Life @ EA

Edinburgh Academy pupil Alexandra Hood sits down with us to discuss archery, inspiration and competition. In addition to holding three national records, she is a five-time Scottish Champion in the Young Adult Female Bowhunter Unlimited category. Congratulations to Alexandra for winning gold medals in two different styles at the Scottish Indoor Archery Championships last November.

How did you get into archery?
When I was ten, I was watching The Hunger Games with my brother and was really inspired by the lead character who was a very powerful young woman who uses a bow. She looked so cool, and I wanted to look cool doing that as well, so I said to my dad, ‘I want to do that!’ and asked for lessons. I attended a six-week course and my first ever arrow was just outside the bullseye and I thought, ‘this is meant to be!’

What do you like about it?
I liked working toward getting that ‘perfect shot’ and score because the sport is very repetitive. You are always starting again and can make the same mistakes, but when you do get it right, everything just feels perfect and natural.

It looks deceptively simple – point, pull and shoot – but there are so many different things that go into it. It’s down to your form, your stance, how you hold the bow, how you release and if one thing goes wrong your trajectory can go haywire. One millimetre off at the start means the arrow will be inches off the target. It’s an insane and quite mentally challenging sport, but if you persist then you will get to the point where you don’t make mistakes.

Are you a member of an Archery Club/organisation?
Yes, I’ve been a part of a club called Drum Field Archers for five years now. They’ve been great with helping me find the right equipment and I have an amazing coach – she’s an absolute legend. The whole club has been really supportive.

How often do you compete?
There are two championships every year, indoor and outdoor, but we also participate in club competitions. There are about 12 clubs all around Scotland and we travel to each one. The popular one is Inverness, because they have a really good archery course, and we compete for fun and the practice, which is quite good. I would say there is at least one every month. They are frequent and we try to make sure that archers are kept active because there is really nowhere else you can do it.

What are your aspirations (fun or Olympics)?
Initially, it was just for fun but doing it competitively has made me reconsider my path for the sport. The Olympics are definitely an aspiration but for now international competition is probably where I am heading. I’ve been all over Scotland, so I am ready to compete on a bigger stage. There is one in New Zealand every so often, there was one in The Netherlands three years ago. The plan is to go international and maybe change my style of bow and then try for the Olympics.

How do they structure of the groups?
First of all, it is the type of bow that you shoot, then male/female and then your age. There is a professional group that is separate because it would be unfair to put professionals into a group that just wants to shoot for fun. Unless you are professional, you just shoot in the group category that fits you. You are essentially competing against each other but there are some archers that are more experienced than the rest. For instance, at the last Indoors Competition I was shooting alongside Archery GB people, which was quite inspiring to watch because they are in my city and shoot for the Olympics!

It sounds like you practice a lot.
Yes (laughs)! Even when I’m not at The Shed, which is what we call our practice facility. Archery requires a lot of upper body strength, so when I can’t shoot I’m doing exercises for my arms, back and shoulder. But when I am shooting, I practice for hours. Just getting my sight dialled-in takes a really long time. Every part of your equipment matters, so adjustments to your bow, the length of the arrows and how much they weigh all have an effect on your accuracy.

How do you juggle schoolwork and practice?
School is full-time, obviously, but I attend club nights three days a week and those are the days when I practice and see my coaches for guidance, advice, etc.

What kind of bow do you shoot?
I started with a recurve bow, which is the traditional wooden bow but my coach introduced me to the compound bow and I’ve been using that ever since. My bow has a draw weight of 35lbs, which is fast upon release.

What distances and styles do you shoot?
The longest distance that I shoot is 80 yards (240ft, 73m) outdoors, which is more than in the Olympics. Indoors, the distances are up to 20 yards. When I was in the Junior category I could only shoot up to 50 yards which, looking back now, I miss, because it is much harder to be accurate at the longer distances.

I prefer shooting outdoors because there is a greater variation in distances and targets. For instance, we do Animal Rounds with 3D versions of animals, which is fun because they don’t tell us the distance. We have to eyeball it and make it up, so it’s great when you guess right.

My favourite round in competitions is the Hunter Round, which is when the distances aren’t in multiples of 5 like a Field Round. They can vary – 42, 57 or 72 yards – very weird numbers. This is where the Bowhunter Unlimited comes into play because the distances are not set. With Freestyle Unlimited you can set your sights for to certain distances, but BU rounds are more interesting because they require more skill and guesswork.

What skills are needed to be a good archer?
Definitely self-motivation and a positive mental attitude, because it can be a bit stressful on the lead up to a competition. You are going to make mistakes whether you like it or not, so you have to be able to deal with that. You also have to be driven.

Obviously, this is more than a hobby. Is it a relaxing break from School?
I mentioned earlier working toward the ‘perfect shot’. When you achieve it, it is such an amazing feeling because you know that you got everything right. When I’m doing archery I’m not thinking about exams, I’m focussed on my bow and the shot and everything else fades away. It is a very mindful activity. I look forward to seeing the club members because it is a different crowd than School. We all have the same goal – we just want to do well in our sport and see where it takes us. I am very grateful to the sport because it gives me a break from everyday stresses.