Welcome to our Beginners Course This is just a quick document that gives you a bit of information prior to starting the beginners course. If you could please read through this prior to the first lesson. Everything in here will be covered on the course, but we feel it s good to get some of this information before you start. It s also handy to refer back to it during the week prior to the next lesson. CLUB OFFICIALS Secretary Ken Davies Coaching Officer Paul Jones The list of club officials opposite is not the full list but it is the most relevant to your beginners course. Most courses will have at least two coaches on hand during the lessons, but in most cases it will be more than that. We hope that you enjoy the course and more importantly discover a new sport that you will hopefully love as much as we all do. First Aiders Coaches Ken Davies oliver Keane lee Price Ken Davies Karl Staffer Audrey Roberts Paul Jones Jan Harding Alan Harding mike Hughes mark Barraclough
About wrexham bowmen We are a friendly family orientated club primarily involved in target shooting, with archers of all ages and abilities, shooting traditional Longbows, flatbows and modern recurve and Compound Bows. This manual has been designed to act as an aide memoire for beginners in the sport of archery. The information contained in this manual will support the information and instruction given to you on your beginner s course. However the instruction given to you on your course should always take precedence over anything contained within this manual. All coaching will be delivered by qualified Archery GB coaches, however trainee level coaches (working under supported supervision) and un-qualified experienced archers may be involved in coaching and teaching. Shooting Times Shooting takes place at St Christopher s School, Stockwell Grove, Wrexham. Archery is divided into indoor and outdoor seasons. During the indoor season which runs roughly from October to March, we shoot in the Gym, other than that we shoot outdoors. Outdoor We shoot on a Sunday from 9am, to about 3pm depending on the weather and rounds being shot, it is expected that if you arrive early you will help set up the field, and if you arrive later, you help take the equipment down. Indoor Due to the limited spaces indoor, we run a morning and afternoon session, and places can be booked via the website, again if you shoot on the morning session you will be expected to help set up, and the afternoon shift will take the equipment down. Course information All beginners courses follow the Archery GB beginner s syllabus and at the conclusion of the course you should achieve an internationally recognised archery qualification standard and will receive a certificate. The course will consist of 3 lessons of 3 hours each. All equipment will be provided for the duration of the course. At the end of the course you will: Know and understand the safety rules and etiquette of the sport Be familiar with the equipment used in target archery Be able to consistently hit an 80cm target at 18m Know and understand the scoring systems used in target archery Know and understand the basic shooting rules of target archery Be able to conduct some simple maintenance of your archery equipment Obtain a certificate confirming your skills to Archery GB standard Note. Please do not purchase any of your own equipment prior to the end of the course. If you wish to progress with the sport, speak to one of the coaches who will provide advice on the equipment best suited to your needs.
clothing and safety gear Wearing the correct clothing is an important part of archery as is having the correct safety equipment. Archery is not a dangerous sport but the incorrect clothes or equipment can cause the archer an issue. To avoid this we have a few basic rules. The safety equipment will be provided by us, but we need to make sure you come prepared in the correct way to shoot. The image below gives you a quick overview of the points, but please refer to the more definitive list opposite. It can be cold even indoors during winter months, so please dress for the weather taking into account the points listed opposite. 1. No loose jewellery 2. Long hair must be tied back and out of eyes 3. No bulky jackets or coats and nothing with exterior pockets or dangling strings such as the toggles on a hoodie 4. long sleeves are a good idea, but nothing bulky. Sweatshirts with long sleeves are good. 5. No open-toed shoes or high heels. Training shoes are perfect 6. You will be given an arm guard (bracer) to wear during shooting
shooting equipment You will be using a recurve bow during your lessons. There are specific right and left handed versions of these bows and you will be given the appropriate version for you. Recurve bows come in different lengths and different poundage and again you will be give the most appropriate to your size and physical ability. The modern recurve bow comes in three main parts, but there are also many smaller parts that make up the complete bow. Please refer to the diagram below for all of their names. You will also of course be using arrows on the course. A description of the parts of the arrow are also on the diagram. Please take the time to get to know all of the parts of the equipment you will be using, as there will be questions during the course. Safe use of this equipment is of paramount importance to our club and we will ensure that this is always the case. Please always listen to the coaches, especially when discussing safety procedures.
avoiding injury Not only is safety with the bow important, but also making sure you don t injure yourself by pulling something during the course. There is a good chance that you will use muscles on this course that you haven t used in a while and certainly not in this way, therefore we make sure that everyone warms up those muscles before we start. Although your upper body is used the most during shooting, your whole body gets a work out, so we make sure we warm up the whole body. Don t worry, this is not an aerobics class, its just a few exercises to get your body loose and your muscles warmed up and stretched. We don t expect anyone to do anything they can t, so just follow the coaches lead and do what you can to get ready to shoot. The diagram below shows the typical exercises that the coach will ask you to perform, but individual coaches may have their own favourite exercises and may differ from these. Important Notice. If at any point during the course, you are feeling tired, unwell or feel that you may have pulled something, please stop shooting and tell one of the coaches. Also feel free to take as much rest as you want during the lessons. You can bring food or drinks with you and stop to consume them when you want, as long as it s not when shooting.
on the shooting line We teach to shoot using the T-Draw technique. This creates a consistent shooting style and is perfect for beginners. It is 8 distinct actions which are as follows. 1. Stance. See diagram below 2. Nock the arrow 3. Set hands 4. Prepare 5. Raise the bow 6. Draw the string 7. Anchor and aim 8. Release and follow through All of these will be explained in more detail during the course, but the next few pages will give you some more information on parts of this eight step process. The T-Draw is used by most of the worlds top archers and although we are applying it to shooting a recurve bow, many of the stages are replicated when shooting other types of bow, such as a compound bow or longbow. The correct technique now, will help you progress in archery and ensure a consistent style of shooting. You will no doubt have seen many people shooting bows on TV or in the movies. In fact this may have inspired you to attend this course but remember, in many of these cases they will not use the correct technique, so forget what you ve seen and follow the coaches advice.
On the shooting line When you nock the arrow, it must be rotated in such as way as to allow the fletchings to pass by the riser without hitting it. To do this, the index fletching should be facing away from the riser as shown above. The arrow should also be sitting on the arrow rest and the nock should be pushed on the string until you hear a slight click. Once the arrow is nocked the bow should be held upright not on an angle. Setting the hands is very important. You shouldn t grip the bow tightly or twist the bow in your hand. The coaches will demonstrate, but also refer to the diagram above. Your other hand is used to draw back the string and the fingers should be placed as in the top diagram. One finger above the arrow and two below. You don t use your thumb or little finger at all and make sure you don t grip the arrow with your fingers. See above
On the shooting line The bow you will be using is fitted with a sight and because of this, you must ignore where the arrow is pointing and only look at the sight when aiming. As you can see from the diagram opposite, it appears that the arrow is aiming at the leg of the target. This is not the case and it is the sight that will determine where the arrows goes, so make sure it is lined up on the gold in the centre of the target. On the right of the diagram you will see a representation of the sight and where the arrows have hit the target. What this is showing, is that if you want to change where your arrows are landing on the target, you must follow the arrow. This means if you arrows are going high, you move your sight block up and if they are going left, you move your sight pin left. The sight on the left is similar to the sight you will have on your bow and it moves on two axis. The sight block can move up and down the sight bar, to make arrows go higher or lower and the sight pin can move left or right to change the left and right direction of your arrows. The follow the arrow rule means that you can adjust both axis in order to get your arrows in the gold.
safety 1. Warm up first - this will help prevent injuries 2. Waiting line is the line which separates the waiting area from the equipment area 3. equipment Area is the area between the waiting line and the shooting line, where the equipment (bows) are kept when not in use 4. Shooting Line is the line from which the archer shoots their arrows. Do not move to this line until instructed. This is the only point where you can nock an arrow onto the string. 5. Drawing the Bow only draw the bow when you are on the shooting line, facing the target, even if you do not have an arrow fitted to the string- NOWHERE else unless instructed to do so by one of the coaches. 6. respect Others do not shout or talk loudly to others on the shooting line, or in the waiting area. 7. Only go forward of the shooting line with the permission of the field captain 8. Come Down / Fast - these verbal commands mean relax the string tension without allowing the arrow to go, holding onto the string at all times, until the bow is at rest. 9. Whistle commands a) a single blast, start shooting b) three blasts, collect arrows c) a series of blasts FAST 10. Never dry shoot a bow without an arrow attached as this can cause serious damage to the bow. Only loose when you have an arrow fitted to the string and you are aiming at the target. 11. only load an arrow onto the bow when you are on the shooting line and intending to shoot, when the range is clear and it is safe to shoot. It is everyone s responsibility to ensure the range is safe and clear and if not to ensure they shout FAST. 12. Never run on the range. Walk down towards your targets from the edges on those targets, never directly straight on. Approach from the side, not the front. A person will be nominated to pull the arrows; all other archers should stand back to give them room to work. The archer pulling the arrow should check over their shoulder prior to pulling the arrow to make sure it is safe to do so. Place one hand on the target next to the arrow, and the other on the shaft of the arrow, as close to the target as possible. Pull the arrow backwards in a straight line until it is free of the target. You can hold all the arrows in the hand that is placed on the target. 13. All arrows need to be found. If some have missed the target and are lost then they must be reported to the field captain so it can be recorded for insurance purposes. 14. If you do not place the arrows in a quiver immediately, hold in one hand with about 1 of the arrow showing and tuck the nock end under your arm, ensuring that you do not crush the fletching s.
School Gym Entrance Entrance 3 Park Here Enter field here we shoot here outdoors The course is held at St Christophers School Address: Stockwell Grove, Wrexham, Clwyd LL13 7BW