Contents
Aiming by bow class
| Bow class | How you aim |
|---|---|
| Recurve | A sight with an aperture; aiming is holding the sight picture while back tension continues. The shot is not "aim then loose" but "aim while expanding". |
| Compound | A scope (lens + pin) and a peep sight in the string; the let-off holds the weight, so aiming is steadier, and the release is a back-tension (hinge) action, not a finger punch. |
| Barebow | No sight: string-walking (crawling the fingers on the string for a known distance), face-walking, and point-of-aim methods. |
The dot always floats a little: you do not freeze the bow to still it. Let it float and release on the tension, which keeps the movement alive.
The clicker (recurve)
The clicker is a spring blade the arrow passes under: it makes an audible click at a set draw length. It plays two roles: it standardises draw length (the same length every shot) and it triggers the release (you release on the click, on the continued tension). Grooving a clean expansion "through the clicker", continuing to expand up to the click, without anticipating or freezing, is a core recurve skill. Compound has no clicker; it works the release on the release aid.
Release and follow-through, the decisive moment
This is the element where most points are decided:
- Recurve: the string leaves the fingers as a reaction to continued back tension (a clean "surprise" loose), the string hand travelling back along the neck.
- Compound: the release aid (index-finger or hinge/back-tension) fires; a surprise break is the goal.
- Follow-through: posture and bow arm held after the shot, hands reacting naturally. A collapsed or grabbed follow-through is the classic error.
Target panic, handled honestly
Target panic is a disorder of aiming and release: freezing off-centre, punching the release, or a shot that will not fire. The interventions are coach-led: a return to the blank-bale, re-grooving back tension / the clicker, rebuilding the routine. The science is honest about its limits: there is no published protocol of proven efficacy that "cures" target panic. So no drill is ever presented as a cure; it is presented as a framed reset.
Frequently asked questions
Should you "still" the aim before releasing?
Does the blank-bale cure target panic?
Sources
USA Archery, National Training System (aiming, the clicker, back-tension release); World Archery, Coaching Manual; Archery GB (progression, FOREIGN-CURRICULUM). Paak archery corpus, files 03 (technique, drills and pedagogy) and 05 (sport science and prevention), verified September 2026. On target panic, the evidence of intervention efficacy is limited: the corpus reports the absence of a proven protocol, and no drill is presented as a cure.