What happens to your recent beginners?

[geoffretired]

What happens to the recent beginners who join your club? A club near me, for example, runs regular intermediate sessions for all who want to take advantage. At other clubs, newbies latch on to a more established archer and learn that way. How else do clubs cater for the newbies?

[simon m]

I guess encouraged to come on thursday nights for coaching/practise tuesdays is just practise for everyone, thursdays are "coaching" nights if required.

Then specific Targets are put out on sundays for newbies if they turn up and they are monitored and advised until they feel willing/able to shoot full rounds etc.

Thursday nights is beginners course at the moment for six weeks, so i guess its an extension of that.

[Tarkwin]

Once the beginners course is complete, the novices are encouraged to progress through our '252 scheme' - see past posts.

As far as additional coaching goes, being introduced this year is a scheme where senior members will take it in turns ( I don't know if it's rota'd or not) to be available on any shooting night/day to answer any questions and give assistance to any other club member. The person whose turn it is will wear an arm band of some sort - I doubt that anyone will advise novices to 'naff off' if they are not the advisor for the day. I think the idea is to ensure that the seniors get a fair crack of the whip as far as shooting is concerned.

I hope I explained that properly

T.

As a beginner I just pestered the living daylights out of Max. Always glad to help, a true inspiration and friend. In turn I would help anyone daft enough to ask me.

[Tarkwin]

I have given advice in the past...but I know my limits...and tend to take a back seat when more experienced archers get in on the act...I mean offer the benefit of their experience...and if the question is beyond me I will seek advice from someone else rather than blather.....

T.

[Sponge]

We chop them up and feed them to the cats.

Actually, we do nothing with them. The ones that have the bottle ask questions of better looking archers. The others group together and learn from each others mistakes. The really unlucky ones get advice from me (Blind leading the blind anyone).

Sponge.

[joetapley]

Actually, we do nothing with them. The ones that have the bottle ask questions of better looking archers. The others group together and learn from each others mistakes. The really unlucky ones get advice from me (Blind leading the blind anyone).

Same here

[Tarkwin]

That was very much the case when I completed my beginners course..

"Well done.....now..that's the shooting line...see that round thing over there....ok...shoot the pointy things at the round thing..oh...and please don't break the bow"

T.

[jammed05]

Originally Posted by Sponge

We chop them up and feed them to the cats.

Actually, we do nothing with them. The ones that have the bottle ask questions of better looking archers. The others group together and learn from each others mistakes. The really unlucky ones get advice from me (Blind leading the blind anyone).

Sponge.

it does some good i suppose

[TJ Mason]

In previous years, we've left them to get on with it alone. This year, we intend to have more of a structure and more varied opportunities -- continuous coaching, handicap improvement schemes, tuning sessions, encouraging people to enter tournaments, etc.

We've run the beginners course in a more structured way than previously. This has resulted in the beginners making substantially more rapid progress than in previous years, even though they're actually shooting fewer arrows. It just shows that the quality of attention and advice is more important than just flinging arrows.