# Coaching new shooters in shop environment?



## mike 66 (Jan 21, 2010)

:shade: ok here;you are right i see 99% of the shooters shooting a release aid that dont fit....no one has the same hand size. i see this every day i would say try selling release aids that only have a huge amount of adjustment like a strap type 90% of the post type that i see still are to long for the hands and they reach for it. here are a few that have lots of adjustment . carter 2 shot ....scott quick shot..fletcher fletch hook....the trick is to get the release aid in the perfect spot and then tighten up the back. not moving the finger. like i said no 2 people have the same hand size or nuckle size, if it dont fit it wont work right...good to here your shop is doing good.find a good coach let him teach it will give you more time to work on bows or other things...while still helping your customers in a professional way.


----------



## [email protected] (Aug 3, 2010)

Ur gonna lose customers and sales if you think 99% of archers are gonna have ther desire and dedication to learn to shoot properly.Get their specs right let em start shooting. You'll see them again when panic sets in. Unfortunately most archers look down on learning the basics through lessons,dont jeopardize your business let em punch the x and head hunting.Your thoughts are in the right place and for that i commend you.


----------



## Huntinsker (Feb 9, 2012)

I teach people that use a wrist strap release to put their knuckle below their ear lobe and just behind their jaw. I show them the grip, how to stand, where to anchor, how the string should look on their face and how to aim. I tell them that they are "aimers" and not shooters. All they should concentrate on is aiming and then just slowly add pressure to the trigger so they are suprised when it goes off. Then they shoot. After they shoot a few and get over the initial nerves, I work on their immediate needs like leaning back, major grip problems, and their anchor issues if they are having any. I too think that most people use a release that is too long for them. I always give people a short release so that's the first thing they use. If you use it first, that's what feels normal. I like to have them use a TruFire Edge with a buckle because it is so easy to adjust for length and gets pretty short. I've found the hardest thing to overcome in teaching someone to shoot is usually the dad/husband who shoots Mathews now in his second year of shooting so obvisously knows it all. I make sure that when I tell them to change something, I give them the reasons behind why and how it will help so that they can decide who to listen to. After we get the first pin set so that they don't lose all their arrows, they head out the door and know where to find me if they need help. I try to keep it simple and just tell them about the major things because as we all know, it can get very in depth. I don't want to confuse them or bore them if they are young. I like to keep it as short as possible while still making darn sure the specs are right and the peep is set in their proper position.


----------



## da white shoe (Mar 10, 2009)

Unfortunately, most people just naturally feel they need to be proactive with a bow in their hands... good old caveman archery! 
Control the bow, control the sight pin, control the trigger... 
Grip it, stick the pin on the spot and RIP IT! 
The vast majority of hunters I see are *still *doing it that way. Some of them are getting by just fine and some of them, well... not, (future rifle hunters.)

IMO... you are doing a good job as a shop owner if you just make sure that they're being set up with equipment that fits them.
There *IS *an obvious need to show them correct anchor position, bow hand position and stance... 
you can even *explain *aiming philosophy, muscle relaxation and a surprise release, but actually *teaching* it is more than you have time for.

If you explain the advantages of letting the bow shoot itself, well... you've done more than most shop owner will do! 
In the end though, it's up to them to decide what technique they want to develope.


----------



## Eliteonly (Oct 8, 2011)

Much thanks for the insight guys! After being on here all day and hearing the ragging on the folks that aren't as diehard as us, it's nice to hear that people with less than Levi Morgan skills are valuable hunters and archers to our sport. I do start new people put with a Cobra All Adjust release that retails at 49.99 and is very very nice. It's adjustable with a screw in head so I do make sure I start them with it very short and move it out if needed but that's rarely the case. I'm going to put together a steps list to go over so they get the information they need, the instruction they need and not take hours of time up that's just overlap of what was taught originally. I have found it easier to start them on a paper animal target and move them to a target with an x ring during the instruction. I appreciate your advice and thoughts and can't wait to hear more!


----------



## da white shoe (Mar 10, 2009)

Eliteonly said:


> Much thanks for the insight guys! After being on here all day and hearing the ragging on the folks that aren't as diehard as us, it's nice to hear that people with less than Levi Morgan skills are valuable hunters and archers to our sport. I do start new people put with a Cobra All Adjust release that retails at 49.99 and is very very nice. It's adjustable with a screw in head so I do make sure I start them with it very short and move it out if needed but that's rarely the case. I'm going to put together a steps list to go over so they get the information they need, the instruction they need and not take hours of time up that's just overlap of what was taught originally. I have found it easier to start them on a paper animal target and move them to a target with an x ring during the instruction. I appreciate your advice and thoughts and can't wait to hear more!



Maybe this will give you some ideas. 


********** HOW TO SHOOT WITH BACK TENSION AND A SURPRISE RELEASE *********


.............................. .........THE GRIP.......................... ........................
Before drawing the bow, position your hand on the grip and start pulling with your release hand to put pressure on the string. You are trying to find the exact spot for your bow hand to be in on the grip. You want to feel all of the pressure from the bow at one point on your bow hand when you're at full draw. Pretend there is a steel rod running parallel and exactly between the two bones in your forearm. Where that rod would exit your palm is where this point is. If you find this spot, it will help keep you from torquing the bow handle. Also, if you will rotate the bottom of your bow hand away from the bow a few degrees for your grip, you will clear a path for the bowstring and negate torque at the same time. Learn to find your grip before you draw the bow on every shot, but once you start your draw, do not move your bow hand AT ALL.

.............................. .............RELAXATION....... .............................. .......
At full draw, your release hand as well as your bow hand, should be completely relaxed. You don't want to be grasping or squeezing the barrel of the release or the grip of your bow handle. Also, do not force either of your hands open. Your fingers should be hanging limp and relaxed. I lightly touch my first finger and my thumb together around the bow handle, but some people use a wrist sling. Use the bones in your arms and the muscles in your back to hold as much of the weight of the bow at full draw as you can. Relax every muscle in your arms that you don't need to use to stay at full draw. That goes for the muscles in your shoulders, torso and legs, too. Remember; tension in your muscles is what causes your sights to wobble and jump around. If you can learn to relax everything that isn't needed to hold at full draw, your sight pins will barely even move. 

.............................. ............BACK TENSION....................... .....................
Next thing to work on is getting a surprise release. Learning this correctly, right from the start, is far easier with a back tension release, (BTR). To make a BTR fire, you flex or squeeze the muscles of your back so that your release-side shoulder blade is flexing toward your spine. To find these muscles, have someone stand facing you while you pretend to hold a bow at full draw. Have them grasp your elbows and try to force you to give them a hug while you resist, all the while keeping your arms relaxed. The back muscles you feel resisting are the ones you need to flex to make the BTR fire. 

.............................. .......THE SWITCH TO AN INDEX FINGER RELEASE..................
You can learn to do the same thing with a trigger release... although, using one comes much easier if you have first mastered a back tension release. Having a trigger you can pull just makes cheating too easy. To use one, adjust your release short enough so that the 2nd pad back from the tip of your finger is curled over the trigger. Don't use the tip of your finger. It is too sensitive and easy to move. The aiming process and shot sequence are exactly the same with an index finger release as it is with a back tension release. Put as much pressure on the trigger as you can without making it fire and then squeeze just your back muscles until it goes off. 

.............................. ..............AIMING.......... .............................. ..............
Draw your bow straight back, reaching full draw with perfect T form... while at the same time concentrating on keeping the pressure on your bowhand even and torque free as you draw. Next, line up your bubble level, pick the right pin and center it all in the peep. Then move your whole upper body to get on target. You don't want to just move your arm up and down or side to side. That introduces torque. At full draw, your upper body and arms should at all times form a perfect T shape. You should be standing with your spine and head held up straight... as if a steel cable was attached to the top of your head and pulling on you from directly above. When everything is lined up, start consciously relaxing muscles. Hold the bow back with your back muscles. Start with relaxing your hands and work your way up your arms and through the shoulders. Then go into aiming mode. Your full concentration switches to the spot and only the spot. The pin is blurry and it will seem to be floating around the spot, but you need to forget about the pin. You will naturally try to keep it on the spot without even thinking about it. You should be focusing on the spot and nothing else. Keep your concentration while slowly squeezing through the shot, making sure to follow through after the release. The first few times the bow goes off, it will scare the heck out of you. Keep at it! You will get used to it and it's important to never be able to anticipate the shot. No cheating! Focus... concentrate on the spot you want to hit and just squeeze through until the shot breaks.

.............................. ..............THE FOLLOW THROUGH....................... ...............
When you "follow through" after the bow goes off, some people say that you should try to keep the pin on the target or keep aiming until the arrow hits. I've always felt that was a bad way to describe it. You can't keep aiming or even see the pin once you shoot. What I would say is... keep your T form until you hear or see the arrow hit, do not drop your bow arm or move your head, stay relaxed and let the bow go where it wants to with out grabbing it. Good follow through takes practice.


.............................. ..............THE FIRST STEP.......................... ...................
It's tempting to just go right out and try all of this on a target at 20 yards, but DON'T DO IT! When you start trying all of this for the first time, it is very important, and it will speed up the learning process... if you completely eliminate the aiming part of shooting the bow. Work on relaxation and a surprise release before you ever have to worry about aiming. You need to ingrain the feel of the shot process so that it becomes automatic... as in the term, "muscle memory." You do this with your eyes closed at first. Your target needs to be at shoulder height... the same height as your arrow. I hang my target from a rafter and stand close, so that the tip of my arrow is about 3 1/2 feet away from the target at full draw. After you reach full draw and have lined everything up, close your eyes, relax and think through every step of the shot. 


.............................. ................THE FOUNDATION.................... ......................
When that feels VERY comfortable, move to a blank target that is 3 yards away and start shooting with your eyes open, but use no spot and try not to aim for a spot on the target... in fact, it would be better to just take the sight off your bow or put a strip of tape over the pins for this step. Do this every day, 2 or 3 times a day... shooting 20, 30 or 40 arrows per session, whatever you can do without getting fatigued or loosing your concentration. Keep this up for something like 3 weeks in a row... at least 1000 arrows. Next, move to 5 yards with a big spot and try it all while aiming. Over the next few weeks, use a smaller and smaller spot to aim at. Then work your way out to longer and longer distances, *starting every session * with a few arrows at the hanging target* with your eyes closed*. Visualize what you're trying to accomplish when shooting with your eyes closed. Learn to recognize... by feel, how the perfect shot comes together and then concentrate on *repeating *that process. If you ever feel like your backsliding... anticipating the shot or doing something else wrong, don't be afraid to get close with your eyes closed again.

.............................. .......................THE MIND SET........................... .......................
When I was first starting out with a bow, I felt that I needed to "shoot the bow." After many years of seeing diminishing returns for my efforts, I came to the conclusion that I needed to let the bow shoot itself! I had found a new philosophy in archery. To be static. A bow shooting machine. To just stay out of the way and allow the arrow to leave the bow with no outside influences working against it... namely, my brain! Your brain can be your worst enemy! After all, if my bow was being shot out of a shooting machine... the arrows would all be going in the same hole! A shooting machine doesn't have a brain that gets in the way! Just that little bit of attitude adjustment, that little change in my approach to shooting, was all that it took to get my mind right. Shooting a bow in this way is truly amazing! It defies logic, really, and at some point in all of this process, you will know you are doing it right because your arrows will keep going dead center of the bull's-eye... even when you know the pin was not on the spot at the time your bow went off. Kind of like some kind of Zen-master ninja-jedi... no kidding!


----------



## Warbow (Apr 18, 2006)

Eliteonly said:


> Well lately its been extremely busy and my shop partner/dad has not been able to help me at the shop due to his day job so I've been losing much needed time with customers for instruction.


Sounds like you need more staff to help you teach this newly sought information :dontknow:


----------



## Stubby'smom (Mar 20, 2010)

Do you have any shop shooters that frequent your shop? They should be willing to help you out while they are there. Do you offer lessons with a bow purchase? We offer 3 free lessons with each bow purchased and we often give them with accessories purchased as well.


----------



## Eliteonly (Oct 8, 2011)

We ended our shop shooter program at our shop. We give our new bow buyers a 2 week free shooting in our shop. During that time we give them personalized instruction, adjust their bow and its components and anything else we need to do. My shop is just big enough to need help most days but isn't making enough money on the bottom line to hire anyone just yet. We typically sell a bow per week, either used or new. Sometimes many more, sometimes but rarely none. I own the building on main street in my small town (2K people in town, we have customers from 40 miles or further away however) so overhead is low. Thanks for the help always guys and gals! Im working on a written out list for when new people are getting setup so that I know exactly what is needed everytime and make sure everything is covered so they'll get the most out of their new toy.


----------



## zenhiker (Nov 2, 2004)

My humble opinion is to contact Larry Wise and to take his course or make plans with him to give a course at your shop. Larry is an awesome teacher and certainly has the credentials to make sure that you are on the right path in coaching/teaching others. Best of luck, I admire you for getting your own shop started!


----------



## Moebow (Jul 8, 2010)

Larry has an article about this very topic in the last (November) "ArrowTrade" magazine.

Arne


----------



## zenhiker (Nov 2, 2004)

lol, check that out! I took Larry's course at Lancaster Archery, did me a world of good! (not to mention, shortened my DL by 1.5 inches!)


----------

