Traditional archery is not a single form but a range of forms. It contains bits of theory and practices that can be applied to any form of archery, but that is not the big benefit of traditional.
When we learn any sport or skill of any kind, we process through acquiring a bit of knowledge, then muscle development then finally the skill. Muscle development takes time and effort. Traditional archery with arrow aiming is ideal for muscle development because it requires a hold period as our back picks up the load, and this same muscle development is required for either compound or Olympic recurve. The equipment required is a lot more reasonable priced than either compound or Olympic recurve. As the archer developed, stronger limbs will be required.
I stopped doing archery for a long time. I am a compulsive obsessive person, that is something I can only live with. I missed archery, and did not touch it until I saw retirement coming. A bit of reading and a few incidental exposures was all I allowed myself. Archery is something that I can get lost in, and knew that I could not devote myself to archery and a career; I knew that geotechnical engineering was a full time profession; and if I was going to be successful, I would need to limit my distractions from the process.
Traditional modern equipment is the most economical archery equipment available. There are no sights to fiddle with; it is just a bow, an arrows, target and the archer. Not the best of bows, not the best of arrows; however, a modern carbon fiber arrow will last for years unless they encounter stone, concrete, steal, or become lost in brush or turf.
The bow must be sized for the archer, and the arrows need to match the bow and archer. Depending on the style the archer shoots, the draw length will vary more than one might expect. Instinctual shooters, those who do not use the arrow for aiming, occupy the ends of the range of draw length. Over drawing of modern short bows can damage the bow, and must be avoided. Some of the old style long bows could be drawn further, but these were typically longer bows, up to eight feet long, and likewise, some short bows were intended for just short draw lengths. For this adventure we shall be using standard finger at the corner of mouth anchor as a typical anchor to start with.
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
History of Archery
If you wish a detailed and long old English history try George Agar Hansard for an afternoon of pleasure. Thompson does a bit in his Witchery, but his boosting is a bit much for me. There are quite a few short bits of history in wikipedia.
There is much that could be said about the history of traditional archery, but this class is not about history. I will endeavor to keep the history relevant to the function being discussed, however, bits and piece will creep in. Terminology may require a historical jump off, and many archery terms and phrases have crept into English literature.
Keep this under your hat: The Europeans used linen or hemp for strings. These strings stretch when they become wet and are useless and dangerous. The strings were waxed with bee's wax to protect them. But going into battle, the English kept a spare string under this hat just in case.
The English strings were made of a continuous loop waxed fiber of hemp, linen, or later silk, and covered with a serving to protect the strings, much as we make them today. Now we use gore, Kevlar, or Rayon, Dacron. Servings were originally cotton, or silk, but now nylon braided is often perfected for traditional, although other materials are offered.
Keeping your nose out for where it does not belong: is a phrase that remind us that we can turn our head a bit too far and get our nose brushed with the string.
Underhanded: maneuver is a practice that is sometimes employed when shooting a large distance. The hand is raised to where the sight line is below the hand. Accuracy is not to good, but it can be effective.
Brace height is the gap between the hand grip at a thumb socket and the string when the bow is strung. It is also the old name of the arm guard, which was often marked for the proper gap and used as a ruler. The brace should be centered on your arm at the brace height. If your bow loses brace height, the string will slap you below the brace.
There is much that could be said about the history of traditional archery, but this class is not about history. I will endeavor to keep the history relevant to the function being discussed, however, bits and piece will creep in. Terminology may require a historical jump off, and many archery terms and phrases have crept into English literature.
Keep this under your hat: The Europeans used linen or hemp for strings. These strings stretch when they become wet and are useless and dangerous. The strings were waxed with bee's wax to protect them. But going into battle, the English kept a spare string under this hat just in case.
The English strings were made of a continuous loop waxed fiber of hemp, linen, or later silk, and covered with a serving to protect the strings, much as we make them today. Now we use gore, Kevlar, or Rayon, Dacron. Servings were originally cotton, or silk, but now nylon braided is often perfected for traditional, although other materials are offered.
Keeping your nose out for where it does not belong: is a phrase that remind us that we can turn our head a bit too far and get our nose brushed with the string.
Underhanded: maneuver is a practice that is sometimes employed when shooting a large distance. The hand is raised to where the sight line is below the hand. Accuracy is not to good, but it can be effective.
Brace height is the gap between the hand grip at a thumb socket and the string when the bow is strung. It is also the old name of the arm guard, which was often marked for the proper gap and used as a ruler. The brace should be centered on your arm at the brace height. If your bow loses brace height, the string will slap you below the brace.
Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Introduction
Introduction
Recreational... because there are no specific competitions, and this form is just good fun, and the style could be used for hunting, field shooting, 3D, or targets in club or "lawn" competitions. There are always people who fail to excel, so some of us do not like completions. It should be a participation sport, not one of rating the shooters. We need all levels of shooters.
I will say only once because the obvious is not always obvious to some. Do not harass the less skilled or slower developing out of the sport.
Traditional... because it represents one of the early forms of archery, where the arrow was used for aiming. This is separate from the instinctive styles as instinctive require much more practice to become even proficient, on average. With each difference in style, something is given up, as with each improvement in bow, something is given up. Sometimes there are improvements.
Modern... because we use modern equipment.
Instinctive archers use whatever type of bow that is available and learn to aim as one learns to throw a ball. Instinctively. Well perhaps, however some use knuckles or picture aiming. It does not matter. The proof is how consistently they hit there target, and how close to the target the remainder of the time, or in target terms, their score.
The early bows did not have arrow ledges or hooks, for the arrow rested on the knuckle or the thumb, depending on how they had learned to shoot. There was often a band on the arrow, or the head could be felt on the hand, so the draw length was consistent. We lose that with modern equipment.
Instinctive archers often use floating anchors, that is not as consistent as a fixed point anchor. There are stories of Asian archers drawing to the center of their chest, and English drawing past there ears to the rear shoulder. There is no way to the arrow to aim from there, although they could establish a point blank distance. That is the point that the tip of the arrow is level with the point of impact.
There are generally five styles of shooting today. Instinctive, arrow aiming, bare bow, Olympic recurve, and compounds. Traditional arrow aiming and bare bow, as defined by FITA are not the same. FITA allows string walking, but not face walking, where traditional with arrow aiming has no place for string walking, but does use face walking. FITA barebow typically uses a stripped Olympic recurve. Traditional uses any kind of wood riser, or true traditional bows.
Now a word about accuracy. Traditional arrow aiming and instinctive will not group arrows as tightly as Olympic or compound. The repeatability is just not in the human or the equipment. But this is recreational, it does not matter, the purpose is in the action, not in the results. Tradition arrow aiming is quicker to learn and get good results. Instinctive is faster shooting, but requires much more practice to be good. Some people will never be good at either also. To be good, consistency is important, and that comes through much practice and muscle development. To become good also requires an exercise program that strengthens many more muscles than does just archery. Having "exercise bows", both left and right may also help. By exercise bows I mean bows that are stronger than your normal shooting weights.
If you wish to be accurate without as much practice, try Olympic or compounds, or crossbows.
Draw weights of bows are important for training. The draw weight of bows is normally taken at a draw of 28 inches, which is typical value of draw length. You should be shooting with a weight that you do not have to struggle with, yet after 30 or 60 shots leaves you tired. Finish off the day with a few shots of a heavier "exercise bow" Go to more shots before a stronger bow for shooting. Stop if you experience more than muscle pain.
Recreational... because there are no specific competitions, and this form is just good fun, and the style could be used for hunting, field shooting, 3D, or targets in club or "lawn" competitions. There are always people who fail to excel, so some of us do not like completions. It should be a participation sport, not one of rating the shooters. We need all levels of shooters.
I will say only once because the obvious is not always obvious to some. Do not harass the less skilled or slower developing out of the sport.
Traditional... because it represents one of the early forms of archery, where the arrow was used for aiming. This is separate from the instinctive styles as instinctive require much more practice to become even proficient, on average. With each difference in style, something is given up, as with each improvement in bow, something is given up. Sometimes there are improvements.
Modern... because we use modern equipment.
Instinctive archers use whatever type of bow that is available and learn to aim as one learns to throw a ball. Instinctively. Well perhaps, however some use knuckles or picture aiming. It does not matter. The proof is how consistently they hit there target, and how close to the target the remainder of the time, or in target terms, their score.
The early bows did not have arrow ledges or hooks, for the arrow rested on the knuckle or the thumb, depending on how they had learned to shoot. There was often a band on the arrow, or the head could be felt on the hand, so the draw length was consistent. We lose that with modern equipment.
Instinctive archers often use floating anchors, that is not as consistent as a fixed point anchor. There are stories of Asian archers drawing to the center of their chest, and English drawing past there ears to the rear shoulder. There is no way to the arrow to aim from there, although they could establish a point blank distance. That is the point that the tip of the arrow is level with the point of impact.
There are generally five styles of shooting today. Instinctive, arrow aiming, bare bow, Olympic recurve, and compounds. Traditional arrow aiming and bare bow, as defined by FITA are not the same. FITA allows string walking, but not face walking, where traditional with arrow aiming has no place for string walking, but does use face walking. FITA barebow typically uses a stripped Olympic recurve. Traditional uses any kind of wood riser, or true traditional bows.
Now a word about accuracy. Traditional arrow aiming and instinctive will not group arrows as tightly as Olympic or compound. The repeatability is just not in the human or the equipment. But this is recreational, it does not matter, the purpose is in the action, not in the results. Tradition arrow aiming is quicker to learn and get good results. Instinctive is faster shooting, but requires much more practice to be good. Some people will never be good at either also. To be good, consistency is important, and that comes through much practice and muscle development. To become good also requires an exercise program that strengthens many more muscles than does just archery. Having "exercise bows", both left and right may also help. By exercise bows I mean bows that are stronger than your normal shooting weights.
If you wish to be accurate without as much practice, try Olympic or compounds, or crossbows.
Draw weights of bows are important for training. The draw weight of bows is normally taken at a draw of 28 inches, which is typical value of draw length. You should be shooting with a weight that you do not have to struggle with, yet after 30 or 60 shots leaves you tired. Finish off the day with a few shots of a heavier "exercise bow" Go to more shots before a stronger bow for shooting. Stop if you experience more than muscle pain.
Recreational Modern Traditional Arrow Aiming Archery
This blog is intended to be the notes for a class in Recreational Traditional Arrow Aiming Archery.
Requirements
This class is set up for young adult onward to seniors, let us say 14+.
Prerequisites
It is assumed that you have been through at least my drop in class or have learned to shoot a bit.
It is as much about attitude as anything. You are here to learn some archery. Considerable outside of class practice and physical training is required. It is assumed that this is or will be one of your first classes in archery and you are essentially adults. For these reasons there will be considerable lecture/discussion, not just supervised practice. You will need to practice on your own as well.
Practice Rules
It is my policy we will show you many choices, but there is a best practices, best way for traditional arrow aiming methods. If you wish to go instinctive, FITA bare bow, Olympic recurve, or compound, do so but not in my class. The only wrong way to do archery is not to do it. Practice. Practice. Practice.
Safety is important. We aim to leave with no more holes than we came with. Arrow should always point down range, and not be in the bows before the "load and shoot at will" signal.
Leave the criticism of yourself and others out of the range. We are all here to learn, and not to be abused by others or self abuse. No kibitzing. We are handling potentially lethal weapons. No messing about in the range during class time. If you are responsible for injury to others, you will be held liable for damages, and/or will be summarily ejected from class. Red Card, thank you for coming, good bye.
Do not dry fired any bow, unless you own it and are close to a hospital. Twanging is acceptable of your own bow. Dry fire is drawing and letting go of the string without a arrow in it. Modern bows with fiberglass backing and fronts can shatter into tiny needles and stick everywhere. They try to turn inside out and will take a great gob of skin off your thumb or give your wrist a nasty rope burn.
As this is Canada, one more note, let fiberglass and carbon bows warm up before shooting if they have become cold.
Do not overdraw small bows or any bow. The limbs can fracture, split and disintegrate. Use correct sized bows and arrows. An overdrawn bow or too short of arrow can go through a hand, or so I have been told.
Each day look your bow over for issues, signs of distress, and make any repairs required. The string should be waxed and the bow cleaned after use.Some wood bows should be lightly oiled to preserve the finish as directed.
Walk, do not run except for exercise when instructed.
Requirements
This class is set up for young adult onward to seniors, let us say 14+.
Prerequisites
It is assumed that you have been through at least my drop in class or have learned to shoot a bit.
It is as much about attitude as anything. You are here to learn some archery. Considerable outside of class practice and physical training is required. It is assumed that this is or will be one of your first classes in archery and you are essentially adults. For these reasons there will be considerable lecture/discussion, not just supervised practice. You will need to practice on your own as well.
Practice Rules
It is my policy we will show you many choices, but there is a best practices, best way for traditional arrow aiming methods. If you wish to go instinctive, FITA bare bow, Olympic recurve, or compound, do so but not in my class. The only wrong way to do archery is not to do it. Practice. Practice. Practice.
Safety is important. We aim to leave with no more holes than we came with. Arrow should always point down range, and not be in the bows before the "load and shoot at will" signal.
Leave the criticism of yourself and others out of the range. We are all here to learn, and not to be abused by others or self abuse. No kibitzing. We are handling potentially lethal weapons. No messing about in the range during class time. If you are responsible for injury to others, you will be held liable for damages, and/or will be summarily ejected from class. Red Card, thank you for coming, good bye.
Do not dry fired any bow, unless you own it and are close to a hospital. Twanging is acceptable of your own bow. Dry fire is drawing and letting go of the string without a arrow in it. Modern bows with fiberglass backing and fronts can shatter into tiny needles and stick everywhere. They try to turn inside out and will take a great gob of skin off your thumb or give your wrist a nasty rope burn.
As this is Canada, one more note, let fiberglass and carbon bows warm up before shooting if they have become cold.
Do not overdraw small bows or any bow. The limbs can fracture, split and disintegrate. Use correct sized bows and arrows. An overdrawn bow or too short of arrow can go through a hand, or so I have been told.
Each day look your bow over for issues, signs of distress, and make any repairs required. The string should be waxed and the bow cleaned after use.Some wood bows should be lightly oiled to preserve the finish as directed.
Walk, do not run except for exercise when instructed.
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