We have all been to a shoot where the targets are not too exciting. Some Kingdoms are plagued with this issue, and some are blessed with the opposite.
There are many reasons and factors that lead to a ‘good’ or a ‘bad’ shoot.
When those who organize have the time, materials, help, and imagination some amazing events are to be had. Take something like the St. Sebastian’s shoot at Pennsic, always fun and the variety of targets is always amazing. Here though we have a group of people who contribute their time and targets to the collective whole.
But what if you are going solo at a small event, and simply don’t have time or money, but you love archery and realize the show must go on? There isn’t much for it but to do your best with what you have.
Do what you can to make the task easier on yourself though. Reach out to your Barony and Kingdom and see who else is coming that can assist. Do you need help marshaling? Are there any MiTs that will be there? The extra assistance can leave you with more planning, and target time.
What about targets then? You dont have to be an archer to have fun making targets, you can simply be creative! Do you have friends that love to draw or paint? Make some simple targets and get friends to make target faces, or go get some stuffed animals from a second hand store. If you are short on ideas, reach out to the community in advance. You may be surprised how many people will not only be willing to help, but also marshal the target they made!
All that said, it helps to make sure you have Royal Rounds set up as well, record some scores for the glory of your Barony or Kingdom! So what some may consider mundane, can be fun as well.
‘Normal’ targets can be fun if you create a theme or narrative with them. If you only have RR targets, you can make the game to only hit the corners, or a quadrant. Draw shapes on the target face with a sharpie.
Timing can also be an issue. If you only have three targets with RR faces, you may now you have conflict. Some people may want to do RRs while others just want to shoot for fun. Scheduling can be your friend. Announce ahead of time that RRs will be held 10-11 a.m. and open shoot from 11-2 p.m., then there will be a competition from 2-4 p.m.
Remember the goal is to make sure the populace has a good time, and it never hurts to have people go home and brag about the time they had on the range!
Happy Shooting!
