Holding Time

[Terry Green]

Yeah Ray....I think 'hold - no hold' comes down to this....

Those who aim after anchor, and those that aim before anchor.

I get on target real fast because I am aiming before I even commit to the shot.  I bring all the equipment to me, and don't go to it.

I aim, draw, and anchor.....and never stop pulling.

I think those that hold...draw, anchor, and then aim.......I know a lot of them do, but I aint so sure all of them do.

Again, I'm not knocking holding....just aint for me.....less I'm tracking a moving target after I reach full draw.

[BLACK WOLF]

JoeK,

Your form will most likely imitate what you practice. Most Snap Shooters start off learning and practicing that way.

Speed can also come with experience but it still needs to be practiced.

There should be a rythem to the shot sequence whether you hold at anchor or not.

Ray  

[vermontrad]

Confusious say "it is the archer that makes a style not the style that makes an archer"

If you don't aim until you reach anchor then you must hold, if your aiming before you even draw then why hold? As long as your hittin' 'em who really cares...

[BLACK WOLF]

The student trying to become a better archer is the one who cares.

Ray  

[vermontrad]

Yeah yeah, I meant who really cares if your snapping or holding, they are both legit and a caring student might try all methods while searching out what works for them. Cheers.

[BLACK WOLF]

Gotchya...me understand you now  

Ray  

[Terry Green]

Yep, I see someone trying to learn, not arguing over which is best.  The one that's best is the one that fits the particular shooter best.

We'll let them argue on some other site    

[vermontrad]

TTT

Seems appropriate but I must admit my ignorance, what the heck does ttt stand for!    

[Donavan Daniel]

To The Top.

Cheers,
Donavan

[BLACK WOLF]

And I thought all this time in meant TradTalkTyrant  

Ray  

[Matt E]

If you have a picture in your mind of how everything should be at the time the arrow leaves the bow, it takes no thinking. the thinking you do is only whether you are going to shoot or not.It is not done carelessly as some may think,it is ingrained in the mind from hours of shooting for more years than I can recall.This is not to say I am a great shooter . I still am a work in progress at 65 years of age.I do believe that anyone can develope a style of shooting that will allow them to hit what they desire, within reason.I have used the method Terry mentioned hunting and at 3-d shoots with good results.I also don't subscribe to the,"I can take game but don't do well on targets talk" Everything you shoot at is  target,there is no difference? It boils down to freeing ones mind of all extraneous thoughts, having your equipment tuned and being consistant in your procedure.

[Jason R. Wesbrock]

Interesting discussion. I think it all boils down to figuring out what works best for you and then fine tuning it to perfection. I've seen a number of frighteningly accurate instinctive snap shooters. Terry being one, a local guy named Kevin Griveti being another.

Personally, I was always taught to hold at full draw until the shot felt right. Everyone in my family shot instinctivly and held for however long that particular shot took, be it 2 seconds or 10. They were also hunters first and foremost.

About the only thing I routiney snap shoot on is fish. Then again, I don't have to be very accurate to hit a carp at 15 feet, but pulling off a fast shot is critical.

For the most part, I'm a gap shooter show tends to hold a long time when it comes to targets. A few weeks ago a gentleman working the novelty shoot at Cloverdale joked that he was thinking about going out for a sandwich, waiting for me to drop the string. I don't know how many times someone had asked me, "what does that bow pull, about 40 pounds?"  

Nope...57 on the button.

For bowhunting, my sequence goes a bit faster, but I still hold and aim for however long it takes for the shot to feel right. It's what I've found works best for me, after a lot of trial and error. I think everyone should take the time to try a bunch of different shooting styles in order to find their niche.

[JoeK]

I think all reported holding times should be taken with a grain of salt...here's why.  Unless you've timed yourself with a watch or film you will be off because time seems to stand still.   I have shot for years and thought I held for 2 seconds or so, when "really" aiming.  Well, I taped myself today and the digital frames and timer revealed that I held less long when aiming versus concentrating on form.  My holding time was about 1/10 sec.. Imagine my surprise.

[Matt Fowler]

Good thread. My whole shot process collapses when I try and hold for 3-5 seconds and aim. Everything about the shot seems more fluid and natural when I "pull through". My bow even feels and sounds better and the arras just seem to fly perfectly.

[Big Dave]

I agree with Bobco,If I hold more than 1 sec. I start to fall apart  :D    :D

[Butts2]

I believe I hold for 2-3 seconds. My son tells me that probably one time per week I jerk slightly while holding before release

[pseman]

Originally posted by BLACK WOLF:


"There should be a rythem to the shot sequence whether you hold at anchor or not."

I think this is key. I have only been shooting trad for about 6 months but this seems to be the key to my accuracy(or lack there of). If I can repeatably shoot in a good rhythm,my accuracy is much better. I'll bet whether you shoot fast or slow, if you do so in a repeatable rhythm, you'll see improvements in accuracy.

Just a newbies observations.

[rnharris]

I thought i held longer until i saw a video of my shot sequence hold time maybe a second but i can hold much longer if i had to i hold as long as i have to to make the shot B\\Lee 53@29" anchor has moved to web of thumb and index to jawbone and has increased to 29" from 28"

[tallan]

I aim as I'm drawing.  As soon as I reach anchor it's gone.  Proved to myself a couple of years ago on a black bear.  It was a 13 yard broadside shot.  I concentrated as hard as I could and took my time.  My arrow hit about 6 inches off.  As he turned to leave, I had to make a split second follow-up shot.  Hit him dead-on.  I guess my point is, the longer I take, the worse I shoot.  The less thinking I do, the better off I am.  

[Pete W]

I think it is easier for a person to learn to anchor and hold before they draw thru like Terry does. I am still at the anchor and hold, but doubt I will change. It works best for me.

Often shooters that are over bowed will not hold because they can't hold the weight.
 This causes problems with any style of shooting, and they are usualy short drawing  no matter how they do it.