Grouping at 20 Yrds

[R.L.Boone]

I have been shooting a different bow for about a month know after not shooting for a year, have been grouping good at 15 Yrds but step back 5 more Yrds to 20 and the group goes all to pieces. is this normal?I was not a seasoned archer to start with, the reason I stopped shooting was that I was overbowed and I bought a lighter poundage bow about a month ago.Why does 5 yards make such a difference.

[Terry Green]

Yes its normal when starting out.

Stay after it!

[kawika b]

1yrd makes a difference. practice walking back a step after a 15yrd shot the shoot,,,another step and then shoot.progress slowly. if your group starts to open up then stop,,,go back up a step and analyze your form. go slow and keep at it.

[Allan Hundeby]

I've been reading Jay Kidwell's book, Instinctive Archery Insights... very helpful!

1.  Before you even worry about where the arrow is hitting, start close (5 yards?), and use a BIG backstop.  Focus on becoming intimately familiar with each part of your own form so it becomes automatic (i.e. stance, T-form, draw, anchor-point, etc.).  Close your eyes if needed.
2.  Shoot at saplings to focus on judging windage (left/right) accuracy (i.e. be able to hit targets along their vertical plane).  Disregard up/down misses.
3.  Watch your arrow IN-FLIGHT to learn its arc over distance:  Learn its trajectory, and then practice until you memorize it and don't have to think about it.

Don't move on to the next step until you've completed your current step, and if needed, go back to a previous step.  The "ORDER" especially of these steps really is helping me.

[Scott J. Williams]

The information above is right on, I have learned of one other thing that has been helpful to me. Maybe it will help  you too.  

Like a sprinter running for the finish line, you should not focus on the line itself, you should focus on a spot in the distance beyond. I have won many
a race at the tape, just because the other guys slowed down, due to their focus on the finish line itself. It cause an involuntary slowing down as the body is already fatigued. In archery it also causes the dropping of the arm, or bow arm movement as the mind is not as confident as it was at the 15 yard distance. You just can separate the mental from the physical in this shooting thing.  

In archery, it is focusing through the spot you want to hit. To extent the focus on the flight path of the arrow through the target.  In other words it would be as if the spot you want to hit on the target was really another six to twelve inches farther back.  

When you mentally focus in that fashion, you in effect extend your range.  I use the same method when shooting at distances and it has really helped my grouping at long range.

[recurve roy]

I'm fairly new to this site however I have shot an arrow or two in my time.  Kawika b has hit it right on the nose. Start each shooting session at a distance which is a successful starting point for you.  I mean successful by your ability to consistantly throw arrows into a fairly tight group.  This may be 13yds., 16yds ect.  Remember there is nothing magical about the number 20 when it comes to walking through the woods with a bow.  If 16yds is your number for the day, start here and then go to 17, 18, 19ect as you become more proficient. If during your next session, you find that you are a total wreck at 16yds, work down yard by yard to find your successful starting point and then work your way  back up yard by yard.  As you keep stretching your abilities and become comfortable at longer distances, again do not let the number 20 become your end goal.  Keep expanding on to  25, 28 ect.   You will find that once you  successfully reach these distances during your practice sessions, a deer in the woods at 18yds will be a piece of cake.

[Fletcher]

Yes R.L., it's normal.  There are good thoughts in all the above posts.  One thing for me is that it becomes harder to concentrate on a spot the further from the target I get.  As that concentration deteriorates, the group opens up dramatically.  Slowly moving back helps train me to keep the focus as the distance increases.