Have a go sessions
So you want to try your hand at archery
Have a go
We get many requests from schools, groups and organisations interested in having a go at archery. They usually follow the format of asking us to set things up at their local venue at a time and date of a particular event they are planning. On the face of things this sounds to be a reasonable request. We come along with our bows and arrows, set up the range and you shoot for two hours or so, accept your gracious thanks and acknowledge that everybody has had a fun and worthwhile experience. Then we pack up and depart .
It's a little more complicated than that!
The reality of such a request is very different. First of all most of our members are not independently wealthy and have to work for a living . This generally rules out anything from Monday to Friday. Secondly because we are dealing with "pointy" things we would first have to carry out a detailed risk assessment on the site to ensure that it is safe to shoot. Then, shortly before the event we would need to ensure that we have sufficient members who are qualified, willing, and able to give up their time to to supervise the shoot. On the day we would need to hire a van, collect our equipment and set up the range including safety netting. We then supervise the shoot , pack up - accept your gracious thanks and acknowledge that everybody has had a fun and worthwhile experience. We then take our equipment back to our store, check it and refletch all the arrows that have been damaged.
So does this mean we can't accommodate you?
No it doesn't.
We can offer you a have-a-go session at our shooting ground at Slazengers Sports and Social club but this has to be on one of our regular shooting nights which is normally Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday between 18:30 hrs and 20:30 hrs.
Because of the inconsistent British weather, this is best arranged sometime between May and the end of August when there is a reasonable chance of a pleasant evening with sufficient light for the entire session.
Our fees for such an event are £25 per person.
We will provide all the necessary equipment and a number of qualified coaches will supervise the shoot .
We will teach you the basic principals of "barebow" shooting followed by one to one coaching . We then usually have some form of group competition. The normal group size we can accommodate is usually around 12- 15 members.
We can then adjourn to the clubhouse for refreshments and results and accept your gracious thanks and acknowledge that everybody has had a fun and worthwhile experience. (see we get there in the end ) We then go away to refletch all the arrows that have been damaged. (This part is inevitable and happens to all archers at some time)
If you check out our gallery under "Ossett Ladies" you will see some photo's of such an event.
Please be aware that we can only reliably accommodate a few groups each year, after all we wish to shoot too.
Still interested
Contact us through this website and we will see if we can arrange such an event for you. ( Please do not use the form at the bottom of this page)
If you scroll through our calendar on the home page you will see if there are any events already scheduled. We will respond but remember that we are all volunteers and all requests need to be considered. If your preferred date clashes with one of our regular beginner's courses we can usually offer you a number of alternative dates.