Archery Today

Newly available and affordable materials such as carbon fiber have led to the design of lighter and therefore faster arrows, more consistent performance of bow limbs, and more flexibility to interchange parts and accessories.

Throughout the history of shooting, new innovations in materials and technique boosted interest and participation in archery. New archers today can use modern equipment and accessories to shoot with greater accuracy. Even more important, advances in equipment make it possible for more shooters than ever before to hit their marks.

Although equipment advances have boosted interest in archery, some archers are more interested in using traditional equipment. They forgo technology to rely on their physical and mental skills to maximize their performance with traditional equipment.

Archery is enjoyed today millions of people all over the world. It appeals to all kinds of people – men and women, children and older adults, and those with and without disabilities or injuries. Another reason for the popularity of archery is the many ways to enjoy the sport, including target shooting, bowhunting, bowfishing, and even archery tag.

Target archery has been popular since the days of King Henry VIII of England. The challenge of hitting the mark is timeless. Today, many archers enjoy shooting recurve bows and using their fingers to hold and release the bowstring. Others enjoy shooting compound bows and using mechanical releases. Some like to shoot without bow sights, whereas others enjoy using sights with every possible mechanical innovation. Targets can be flat and circular, pictures of game animals, or 3D foam animals.

When compound bows and release aids came onto the archery scene, there was an obvious need to provide separate competition categories for archers, because this equipment provides an advantage in precise shooting. Some archery associations chose to sponsor certain equipment categories and not others, and others were founded to provide competitive opportunities for certain types of equipment. Often, these devices first became popular in the United States, and it took time for their use to spread around the world.

Today, target archers are lucky to have many choices of equipment styles and competitive formats. Those living in colder climates can often find indoor facilities with shooting distances around 20-30 yards. Outdoors, target archers can shoot longer distances and classic competitive rounds in which all archers shoot from a line to a concentric circle target and shoot from a varying distance to ring targets.

As noted earlier, it would be easy to assume that interest in archery has waned as video games and other technologies have increased in popularity. On the contrary, books and movies that have included archery have made the sport more popular. The Hunger Games and Brave are examples. Also, video games have included versions of archery-like games, and these encouraged players to try the real sport. A relative new and growing program to bring archery to schools has encouraged a new generation of participants. All of these proves once again that the simple challenge of hitting a bull’s-eye is timeless.

Bowhunting is a very popular activity today. Bowhunters enjoy the challenge of taking game as they help to control the size of game populations whose natural predators have dwindled. The amount of game taken during a season is usually regulated. Bowhunting season are often much longer than gun hunting seasons, offering bowhunters more opportunities to enjoy hunting.

Most bowhunters use compound bows, which allow smaller people to hunt with the necessary draw weight. One of the challenges of bowhunters is adapting to the natural terrain.

The majority of bowhunters now use compound bows rather than recurve bows. A compound bow make bowhunting more humane for more hunters because a kill is more likely than a wound with increased arrow speed as a result of the potential for heavier draw weight. The compound bow allows smaller people or those with disabilities to hunt with the necessary bow weight.

Bowhunting has become so popular that bowhunters often hold competitive rounds in the off-season. Hunting with a bow typically demands more practice than gun hunting, so off-season, simulated hunting give bowhunters opportunity for practice. Field archery simulates hunting in that the shooting distance and terrain vary from target to target. In some field archery rounds, paper animal targets are used instead of concentric ring targets. Silhouette or three-dimensional (3D) foam targets shaped like animals are popular in hunting rounds. They are placed in wooded and/or grassy areas at unmarked distances. In hunting rounds, the equipment, especially the bow sight, might be limited to that typical for hunting.

Flight shooting is another type of archery enjoyed in some parts of North America. Arrows are shot for distance using bows and arrows designed for this purpose. Today’s flight bows shoot more than 900 yards.

Bowfishing is yet another way to enjoy archery. From a boat or canoe, fish are shot with an arrow attached to a fishing line, A special reel is mounted onto the face of the bow. The breeds of fish commonly taken include carp, gar, buffalo, suckers, redhorse, catfish, stingray, and skate. Most effective shots are taken through a depth a f feet or less because water quickly slows an arrow.

Novelty shoots are occasionally held for enjoyment and variety. These sometimes take the form of clout shooting, in which a 48-foot target is laid on the ground and shot at from 140 to 180 yards. Archery golf, which is similar to regular golf, involves shooting a flight arrow, an approach arrow, and a putting arrow at a 4-inch ball. In roving, archers in small groups take turns choosing and then shooting at a target to see who can come the closest.

Some parts of North America also have crossbow competitions. Technical advances in crossbow design and material have made crossbows very accurate. Today’s shooters aim at 24-inch target faces from a distances as great as 60 yards.

Soon, technological advances will allow archers to shoot at virtual images generated by computer systems. The number and types of games created by such systems could be limitless. No matter which form of archery or what type of equipment you come to enjoy, the same basic form and shot-to-shot consistency. Leading to shooting accuracy. The equipment and your physical and mental skills must come together to produce the perfect shot.