Archery Scores: Asking for a Little More

Over the past couple of years, I’ve been spoiled. When it comes to results, I typically head on over to the USPSA Website and check to see how I shot a given match. In addition to an overall score and class ranking, a variety of stage data is also available.

I’ve gotten into the habit of taking that additional data and feeding it into a spreadsheet. With a couple of quick calculations, I am able to generate some statistics that give me a more in depth look at my performance.

I’ve found that when it comes to Archery Scores, the information presented is pretty crude. Don’t get me wrong, most people are happy with nothing more than seeing their rank and score, but I’d like to see more.

Lets pretend for a minute that you and I just pulled into the parking lot of Bullseye Archery Club. We head on over to registration and get signed in for Bowhunter Division. We spend a few hours shooting at foam, in the woods, and have a great time.

After the match, results are posted. I earned a respectable score but know that I struggled with a handful of shots. I’m a competitive person and I want to improve my chances of beating you the next time we go out to shoot.

I could just go out and practice until my shoulders ached but wouldn’t it be more beneficial if I knew what sort of shots to practice?

Lets take this story a little further and say that after the results were posted, the Archery Director also published a list of targets and yardages. Paired with your score card (a photo snapped before turning it in or, even better yet, a downloaded copy), I can now start to see my trouble spots.

At a glance, I can see that my biggest issue is medium sized targets shot at 26 to 28 yards. The next time I head out to practice, I know that I need to work on the hold-over on my 20 yard sight pin.

The data doesn’t stop there but that is just one example of how having more information would be beneficial. I realize that I’m asking a lot of the host club but I sure would appreciate it.