Picture this;

You`re at the edge of your seat, eyes glued, time freezing as you mesmerizingly watch the arrow leave the hand of your favourite fictional archer- you follow the perfect line as it beautifully soars through the sky, only to be snapped out of your hypnotising trance when the arrow hits its target dead centre.

Sound familiar?

Whether your archery hero is Katniss Everdeen, Hawkeye, Robin Hood or another, keep reading to find out how you can follow in their footsteps, and maybe even overtake them…

 

Archery is everywhere, quite literally everywhere- with clubs all across England, the globe in fact. There is no shortage of communities to join, bonds to form, friendships to make. But, why you should join is a necessity in determining whether archery is the correct sport for you.

Archery has been around for an extremely long time, with the first bow and arrow being used as far back as 5000 BC. Despite not being used for survival anymore, it is the perfect sport to release anger and let off some Sunday steam or Friday frustration.

There are many archery clubs all across England. Locally, there is a Colchester and District archery club who meet every Tuesday evenings and Sunday mornings at the Mill Road sports ground and, during colder months, at the Highwoods sport centre.

As well as, archery comes with a plethora of health benefits. It is a vital form of exercise, burning around 270 calories an hour. Simon Robert, an avid archery member, commented that archery “strengthens the core, arms, shoulders and chest and builds upper body strength”, which he has noticed since joining. This is due to there being tension on the chest whilst drawing back the bow. This can massively help with day to day tasks- especially manual labour jobs, such as building and construction. Hand eye coordination and balance can also be improved as drawing and aiming the bow and arrow takes time, patience, precision and focus. These skills, which are enhanced and perfected in archery, help massively in everyday life.

We are all a victim to distractions, whether it`s from the natural environment, family and friends, or electronic devices and it can be extremely difficult to not succumb to these disturbances that annoy and frustrate us every time we sit down to be productive. Despite not being able to tune out these unrelenting commotions completely, archery can help make them more bearable. A large amount of focus is needed to correct your stance, form, aim, keep the arrow on its desired spot, and correctly release the bowstring. Practising archery frequently will, not only give you impressive results over time, but can also help in other aspects of everyday life that require focus and concentration.

Archery is an extremely inclusive sport available to everyone. Elderly, adults, juniors and disabled archers can all shoot. As well as this, archery is a sport in the Paralympic games, where each archer shoots at a target from a 70-metre distance. Paralympic archer Matt Stutzman was born without arms but did not let that stop him from becoming a silver medallist. He uses his legs and feet to cradle the bow, then sets it on his right shoulder with the help of a mechanical release aid. After drawing back to just under his jaw bone, a slight backwards movement from his jaw allows the arrow to soar through the air. He is also known as the `Armless Archer`, whose journey is an inspiration and reiterates the inclusivity of archery.

Despite being an individual sport, competitions are a key factor in archery and spark excitement and fun rivalry. Competitions that take place within your club can prepare you for larger competitions with archers of your own age and capability. It is also a sport that you can never grow out of. There are many opportunities and different ways to improve your skill such as; moving your target, formally called a boss, backwards by ten yards to create more of a challenge, picking a smaller target to increase precision and accuracy, and shooting at other equipment such as target bags and rubber animals!

 

It is a fascinating sport full of fun and thrill and, who knows, with enough practice you could be an Olympic gold medallist…