Archery Brings out Personal Best in Sydney
2009-11-30 10:18
Pull out an arrow, draw the string and release. It seems simple, but there’s surprisingly a lot more to it, starting with protection.
[Robert Keenan, Longbow Archer]:
“We used to pull the strings with just the fingers but what happens is they get calluses and actually they will flatten out after a while. Looks like you’ll have spoons on the ends of your fingers.”
And mind the arrows.
[Robert Keenan, Longbow Archer]:
“Removing arrows from the target – this is where we stress people how to do this – people standing in front of someone pulling and they get poked in the eye.”
Clout archery aims to strike the target or at least land arrows between the flags. Archery first appeared in Egypt at least 5,000 years ago.
[Richard Petersen, Veteran Barebow Archer]:
“It was the most modern weapon known to mankind and it was lethal, and won many wars as we know. And all English people had to learn how to shoot a bow…and the French shot longbows.”
So what is a longbow?
[Robert Keenan, Longbow Archer]:
“A longbow is strictly a piece of wood, it’s laminated together and a string. And because of its difficulty, it’s more rewarding I believe.”
Robert was right on the money, winning gold and silver medals. But the game that brings 6,000 registered archers and 100,000 casual members together isn’t just about winning.
[Richard Petersen, Veteran Barebow Archer]:
“You compete against yourself; you can’t say what the other guy or woman is going to score. So if you shoot well and get a personal best, which means you’ve never shot a score that high before, then you feel pretty good.”
And breaking your own record is also an achievement.
Richard Szabo, NTD, Sydney.
