Felicity May prepares you and your bow for the upcoming indoor season
As autumn takes over and with winter ahead, we are into the indoor season, and back to 18 metres. But what are the implications for our kit? Here I’ll look through the archer’s kitbag and discuss possible changes – additions and subtractions.
Tuning and Maintenance
Depending how your equipment was set up for outdoors, the first priority may be to retune your bow for the shorter distance.
I would suggest checking your entire kit, ensuring that the alignment is still good, and the string is still useable with a tight centre serving. Consider replacing your leather tab, which has been subjected to all the elements during the summer and may well be worn out.
Your button might also need a refresh, depending on how long you’ve been shooting with it. If you have to replace the tip and springs from the inside, make sure to note down any adjustments, whether by taking a picture, marking the button itself or writing down the micro adjustment numbers first, before taking it apart. This will keep the button in good working order and remove any imperfections on the tip that could have come through from shooting high volumes over the year.
Arrows
Outdoors, arrows are often chosen for their slim profile to cut through the wind and maintain stable flight over long distances. Indoors, however, there’s no wind to worry about, and the focus shifts to maximising scoring potential.
This is why many archers across all bow types switch to larger diameter arrows for the indoor season. A wider shaft increases the chance of catching a line and earning a higher score, a small but valuable advantage when shooting at the more compact target faces.
Heavier indoor arrows also tend to be more forgiving, and since speed is less critical indoors, the trade-off is usually worth it. If you switch shafts, make sure your nocks and fletchings are tuned for consistency at close range. A lot of archers will opt for longer fletchings to help correct the small technical errors more quickly; there is a lot less ‘air time’ for the arrow to recover in flight if archer’s mistakes occur. It is very important to make sure tuning is on point with heavier arrows as it can be far more critical and less forgiving compared to outdoors where weather comes into play.
Sight Pin
It’s perfectly normal for archers to change their sight pin setup when moving from outdoor to indoor shooting. The demands of the two environments are very different, and making small equipment adjustments can help maintain accuracy and confidence at the target.
Outdoors, at longer distances like 70 metres, a larger or more visible sight pin can make it easier to hold steady on the bigger target face and cope with variable light conditions. Indoors, however, at the shorter distance and smaller target face many prefer to switch to a finer or smaller sight pin that offers greater precision.
Indoor lighting can also make fibre pins appear overly bright, so some archers swap to a plain pin or different colour for comfort and clarity. These adjustments are common practice, and some archers even keep separate sight setups for indoor and outdoor seasons to avoid constant reconfiguration.
Bow stand
A lot of recurve archers don’t use a bow stand outdoors, but indoors it can be a good idea. The venues usually have hard floors, which are liable to scuff up your limbs or cams on a compound, if a bow stand isn’t used.
Binoculars
You won’t need a scope for indoors, but sometimes the shadows from the lighting within a hall can be misleading, so a lightweight pair of binoculars on a comfortable strap can be useful.
Footwear
You won’t be fighting with the elements of uneven flooring due to grass and mud (unless you are shooting in a mud hit), so flat comfortable shoes are preferable. Some halls require a non-marking heel and sole, so make sure your shoes comply.
Correct clothing
Even though indoors should be warm it’s important to be prepared. A hall can be colder than you expect, especially during the first session of a competition. So be prepared with thinner but warm layers, with clothing that can easily be adjusted depending on temperature, and doesn’t restrict free movement.
Enjoy the indoors and set new PBs this season with well-tuned gear!