NASP ARCHERY TOURNAMENTS FOR DUMMIES :-) 

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE? NASP tournaments are open to students who have been trained in schools by NASP certified archery instructors in grades 4-12. NOTE: 6th graders are considered to be MIDDLE SCHOOL ARCHERS for NASP tourneys.

EQUIPMENT:

  • Only unmodified Genesis Original (not mini or pro) bows may be used. No sights, release aids, etc.

  • Camo Genesis Orginal bows must have the riser of the bow taped or painted a solid color to prohibit archers from using the camo pattern as sight marks.

  • We have loaner bows to use at the tournament but it’s first come first served. Most tournaments will have loaner bows to use.

  • Bluffsview archers may borrow a Bluffsview bow to use at tournaments.

  • For Bluffsview hosted tournaments please let us know when registering which bow your child prefers to use to reserve it, assuming no other student has already reserved that bow.

  • Our bows have names, silly names mostly, so your child is not lying to you if they say they like to use “Purplicious” or “Darth Vader.” If the bow that your child prefers is already reserved for that time (the time or round that an archer shoot is called a flight) then you can either select another flight or use a different bow.

  • Upon arrival at Bluffsview hosted tournaments, please see the volunteer near the bow rack located near registration to get your bow.

  • THERE ARE MANY MORE RULES THAT CAN BE ACCESSED AT THE NASP WEBSITE.

HOW DOES AN ARCHERY TOURNAMENT WORK?

  • Archers will be assigned a lane. In fact they’ll often be assigned the left side of a lane or the right side of a lane.

  • The entire group or wave of archers will shoot one practice round of 5 arrows at 10 meters and then shoot 3 scoring rounds of 5 arrows each round for a total of 15 scored arrows at 10 meters. Each round in archery is called an “end.” Then the archers will repeat that whole process, including a practice round but from 15 meters. So… 30 arrows, with a maximum score of 10 per arrow means a perfect score would be 300…think bowling!

  • Scorecards are used whereby archers bubble in their lane-mate’s scores and vice versa. There are sportsmanship and character components in archery, like in many sports.

SCORING:

  • The target has concentric rings with the outer ring being worth 1 point and the inner ring worth 10 points.

  • An arrow touching a line, even just a tiny bit, receives the higher point value.

  • As mentioned, an individual can earn up to 300 points although it’s much more rare to get a 300 in NASP archery than a 300 in bowling.

  • Archers do not record their own arrows or write on their own scorecard. They share a target with an archer from another team. It’s possible this archer will be in a different division than them. We once had our shortest archer shooting with a very large and mature high school archer…think NFL linebacker...with a beard! Classic!J

TEAM SCORING:

  • At team tournaments, schools are typically permitted to bring 24 archers. For the team score they will use the top 12 scores from that school, with a minimum of 4 archers from each gender. Most team tourneys aren't until January.

SCORING SEQUENCE:

  • Both of the archer's scorecards are on one clipboard. Both archers are permitted to approach the target while scoring but NOT WHILE PULLING ARROWS! Archer A calls out the arrow values of Archer B's arrows, pointing to the fletchings/vanes (but not touching) of the arrows. “Archer A” records/bubbles in the value(s) on a scoresheet (think ScanTron). Repeat this for all 5 arrows. NO ARROWS ARE PULLED YET!

  • Archer B then checks the scorecard to make sure Archer A recorded arrows correctly and THEN Archer B checks the box to the right of that scoring section, called a scoring "end." (NO ARROWS ARE PULLED YET AND WON'T BE UNTIL ALL ARROWS ARE SCORED). Archer B then calls out and bubbles Archer A's arrows. Archer A inspects the scores that Archer B has recorded and checks the box if correct. One archer now steps behind behind the scoring/safety line while the other pulls arrows then vice versa.

  • Once arrows are pulled they cannot change any scores. After the entire flight (all arrows have been shot for the day) is finished it’s important that the lane-mates sign each other’s scorecards as well as sign their own thereby verifying that the scorecard is correct. Once arrows are pulled the scores are set!

ETTIQUETTE:

  • Like many sports there are certain rules of conduct. Some of the more significant rules of etiquette For example: Straighten your target if you’re the last one at the target. Keep your bow vertical at all times while shooting so that you don’t hit your neighbors with your bow.

  • Don’t pull someone else’s arrows or even touch them. Be sure to sign your scorecard and your lane-mate’s scorecard.

  • PLEASE BE QUIET WHILE SHOOTING AND KEEP YOUR REACTIONS AND THOUGHTS TO YOURSELF.

  • STAY ON YOUR HALF OF THE LANE AS YOU’RE ENTITLED TO 2.5 OF THE 5 FEET WIDTH OF THE LANE. It's not uncommon for archers to desire to stand as near to the center of the lane as possible thereby putting them in close proximity to the other archer. Some archers feel intimated by this. As long archers they are on their half of the lane and do not cross that imaginary plane, they are legal. However, if you feel they are over that plane simply raise your hand and tell a lane official or coach of your concern.

WHEN SHOULD WE ARRIVE?

  • Typically we recommended that you arrive no later than 30 minutes prior to your flight. If it's states or nationals or worlds obviously you want to be earlier. If it’s your child’s first archery tournament then arriving an hour ahead of time is recommended, but not necessary, just so that they can see what it looks like and how it works. This is incredibly valuable for them to get a mental picture. Archery is incredibly mental. That's an understatement!

  • Rushing in at the last minute, trying to check-in, get your bow ready, racking your bow, getting your scorecard, is a recipe for a bad archery experience for kids. Get there early, hang out, and have fun! Archery events can be a fun and somewhat social time as well.

HOW’S A FUN SHOOT DIFFERENT THAN A TOURNAMENT?

A fun shoot is typically a tournament for individuals and not for teams. There are typically awards for the top 3-5 archers in each gender for each division and/or grade. They are usually a little more laid back in that they tend to happen earlier in the season (fall & early winter) before the more serious team tournaments begin.  A fun-shoot might have some fun shooting between flights by allowing archers, sometimes adults/parents, to shoot at balloons, a 3D target, a piece of tape, or something like that and earn a piece of candy or other reward for fun and to raise money for programs.

Got more questions? bwilson@wscloud.org. Note: There are lots of NASP rules but these are some of the basics. You can go to the NASP website for more pages (and pages!) of rules and in fact we encourage you to do so.