With similar favourable weather to the first Banchory shoot, conditions looked promising for some good archery. Having shot in Scotland many times before, the grey skies and occasional raindrops did not put off the team - although the Judges did announce inclement weather conditions early on. The longest distance held no surprises, with each team member putting in solid scores, though nothing spectacular. Andy in particular demonstrated that archery is meant to be fun as well, shooting at least one arrow with a laughter, rather than clicker, based release.

The second distance showed improvement for some, with Ian settling in to shoot well through 70 metres, only panicking at the last minute. Faced with the very real prospect of shooting over 300 for the distance, he managed to lose concentration for the last six arrows, and finished off with a frustrated 299. Despite the last minute slump, and unimaginative swearing about it (off the line, of course!) this represents a new record for the club. Ian's long metric, which was also a competition personal best, guaranteed him the lead amongst the team going into lunch. During the course of the distance, RGU's Jo Bathgate provided a welcome distraction, touring the line with photographs of many of the protagonists at the recent BUSA Championships, while threatening to finish her film at the same time

As Mel and Andy (unknown to one another) fought it out for second place on the team, 50 metres highlighted the lack of practice put in by some members, with the rising breeze putting off some of the competitors. Although the rain threatened to worsen, the overcast skies eventually brightened, and the closest distance beckoned - with Ian now minus a nock, thanks to the kind attentions of the arrows of Lethen's James Laing.

As the day moved to a close, and the BBQ beckoned, Chris was heard to mutter (several times) about how stupid a sport archery is, and how what a good idea beer was! While Andy continued to share the comic effect of his end of the shooting line, Mel ignored such distractions to shoot a solid 30 metre score, finishing the day in second place on the team ahead of the ever-tuning Mr Pirie by only one point, and almost incidentally putting nearly 100 points on her personal best! At the same time, Ian showed that force of will can cover up lack of practice to some extent, and shot a new competition best for the distance, finishing the day on a new personal best.

Members of SGB were not the only ones to take advantage of the relatively good conditions; Edinburgh Alumni member Alistair Whittingham demonstrated his increasing experience with the compound, shooting a string of good distance scores, and narrowly missing Scottish records at the long distances. Finishing up with an impressive 1353, and a personal best, Alistair's performance fell only slightly short of the high standard required for qualification to British team selection. Glyn Ball, former Alumni member, and currently shooting for Edinburgh University, also shot a personal best, at 1166.

After a rapid packing away of the various archery toys, a short convoy of cars headed for Chez Pirie, via the potentially alarming mountain roads to the south of Banchory. Led by Andy's practised local knowledge, the convoy encountered several slow moments along the route, including the discovery that Strathclyde's recently graduated Illiterate Space Cadet was driving the slowest car in Scotland. Dave's defence was entirely based on the fact that the vehicle belonged to his mother, and although the Rover representing the obstacle in question wasn't playing fair, we have to wonder whether Dave himself carries any of the blame!

Having reached the BBQ safely (via the Spar, and several 'special offers' on alcohol) the slightly dampened revelry continued until the early hours of the morning. Without the added excitement of fire-stair-walking, the almost subdued bonfire formed a focal point for many, while the braver amongst archers and guests were tempted by the idea of juggling fire. Apart from some minor singing to clothing, no physical damage appears to have been done. The mental effects, however, of watching our own Chris Moore, or Strathclyde's Euan McGill, swinging lengths of chain with flaming, parafin-soaked rags tied to the ends, are much more lasting

Having had the good sense to depart before either exhaustion or fire damage caught up with her, Mel represented the team alone on day two. Obviously unfazed (or perhaps encouraged?) by the absence of her team-mates, she stormed past her existing personal best standards, set only the day before! With a new personal best at every single distance, and, naturally enough, for the overall total, Mel claimed her first FITA Star, with a very impressive 1047. While the records will need to be checked carefully, early suspicions are that her performance also included breaking some club records

Chris and Ian, on their way to the airport, visited briefly, long enough only to catch up with some familiar faces shooting on the Sunday only, and to take some pictures. Amongst those shooting only the second day were Billy Finnie and Keith Lobban from Shetland, fresh from their performance at the Island Games. Close scrutiny of the Games' results revealed that apart from Billy's successful defence of his individual recurve title, the Shetland team had also claimed team gold. Our very own Morag Hughson also featured, not only as part of the medal winning team, but in the individual event, taking the ladies recurve silver medal by the narrowest of margins. These achievements are even more impressive when set against the reportedly poor weather conditions; congratulations to Morag, and to Billy, Keith and Lindsay Nicol on their successes.

Despite a general and much lamented lack of practice, the club is at last starting to put in some good scores, and it is to be hoped that such a promising start is the beginning of greater things to come!

SGB will be shooting again at the Scottish Archery Association Outdoor Championships, at Haggs Road Playing Field in Glasgow, on 4 and 5 August.