numb down between shots.
Practicing Control- Key to the Perfect Shot
Control over the shot has a lot to do with core strength. However, only professionals use this approach, even though aspiring archers need to master this technique at the earliest. Control over the shot means the ability to improvise and manage the bow and its whereabouts at any given instance or rather at will.
In practice, this involves the coach telling the archer to shoot at a particular instant, only to check the preparedness and alertness. To simplify, this is one of the many archery techniques that allows control over the clicker and even the execution phase by helping the archer stay in the zone.
Know your Bow- Oiling the Machine
While we did talk about the archery techniques at length, nothing would work if you aren’t mentally and physically intertwined with the bow. Assuming that you would be using a Modern Recurve in practice sessions and even the match, you must be in sync with the Riser, Limbs, and the Bowstring.
Only if these elements are in harmony with your arms, you can expect the shot to be perfect. As a matter of fact, the archer’s bowstring is probably the most essential resource.
Be it setting up the brace height uniformly for managing shots in erratic climatic conditions or adding twists to the bowstrings for efficient tuning, your coach should teach you about maneuvering the Recurve Bow at will, to suit the shooting conditions.
In addition to emphasizing Bowstrings, you must also focus on the bow balance, grip, and associated Push-n-Pull, for selecting the Recurve that makes you feel the most comfortable.
Situational Shooting- Prepping up for the Face-Off
Practice sessions are invaluable but they still cannot match up to the in-match stress levels. Therefore, professional coaches often resort to something called Situational Archery to prep their prodigies better.
This approach involves stimulating match-like situations by replicating a life-instance and pairing the shots with it. Coaches set forth imaginary scenarios as a part of the training drill, precisely to make the archers relive the competition pressure.
Bottom-Line
While these are only a handful of archery techniques that can help you achieve perfection, we shall keep the more descriptive elements like the importance of blanks, setting anchor, string releasing techniques, and string tension segregation for subsequent discussions.
Regardless of what you learn and unlearn, try and stack up the kit with a few extra bowstrings, simply as a failsafe strategy.
That said, are you worried that the purchased bowstring will not live up to your expectations and bow harmony? Fret not, as Vapor Trail’s Bowstring Customizer doesn’t make you forego the prized archery techniques and instead allows you to pick customized strings, regardless of the Recurve, Compound Bow, or Longbow in hand.