Training and Coaching
From Netherhall Archers
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DRAFT - THIS PAGE IS ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRAINING AND COACHING ACTIVITIES UNDER CONSIDERATION BY THE COMMITTEE - Please suggest activities you would like to see included
OK... you got this far and you're asking yourself "What's training?... What's coaching?"...
Definitions
Training
Guidance and advice on a broad range of archery topics, usually provided by a trainer to a group of archers.
Coaching
One-to-one instruction from a qualified coach. Coaching is usually undertaken as an on-going programme and requires a good working relationship between archer and coach. Coaches will start by examining your technique (often without saying anything) and identify a sequence of improvement steps that need to be taken.
Training and Coaching Activities within the Club
We intend to provide a six month rolling programme of training and coaching. The purpose of this is to help you improve your archery skills and knowledge. Especially (but not exclusively) for those people wishing to shoot 'seriously', a thorough knowledge about the mechanical archer/bow/arrow system is essential to understand when your equipment needs modification... or you do!
Training
Tweleve sessions per six months covering the topics of:
- Transitional Preparation
Preparing your equipment for the coming season- Limb timing (compound bows only)
- Tiller check
- Bracing height check
- Nocking point confirmation
- Sight mark simulation
- Arrow rest adjustment (e.g. switching from X7s to ACEs and back)
- Centre-shot adjustment
- Preliminary button tuning
You are now ready to move indoors... or out!
- Seasonal Tuning
Perfecting your equipment after the start of the indoor and outdoor seasons.
You have started the new season... your arrows are already on the correct target and nearly in the correct place... but grouping isn't what it could be...- Bow drawn weight check
- Bracing height fine adjustment
- Nocking point fine adjustment
- Arrow spine confirmation
- Paper-tear testing
- Fletched/unfletched testing
- Blank boss shooting
The Art of the Archer
It is envisaged these sessions would be held in a classroom.
- Making arrows
- Shaft selection
- Cutting to length
- Fletching
- Piling
- Nock alignment
- Bow maintenance
- Limb alignment
- Poundage adjustment and locking bolts
- General care
- Special considerations for each bow type
- String Making and waxing
Coaching
A selection of activities to get you shooting safely and then help you progress as much as you wish through the GNAS classification system.
Beginners Courses
These are formal six-week courses held during the summer. We tend not to run them during the winter (indoor) season because of space constraints. At the end of the course you will be presented with an attractive certificate. Further information about our beginners programme is to be found here.
Improver's Courses
We don't just give you a beginner's course and expect you to then represent the UK in the 2012 olympics (well, we do but...). Whether you have been shooting for six weeks or six years, this coaching course enables you to trim your technique. The coach will:
- Look for bad habits that have crept in
- Suggest excercises to maintain good form and technique
- Examine your equipment for potential basic setup faults
This is all done on a one-to-one basis. The coach will either be a Level 1 local coach or a Level 1 (or greater) coach hired for the day by the club. The coach will probably be guiding two or three people on the day but no more than that. Therefore you need to sign up in advance so that the required number of coaches will be present. This course is relatively informal.
Advanced Coaching
This will be an external coach. It is expected that you will be undertaking a continuous training programme with the coach, spanning at least probably an entire season. The cost of this course has to paid by the individual archer. However, as the club will negotiate lower rates than you would pay individually, our relationship with the coach requires that you do indeed complete the course.
You will need to have a handicap in order to qualify for this coaching. However, that only requires you to have shot three scoring rounds and have those ratified by the Records Officer.
Advanced topics include
- Advanced shooting techniques
- Daily training activities
- Diet and nutrition
- Mental training
- Relaxation
- Visualisation
- Tournament preparation
- Sleep
- Coaching diary
Coach Accreditation
The club actively encourages archers to become at least Level 1 coaches. There are several reasons for this.
- None of the above is possible without coaches. In becoming a coach, you are putting something back into the sport. By helping your fellow archers to improve their own shooting
- They will get greater enjoyment
- Club spirit is susbstantially raised
- More people shoot
- Costs can be divided between more people so we might even be able to reduce membership fees
- We might win more county and 'open' tournaments in other counties.
- The whole thing is just a lot more fun
- Your own shooting will improve
- We actively participate in archery "Have-a-go"s with local schools. We cannot do that without registered coaches (you will also need to pass police CRB checks to do this).
