# Free to aim?



## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

To me this is the greatest archery lesson ever taught.Al Henderson said no matter what if your not FREE TO AIM there's a problem with your routine.No matter how you arrive in your sequence if your mind is not 100% focused to execute the shot you shouldnt proceed.You should not be thinking about when the shots gonna break,or anything else.Len Cardinale latter went on to expand on this saying you need to be totally immersed in aiming.This thought will always get you shooting right or if your honest with yourself back to the bail to workout any problems.When you totally trust your form and the shot breaks archery is a pleasure.Just wanted to share this simple brilliant lesson.


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## subconsciously (Aug 22, 2009)

Shot execution is not "done", it can only be set up to happen the way you want it to. * Len Cardinale

Thus- you can be free to aim with confidence in good results. 

I can see the starting of the "A.T. Advanced School of Archery".


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## da white shoe (Mar 10, 2009)

Yep... once you're at that point, it comes down to letting go of the imagined need for control and just letting the bow shoot itself.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

[email protected],

I agree. But there is more to it and it's not so easy to get to that point without the drills and concepts that Lenny teaches. Actually, it's not easy to get to that point even with Lenny's drills. Without them, I think that it would be very difficult.

Allen


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## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

Agree Aread im saying its the most honest form check there is.Its a simple statement with many encompassing parts but if your not free to aim for whatever reason you have more work to do.Very hard to achieve and very hard to maintain.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

[email protected] said:


> ....Very hard to achieve and very hard to maintain.


From personal experience, I can verify the truth of this statement!!


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## mike 66 (Jan 21, 2010)

ONLY SHOOT PERFECT ARROWS.......THINK X ........... THE VERY CENTER, FIND THE CENTER.......


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

FREE TO AIM is too important a concept to let this tread die. 

I think that [email protected] & I have been to the same coach and if that's the case, I know the steps and drills that he would recommend. 

How does everyone else go about achieving this? Any drills or practice regimens that you use?

Allen


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## 3D Pinwheeler (Jan 29, 2007)

aread said:


> FREE TO AIM is too important a concept to let this tread die.
> 
> I think that [email protected] & I have been to the same coach and if that's the case, I know the steps and drills that he would recommend.
> 
> ...


How are you doing it? Id like to hear what steps you fellas are using.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

3D Pinwheeler said:


> How are you doing it? Id like to hear what steps you fellas are using.


I'll post a brief summary what I learned from Len in a couple of days. It will be a very long post and it will take me a while to finish it.

Allen


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## 3D Pinwheeler (Jan 29, 2007)

aread said:


> I'll post a brief summary what I learned from Len in a couple of days. It will be a very long post and it will take me a while to finish it.
> 
> Allen


Sounds great, thank you


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## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

Looking forward to AREADS summary. The hard truth of this question R U FREE TO AIM is being totally honest with yourself.If there are any other thoughts in your head besides hitting your spot your sequence is inadequate and you must go to the bail and correct it.It can be very disheartening after thousands of arrows of hard work on your sequence but it is the best no BS statement i know to find out if your shot sequence is working.Keep in mind there is no specific way you have to do this. I believe there are great methods and lessons but a guy with terrible form whom is free to aim can be a great archer.Rare but possible.Len Cardinale said the number one thing most amateurs do wrong is not truly being immersed in aiming!


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## Ches (Aug 3, 2009)

This is a good read. I am not a tournament shooter or a great shot for that matter. But when it comes to shooting deer, I excell. Thinking of what you guys wrote, I tend to overthink my shots in practice (grip position, no-peep dot, trigger pull, etc), but when I get in the woods and a deer comes in, I focus on the shot spot and have a hard time remembering after the shot how I aimed, it just comes natural. The only thing I know I check is which pin to use. So, I will try to go into auto mode during practice and see if I can improve there also. Thanks for the post.

Ches.


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## oldpro888 (Dec 31, 2010)

Said it a million times, you don't aim a bow, simply concentrate on the X and the subconscious mind will do the rest. Aiming creates TP


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## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

Your misunderstanding the post if your whole sequence isnt subconscious you cant be immersed in aiming or the x.your mind has to have no other thoughts but the x thats the meaning of being free to aim.


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## oldpro888 (Dec 31, 2010)

No misunderstanding. If you are inflicted with TP, you are focused to much on the aiming process. I coach to focus on the process, and not think about aiming. We are saying the same thing, do not AIM helps many understand what we are both saying


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## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

Absolutley agree!


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## subconsciously (Aug 22, 2009)

I disagrree. TP is conscious aiming with conscious execution. It can't be done. Because if you are free to aim with subconscious execution you have no TP. If you subconsciously aim with a conscious execution you have no TP. just can't have both. I don't see how anyone could "over aim".


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## 4him (Jan 14, 2011)

Good read !


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## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

I agreed with the concentration on the x(immersed in aiming totally).I dont think you could over aim either and not totally concentrating on x can allow other thoughts to creep into your mind.If you are focused on aiming your sequence was done right and the shot is prepared.I dont see how focusing on aiming would cause TP its what the result of any sequence should be Immersed in Aiming.


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## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

One thing that Lenny emphasized with me is that aiming is no more or less important than any other step in your shot.

As [email protected] has correctly pointed out being free to immerse in aiming is the goal. The way to get to this point is to practice each and every part of your shot sequence to the point where you completely trust it. 

This may sound a little contradictory on the face of it, but it really is not. On each step of your shot sequence, you give that step the focus and attention that gets it accomplished the same each and every time. When you get to aiming, you want to be at the point where you can give it 100% of your attention.

Not long before I first met with Lenny, I went to a seminar with Olympic team coach Kisik Lee. And I had conversations with archers who were coached by Terry Wunderle. It would be difficult to come up with a more respected group of archery coaches. All are concerned that their students would overemphasize aiming at the expense of the other parts of their shot. It's not that aiming is unimportant. It's that the other parts of the shot shouldn't be allowed to deteriorate while aiming. 

Allen


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## subconsciously (Aug 22, 2009)

aread said:


> One thing that Lenny emphasized with me is that aiming is no more or less important than any other step in your shot.
> 
> As [email protected] has correctly pointed out being free to immerse in aiming is the goal. The way to get to this point is to practice each and every part of your shot sequence to the point where you completely trust it.
> 
> ...


I agree completely with this statement. It is getting to the point of being immersed in aiming with positive results. That come from the set-up.


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## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

Great post Aread & Sub.I think coaches who teach to focus on form instead of aiming are really trying to steer their students away from watching and focusing on the pin.Its important in to completly focus on the spot or x (it doesnt move and cannot induce panic).By them teachng a focus on form its puts the pin on the backburner. Im from the Henderson,Cardinal school of burn a hole in a spot i could care less where the pin is. Watching pin movement leads to overholding and making archers try to steady it like their shooting a rifle and their panic worsens and grows.Two different approaches and both effective.


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