Alabama 4-H

Archery State 4-H SAFE Championship

6 min read
Arrows in front of archery target

Refer to additional information in the Competitive Events Introductions and General Championship Rules.

Match Contacts

Sarah Butterworth, Archery Discipline Lead/Match Director, sfb0010@aces.edu, (334) 703-6777

Date

Saturday, April 13, 2024

Time

8:00 a.m. (on-site check-in from 8:00 to 8:45 a.m.)

Location

Alabama 4-H Center, 892 Four H Road, Columbiana, Alabama 35051

Age Divisions

  • Juniors 9 to 13 (as of January 1, 2024)
  • Seniors 14 to 18 (as of January 1, 2024)

FITA Competitive Classes

  • Junior Compound without sights (10 and 20 meters)
  • Junior Recurve without sights (10 and 20 meters)
  • Senior Recurve without sights (10 and 20 meters)
  • Senior Compound without sights (10 and 20 meters)
  • Junior Compound with sights (10 and 20 meters)
  • Junior Recurve with sights (10 and 20 meters)
  • Senior Recurve with sights (40, 50, and 60 meters)
  • Senior Compound with sights (40, 50, and 60 meters)

3-D Competitive Classes

  • Junior Compound without sights (shots from 5 to 25 yards)
  • Junior Recurve without sights (shots from 5 to 25 yards)
  • Senior Recurve without sights (shots from 5 to 25 yards)
  • Senior Compound without sights (shots from 5 to 25 yards)
  • Junior Compound with sights (shots from 5 to 25 yards)
  • Junior Recurve with sights (shots from 5 to 25 yards)
  • Senior Recurve with sights (shots from 5 to 40 yards)
  • Senior Compound with sights (shots from 5 to 40 yards)

Cost

$30 per shooter includes one FITA and one 3-D class (nonrefundable)

Awards are given for FITA classes and 3-D classes separately plus overall. Teams must participate in both FITA and 3-D competitions to be eligible for the national event.

Registration

All teams and individuals must register through v2.4honline.com. Registration opens by February 13 and closes March 28. Please read all rules.

Safety

Bows may be drawn only on approved ranges with permission of a designated range officer. Sky-drawing is not permitted on the firing line. It is the responsibility of the 4-H’er to know the rules and abide by them. Learning the rules of the event is part of the educational process for 4-H Shooting Sports.

There is a mandatory safety meeting with all participants on the shooting field 15 minutes before each flight begins.

Match Equipment

Teams and individuals must furnish all their own equipment. All equipment is inspected at check-in. All questions must be asked to the match directors. Participants should bring 8 arrows to equipment check-in. It is desirable that shooters not share equipment. If sharing is necessary, indicate this at on-site registration. Archers should mark their arrows so they can be identified quickly.

  • Arrows: For compound bows with sights, arrows up to 27/64 can be used. Arrows must meet AMO minimum weight standard of 5 grains arrow weight per pound of peak bow draw weight.
  • Bows: For bows without sights, Easton 1820 arrows can be used. Bows must be 60 pounds or less in draw weight.
    • Recurve bows: Kisser buttons, clickers, adjustable sight pins, and multiple hunting-style sight pins may be used. String peeps, mechanical release aids, and torque compensators cannot be used.
    • Compound bows with sights: Release aids, optical sights, clarifiers, or spirit levels are permitted. Overdraws may not place the arrow rest farther than 6 centimeters from the pivot point of the bow. Battery lights on sight aids can be used. No sight aid with a built-in range finder is allowed.
    • Compound bows without sights should be unmodified Original Genesis bows or similar. Prior approval can be requested from the match director to use bows other than Genesis.
    • All archers must have finger protection either on the bow string or on their fingers unless using a mechanical release aid. All shooters must use ground quivers (provided) during the FITA competition. All shooters must have a side or hip quiver during the 3-D competition.
    • Binoculars are allowed on the 3-D course. The presence or use of range finders by youth/parents/spectators at the 3-D course results in immediate disqualification for any individual involved.
    • Youth are not allowed to have a cell phone on the range or while waiting during the 3-D round. Any youth seen with one is disqualified. Parents are allowed to have cellular devices but must keep them on silent or vibrate. Only in emergency situations may they be used in the immediate vicinity of the competitive ranges during active competition.

Replacement of Equipment

A 4-H coach may provide replacement or additional equipment as needed after obtaining permission from the match director. Coaches may be requested to assist a 4-H’er with a situation on the firing line by the match director. Twenty minutes are given for equipment failure. A 4-H shooter is allowed to shoot all shots after the equipment is fixed.

Range Commands

Control over the range is through whistle commands.

  • Two whistle blasts: Archers to the shooting line. Shooters should not touch arrows.
  • One whistle blast: Begin shooting.
  • Three whistle blasts: Walk forward to score and retrieve your arrows.
  • Four or more whistle blasts: Stop shooting immediately and put your arrows in your quiver.

FITA Target & Course of Fire

80 centimeter faces, 5 colors

  • Juniors without and with sights: 6 ends of 3 arrows from 10 and 20 meters (36 arrows)
  • Seniors without sights: 6 ends of 3 arrows from 10 and 20 meters (36 arrows)
  • Seniors with sights: 3 ends of 6 arrows from 60, 50, and 40 meters (54 arrows)

Shooters have a total of 4 minutes to shoot six arrows and 2 minutes to shoot three arrows. Archers are scored by other youth in their group. Adult volunteers oversee scoring and help only when requested by 4-H’ers. Any disagreement in scoring must be settled by the range official before the arrow is pulled. Shooters must sign their scorecard at the end of the match before leaving the range.

3-D Target & Course of Fire

  • Junior and senior without sights and junior with sights: 10 to 20 targets; shots from 5 to 25 yards
  • Junior with sights: 10 to 20 targets; shots from 5 to 25 yards
  • Senior with sights: 10 to 20 targets; shots from 5 to 40 yards

Three to five youth are assigned to a group for the 3-D round. They proceed to rotate as a group through all ten to twenty targets in the round. The amount of targets are determined after registration. Each archer in the group is allowed to shoot one arrow per target. All shots made are at an unknown distance. The maximum distance is based on the age of the youth (junior or senior) and the type of bow (compound with sights, compound without sights, and recurve).

Scoring

  • +11 points (center circle inside 10 ring); +10 points (10 ring); +8 points (8 ring); +5 points (any body part shot outside the 8 ring); X (misses, glancing shots, not touching body color [hitting horns, rocks, logs, etc.; hooves considered body color])
  • Ties are broken by the highest number of 11s, then 10s, 8s, etc.
  • Bounce-outs are scored as an X (no points). The youth is not allowed to shoot the arrow again.
  • Archers are scored by other youth in their assigned groups. All arrows are to be scored within the group before any arrows are pulled. An arrow cannot be scored once it is pulled.
  • Any disagreement in scoring is settled by the range official before the arrow is pulled.
  • If an arrow is robin-hooded, both arrows are scored and receive the same amount of points.

Required Score Volunteers

Every team must have a minimum of one adult per four archers to assist with scoring. All adults helping with scoring are required to stay the entire match. No adult is allowed to score a participant from their own county. No coaching or talking by parents and coaches to youth is allowed during the match. No parent, coach, or other spectator is to be on the range during the match. No one is to go down range to take a picture during shooting.

Protests

All protests must be made to the state 4-H archery discipline lead with a $10 (cash only) protest fee (potentially refundable). Protests must be made by 4-H youth for committee review. Protest forms are available on-site.

Directions

From Birmingham/I-65

Take I-65 South to Exit 238 (Alabaster-Columbiana). Turn left onto Hwy. 31. Go 6.3 miles to Hwy. 70 and turn left. Follow Hwy. 70 to Columbiana. Go through two traffic lights. Travel 0.3 mile past the second light and take the right fork by Shelby County High School onto Shelby County Hwy. 28. Follow Hwy. 28 for 4.8 miles to Hwy. 145. Go straight across Hwy. 145 for 1.7 miles and turn left at 4-H sign. Follow this road to the lodge.

From Birmingham/Hwy. 280

Take Hwy. 280 to Chelsea, turning right onto Hwy. 47. Go 12.8 miles to Columbiana. Go straight through traffic light into downtown Columbiana. At the next traffic light in the center of town, turn left. Travel 0.3 mile and take the right fork by Shelby County High School onto Shelby County Hwy. 28. Follow Hwy. 28 for 4.8 miles to Hwy. 145. Go straight across Hwy. 145 for 1.7 miles and turn left at 4-H sign. Follow this road to the lodge.

From Montgomery

Take I-65 North toward Birmingham. Get off at Exit 212 (Clanton-Lay Dam) turning right onto Hwy. 145. Go 20.6 miles and turn right onto Shelby County Hwy. 28. Go 1.7 miles and turn left at 4-H sign. Follow this road to the lodge.

From Atlanta

Take I-20 West toward Birmingham. Take exit 158 at Pell City, Alabama, on Hwy. 231 South. From Pell City go straight through Vincent and Harpersville to Wilsonville. (Note: Hwy. 231 changes to Hwy. 25.) In Wilsonville, turn left at the traffic light onto Hwy. 61 South. Travel 2.7 miles to Hwy. 145. Hwy. 145 forks to the left. Travel 3.1 miles on Hwy. 145 to Hwy. 28. Turn left onto Hwy. 28. Go 1.7 miles and turn left at 4-H sign. Follow this road to the lodge.

From Auburn

Take Hwy. 280 to Childersburg. Go over river bridge outside Childersburg and turn left onto Hwy. 76. Follow Hwy. 76 for 5 miles to Hwy. 25. Turn left onto Hwy. 25 and travel 4.4 miles to Wilsonville. Follow directions above from Wilsonville to the 4-H Center.

From Tuscaloosa

Take I-459 from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham. Take I-65 South off I-459. Travel on I-65 South to Exit 238 (Alabaster-Columbiana). Follow directions above from Birmingham/I-65 to 4-H Center.

Lodging

There are multiple lodging options within driving distance of the 4-H Center. The Alabama 4-H Center also has hotel rooms and cabins. For information call (205) 669-4241.

 

Sarah Butterworth, 4-H Youth Development Coordinator, Auburn University

Revised March 2024, Archery 2024 State 4-H SAFE Championship, 4HYD-2131-A

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