# Letting Down



## field14 (May 21, 2002)

What SHOULD trigger me to let down and start over is ANYTHING during the shot process that isn't right...anything from foot placement to anchor, to head position, shoulders, tightening up ANYTHING that isn't supposed to be "tight"...and the kicker...."ONCE off the X, put it back....Twice off the X...STOP THE SHOT PROCESS, LET DOWN...and START OVER.

However, most of us struggle with this time and time again and try to recover a shot that is irrecoverable.

I got "stubborn" about this a couple of weeks ago and decided that "if it wasn't right" I was going to let down and start over. 

I got my 300 score for the 60 arrow round...but....due to this frickin' tremor.....and the above item...."ONCE off the X, put it back....Twice off the X...STOP THE SHOT PROCESS, LET DOWN...and START OVER".....I drew back the bow 97 times to shoot 60 shots. BUT...by golly those 60 shots were "Keepers"!!!! I didn't shoot a super high X-count (I"m almost never satisfied with my X-count anyways, haha)...but....I shot all 60 of them in the bullseye without touching the line on the 4-ring at all, and the X-count was decent, considering.

I need to do more of this kind of thing instead of forcing things...afterall, PRACTICE is for that purpose...working on ONE thing at a time and getting things right the first time.

field14


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## Bowjoe1972 (Oct 29, 2008)

For years my motto was " I refuse to let down "" but anything that enters other then " Aim Stupid " I let down...


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## field14 (May 21, 2002)

Bowjoe1972 said:


> For years my motto was " I refuse to let down "" but anything that enters other then " Aim Stupid " I let down...


I think that probably one of the best pieces of information I ever obtained was from top Professional archer, Dean Pridgen. We were having a discussion about shot sequencing, mental attitude, and mental awareness.

He said, and the words aren't exact, but close: "Tom, IF anything creeps into your mind during the shot and you have any "doubt" at all...if you continue that shot...most likely you will miss your intended impact point." If the word "miss" or "I might..." enters your thought process....you had better stop and start over...otherwise...you are going to miss."

Food for thought...but what do I know?

field14


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## blueglide1 (Jun 29, 2006)

Shot time,thats what does it for me.If I have to hold the X longer for any reason then,something isnt right.I let down and start over.I had someone watch me and keep a mental note on how long the average shot took for the release.I averaged about 5-7 seconds. The strongest part of your shot is the first few seconds after the aiming process starts,and you begin to apply back tension.If it takes longer than that for me then the set up isnt right and I have to start over.I can hold an X for about that amount of time before starting to wander around and float outside the X.


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## 4X-24 BOB (Jul 4, 2003)

Thanks everyone . I dont know why something so simple is so hard to do !


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## AT_X_HUNTER (Aug 10, 2005)

A couple things can trigger a let down for me. One would be holding time. If my shot has not gone off by the time I feel it should have I'll let down. That's usually an indication that I am too tense and something is wrong. The other thing that will make me let down is if something in my set up feels wrong. Then there is the ole' loss of focus moment. But that usually comes from holding too long.

On a good day I won't let down at all. On a bad day, I go home. I don't want to practice bad days. I either get my head straight, or I pack up and go home.


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## field14 (May 21, 2002)

AT_X_HUNTER said:


> A couple things can trigger a let down for me. One would be holding time. If my shot has not gone off by the time I feel it should have I'll let down. That's usually an indication that I am too tense and something is wrong. The other thing that will make me let down is if something in my set up feels wrong. Then there is the ole' loss of focus moment. But that usually comes from holding too long.
> 
> On a good day I won't let down at all. On a bad day, I go home. I don't want to practice bad days. I either get my head straight, or I pack up and go home.


Hopefully, you don't quit in the middle of a practice round. A top pro once told me that even on a 'bad day', if he is in the middle of a practice SCORING round...he NEVER EVER QUITS...he finishes the scoring round, no matter how bad, and THEN he packs up and goes home. He said that whatever you do, you NEVER teach yourself that if you are scoring and miss or are having a bad score...to just up and QUIT..You finish what you start, period. He felt that if during practice you miss and decide it is a bad day and you QUIT...that you have now told yourself it is OK to QUIT...even if it is for score. He felt it was the worst thing you can do.

Another thing he said was that if he was having a bad tournament, he couldn't "pack up and go home"...so he sure as heck wasn't going to PRACTICE "packing up and going home"....FINISH WHAT YOU START, do the BEST you can, then "pack up and go home."

A person has to PRACTICE how to deal with both the good and the bad, too.

Just a different philosophy of NOT training the sub-conscious to QUIT and that it is OK...during a SCORING Practice session, that is.

ALWAYS completely finish a practice scoring round. NEVER quit scoring when you miss and "chalk it up"....You have committed to scoring, so FINISH the job FIRST, then go home.

I've seen some people quit right in the middle of an event because "it was a bad day"...and when you speak to these people, guess what? You got it...they have quit before during practice round scores AND tournaments....so, they have become "quitters" thru a fault of their own.

Always have a "plan" for a practice session. If that plan is to shoot a scoring round...then that is what you do....and you finish it no matter what or how bad it gets. FOLLOW THE PLAN. Sometimes, I have a "plan" that can be accomplished without scoring. Sometimes the plan can be completed in 30 shots; and sometimes it might be 100 shots....However, that doesn't mean I only pull back the bow 30 times or 100 times either..>QUALITY over quantity every time.
How many bad days you have can be directly impacted on HOW you practice.

field14 (Tom D.)


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## scmelik (Nov 20, 2008)

this is something I have been battling ever since i start shooting target archery. I am stupidly stubborn and try and push through what I know shouldn't be pushed through, resulting in poor shots and frustration. This summer I have been focused on making sure my shot feels perfect in ever aspect from my stance, to my grip, my draw, anchor, down to the way I am holding my release.

The other day I was in my basement practicing and I shot 7 arrows but I drew my bow 63 times. Right now I do not have a sight on my bow so I don't know how I was holding but I knew on every let down that something wasn't right so I let down.

This is NOT an easy thing for me personally to do, due to my stupid nature but I am learning and I think once I am able to finish my target setup and actually shoot a scoring round I will see vast improvements in my score.


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## zenarch (Aug 3, 2002)

scmelik said:


> this is something I have been battling ever since i start shooting target archery. I am stupidly stubborn and try and push through what I know shouldn't be pushed through, resulting in poor shots and frustration. This summer I have been focused on making sure my shot feels perfect in ever aspect from my stance, to my grip, my draw, anchor, down to the way I am holding my release.
> 
> The other day I was in my basement practicing and I shot 7 arrows but I drew my bow 63 times. Right now I do not have a sight on my bow so I don't know how I was holding but I knew on every let down that something wasn't right so I let down.
> 
> This is NOT an easy thing for me personally to do, due to my stupid nature but I am learning and I think once I am able to finish my target setup and actually shoot a scoring round I will see vast improvements in my score.


Don't forget, you can't let down often at most tournaments. In the NFAA you're allowed to let down three times for each arrow. The fourth one you have to shoot or it's no score. What do you do if that fourth arrow just doesn't feel right? Your group will probably kill you anyway if you let each arrow down two or three times.
In Indoor and FITA shooting, you're on the clock and have time for maybe two let downs per end, so letting down on anything less than a perfect shot is just a nice dream. You've got to learn to shoot those imperfect shots and make them score or you're never going to win a tournament.
Sure you should work toward making all perfect shots but in real life you have to learn to score with what you have on any given day.
Joe B.


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## BarneySlayer (Feb 28, 2009)

I noticed that on a recent 900 round.

While i've been trying to improve my ability not only to let down, but also take my time, on one end the time between my last shot and the end of the allowed shooting time was shorter than i imagined it would have been.

The mental aspect of this support is really... mental


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## scmelik (Nov 20, 2008)

zenarch said:


> Don't forget, you can't let down often at most tournaments. In the NFAA you're allowed to let down three times for each arrow. The fourth one you have to shoot or it's no score. What do you do if that fourth arrow just doesn't feel right? Your group will probably kill you anyway if you let each arrow down two or three times.
> In Indoor and FITA shooting, you're on the clock and have time for maybe two let downs per end, so letting down on anything less than a perfect shot is just a nice dream. You've got to learn to shoot those imperfect shots and make them score or you're never going to win a tournament.
> Sure you should work toward making all perfect shots but in real life you have to learn to score with what you have on any given day.
> Joe B.


that is a valid point Joe. However, the way I look at it is that I am practicing and poor practice is worse than no practice because then you develop and ingrain bad habits. When I shoot for a score I do not let down that much, even a practice score but when I am not scoring I want only perfect shots to go off thusly ingraining that feel. Only perfect practice makes perfect.


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