correcting my shooting form

[tradslinger]

I have been less than happy with my shooting and wasn't sure what the problem actually was. I am having vision issues which don't help matter but my shots were inconsistent. When you are shooting with no experienced shooter to watch you shoot, you have to self analyze yourself. Of course being able to film yourself would really help so that you can see everything. But I began with my release, I have always shot split finger, the only change ever was to switch from my pointing finger to my middle finger to the corner of my mouth. But after really checking my release, I realized that I was dropping my bow arm immediately after the shot. This was what was causing me so much grief. This was never an issue before but that was before the falls and torn shoulders leaving me weaker in the arms. So after forcing myself to keep pointing the bow at the target after the shot, my grouping dwindled big time and my accuracy looked so much better. But this is something that I will consciously have to work at until it becomes second nature again. Sloppy form leads to sloppy shot placement. The object of course, is to have it all worked out solid before I have my first hunt. Bad form problems are magnified with longer yardage and show you how terrible you are (arrows and bow in tune). This is a major advantage to having another trad shooter or a club setting to check your form out. I am shooting a 45# 68" longbow. 600 spine Gold Tip Classic XT arrows. Also shooting some woodies.   

[GCook]

Yeah, maintaining your form throughout the shot is critical.  Pain, fatigue, lack of focus.  All are enemies to consistent accuracy.

[Terry Green]

tradslinger.... start by clicking the link below.  Some of the drawings are kind of primitive now but it was started back in 2007.

Then email me your address... [email protected] if you have a DVD player.

https://www.tradgang.com/tgsmf/index.php?topic=109531.0

[Captain*Kirk]

tradslinger.... start by clicking the link below.  Some of the drawings are kind of primitive now but it was started back in 2007.

Then email me your address... [email protected] if you have a DVD player.

https://www.tradgang.com/tgsmf/index.php?topic=109531.0

Great thread, Terry. I'd not seen that before. However, as Jerry mentioned, without someone to spot you, it's sometimes hard to tell what mistakes one is making with form if you can't see them yourself. Any suggestions?

[Terry Green]

If you don't have someone that can watch you that can *tell* you what is going on, then filming and posting is the next best thing.

There are a few videos on another thread stickied to the top of the shooters forum, some are not live anymore as they were linked off site and some folk have taken them down.  Sad also is a lot of photo bucket pics got lost when they held peoples photos hostage unless they paid them.

[tradslinger]

I thought that I had replied to Terry last night but I guess that I didn't, may have timed out. I agree that what you have is an awesome help for most people but I am like a lot of other people that are not exactly "normal." Some of us have health issues that hinder our abilities to have a perfect form. From a crippled foot, it is extremely hard to stand in position very long as it affects the hip and lower back. Throw in more issues and add psoriatic arthritis and you are very challenged in many ways and things. I am also a disabled Vet and have been for quite a while. The VA has given me several walkers etc but I refuse to give in to them, yet. And yes, if you saw me walk you would understand even more. But thank you very much Terry for taking the time to do this. Jerry

[Terry Green]

I'll email you and you just reply with your address. 

[McDave]

It is possible to learn to shoot pretty well with a disability if you can be consistent, even if you're consistently doing the “wrong” thing by contemporary standards.  Maybe even better than pretty well. There were some brothers early in the last century, Walt and Ken Welhelm, who were champion trick bow shooters.  One of them, I think it was Walt, had a shoulder injury that prevented him from raising the bow into a normal shooting position, so he learned to anchor the bow on his waist somewhere, and with that anchor and a lot of practice, he was able to shoot small objects out of the air.  Just shoot as much as you can and be consistent in what you do.  Either through your own experience or by watching videos, ideas will occur to you from time to time on ways to improve your shooting.  Try them out, and if you can manage them with your disability and they seem to help, incorporate them into a new consistency.  Just make changes slowly: evolution, not revolution, is what you're after.

[Captain*Kirk]

If you don't have someone that can watch you that can *tell* you what is going on, then filming and posting is the next best thing.

There are a few videos on another thread stickied to the top of the shooters forum, some are not live anymore as they were linked off site and some folk have taken them down.  Sad also is a lot of photo bucket pics got lost when they held peoples photos hostage unless they paid them.

Thanks!

[tradslinger]

Thanks, I am doing pretty well, just not to what I once could do. The first thing was that I had to bite the bullet and drop down in bow weight. I no longer can hold it at full draw very long which is okay, I just have to already have my spot picked out. I just was losing distance and some shots seemed to be wild. I just knew that something wasn't what it was supposed to be. Now when I keep pointing the bow for a couple of seconds instead of instantly dropping it, everything is more consistent. I am pretty sure that part of the time I had already began dropping the bow before the arrow had a chance to clear the bow. Heck, people all over this world shoot different than we do and they do it very well. My ancestors didn't shoot this way either. But I believe that you have to shoot enough well to establish the memory of the brain to deal with changes. I used to half draw on small critters and close fish shots with no problem. But the strokes robbed me of all of that so like having to relearn how to spell and do simple math and other things, I have to get it engrained correctly in my head. If you let a disability completely take you out of a something you love, you don't love it enough or you will find a way. I remember watching a person drawing a bow with their teeth and their foot and shooting. A person with some disabilities has a different set of parameters to deal with than a normal person. But, it can be done somehow most of the times. And I do appreciate you guys, Your stories and tips encourage people like me to push even harder to do what I was missing so badly.