Well… another year, and another unnecessary controversy we need to address.  This time it revolves around swapping targets from the top bale to the bottom bale after 5 scoring ends… if you can believe that.  Please click through for important changes for the remainder of the year, and a bit of a rant.

Weekend before last there was a group of people in both shoots, at Archery World in Vancouver and again at Great Northwest in Puyallup, who did not have an archer shooting above or below them and at the halfway point moved their target up/down approximately six inches from where it had been, effectively leaving their target in the middle of the bale for the entire round.  Their contention is that the rules do not specify how far they needed to move their targets, so they chose to move them six inches.  Naturally this caused a great deal of consternation among the other competitors at the tournaments.  While moving your target six inches may not be explicitly in violation of a written rule, it clearly runs afoul of the intent of the practice.  As everyone knows the reason we swap bale positions halfway through the scoring round is to equalize the playing field as much as possible, making the environment equitable.

I have had a very difficult time writing this post because I am truly frustrated and extremely disappointed that I need to address this at all, and I’ve found it very hard to be even remotely civil.  I’ve been shooting archery since 1988.  I’ve never seen this be a problem.  Whether its in league, at a tournament, or just in practice if you move your targets  you move them from the top of the bale to the bottom, never six inches.  Aside from this practice clearly being unsporting, I also think it displays weakness in mental preparations and any small advantage that may be gained in the moment is more than offset by the fact that you are likely to be unprepared for the environment you will face in any large or important tournament, or any event where someone happens to shoot above or below you.

This is so simple and non-controversial that NFAA and Vegas don’t even have explicit rules to cover it.  Its just an accepted practice.  No one can honestly look anyone in the eye and say that the sentence “Swap your targets from the top bale to the bottom bale” can be reasonably interpreted to mean that moving your targets six inches across the middle of the bale is acceptable.  This is exactly how we wind up with a rule book that is 50 pages deep, filled with things that make you say “Did they really need to write that down?”

Sadly, the answer is yes.  While the vast majority of archers comport themselves with integrity, rules are always made in reaction to the few who know what they should do and choose to do something else.  Sadder still, that person will inevitably find enough people to follow them that it becomes a problem which needs to be dealt with, and everyone else is made to suffer the consequences.  And so, we will be amending our rules to correct this and ensure a fair tournament experience for everyone.  However, the Shoot Up Tour does not amend our rules once the Tour has started, so we won’t be making any written changes until next year.

In the mean time, since this topic is not covered either way in the Tour rules, the tournament directors have a lot of leeway in how we can handle this situation.  After much deliberation, here is what we have decided to do:

For the remainder of the season the people running the event will measure the bales and identify the mid point.  When possible, we will mark that line with string/tape/ribbon/etc., so that the top and bottom positions are clearly delineated.  When shooting on the top bale position the entire target face will need to be above the bale midpoint, when shooting the bottom bale position the entire target face will need to be below the bale midpoint.  If there is no visual indicator of the midpoint, targets which are questionable shall be measured and adjusted so that the entire target is on the appropriate side of the bale.  If an archer refuses to move their target, a tournament official will move the target to the appropriate location for them.  Shooting cannot commence until all targets are in their appropriate positions.

I will send this update to all of the shops and clubs and organizers who have shoots remaining this year.

To all of you who have moved your targets appropriately, and followed all of the other non-written rules of good conduct and good sportsmanship, you have my heartfelt appreciation.  You make the sport (and life) easier and more enjoyable for everyone.  And I’m sorry for wasting your time, both with this post and with whatever delays this may cause at shoots in the future.