Which? One arrow at a time or 300?

[Scott Barr]

I am reading Bernard Cornwell's book 1356 for the second time.  He describes English longbow archers practicing daily shooting at least 300 arrows.  They did so shooting as many as 16 arrows per minute as far as 200 yards pulling 120 lbs.  Purely instinctual shooting. With great accuracy.

I shoot one arrowhead at a time, because I am always battling target panic. I am wondering if maybe the act of aiming is contributing to my problem.  Maybe I should be considering shooting 300 arrows at a time, the only aiming being picking a target and not overthinking it?

Thoughts?

[John Malone]

I over think it every time staring at a paper target, no clue as to why. I like to walk through the pine thicket pick a pine cone and just shoot it, accuracy is great. If you don't have a pine thicket, walk away from your target in a random direction turn and shoot, walk a few more paces in another direction turn and shoot. I do this daily, may not work for others but it works for me. For some reason my instinctual aim on paper isn't all that great, but I can drill a random pine cone on the ground up to twenty yards no problem. Pick a target and shoot just like you said.

[Sota]

I was going to make a joke about owning 300 arrows, then I looked at my growing pile of shafts and realized I might just have that many

[gsurko]

I scatter a few stuffed animals around my yard that I get from resale shops cheap, shoot at em with either judo's or hex heads at random distances. Great fun and improves accuracy.

[MW]

I stopped shooting for quite a while due to this... I became too caught up in perfection and lost sight of the fun.  It lead to target panic.  

I now try to shoot a higher volume of arrows with a more forgiving target size while focusing form.

I need to check the perfectionist in me at the door.

[ChuckC]

Train for what you need.  A person who was an archer in jolly Ol England during the times that they used them for war might very well need to shoot that many arrows in the course of a battle. Hitting your target n battle is a very good thing.  

You, most likely, never will need to do that.

We have discussed TP a lot here over the years.  My personal opinion is that, for one form of it, the aiming part is the problem.  But one way or another, we have to aim (if we want to hit something).

[monterey]

I wonder how accuracy was defined in old England when the objective was to rain many arrows from many bows on the ranks of the enemy?

[Sam McMichael]

I can't concentrate for 300 consecutive shots. However, enough arrows need to be shot to build the necessary muscle memory into yourself. The trick is to determine how many shots are enough to build the physical fitness needed to shoot the hunting bow while retaining good form. That will vary from archer to archer. I don't like to concentrate on too much "perfection" in my shots, because I don't have the natural ability to achieve it, and besides, true perfection is not necessary to be a very good shot.

Once an archer gets reasonably good, perhaps practice should be varied to prevent boredom. Shoot some flat targets, some blank bale form practice, some 3D, and do a little stump shooting. The only perfection we should pursue is pure fun.

[KeganM]

I like a variety of practice methods. If I only shoot one kind my shooting becomes specialized and it messes me up. The more comfortable I am under different conditions the less trouble I have come fall.

If TP is taking the fun out of your shooting, I would recommend Joel Turner's Ironmind approach. It didn't just help with my TP, it made it fun for me again, no matter how many arrows I want to shoot.

[McDave]

Probably one English longbow archer wouldn't have made much difference in a battle, because with all his training, the best he could do at 200 yards was get it close, and this wasn't horseshoes. 100 of them shooting at the same time was a different story, however.  With 100 of them getting close, a few of them are going to hit, especially since the enemy usually marched or rode in close ranks.

Incidentally, at that time it was mandatory that fit Englishmen practice with the bow on Sunday afternoons, but illegal to practice at ranges of less than 100 yards (for fear of encouraging poaching).

My feeling about target panic is that there are many ways to cure it, so you should try whatever occurs to you.  If the first thing you try doesn't work, try something else.

I do believe that not trying anything isn't a good plan.  For me, that just made it worse over time.  In fact, they say that anything you try will work, for a while.  A famous archer once suggested folding up a dollar bill and putting it in your shoe under your left heel.  He guaranteed that it would cure target panic....for one shot.

[Red Beastmaster]

Too much target shooting causes problems for me. Probably for most everyone else too.

[Gooserbat]

I shoot a lot, in my office, at six yards.  The close range allows me to work on everything except aiming. I believe it has made me a better shot.

[SC Bowhunter]

I find that I can only concentrate effectively for about a dozen arrows. After that, my accuracy starts to fade.
So I try to shoot a good dozen arrows then move to a blank bale with eyes closed for another 30 or 40 arrows to work on form and fitness.
This is my routine each time I shoot.
Works for me.

[Pat B]

300 for building the muscles, one at a time for accuracy.

[ron w]

Originally posted by Pat B:
300 for building the muscles, one at a time for accuracy.

 BINGO.....

[David McLendon]

My target is a 1 inch diameter ring cut from PVC and suspended in front of a block target by Spiderwire. I have three on the block and each gets one shot.

[Scott Barr]

Love the shared thoughts and individual methods. I picked up several that I will put to use.

I would say wait for a nice day, go to a large empty field with 300 arrows in your back quiver.  should all 300 at nothing , just watch your tempo and your anchor, and see how far they fly.  Walk over to where they are and shoot them again, watching your anchor and seeing how far you can shoot them.  You may need a catty to manage your quiver.

[YosemiteSam]

Seems like a recipe for shoulder problems.  I seriously doubt English lords cared much about the physical health and longevity of their archers -- especially the mercenary longbowmen.

[nek4me]

I also shoot mostly at close range 5-6yds in my garage but lately have added 1/2" black dots with a small white-out dot in the center to help focus on a spot in addition to form.

McDave,
Is that a dollar bill under the left heel for right hand and vice-versa for left?