to sum or not to sum..that is the question...

[robbo]

Hey all,

Until my last 4 scoring rounds I have always added my totals up as I go along, this i've found can lead to frustration if you aren't scoring what you think you should (I know I do it, and you can see other archers doing the same). I then find myself trying harder to pull the scores back up. And yep, you get even worse.

My last 4 rounds I have not added the totals up, just scored the ends and I have shot 4 new PB's. Coincidence? Possibly. I have definately felt more relaxed about each shoot by not really knowing what my totals are. Ok, you have an idea how it's going by your end scores but the total could be way off what you think it is.

This has basically left my mind free to shoot each arrow as it comes rather than trying to force the issue, result...possibly better scoring and grouping. It's a bit early to tell as I've only shot 4 rounds like this, but will keep doing it to see what happens.

It's also a nice end to the shoot when you sit down with your shooting buddy, grab a coffee and start adding it all. You then get a pleasant surprise by your final total and realise that you weren't shooting that bad after all.

i'd be interested to read what you guys do, I'm sure i'm not alone in this one...

[Tarkwin]

This is something I've been thinking of doing recently - see my self pitying whinge in another thread.

What I've tended to do recently is score the first 2 1/2 doz. on one page and then start afresh on another then total the two at the end, this approach hasn't helped much, only so far as my poor brain is coping with smaller numbers..

However hard I try not to I also flip back some pages in the scorebook to compare where I am to where I was...I must rip those pages out...then I won't have that to think about.

An alternative is to do the shooting and let someone else do the maths...and get them to not let me know how I'm doing. This would be a huge imposition on them though.

T.

[JohnK]

I used to do Aikido several years ago, and whenever I hear an archer saying something like this I think of something my instructor said. He told us that when he started Aikido he found that he hated doing head throws. Really, really hated them. After doing everything he could to avoid practicing them for a while, he realised that he'd never truly progress with his understand of Aikido unless he tackled the problem. So he practiced them as frequently as possible, more than any other set of techniques, and finally overcame his fear.

Another more suitable story is one mentioned by Rick McKinney (I think it was in his book, but my copy appears to have vanished so I can't check). 50m with an 80cm face was his least favourite distance and the one he always scored poorly on compared to the others. So he told himself it was his favourite distance and practiced it more often than the others. This helped him overcome his mental block.

What I'm trying to say is that if you allow a fear or a habit to dominate you, then you'll never work past it. If you're put into a situation where you have no choice (i.e. you hate keeping score, but you're made the target captain at a shoot), then you'll suffer. Far better to face the fear or break the habit head on, I say.

Just my 2p.

[Rik]

I'd second John on that. It's not just that you will sometime end up in a situation where you can't avoid scoring (or at least, not without putting stress on yourself in some other way...), it's also that if you carry on shooting for long enough, you'll reach the point where you know roughly what your score is (or in some cases, exactly what your score is) without adding it up. Scores for ends become familiar after a while.

Having said that, I don't add up as I go along (unless I'm doing the scoring on a target), but then, I use TargetPlot which does it all for me... So I find it difficult to vote on this poll - neither option really seems to fit.

[morphymick]

Even when I'm not the target scorer I always have a good idea of how I'm doing, usually to within 5 points in 5doz.

Keeping tabs on the score helps in double checking with whoever is scoring. I've almost been done out of points in the past.

Mick

[Furface]

The problem is not really in knowing your score, but in comparing it. You cannot guarantee the former - you should work on the latter. So that, even when you know you are approaching a PB (or PW) you take that as just another factor in a throrughly enjoyable day.

[Kellog]

I don't like knowing the over all total until its done, as I do find that if I know how close/good it is/could be that I just throw the end of the score and end up with something close to what I was aiming for but not quite there.
However I like to know the dozen totals as I go along.
I've both scored for other people and had people score for me, I found that when I was intentionally not scoring, looking at the score or looking at the arrows I got paranoid about what the score was or how it was going/

[Radar_UK]

I currently add them up as I go along - not that it makes a lot of difference with my terrible maths, last week I left the club on a high having bettered my Portsmouth PB by 10 points.....

..... wasn't till I entered it into Robbo's marvelous spreadsheet that I realised I had miscalculated and had only equalled it !

[gunmender]

I find it seems natural to add as you go along, the totals are easier with only 6 numbers (Hopefully!!) having played a lot of golf it may be a carry over from that.

Also i tend to think along the trend rather than pure score, if im dropping down into say averaging 8 and a bit on a Portsmouth i know something isnt quite right, where as an odd 8/7 creeping in is not too upsetting

[Murray]

Lets say you're shooting well at a tournament - the organiser decides to announce the leaderboard, and your name is shouted out, along with your score... you can't let it mess up your shooting. Keep practicing and scoring and learn to just shoot each arrow as well as you can. Having said that I'm in the middle somewhere regarding your poll - sometimes I add up, but most times I won't bother until the end. If I'm at a tournament and it's double scoring, I do add the scores up as I go.