What's gone wrong with my Hobby.

[Medoc]

This may be come a rant about a whole range of things which are connected to our sport and have started to wind me up lately.


So heres my list of gripes,in no paricular order.

Dont carry knives (as you will probably run riot)

Dont drink (anything except water)

Dont talk to juniors (as you may be accused of being some sort of pervert)

Dont enjoy yourself at a tournament (raised voices and people having a good time will upset someone)

Dont like anything to do with the GNAS (especially the rounds, dont you know FITA's are much better)

Dont eat normally, Bananas, dried meat, nuts, Jaffa Cakes and more Bananas oh and fruit gums are the best shooting foods (oh and you will be pretty regular)

Dont try to improve over time, with practice and good advice (no just go spend a grand at your local retailer for the fastest kit in the land and just miss faster)

Do be obsessed with scoring (yep at every opportunity, dont forget to score in practise when trying new things out so that if they do not gel after 10 minutes you can easily identify this and revert to your old method)

Do ask a coach or more experienced archer for help (oh and dont forget to listen to everyone elses opinions as well,even people who dont know what they are on about)

Do become a coach......but only after you have been shooting for a couple of years at least, oh and dont rush theought the levels, it would ne nice if you practised you newly aquired skills for a couple of years before progressing up.

We all started archery as a hobby and for the vast majority of us that is what is, a hobby, some thing we do for fun, there are some talented people who can now just about scrape a living a archers but they are few in number.

Dont forget you have to be super fit many hours in the gym will help your shooting have I mentioed that water and bananas are key to this.

Dont try to master 1 discipline in archery, the best thing to do is to start on recurve than get a longbow or AFB or a mongolian sinew bow and then a compound as well, you are so good you will easily master all at the same time.

Erm, thats enough ranting, this is my HOBBY, I will have fun, I will enjoy myself, I will understand that I cannot shoot records and PB's at every tournament, oh yeh I will try bloody hard when I an stood on the shooting line, but I will also remember it is supposed to be FUN, my HOBBY.

.......erm as a afterthought could any of the above contribute to the frighteningly high drop out rate in our sport?

[Chris B]

Originally Posted by Medoc

I will try bloody hard when I an stood on the shooting line, but I will also remember it is supposed to be FUN, my HOBBY.

In my understanding, trying hard when on the line doesn't get very far if you don't put in alot of effort OFF the line. For me, its both, or neither.

Personally, i spend alot of time and effort on archery OFF the line, doing exercises, making strings or whatnot. That makes it more satisfying when my effort on the line pays off all the more. But, as do you, i still treat it as a hobby.

My job is to study physics. My future job will be to do it. I know im a better physicist than i am an archer, (and a better linguist than physicist, but its not supposed to be that way round :S).

Taking things seriously is good if your passionate about it and share it with people around. But unfortunately, other people take things seriously by making aggressive convictions and unreasonable rules and sucking the fun out of it for everyone.. (you can normally spot them by the Lincoln Green blazer and white beard).

Most of your remarks are totally justified responses to uber-politically-correct-ness.

[Chris B]

Originally Posted by sp220

7: A coaching course doesn't make a coach. I could name half a douzen "coaches" off the top of my head that didnt know a bow from their own elbow.

Yeah. Can you believe that archers who do not draw the string to touch their face have PASSED the level1 course?! In my eyes, at least, that makes the whole level1 coaching thing utterly worthless..

btw you are right about the juniors. they are actually forward thinking, dont hate fun, and in my experience, normally better archers than most of the old foggies. The juniors at Cheltenham Archers are awesome.

[jb.68]

Originally Posted by Chris B

Yeah. Can you believe that archers who do not draw the string to touch their face have PASSED the level1 course?! In my eyes, at least, that makes the whole level1 coaching thing utterly worthless..

btw you are right about the juniors. they are actually forward thinking, dont hate fun, and in my experience, normally better archers than most of the old foggies. The juniors at Cheltenham Archers are awesome.

Haha, my string don't touch my face either, as I draw to my ear, but I am a level 1. However, I'm still a good boy and teach the beginners to draw to their chin.

Oh and I also agree about the juniors... well except for a couple that manage to shoot their arrows about 15 yards behind the boss and take 20 mins looking for the buggers only to find that actually it dropped 5 feet in front of it....

[King Custard]

I think its wise to realise that not all archers are purely hobbyists.
Not all are even shooting to be sociable.
For Some, it isn't fun atall, it's a holy grail, a 'must have achievement'.

Some are deathly serious.
Full on 'desciples' of the sport/art
Totally committed.
cant draw a breath without holding it ...and aiming!

(read 'totally anal about it' if you will)

and yet some of these anally obsessive unsociable 24/7 'arrow- heads'........

Are shooting the best scores in the world.....or headed that way..
are 'Most' archers heroes/mentors/benchmark templates.....

They'll greet us 'do-nuttins' with respect,
give us tips- even on the line,
share, and care for our trifling woes-
encourage us with ' nice arrow '..'good end'...'thats not a bad score'
Pass on whatever they've learned in their obsessions
Generally they try (or at least try) to save us all many wasted hours in vain attempt to progress.....knowing full well - that Most of us will never have what it takes to' do-anythin' in archery.
I see a great need for the anal archers...yeah sure the fun loving hobbyist too.

There's room for all- the ace archer, and the joker...though I know whose opinion I'd prefer to take in, which I'd prefer to talk archery with, which I'd like to immitate....and which I'd like to take me under their wing and actually 'Learn from' to become more than an enthusiast

[gtek]

You make some good points- about a few things.

It's all well and good to rant about things that people worry about which have no merit. Score obsession and trying to fast-track advancement are indeed problems.

However, ranting about some of the things that are neccessary to high performance or safety seems counter productive, or silly at best.

For instance, alcohol simply has no place on the shooting line. Afterwards, fine, but don't drink while shooting, driving, or engaged in any other activity which may endanger yourself or others.

Proper nutrition in competition is simply common sense. The sugar rush from your jelly whatevers might be fine for you but it will let you down in the long haul. Enjoy your junk food if you wish but don't be critical of others making good nutrition choices.

Have fun with your archery- but don't knock the neccessary things required for a high performance path. You are free to ignore them!

[Alexam]

What a depressing way to start the day - seeing so many that are not happy with the hobb.

We all get depressed from time to time, dissapointed with our own performance (the main problem) and up tight about how to improve matters.

Until I started archery - and I am only a lowly beginner with hardly an opinion to put forward along with such esteemed company - I have thrashed many golf balls around miles of courses and spent a similar amount on equipment that I now intend spending in archery.

If you want frustration, try it, - particularly if you are not satisied or getting enjoyment from what you are doing, but I still persivere and still enjoy getting out there at 7am on a Sunday morning and wouldn't change it even though it IS frustrating.

Even after so many years golfing, I still go occassionally go for lessons with a coach - I am prepared to pay for his expertise and it always helps. Coaches in any sport are worth engaging provided they have the necessary experiance, but perhaps some, in their early days, are not up to the standard of more experianced archers. So pay for the best - go elsewhere.

If you are not happy at your club, join another, but from experiance of my many years (many many years) if you are more possitive in your outlook you will achieve far more than with a negative attitude.

It's my 45th wedding anniversary today and being so keen on this new hobby that I have started, my first though (perhaps 2nd) was to see what's on the Interchange.

A glum start to see this thread. Cheer up guys, be happy and shoot well.

Regards to all - even those who will consider this silly old *%$*** as a twit!

Malcolm

[King Custard]

Right behind you Malcolm!
Stop whinging you bunch of sad-sacks! - this guy's been with the same girl for 45 years...and he's gotten up this morning Far more positive than some of us.
Whether archery is your pastime, hobby, whole life's work or bread-and-butter, Take a tip from this guy:
bend with the wind, go with the flow...things aint so bad...so see the positive!


And happy aniversary to you both!
does that make you a GMB then?- a grand-master-bridegroom?

[Alexam]

Originally Posted by King Custard

Right behind you Malcolm!
Stop whinging you bunch of sad-sacks! - this guy's been with the same girl for 45 years...and he's gotten up this morning Far more positive than some of us.
Whether archery is your pastime, hobby, whole life's work or bread-and-butter, Take a tip from this guy:
bend with the wind, go with the flow...things aint so bad...so see the positive!


And happy aniversary to you both!
does that make you a GMB then?- a grand-master-bridegroom?

Thanks Danny,

Didn't know if I was sticking my orr in where it didn't belong, as a 'new boy' to archery, all be it an 'old' one, but I feel that a more possitive attitude will work wonders. Perhaps it my age!!!

Good arrows!

Malcolm

[King Custard]

In a world of nay-sayers, can't do's, mustn't do's, shouldn't does and oftentimes silly rules ( though many rules are to the advantage), it's dead easy to get bogged down and despondent....perhaps that was the original 'feeling' behind this whole thread.

But Archery Is a mental game- as you quite rightly say a positive outlook has to be best and we really would be better off looking on the bright side.
For myself, and I'm sure for many here- your 'orr' is most welcome, and your attitude spot on.

As I always said (even before the greying started)- you don't get whiter without getting wiser!