First 3-D shoot tomorrow

[BFreed59]

I'm going to my first 3-D shoot tomorrow and was wondering what to expect, I dont know anybody who will be there I just saw a flyer for it and thought I would give it a shot. If anything its a good excuse to get outside for a few hours. And hopefully pick up a few tips from others since I am still a beginner with grad gear.

Any advice for a first timer?

[maxwell]

Just enjoy your experience, don't worry about how good or bad the score is, in fact don't keep score

[M60gunner]

Hopefully you can hook up with at least one more "trad" shooter. If you do not keep score you can usually shoot from the distance you want. That will cut down on looking for arrows as well. Do not get discouraged if you miss a few or a bunch, it is supposed to be fun not work.

[TSP]

You can expect alot of target shooters.  

[Sirius Black]

Just jump in and get your feet wet.    

[Sam McMichael]

You will meet up with some average guys and some very good archers, often all in one. Most do not take themselves too seriously and will be very willing to help you get into the swing of things. If you are not really careful you will find yourself wrapped up in total fun! Enjoy the day, and remember that you probably will not hit them all, but, then again, few people do.

[Yewbender]

Go have a great time and enjoy the outdoors. Don't worry about keeping score and shoot where you feel comfertable and don't worry what others will think. Hopefully their will be other traditional shooters and you can join them, if you do and they are a group of funny guys which most are you will be in for a great day of laughs and maybe some good tips. Enjoy and have fun.

[jt85]

Everyone else has covered exactly what I was going to say so have a good time and let us know how it goes.

[PeteA]

If you don't break or lose at least one arrow not shooting enough! Enjoy the day. Post some photos of the shoot.

[ChuckC]

I personally would not even keep score.  Go have fun.  See if you can band up with another trad shooter on the range.  3D ranges set up for primarily compound guys have a tendency to be longer shots in clear shooting lanes.  As long as you keep it safe, shooting from closer is no big deal and I like to make the shot a bit more challenging by stepping into the woods a bit.  Keep it safe though.

Have fun
ChuckC

[Firstlight]

Have fun.

Shoot each arrow like it's your only arrow and that getting off a good shot is more important than where it lands.

If you hit well, that's great.  If you miss, just move on and shoot a well placed arrow on the next target.  

Have fun.

[BFreed59]

Thanks guys, I'm excited for the shoot, its up in the black hills which are beautiful and it will be fun to get out and shoot with other people, except for when I was first learning to shoot with my grandpa I have never really shot around anybody else. And it will be a good chance to get some more arrows through my recurve that I am just finishing up making.

The flyer for the shoot says its a fun 3-D shoot so I'm thinking that it wont be competitive and more of a get together for everyone which should be perfect for a beginner like me

[Tom]

Everyone was a beginner at some point so go and have fun. Score is a personal choice, when I go I try to beat my previous card but seldom turn them in. The worst that can happen is you might find a friend to shoot with or can help with your shooting. Enjoy.

[Cyclic-Rivers]

I Look forward to going to 3D shoots because of the group of guys I have met through shooting.  Its a  great social event for me and sometimes I even hit the target.

The nice thing is, if I get into a  funk and start shooting lousy, I can ask for advice and usually someone has noticed what I am doing wrong. I am usually able to correct it immediately.  the guys I shoot with are all great shots which has helped my shooting tremendously.

There is a small amount of pressure with larger groups. It helps me shoot under pressure, and although its not a hunting situation, I believe it helps my shooting even though the score doesn't always reflect it.

Sometimes we use a  hunters scoring method. +1 for a kill shot, - 1 for a body hit and 0 for a  miss.  of course that score doesn't count except only for you.

Have a  great time, hopefully you will meet some people. The object for me anyhow is to have fun.

[BFreed59]

Just got back from the shoot and it was alot of fun, I didn't keep score just enjoyed shooting. It was very small maybe 10 people the whole day and only one other guy not shooting a compound.

The course was fun 24 different targets with a range of setups. All of the targets were off of a single path with half off to the right and half to the left, here is a picture looking down the path.

   

There was a variety of targets from elk down to turkeys in size and a few surprise targets thrown in.

After missing a few shots on the first few targets and digging thought the brush and grass to find my arrows, I started to get the hang of it a bit more and was able to at least hit the target on most shots. We were shooting from about 15-25 yards for most of the shots and if we missed would take 5 steps closer and shoot again.

Here are a few pictures of the shoot.

Here are mine and the other trad shooters bows, mine is the recurve. And both were homemade.

 

[BFreed59]

here are a few pictures of some of the setups

   
 
   
 

[BFreed59]

Seemed to have a habit of spine shots today, i will need to fix that before hunting season.

 
 

After awhile i started to get things figured out better, and was getting better hits and was able to hit the target the first shot... most of the time.

 
 
 
 

I don't think this was intended to be a target but it kept me from having to dig through the grass some more.

 

And now for the Surprise target, now I just need to wait for the season to open.

 

Overall i had a great day, it was alot of fun, and everyone i met was very nice and willing to help me if i needed it. I went through the entire course twice, so got to spend some good time outside and get some more practice with my bow. I guess i will have to go back tomorrow since it is a two day shoot!!

[ranger 3]

Glad you had fun and beautiful country.

[SELFBOW19953]

Brian,

The most important thing is to have fun!!!  Was that a T-Rex or a Velociraptor??  The kill zone is totally different between the two.  You need to know the difference if you ever visit Jurassic Park.

[BFreed59]

I believe it is a velociraptor, and I definitely need to brush up on my prehistoric anatomy before I book a trip.

And it was a blast, I probably looked like a goon with the big smile on my face the whole time