Cures for compound target panic without changing release?

[Jerry Tee]

You might try using a wrist release aid, draw the bow by using an up and over draw, rather like longbow or Japanese archer. Adjust the draw lenght so that when you reach the back wall the weight of the drawing arm and shoulder is helping you hold on the back wall. I find that I can 'settle' this way and when I touch off the release aid the elbow continues its downwards travel as the shot goes off.
I have to shoot this way because I lack mobility in my right elbow as a result of years of racket sports. I can't bend my right elbow to bring a conventional release aid to my jaw bone.

[archery_mum]

Originally Posted by sambow

This made me think softer was better as my technique was to squeeze my thumb onto the trigger and a hard trigger meant sometimes I was having to squeeze quite a lot (or maybe even jerk it).

The idea is not so much to squeeze the trigger but curl your thumb around it and then by pulling with your back muscle you pull through the trigger. It takes a little while to master but is worth working at. Perhaps you need to see a coach before the problem becomes to engrained.

I agree with Marcus' point on not setting yourself unrealistic targets for scoring. This is especially true of indoors where it is very difficult to maintain high scores for the whole indoor season. You are just putting pressure on yourself that will make the problem worse. Be happy with what you score on the day and if you go down a little, don't beat yourself up about it.

[The Meggy]

What Archery mum and Marcus have said is excellent advise in my opinion, and I wouldn't want to add to it. I speak as an archer who has had target panic for at least the last 6 years or so. A lot of the time I've managed to shoot quite well despite it, having made MB and 1300 FITA, BUT I've always felt (if honest) that it was still limiting what I could achieve. There's a tendency to kid yourself that nothing is wrong and that you can sort things out by controlling your mind and staying calm etc... Indeed, this does help and if you have a good day you think "Yes, it's ok, no need to change anything". But you can also have days when it gets you very badly, and that's no fun at all...

I've only recently started working with a back-tension release, but I can already feel the benefits and it's starting to come together. For the moment I still use my old style and release in competition, but will go to the back tension technique completely once it's strong enough, and hopefully will be able to use a trigger release with back tension also as Archery Mum describes. Don't waste several years waiting as I did, back tension surprise release is the way to go!

[Justmista]

After struggling with the problem myself for some time - I can sympathize.
I was spending most time helping others and not enough personal shooting.

I treated myself to a session with John Dudley, which resulted in buying a new bow and the Evolution release aid.

After more practice with the Evolution, I changed the balance of the bow by experimenting with stabilizers. This improvement in balance made it easier to hover the sight softly around the gold. I would sometimes hold a while and then come down without shooting and other times I would decide to commit to the shot - being patient for the release to work.
No snatches or anticipation. It will go off.

I have another bow now and I have continued with this calm settling and my patience to release. I feel I have the power to choose to commit or not.

My archery is improving once more and I am really enjoying my own shooting again!

[pwiles1968]

Sorry to hear about your problems, I hope you find advice that will help you soon, I may see you next Tuesday I hope to visit you guys for my last indoor session this year. Just in case I don't I will send you a PM.

[ASW1973]

there will be two articles in the next bow magazine about this subject including why punching happens from a neuro physiological point of view and what you can do about it.

[geoffretired]

I look forward to reading that.Especially the WHY bits.

[sambow]

Thanks for all the great suggestions and PM's I think there is certainly enough here to work with.

Paul Wiles who has seen me shoot sent me a PM and commented I shoot really fast and he is absolutely right. I have never timed myself but on occassions I think from commencing draw to release its all over in well under 5 seconds. Some of this is physical some is pschological. The physical means I am not particularly strong and tire with long bow holds. The psychological is I am not comfortable getting the dot on the X and when I do get it there I am far from confident I can keep it there! So the sort of thoughts that are going through my mind are "quick get the arrow away before the dot moves off again". This I know is no good.

My initial thoughts and what I am likely to try are:

1) I like the suggestion of trying to settle on the gold without letting the arrow go and shooting a portsmouth without releasing an arrow. I think this may give me more confidence that I can find the X with the dot and keep it there!
2) I like Marcos suggestions of moving closer, reducing magnification, taking time and using a mantra

I have a decent back garden so I will try these first and see how things go.

I like archery mums suggestion re release method. I know this is a far better way to use a release but I am not sure that I am ready for that yet and want to get back to where I know i can be with my current release method. Once I have conquered by basic sighting fears, this will be a good next step.

If I were to try this approach I think I would tend to shoot without a target just to get use to the "feel" of using this release method. Once I know how to effect the release, then I will go back to the target.

I fear there is no five minute solution to this, but by working at it I hope I will come out a better archer (either that or its going to be instinctive longbow from here on)

[bimble]

Originally Posted by sambow

I fear there is no five minute solution to this, but by working at it I hope I will come out a better archer (either that or its going to be instinctive longbow from here on)

Hmmmm, I said something very similar to that only yesterday while struggling to get my arrows straight yesterday!!

[Marcus26]

I noticed this comment

I think this may give me more confidence that I can find the X with the dot and keep it there!

Remember you only need to aim as well as you need to score.
If you are shooting 565 then you are averaging less than 9.4 per arrow.

Now if you draw up and aim at the X and just aim the dot will move around the target but be centred at the X.
So you should be able to keep the arrow in the X about 50% of the time.

So again, if you squeeze you should hit 50% of your shots in the 10 and then if you can keep your float in the gold, the other 50% in the gold.
That should give you a 570.

Now as you shoot faster and punch the trigger you move during the shot. This adds an element of randomness to your shooting. While you may have the same movement rate, you will change those percentages to a random figure. Sometimes good, sometimes bad.
Because it is random this will take place
1) You will get good days causing bigger scores, and bad days causing lower scores.
2) You will never ever get that situation where the release has activated and you have moved correctly enough to shoot 100% of the times into the X.

Now if you squeeze the release your scores will be affected by
1) How well you aimed that day. It does not have to be dead still, just minimal movement.*
2) How smooth you are sqeezing the release. As you squeeze better and remove anticipation the more pin point the shots are

Because now both of those are skills that develop and improve over time you will improve over time. No randomness.


* Regarding aiming. Sometimes I can hold the dot pin point still, but that's not often. Most of the time it bounces around the outter 10. Because the size of my arrows mean I get X's with a clean 10 then I know I should hit about 75-80% of my shots into the X IF I keep calmed and squeeze the release well. So aiming dead still is nice, but not a huge impact on my scores, using the release smoothly is more important for me.