which vid to cure TP

[V I Archer]

Okay guys, I hate to admit it, but (sigh), my name is Murray, and I suffer from target panic  :(  

I think it all started when I read an article about "instinctive, "floating" anchors", that or trying snap shooting.  Anyway, I can draw and hold a 70 pound bow off target, but put something I intend to shoot in front of me and I can't get past drawing the back of my hand to the corner of my mouth with a 50 pound bow.  I know it is not the weight per say, as I will have the same problem with a 30 pound target recurve.  I will reach my half anchor, and scream at myself to get to a proper anchor, and every once in a while I do, but overall, I have gone from a confident archer able to shoot the centre out of a twoonie at 25 yards to not wanting to shoot in front of people, and passing on a lot of deer during hunting season.

I cannot get into gap shooting, have alwasy shot instinctive, and for the last 8 years longbows exclusively.  My question, which video set do you reccommend, Masters of the barebow, or book and video by Asbell.

[Ray Johnson]

Get Jay Kidwell's book,"Instinctive Archery Insights" as soon as possible.It has a section on Target Panic that will help alot if you follow his instructions.It helped me as well as alot of othet people.
                             RayJ

[robtattoo]

This worked for me....send a couple of hours stood 8-10 feet from the target (just enough distance for your arrow to clear the bow) & shoot as many arrows as you can with your eyes closed. I don't mean the full nock, point, draw, loose, follow through cycle. Nock your arrow, look at the target, raise up both yur bow & drawing arm then close your eyes. Come up to a full draw, concentrating solely on the feel of your anchor, NOTHING ELSE! then let fly. After a couple of hours, reverse it. Nock your arrow then close your eyes raise & draw to thet familiar feeling anchor (which should be ingrained in your muscle memory by now) now open your eyes & locate the target.
I did this for 2 straight days & had myself fixed up.  :D

[mcgroundstalker]

All statements above are right on target. What worked for me was a combo of "become the arrow and a visualization" type thing...

I won't shoot until I have seen the arrow fly to the target in my minds eye. Pick a spot, come to anchor, push/pull, imagine arrow flight, then let her rip! You gotta think about it for a while to get it down, but it works. For me anyway.

Another Great Book: "Timeless Bowhunting ~ the Art, the Science, & the Spirit" by Roy S. Marlow. Should help alot.

... mike ...

[Jason R. Wesbrock]

Originally posted by V I Archer:
My question, which video set do you reccommend...

Whichever one comes with a clicker, seriously. I think I tried just about every possible "cure" for TP, and none of them had any reliable effects for me until I broke down and tried a clicker. Best $13 I ever spent.

[cvarcher]

I think alot of us instinctive shooters have various degrees of target panic. Some you can livew with and some a bit too much. At the least you should be able to know that you hit anchor and then released.Just before you hit anchor you should have already had your sight on the target and your bow arm right on it as well.So all you have to do is complete the draw to anchor and loose.If you are holding for something then you are merely shooting target style. And that is not conducive to hunting. I see people here on the forum getting this all mixed up.And in the mix it sometimes works either way but that doesnt mean its the best way.I would step down to a weight that you know you will be able to hit anchor with.Start with a 45 lb bow.

[Todd Hathaway]

 merely shooting target style. And that is not conducive to hunting.

Tell that to the bajillions of compound hunters who kill game on a regular basis using a "target style".

Part of the problem with many guys who have target panic is the common misconception that a traditional shooter has to be quick, or release as soon as anchor is reached. That line of thought is the very thing that leads to target panic.

V I Archer, TP sufferers need to add an extra element to their form. I can tell by the way you described your form that you are aiming as you draw....meaning you get on target before getting to anchor. Your brain is so focused on the fact that you are on target, it wants to skip the last step of the process...the anchor.

If you add an extra element to your form, and practice it religiously as if it were as important to the shot as everything else, you would be able to overcome TP.

That extra element should be back tension, or expanding the draw.

So you draw, aim, anchor. Now the most important part: hold on target while slowly expanding the draw (push pull) as if you were squeezing the trigger of a gun (as opposed to jerking the trigger). The release should happen on its own at some point in the expansion, and it should be a surprise....meaning you never actually consciously control the release.

[cvarcher]

Todd, We are not talking sighted bows here, only instinctive.If you have sights on a gun or bow naturally its going to help you line up everything that much better.But when theres no sights to refer to, then the shot is  aimed from the instinctive eyes with proper consistant form to back it up. If VI Archer cannot get to anchor before releasing he very well may be over bowed even though if he was in a house and asked to pull a 70lb bow to anchor he does it.But that doesnt mean he can shoot that 70lb bow properly.I recommend getting hittem um like Howard Hill video by John Shultz.start with a light bow and close to a bale , no target and just go thru the steps of form.

[KodiakBob]

Try a clicker on your bow, or learn to anchor the large knuckle on your thumb behind your jaw bone, "See MOBBII Ty Pelfry. A sure cure.

[Rod Jenkins]

"merely shooting target style. And that is not conducive to hunting"

I disagee with that statement as well...What some call "target style" is what I have been using for several years, with good success...and one might listen to Len Cardinale, who happens to be in the Bowhunting hall of fame, as well as the Archery hall of fame, who says bowhunting and target form can be one and the same.

back to the subject at hand...target panic's can present itself in many different forms and as such can be dealt with in many different ways..

One very effective way to deal with TP( as Jason mentioned) is the use of a clicker..another( my favorite) is to cure it in your head, by leaning a solid shot sequence and installing in to the subconscious with many repetitions( blank bale works for most folks)

[TSP]

TP is beatable and can sometimes be traced to simply a lack of concentration on your sight picture, especially for instinctive shooters (myself included).  Revisiting basic form close to the bale might help you more than anything.

[Faith In Flight]

Everything Todd says makes sense to me I have this same problem and its caused me to give up instictive shooting with a barebow, as I dont have the confidence to hunt with it anymore. I release early. Suprizingly I can get amazing accuracy doing this, but its just not right so I dont like doing it. It doesnt feel right. But I think what he says is right because I pretty much have aimed before the draw cycle and I want to let it go before I get off target.

[cvarcher]

Im willing to bet that 5 years from now with all the books and videos and clickers etc. People will still be writing in that they have target panic.We are so lucky to have live videos of Howards shooting technique. Carefully watch as he hits anchor and lets go. Inhis own book Hunting the Hard way he states flat out that when you learn to shoot properly in form you can then speed it up to shoot fast. You can shoot more accurately while shooting fast then pausing to aim.Again he wasnt talking target style shooting where you have the benefit of sights to aim with. Only your instincts. You dont think where to place your foot in the next step you do it quickly and without thought.Same thing. Faith in Flight what weight bow are you pulling?

[khardrunner]

Does this feel a tad like an AA meeting to anyone else? Anyway, I was away from shooting for about 10 years wih TP. It drove me nuts and I couldn't bear the feeling of releasing early anymore...so I stopped shooting.

About 6 months ago, my dad turned me on to a guy (I think from here, I'll have to find the email he sent me)who has helped significantly. I am back to enjoying shooting, though I am not fully over it yet.

Anyway, figure 8's/cross hairs (both done while at full draw) and blind shooting all helped me. I still shoot 100% instinctively, and now I enjoy it again. I'll try to find the email, you can PM me if you are interested.

[khardrunner]

Yeah it was definitly Jay Kidwell... if anyone wants a copy of the email he sent me, let me know.

[dragonheart]

Just a thought to ponder, do you shoot a bow more like a shotgunner or a scoped rifleman?  Both have an application for the hunting sportsman for the given situation and both can experience target panic anticipation type of symptoms just like bow and arrow shooters.  Do you shoot instinctive, fluid, style or slow deliberate hold and aim?  Decide for yourself, work to excell at that style.  Get Kidwells book.  SHOOT WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED; CLOSE TO THE TARGET TO FEEL A PERFECT SHOT.  

Longbows & Short Shots,
Jeff