Tag Archives: beginners

Apr 24 2013

Theft of Equipment from Midlands club

My old club chairman from Black Arrow has contacted me about a theft from a midlands based club and I thought I would try and raise peoples awareness of it here.

Burton Bridge Archers, Burton-on-Trent, have had their club house / storage locker  broken in  and all our beginners bows, arrows, tabs and arm guards had been stolen. Some 60+ bows (including 6 compounds and several lightweight longbows kindly made and donated by their club chairman) .

Please could you pass this on to any clubs you are involved with, especially those in the midlands area of the UK. So they can be on the lookout for second hand equipment suddenly appearing for sale (mainly used wooden riser trainer recurves). My guess is it will appear on eBay or car boot sales.

I wish them all the luck in finding those responsible.

Thanks for reading.

 

Feb 5 2013

Setting up a target boss

target boss in garden

Setting up a boss is a common activity, but requires some thought and care to ensure it is done correctly and safely whether this be on a course or as in this example in the garden. In this article I will try and cover some of the things to consider.

Target

Target set up and ready?

Here you can see a boss having been erected ready for practise. Looks good?

One commonly made mistake when setting up a boss is forgetting to check where the metal binding for the plastic strapping is located.

closeup

These should always be on the back of the boss and never facing the direction of the shot.

Why?

The binding can damage arrow tips if they are hit. I have also seen arrows shot from a compound bow hit one of these metal fastenings and bounce straight back some 15 yards landing at the archers feet.

You should also ensure the wood frame of the boss is always to the side and not on top or bottom.

Why?

If the arrow falls low, it will run the risk of hitting and embedding itself in the wooden frame, which is likely to  result in some work to extract.

If the arrow impacts at the top of the boss it runs the risk of deflecting off in any direction . So rotate the boss to ensure the wood frames are on the side of the boss.

Target Boss

Target Boss

Location, location, location – no not the property program commonly seen in UK.

Look at the space surrounding the boss – there appears to be a stile behind and to the right of the boss, does this mean there is a footpath?

What about the space behind the boss with regards to overshoot. A safe over shoot area is vital for any target positioning.

N.B. we own the field beyond the gate and the boss usually lives in the field.

Any  there any other risks?

Well yes there are. There is a building to the side so you wouldn’t be able to see people approaching from that direction.

The metal gate is also a risk as if an arrow misses the boss and hits the gate it is likely to deflect in any direction.

Securing the boss to the stakes is vital to ensure it doesn’t topple over when arrows are removed. It is worth considering whether the stakes need to be proud of the boss. Also try to put them to the side or rear of the boss frame so as to avoid or limit the number of arrows hitting them.

Those are a few thoughts and tips to consider when positioning practise bosses. Have you got any further advice or tips?

We are fortunate in owning the field and knowing there is no public access or routes to it other than via our boundary.

I hope you find this article of interest and if you have any comments let me know. Thanks for reading.

Jan 25 2013

Archery Panda – Eats shoots and leaves

I’m guessing most with not associate Pandas with Archery, but you might be surprised.

Pandas are not just a kung fu warriors

kung fu panda

Or symbol of world wildlife fund

WWF Logo

But I have heard the phrase Panda used to describe some archers. In respect to the exact phrase “Eats, Shoots & Leaves”  which comes from the book title Eats, Shoots & Leave: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation written by Lynne Truss

So what is an archery panda?

Well it is based round what some people see as a question of archery etiquette. I have little doubt that archery etiquette has been discussed at numerous clubs, events or gathering of archers. What is thought of as acceptable or unacceptable.

As I understand it the phrase describes  “an archer who turns up at a shoot ground, has a bite to eat before the start. Then he or she, shoots round the course and departs before any prize giving or results are announced.”

Eats,  Shoots and Leaves

So what’s wrong with this? If you know you’ve no medal chances why stick around?

From the discussion I have had or heard it is arguably an etiquette thing. You wouldn’t turn up at a friends house party, eat some food, have a brief chat then leave without saying goodbye. So why do it at a shoot?

The other thought is that you should stick around and show your support of other archers, especially the juniors. Added to this is the show of thanks to the organisers of the event.

Granted there are people who will have to leave early, due to work, or life commitments. There are also times when I’ve shot so badly the last  thing I want to do is stick around but it is something I do to show support for the archers there.

So what do people think? Have you come across archery Pandas?

Thanks for reading.