This 68 page, full-colour publication, has been designed to guide beginners through their first steps in target archery. It’s simple, easy to follow, suitable for all ages and covers:
• Shootingtechnique• Scoringandcompetitions• Equipment• Rangesafety
Written and produced by Archery GB RRP: £7.50
Learn the basics of archery in one easy-to-follow
guide
Types of bow
There are three main
types of bow; recurve,
compound and longbow.
Recurve bow
Therecurvebowisusuallyusedto
introducebeginnerstoarchery.
Itisdesignedsothelimbtipscurveaway
fromthearcher,andstoresmoreenergy
thanastraight-limbedbow.
Asrecurvearchersbecomeexperienced,
theyaddmorepiecesofequipmentto
theirbows,suchasstabiliserstohelpwith
balanceandabsorbsomeofthevibration,
sightstoimproveaccuracyandpressure
buttonstofinetunethearrow’sflight.
Compound bow
Acompoundbowisamodernbowwhich
providesmaximumperformance.Itshandle
issimilartotherecurvebow,buthasvery
short,powerfullimbsthatareattachedto
pulleywheelsandcablesusedtodrawthe
limbsback.
Longbow
Thelongbowisatraditionalbowandholds
hugehistoricalsignificance.Longbowsare
handcraftedfromavarietyofdifferent
woods,includingyew,lemonwood
andhickory,orfromjustasinglepiece.
Longbowsarelessaccurateandaremore
difficulttoshootthanmodernbowdesigns
-butpeoplewhoshootthemsaythatthis
makesthemmuchmorefun.
Accessories
Quiver
Asidequiveris
attachedtoabelt
aroundthewaistand
holdsarrowswhileyou
areshooting.
Agroundquiveris
placedonorintothe
groundtoholdbows
andarrows.
Bow stand
Asimplemetalstand
usedtoholdabow.
Bracer
Abracerisusedtokeep
looseclothingfrom
touchingthestringand
stopthestringhitting
thearm,whichcan
causebruising.
Thebracerisfittedtotheinsideofthearm
holdingthebow,betweentheelbowjoint
andthewrist.Thewidestendofthebracer
fitsclosesttotheelbow.
Finger tab
Atabprovides
protectionforthe
fingersthatdrawthe
string.Forasecure
fit,themiddleand
ringfingersareplaced
throughtheholes.
Bow stringer
Abowstringerisused
tostringandunstring
abow.Foryourown
safetyitisalwaysbest
tolearntodothis
undertheguidanceof
anexperiencedarcherorcoach.
Bracing
height gauge
Thebraceheight
isthedistance
betweenthe
belly(widepart)
ofthebowand
thestring.Abracingheightgaugeisused
toshowwherethearrowshouldbeclipped
ontothebowstringandgettheheight
rightbecauseifitistoolowortoohighthe
bowwillshooterratically.
Recurve
bowThisbowisusually
usedtointroduce
beginnerstoarchery.
Mostrecurvebowsare
‘take-down’bows.This
meansthatthelimbscan
bedetachedfromthe
riser,asshowninthepicture,tomakeit
easiertotransportandstore.
Beginnerbowsusuallyhave‘limbs’which
aremadeoflaminatedwoodandflat
fibreglassstrips.Righthandedandleft
handedbowsareavailable.
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T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K
T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K
13
C H A P T E R T H R E E
Equipment
RECURVE BOW
LONGBOW
COMPOUND BOW
Gettingitrightwhen
choosingabowiscrucial,
soyouwillneedhelpin
theearlystages.
Youneedtofeel
comfortablewithyour
bowtomakesureyou
getthemaximumfun
andsatisfaction.Getting
itwrongcouldresultin
frustrationandinjury–so
talktoacoachorretail
specialistforguidance.
RISER
C H A P T E R T H R E E
Equipment
UPPER
LIMB
LOWER
LIMB
BOW
STRING
INTRO COPY REQUIRED FOR HERE
C H A P T E R T H R E E
Equipment
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T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K
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Clout shootingThisancientformofarcherywasusedasmilitarytraininginthemiddleages.Thetargetistheclout,whichisasmallflagonaverticalstick,stuckinthegroundandplacedupto165metresaway.Anarcher’sscoreisdeterminedbyhowcloseeacharrowlandstotheflag.Thescoresaremeasuredbyatapeattachedtotheflagwhichmeasuresa45centimetreradius–andtheonesthatlandclosestgetthehighestpoints.
Flight shootingThisformofissimplyshootinganarrowoverthelongestpossibledistance.Itrequiresaverylargeflatarea–aboutthesizeofanaerodrome.Recurve,compoundandlongbowclassescanallshootwithindifferentweightcategories.Specialistbowsandarrowsarealsousedtomaximisepowerandreducedrag.Archerscanshootdistancesof270metreswithalongbowand900metreswithacompoundflightbow.
Target archeryTargetarcheryisthekindofarcheryshotattheOlympicsandistheversionmostbeginnerslearnfirst.Itcantakeplaceeitherindoorsoroutdoors,andarchersshootasetnumberofarrowsattargetssetatspecifieddistancesonaflatsurface.
Field archeryAfieldarcherycourseissetupoverwoodlandandroughterrain.Archersshootaspecifiednumberofarrowsatdifferenttargetsinsequence.Archersmighthavetoshootuphillordownhillandthetargetscouldbedifferentsizesandatdifferentdistances,soanyonetakingparthastoreallythinkaboutwhattheyaredoing.
0 METRES
120 - 165 METRES
270 - 900 METRES
9 METRES
90 METRES
C H A P T E R T W OTypes of Archery
C H A P T E R T W OTypes of Archery
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T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K
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SHOOTING DISTANCES VARY FROM 9 TO 90 METRES
FIELD ARCHERS SHOOT AT A VARIETY OF DISTANCES OVER CHALLENGING TERRAIN
CLOUT ARCHERS SHOOT AT LONG DISTANCES TO GET CLOSEST TO THE FLAG
THE AIM OF FLIGHT IS TO SIMPLY SHOOT THE FURTHEST!
There are several sorts of archery
practised in the UK. The main ones
are target, field, clout and flight and
each requires slightly different shooting
methods and equipment.
C H A P T E R T W OTypes Of Archery
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T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K
T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K
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Like most sports, archery can involve a large range of equipment and accessories. But you only really need basic equipment to get started - a bow, some arrows, a bracer, finger tab, a quiver and a target to shoot at.
T H E A R C H E R Y F O R B E G I N N E R S G U I D E B O O K 11
C H A P T E R T H R E E
EquipmentC H A P T E R T H R E E
Equipment
RECURVE BOW
A BEGINNER’S KIT
BOW STAND
TARGET
BRACE
TAB
ARROWS IN A QUIVER
BOW STRINGER
SIGHT
BRACING HEIGHT GUIDE
You will also need a bow stringer, sight and bracing height gauge.
Asyoubecomemoreconfidentandwanttoimproveyourperformance,youcanaddmoreadvancedequipmentsuchasastabiliser.
NOTE
Astabiliserisusedtoimprovebalanceandreducevibration
BOW
ARROW
BRACER
QUIVER
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