​

Competition Announcement

All British & Open Field Championships  . . .  May 2024 . . . Updates ​Below

Click here for the Prospectus!

Tickets will go on sale to AGB members on https://agb.sport80.com
On 22nd Feb @ 7pm (early entrants on 19th Feb @ 10am)
 

Overton Black Arrows are looking forward to hosting The 2024 All British & Open Field Championships.

Taking place on Saturday the 25th and Sunday the 26th of May 2024, we're expecting plenty of world class field archers to come and shoot at our field archery venue, The Warren.  Plenty of aspiring archers will also tackle the challenging course; shooting up, down and across some renowned and maybe even feared slopes, as well as through the woods between trees where light and shade can play a part in creating a challenging shot.

​

Update - Shooting the ABO (Have we mentioned there'll be slopes yet?)

Rather than using around 30 targets to enable an unmarked WA24 Field Course to be shot on Saturday, taking six targets at the end of play and introducing six new targets, so archers could shoot a slightly changed marked WA24 Field Course on Sunday, there'll now be a marked WA24 Field Course and unmarked WA24 Field Course.

Archers will shoot one of the courses on Saturday and the other course on Sunday.

One of the WA24 Field Courses is likely to be solely within The Warren with the other WA24 course spread around The Combe and The Woods.

​

Update - Sold Out! - Waiting List Open

With the original allocation of 120 tickets selling out within minutes, the course was expanded, see below update, to allow an additional 72 archers to enter the event, increasing the available tickets to a total of 192.  However, by the end of the Easter Bank Holiday weekend, all 192 tickets had been booked.

But, if you're feeling optimistic, you can still put your name down and go onto the waiting list.

In reality there'll be a number of archers who, for one reason or another will have to cancel their entrance.

So, if you want to try and enter the 2024 All British Open, in case you can bag a last minute ticket, click here.

​

Update - Course Expansion

Due to unprecedented demand, and our mad ambition to expand the entrance list, the 2024 ABO has expanded from a 120 competitor event over a single WA24 Field Course with six waiting groups, to a 192 competitor event over two WA24 Field Courses but with no waiting groups, albeit we might allow some waiting groups if the demand justifies it.  You can still enter the 2024 ABO by clicking here although guaranteed places are becoming limited, less than 10 as of 4:30pm on the 19th of March 2024, so you may end up on a waiting list if you don't book your ticket soon.

It will be a much more significant undertaking for the club, but it will keep the ABO as it has been in the past, a double WA24 Field Course event. So, to help try and ensure we can undertake the volume of work needed, we are asking for any volunteers wiling to help in the run up to the event, and potentially even on the day, to help, simply sign up to the event we have created by clicking this link.  Then, simply enter your name and contact details on the first page, then tick any of the dates on the second page that you can help out on.  All help will be much appreciated.

​

The Warren has three distinct areas:

The Warren, around 12acres of a curved dead end valley with many steep slopes; loved by course designers, often loathed by archers.

The Woods, around 7acres of mature woodland, with few level areas anywhere, lots of shade with light spots throughout.

The Combe, another 12acres or more, much of it a steeply sloped like a natural amphitheatre, we hope you like slopes!

Overall, the whole venue represents a very challenging environment for even the most seasoned field archer.

 

As a club, Overton Black Arrows is privileged to have access to The Warren and we're delighted to be able to invite archers wanting to shoot the whole venue, which is not often possible, to enter The 2024 All British & Open Field Championships.

We hope you won't be disappointed with the course and we're quietly confident you will feel challenged!

Hopefully, everyone will leave with a smile on their face, even if one or two competitors do leave an arrow, or two, in storage somewhere within The Warren!  But, don't worry, someone will likely find it, although we can't say when, but most arrows stored at The Warren get found ... eventually.

​

​

Beginners Course

  Our Winter 2024 Beginners Course finished on Saturday the 3rd of February.

24 potential new archers are now able to join Overton Black Arrows, or any AGB affiliated club.

We will publish details of our next Beginners Course once we have set dates for it.  Although it is likely to be late summer and or early autumn before our next group beginners course takes place.  'Ad-hoc' beginners courses for an individual, or couple, may be possible from April onwards.

Please see the EVENTS and/or the BEGINNERS page for more details.  Or, use the Contact page and select 'Beginners' from the drop down list and send us a message letting us know you'd like to do a beginners course and we'll add your details to the list of people  to contact when we arrange our next beginners course.

​

​​

I've brought a bow and want to practice with it ...

Whilst it is possible to teach yourself to shoot, there are all sorts of things that can go wrong with this!  Where will you shoot this lethal weapon?

An official range has a minimum length of 100m and a width that includes a sizeable safety area either side of the target.

Are you insured? ... Are your neighbours happy? ... Is your equipment even fit for purpose?

From a coaching perspective, it is important to NOT just go out, buy a bow and start shooting.  Correct shooting technique should be learnt on a light-weight bow, before moving to a heavier poundage otherwise you will be stuck with bad technique and quite possibly end up injuring yourself.  A typical beginners bow has a low draw weight, 14-18lb, is enough, less for juniors.  Once good technique has been learnt, an archer can gradually move up in bow weight. We teach using recurve bows (as these have interchangeable limbs), but the basic techniques we teach transfer equally well to; Barebow, Compound, Flatbow, Horsebow, Longbow, Recurve, Traditional - you can hire bows from us once you have finished a beginners course and we'd recommend continuing with one of these for a few months before switching to a different bow style, or buying your own equipment.

​