We’ve all heard the horror stories of the hapless hunter who has succumbed
to buck fever so badly that the only injury inflicted is to the hunter’s
ego. And unless you have absolutely no passion for the sport, any hunter
who has drawn a bead or put a cross hair on a wild animal, experiences some
form of buck fever….even if you are a veteran hunter and your prey is a
squirrel. The “fever” can range from mild excitement to a complete mental
and physical meltdown.
My “Buck Fever”
We are four weeks into our 2011 winter archery league and for the first
three and a half weeks, I was shooting scores at my 2006 levels.
Here’s what was happening…As I would come to full draw, everything seemed
fine. But at release, almost every shot would go to the left by one half to
a full inch. I knew my form wasn’t the issue because prior to the league
starting I was packing them in pretty good. That also eliminated the
possibility of my sights being off. When if comes to hunting, I can live
with being an inch off at 20 yards. But in competition, an inch is huge.
What is Target Panic
There is a phenomenon in all forms of target shooting called target panic.
This is similar to buck fever in that the shooter becomes unable to
consistently hit what they are aiming at. And just like buck fever, target
panic has various levels of annoyance and frustration. In target shooting,
it is usually not an on-going problem but it does rear its ugly head every
so often.
As week 4 of our league began, I was once again missing to the left. Out of
30 arrows, I only had seven in the bullseye. During these 30 arrows, I
realized that while I may have been locating the center of the target at
full draw, I was not maintaining that eye contact during my aiming process.
In archery, it is vital that you obtain and KEEP eye contact with the spot
you want to hit until after your release.
A Fix for My Target Panic
At our 15 minute halftime break, I decided to try something. Once I come to
full draw, it usually takes me about 5-6 seconds before I release the
arrow. This time, I went up to the 10 yard line, came to full draw,
acquired the center of the target (which looked to be about the size of a
bus), and held it for at about 15 seconds before releasing my arrow. Of
course I was hitting high at 10 yards but it only took a few arrows before
I was hitting DIRECTLY ABOVE DEAD CENTER every time! No more left!
When the second half started, I found I was better able to maintain eye
contact with the center of the target at full draw….so much better in fact
that out of 30 arrows, I hit the bullseye 23 times!
I have decided that part of my “pre-game” preparation will now include
about 12 arrows shot at 10 yards while holding eye contact with my spot for
at least 15 seconds for each arrow.
Conclusion
I’m not saying that the 10 yard routine I came up with will cure your
target panic. Heck…it may not even be the cure the next time I have target
panic. But if you are having trouble consistently hitting the spot you are
aiming at and everything else seems to be in order, you may have target
panic and my remedy may help.
If you would like to discuss this or any other archery topic with me
directly, please feel free to email me at toddlydell@gmail.com.
And don’t forget to check out my instructional archery videos at
www.youtube.com/archery64.
