) to find quite a few club members already working feverously. The sky was already dull and grey, and the forecast didn't look good (and boy we didn't really know how bad the rain was going to be – till later on). My first job of the day – Car Parking. Clothed in the quintessential reflective jacket the numbers of cars you could fit on our site was quite a surprise. 88 (I think) Field Archers prepared themselves for the days shooting – not a bad turn out for a first go. Marshalled by Steve and Brian (and a couple a very loud Air-horns) the numerous volunteers escorted their wards to their starting positions. A single air-horn blast, echoing across the moisture laden trees later and away they went. It would be fair to say that the ground was boggy (and the rest), and everyone got soaked several times during the day. As a Target man, I must admit it was very tempting to have a go there and then. But we (I) had a job to do. Lunch came and went, and the second round began. The weather faired a little better in the afternoon – but not by much. We seemed to have made a profit on arrows on certain targets. Target 13, for example. Scraping thorough the undergrowth we (that is to say mainly Vikki and Tim – my arrow recovery prowess was up to my usual "blind as a bat" level) was a sum total of 8 arrows recovered. Not bad seeing as there was only 4 reported missing on the day? It has to be said that Steve, Angie and Brian had, and did on the day, put in a lot of hard work and they reaped the rewards of a very good days' work. There were many positive comments – some even asking when we were going to hold shoot number 2. Well done everyone who helped, and well done to the 100 yard Club.
Update: Sunday 22nd April 2007 ****** *********IMPORTANT NEWS FLASH********** ****** WE HAVE A DATE!!!!!
Our sister club, the 100 Yard Field Archery Club are in the process of arranging a summer shoot. The shoot has been arranged for Sunday 15th July 2007 within the wooded area of the Paint Ball site. (directions can be found on the "Where are we" link) There is still a great deal of work to do in deciding what, where, who and how we arrange this, so all thoughts are welcome. All volunteers are welcome, the more the merrier. A date for a meeting is to be arranged shortly for all those who are interested. Please let us know if you are up for marshalling on the day, help with a work party, or any other activity. Have you seen that the Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph is running a Cash 4 Clubs competition? Which ever club collects the most tokens between 18th April and 1st May can will £1500 as the top price for their club. So please ask all your friends and family to save them for our club and hand into the club. This would really help boost the funds.
Update – Monday 9th April 2007
HELP WANTED – at this point in time we know of two have-a-go shoots . If anyone can help out please let either myself or Steve know – thanks
Brocklesby Country Fayre – Sunday 24th June 2007 Ranby House School (nr Retford) – School Summer Activities – Thursday 26th and Friday 27th July 2007
There may well be other have-a-go over the summer, but, if you are avalaible on the above dates please let myself or Steve know and then we can make the appropriate arrangements.
As I type this Laura and Vikky have just arrived back at our door (many thanks to Lorna) after they had taken part in the Easter Monday shoot at Friskney Bowmen. Although this is Laura's first shoot of the Outdoor season, Vikki has already been giving the other club Archers some competition.Anyway, on the day, both of our Archers did very well.For the start of her second season as a Senior, Victoria came back from Friskney with a second place.Laura, on the other hand, had to start the day with a first for her. Although she was already shooting "above" her age (she shoot Bristol III's last year) and the plan was to enchance this progress this year. However, when booking her slot for the competition, there was only a space in the Bristol II competition (again well above her "given" age range). Laura also came away with a second place on the day. Well Done one and all Author – Dave Smith
Saturday 16th December (for Tuesday 12th December 2006)
Firstly please accept the humble apologies of the author for the slight delay there has been a lot to do in the last few days, particularly with the oncoming rush of Christmas, less than a week away as I type. Anyway, as Secretary, I was the temporary Chairman for the evening, and, once the meeting had finished, I was quite happy to stay as Secretary – being Chairman can be a very nervy job. To cut the text to a minimum several issues where sorted out:
1: The Position of Chairman – I explained to the meeting that, as of the previous Wednesday’s shoot that no one had “officially” been put forward, or had been nominated, as Chairman.
Everyone was please to see Steve back and, with Steve’s agreement, he was nominated on the night to retain the position of Chairman. needless to say Steve was re-elected by unanimous vote.
2: Annual Subscription Fee/Shooting Fees – It was agreed that the club has, for quite a while, needed to re-appraise the way in which the funds for the club are raised and collected. After a short discussion the following agreement was reached:
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Adults – £30
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Juniors – £20
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Family – £45 (2 Adult & 2 Children)
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OAP's – £20
This would be a yearly payment, due 1st February each year. There will also be a £1 target fee, payable per shoot. It was also agreed that any Guest shooting would be charged a £2 fee per shoot. Agreed that a Junior would be anyone up-to the age of 18, and that the senior members of the club, receiving only a pension or not in any form of work, would also be charged the junior rate
3: The means of running the Target and Field Sections of the Club – I was quite pleased that this "issue" was sorted on the night. Even though we now have "Two Sections" it was confirmed that we only have one overall club. The potential issues with the two sections operating under two controlling organisations has been effectively negated by the fact that they shoot in two separate area's. It was also accepted that, like my self and my family, we would join (or should I say have joined) both organisations – and then we are able to have a go at both disciplines. It was also accepted that other members may well wish to join just one organisation.
The only potential problem could be next years indoor sessions, but it was agreed that some solution should be reached as the best way forward with this before it became a problem.
4: Coaching – The issue of coaching was raised, as it was felt that Steve had had to shoulder the burden of helping everyone, particularly the juniors, for a long time alone. Dave and Shelia are, at the moment, waiting for the start of their level one GNAS Coaching course at the moment (the course is due to start just after Christmas). It was also discussed that it would be useful to also have someone trained as a NFAS Coach. So it was agreed that the cost of a NFAS coach be looked with the potential of the club supporting them in some way.
5: Issues raised about Moor Farm/Elsham – The actual cost of using Elsham was raised as an issue. A few people mentioned that they were worried that there had been no real formal agreement of the cost of using the new site. This, and a couple of other issues were discussed at length (i.e the nearness of the Farmhouse yard to the Target Area, the lack of longer Target distances and the problems with the Game Keeper and the field shooters ). Steve mentioned that he was expecting to meet John form JCS on Saturday, and he was already aware of some of the issues.
6: Formalising a Beginners Course – It was agreed that the club should spend some time formulating a Beginners course, with a fixed cost and a “contract” that enabled a more professional controlled approach to new comers in training. The process agreed was as follows:
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any new comer should have a taster session, where they would receive basic training and safety information to see if they would like to go further
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There would then follow a 6 session training course, costing £12, and that it should be paid for at the first session.
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It was also agreed that, for the first 5 sessions, the beginner should be kept on the Targets. However, and if they wished to try it, on the 6th session, the new Archer should be allowed to take a supervised session in the woods with the 100 Yard Club
7: Local Safe Storage – Some concerns were raised with the present storage arrangements at Elsham. It was agreed that the club could well benefit from the hiring of a secure container.
8: Juniors – There were various discussions over the minimum age of, and the supervision of Youngsters visiting the club to both shoot, and watch. After a frank and oft emotional discussion it was agreed that the minimum age for a junior should nominally by 8. But it was also accepted that the maturity of the child should also be taken into account and, if a Club official felt that a younger child be sensible enough to shoot safely, then that child would be accepted. It was also re-iterated that the Accompanying Adult has total responsibility for their charges – and can be asked to vacate the shooting area if they cannot maintain the behaviour of their child (this also applies to unruly adults)
9: New equipment. – This one was, actually quite simple – we need some. The Target section needs a couple of new bosses, and quite a few boss stands. Luckily Frazer and Paul have volunteered to help out (cheers mate !!) The 100 Yard Club need an assortment of bits and pieces – so it was agreed that Brian and Shelia have an "head-to-head" to discuss their needs.
10: Any other business – Chris Stones’ passed round an example of the 100 Yard Club Logo, a rather nice Stag design on a navy Blue Background, with yellow/Gold lettering. This set off a discussion about marrying up the registered GNAS colours – a nice navy would be better than the standard Archery green
My personal thanks go out to Steve Hall for arranging the room for the night – it was very much appreciated.
Author – Dave Smith – Site Manager and Club Secretary
Monday 4th December 2006
as I said on the front page – proud dad time. This last Sunday Laura took part in her first GNAS National Indoor Competition. This was, to some extent a new experience for Laura. The next stage up from the County Competitions she had taken part in over the Summer, another step up. Cathy took Laura over to Lilleshall on Saturday Afternoon, so that they would both be rested and settled for the shooting session on Sunday Afternoon. Sometimes, i don't know which is worse for a parent – taking your youngest to a competition and watching them try their best, or, sitting at home waiting for some snippet of information, which will let you know how she got on. Anyway Sunday afternoon came and went. Looking up at the clock, i knew she was in the process of shooting, but, of course you can't just ring and keep pestering Cathy for a continuous update. Tea time came and went. Laura had come Second in her age group with a score of 474 – Not bad for someone who is still in her first year of competition Club Members meeting required – we are, at present, trying to arrange a Members meeting – there are now several reasons why we really need to do this. Sadly, one of those reasons is the sad departure of our present Chairman Steve. We wish him all the best.
Thursday 30th November 2006
Please accept the "Editors" apologies for the delay in posting this news item – but family and work have first call at the moment… As mid day Saturday arrived, many of the Anchor Bowman had arrived at Moor Farm, the club having now completed its move to our new shooting site at Barnetby Top (as the junction is know locally). The reason that a lot of Archers had tried to arrive early(-ish)? We had engaged the interest of the local newspaper and were waiting on the visit of their local Photographer. While we waited for the him to appear, everyone got on with what they had come to do in the first place – they fired some arrows. Many of the target Archers practised for the LCAS AGM Indoor shoot the following day, whilst some others tried their hand at field Archery for the first time. The more experienced members of that section continued their practise for their own up and coming competitions (there is a Field Archery shoot near Nottingham – The Spirit of Sherwood – on Sunday 3rd December). Darkness was beginning to draw in as a "strange" car came down the lane. The photographer was really really tall. We thought that our Liam was tall, but this lad was big. As he set about his task, Steve and Vikki became the main focus of this photo session. There were several assorted types of picture taken – some of which most of us thought would be quite "arty". Then, to finish the session, the Telegraph Man took the obligatory group shoot. Not normally a purchaser of the Scunthorpe Telegraph, I didn't know until our Wednesday Night Indoor session whether we had made the paper at all. As soon as i found out that we had, I had to make arrangements to get get hold of a copy of Tuesday Night's paper (Thanks Mum!!!!) . On top of all that, we have been lucky enough to have received a grant from the BT Community Champions system. Not a bad weekend all round.
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LCAS AGM – Boston Sunday 26th November 2006 Following the Lincolnshire County Archery Society (LCAS) AGM – the first that I had ever been too, I now know the reason why some people don't bother. The whole process was steady – it was very steady. But at least somethings have changed. Our own Shelia and Kelvin are now the County Secretary and Chairman respectively. We also did reasonably well in the afternoon shoot. Laura won the Junior Girl Compound, with Shelia coming third in the Ladies Compound. Vikki came second in the ladies Recurve Section – whilst I won the Gents Bare Bow (in a class of one !!!!) Author – Dave Smith
Sunday 19th November 2006
As you can you see from the first page, we have now moved to the Paintball site, just off junction 4 of the M180/A180 interchange. Below are copies of the various announcements.
Yesterday (as this is being typed on Sunday 19th November) was the first time of real shooting at the new site. The Target shooters had to wait for a Paintball team to clear the practise area (for safety reasons), but the targets where setup short, as quite a few of the assembled needed some practise for the Indoors AGM shoot next week.
The newly formed, if that's the right description, Field Section (the 100 yard club) were like a bunch of kids at Christmas. They now have a piece of woodland they can use without restriction. having walked all of the available trees and plants, the part of the woods that JCS Sports have allowed us free access too was the one piece we didn't see when we walked round.
It's pretty good (as far as i Know this sort of thing – my first calling is to target archery – not that will stop me having a go in the trees later on if i get the chance) There are a fair few assorted locations for various targets. Even some Paintball obstacles that can be used as points to shoot from.
Have we found a new home? Honest answer is I don't know. But the facilities available to us are certainly useful – I suppose that we will have to see.
Author – Dave Smith (Website Owner and Club Secretary)
" Dear All – as mentioned on my update of Sunday 11th November, it has been confirmed that we are moving shooting location. below is a copy of the announcement from the original/official Anchor Bowmen site …….
As you all know, for some time now, we at Anchor Bowmen have had reason to think that the football club has wanted us out and off their land.
Well, over the last few weeks we have had talks and visited a very nice man, who has land and buildings that we can use.
On our last talk with him, he has said we can use their land for archery, both target and field. And that we can go there as soon as we want.
We believe that, if we get the transport, and the man power, we could be shooting there on Saturday 18th November. The place being the Paintball company at Barnetby top, we believe it is a very good site and beneficial to both us and the company JCS leisure, with it being in easy sight of the motorway, and so bring in new members, and hope to expand. All this as I have said, if we can get transport, more will be found out soon, and i will pass it on to all members.
Author of above – Steve, on behalf of the club committee "
"Important Information – Move of Shooting Location
Could anyone involved in the club please take note.
After a lot of work on behalf of the Club, a lot of talking, looking and walking, the Committee have come to an agreement with the owner of the Paint Ball Course behind the Little Chef Unit, just off the the Roundabout at Barnetby Top.
This site gives the club access to enough open area to continue Target Shooting, but also gives those Archers who like Field shooting to go firing at targets in the sites own piece of Lincolnshire Woodland.
We need to know what you, the club member feels.
We are trying to get the thoughts and feeling of all the members as regards this possible move, so, if you have read this, and we haven't managed to see you, please feel free to contact myself, Steve Watts, Shelia, Brain etc with any opinion.
Author – Dave Smith"
SUNDAY 20th AUGUST 2006
As you can see from the image on the left (hopefully) – the Sunday shoot at Boston has been successful for both our Laura, and Vikki – with both winning their class. (Many thanks to Cathy – as she not only acted as “Mum’s” taxi for Laura, but she was also photographer for the day) Recent additional images – there are also additional images, taken by my own fair hand, of the team that went to the Luddington Summer Fayre
SATURDAY 5th AUGUST 2006
Firstly, please accept my apologies for not updating the site for a week or two – family life has it effects on everyone I suspect (LIL). Since the last report there have been several further competitions – in which our own “little troopers” did very well, with several medals and trophies being brought home to cover more shelf space. The Junior Lincs Compound Team won their Tri-county Match at Bingham – although the Recurve team did less well.
There are several more competitions coming up in the near future (Louth at the end of this week, Boston and so one) there is still plenty more entertainment within this shooting season.
SUNDAY 09th July 2006 – Lincolnshire v Nottinghamshire County Shoot
As reported a few weeks ago, several of our club archers had been asked to shoot for the Lincs County Archery Team.
Well yesterday (as this is being typed on Monday Evening), was the day of the shoot. After a two hour drive (that is to say the travel time for myself and Laura – a second group, inclusive of Andrew and Vikki – were kindly been taken down to Silverspoon @ Spalding by Kelvin and Shelia).
What is it with Spalding and Me/Laura?
the last time we went it rained – it really rained.
And yesterday?
Boy was it windy – really really windy.
To say reading time, cutting the story short, the windy weather on the day reduced the shoot to only half the normal number of Ends. I thought everyone did very well to hit the targets at all, but many shooters hit 72 out of 72 fired arrows. Vikki, and many of the Seniors, suffered worst as they were shooting longer distances, but the juniors didn’t do so bad (shorter distant targets).
By the end of the day, the Notts team had beaten the Lincs team, Andrew and Vikki had built up some decent scores, and Laura came second in her age group/bow type. But the real “winner” on the day (to the detriment of of everyone out on the field) was the weather.
The wind beat us all!!!!
Author – Dave Smith
The Lincolnshire County Team
I am proud to announce that several of our own Archers have been invited to shoot for the Lincolnshire County Team at the forth coming match against the Nottinghamshire County team @ Silver spoon Archers in Spalding. This match, taking part on Sunday 9th of July, is part of the Silverspoon York/Hereford competitions on the same day. Vikki, our lady Recurve, will, for the first time be shooting in the senior ladies team. Whilst two of our younger archers, Andrew, and my own daughter Laura, will be taking part at this level for the very first time. Andrew will be shooting Recurve for the Junior “Gents”, whilst Laura will be shooting Compound for the Junior Ladies – I wish them all the best of luck (not that they’ll need it)
I,or my beloved wife, will be there on the day (hopefully), and we will let you know how things pan out.
Author – Dave Smith.
Members Meeting – Monday 12th June 2006
A meeting was called, following the sad decision from both Chris and David to resign as Club Secretary and Treasurer respectively, it was open to the meeting to choose their replacements. After thanking both Chris and David for their efforts in the past (although, sadly, due to to their commitments those thanks couldn’t be given in person) a frank discussion then took place, not only over the new Secretary and treasure , but many other issues too.
By the end of the evening I (that is me Dave of SmudgersWorld) had been elected as the new secretary, and Shelia had both kindly agreed to, and had been elected, to carry out the function of Treasurer.
If you have any comments or questions , please use either the comments system at the bottom of the page, or Contact Us via the link above.
Some of the other items that were discussed at the meeting will be brought before the members when more substantial proposals are in place – keep logging in to find out !!
County Shoot – Boston – Sunday 11th June 2006
It was the first time that myself , and Laura, had ever been to a shoot at Boston (although I have worked there a few times). And boy – what a day. The weather was something to behold. For most of the day it was HOT, with clear blue skies and little or no breeze to speak of (although the breeze raised its head a few times during the day – and the ref lief was most welcome) Our own little tent village, among the wide range of small tents, bivvy’s and brollies was close to the “Junior End” for loss of a better description. There was bottles of sun cream appearing for all over the place (and it was certainly needed). Today, the Anchor shooters covered many of the competition categories, although, for once, we didn’t have either a Gents Recurve or Gents Compound shooter.
Our three Archers setup – ready to go. Vicky was on a
centre boss, so was a little way away from our “home base”. Our Laura, and young Andrew were both on boss 17. Then, the first drama of the day. On the sighter’s round, Laura’s peep sight went out of line, making it effectively useless. After some rushing about, a few tears, and a lot of thanks to several other archers (Colin Tucker and our own Kelvin to name but two) Laura managed to get back into the competition.
As the day went on – the heat increased – is was red hot. There was some nice consistent shooting all round. To cut a long story, short (and i can hear the cheers from here -
) we had had a very good day overall (although I suspect a certain member of the team didn’t think so). Laura not only won her section (Junior Ladies Compound) with a score of 1119, but she was also able to claim her six gold end and her 1100 point Rose award. Andrew came second in the junior Men’s Recurve section, also able to claim his 800 point Rose award. And Vicky?. She was able to start a complete new collection of awards. having moved up into the realms of the Senior Ladies, she was able to claim her Senior 900 point rose Award.
Me? I got a few decent pictures (to follow) but, because of the normal commitments of family life I haven’t been able to deal with them as yet
