Archery

1. Archery History, Rules and Safety

2. What is Archery? • Archery is the practice of using a bow to shoot arrows. • Archery has historically been used in hunting and combat and has now become a precision sport.

3. Through history… • First used as a weapon for hunting in 8000 BC in Europe • Most ancient civilizations used the bow and arrow for hunting and warfare. • The advent of firearms rendered bows obsolete in warfare. • Archery became an official Olympic event in 1972.

4. Famous archers… • Attila the Hun • William Tell • Robin Hood • Hercules… legend states he founded the Olympic games. • Justin Huish… won gold in Atlanta and brought Archery new respect in the US.

6. Equipment… • Bow • Arrows • Target • Arm Guard • Quiver

7. Types of bows… • A longbow is a type of bow that is tall (roughly equal to or greater than the height of a person), is not significantly recurved and has relatively narrow limbs, that are circular or D-shaped in cross section. • Longbows have been used for hunting and warfare, by many cultures around the world, a famous example being the English longbow, during the Middle Ages.

8. Types of bows… • Ashortbowis a smaller version of the longbow. • While it is lighter and more maneuverable, it can be drawn less far, therefore stores less energy and hence has a shorter maximum range. • Short bows were used for hunting by, among others, many West Coast American tribes.

9. Types of bows… • A recurve bow has ends of the limbs curve forwards slightly, which increases the power gained from the bow and smoothens the draw. • The only class of bow that is shot at the Olympic Games.

10. Types of bows… • A compound bow is a modern bow that uses a levering system of cables and usually cams and pulleys to draw the limbs back. • In the United States, the compound is the dominant form of bow.

11. Types of bows… • A crossbow is a variation on the general bow design. Instead of the limbs being held vertically, they are mounted horizontally on a stock much like that of a rifle. • Crossbows are used in modern archery for target shooting.

12. Arrows… • A normal arrow consists of shaft with an arrowhead attached to the front end, with fletchings and a nock at the other.

13. Arrows… • Fletchings are found at the back of the arrow and provide a small amount of drag used to stabilize the flight of the arrow. • Shafts are usually made of solid wood, fiberglass, aluminum alloy, or carbon fiber. • The nock serves to keep the arrow in place on the string as the bow is being drawn.

14. Other equipment… • Arm Guard… protects the inside of the bow arm • Quiver… used to hold arrows (we use pretty orange safety cones) • Target… something to aim at, can be a hay bale, Styrofoam target, animal model…

15. Types of Archery… • Hunting… for the purpose of killing an animal for food and sport • Target Archery…involves shooting arrows at a target for accuracy from a set distance or distances. • Field Archery… involves shooting at targets of varying (and sometimes unmarked) distance, often in rough terrain.

16. Technique… • The bow is held in the hand opposite to the archer's dominant eye. • This hand is referred to as the bow hand and its arm the bow arm. The opposite hand is called the drawing hand or string hand. • The body should be perpendicular to the target and the shooting line, with the feet placed shoulder-width apart.

17. Technique… • To load, the bow is pointed toward the ground and the shaft of the arrow is placed on an arrow rest on the outside of the bow. • The back of the arrow is attached to the bowstring with the 'nock' . • Arrows with three fletchings should be oriented such that a single fletching is pointing away from the bow string.

18. Technique… • The bowstring and arrow are held with three fingers. • The bow is then raised and drawn. • The string hand is drawn towards the face; the thumb should nearly meet the cheek. • The bow arm is held outwards toward the target. Be sure not to hyper extend this arm!

19. Technique…

20. Technique… • The bow should always remain vertical. • The arrow is typically released by relaxing the fingers of the drawing hand in a steady motion. • The arrow hits the bulls eye! Wahoo!

21. Safety!!!!!!! • First off… any misbehavior will result in exclusion for the day or possibly the unit. There will be NO warnings. • An arrow pointed at anything but a target will be considered a weapon and you will be sent to the office immediately.

22. Safety!!!!!!! • Follow all commands given immediately. The commands will be consistent and easy to understand. • When loading the bow, always keep the arrow pointed to the ground. • Do not go past the quivers, or cement line, until instructed by the teacher.

23. Safety!!!!!!! • Do not talk to the archers when they are nocking or shooting an arrow. • Never point an arrow at anyone or anything but the target. • Do not joke about shooting anything but the target.

24. Safety!!!!!!! • Respect the fact that the bow and arrow are a weapon when not used properly.

25. Vocabulary… • Arm Guard: protects the bow arm from the slap and recoil of the bowstring, worn on the forearm and wrist area • End: a group of arrows being shot in one round, we shoot 3 in an end • Fletching: the feathers on an arrow, used to stabilize the arrow in flight

26. Nock: the groove on the end of an arrow where the string fits, also, the act of loading the arrow into the bow • Quiver: A place to hold the arrows, in our case, an orange traffic cone • Weight: the number of pounds pull required to pull a bow the correct arrow length (we use 20-40 pound bows)

27. Toxophilite: a person who loves, studies and practices archery (didn’t know that did ya?)