Archery Is Alive And Well
Archery is an ancient skill which has been practiced by different cultures throughout the world, both in the past and in present day time. The bows used by hunters, warriors and military in the past were not nearly as sophisticated as those available to today’s archer. Archery has been and still is the skill of firing an arrow from a bow at a target, but is now mainly used for recreational purposes.
The bow was thought to have been used around nine thousand years before present day or 9000 BP. The earliest ones found were from a swamp in Denmark. For many years, a bow and arrow was the only way to hit a potentially dangerous target from a distance. As such,many cultures put a lot of effort into developing archery equipment and skills. When firearms made an appearance, archery fell out of favor until recent times.
The construction and purpose of the wide variety of bows available are all very similar. All bows have a flexible limb, to which a string is attached. The string is pulled back, creating mechanical energy, which fires the arrow when released. This mainly creates two categories, one where the string is pulled back by the bowman or archer, and the other where it is pulled back mechanically by the user.
There are however many more classification within these two categories, especially where the archer has to pull the string. The flatbow has wide flat limbs, with a rectangular cross sections. The longbow, which is very popular today, is narrow limbed and tall with a D shaped cross section. The cable backed bow allows the draw weight to be adjusted by changing the tension on the cable, using cords at the back section.
The most popular bow offering mechanical assistance to the archer is the compound bow. The goal is to allow the archer to more easily hold the string at full draw for a long enough time to aim. This is accomplished with elliptical whells or cams and each end of the limb. With the right adjustments this type of bow only needs approximately twelve pounds of force to pull a sixty pound cord at full draw.
When using a bow, arrows are also needed. Arrows can be made from a wide variety of materials. Some of the most common are fiberglass, carbon fiber, wood, aluminum allow and a composit type material. Arrows are made up of four parts, the shaft, the point, the fletching and the nock. The shaft is a long, straight rod, with its length depending on the height of the archer. The point is a sharp tip at the front of the arrow, capable of piercing the target. The fletching is usually three feathers or similar material, helpful in stabilizing the arrow’s flight. The nock, at the back of the arrow has a groove to fit the bow string.
The last major part of a bow is the string. Traditional types of bows used linen or a similar material. Modern bow strings are often made of synthetic materials, like dacron, which have a high strength.
Protective gear is commonly used by archers who shoot a lot. An armguard is worn by archers to protect their arm from injury when the bow is fired, this is also know as a brace. A fingertab is used on the hand that pulls the string back and prevents injury to the fingers.
Many people, including children as young as five years old can learn archery. There’s sure to be a place nearby like these Orange County archery classes. Probably more common than hunting is target archery. Archers participate in competitions where they shoot at stationary targets from various distances. Target shooting can be done at an indoor or outdoor archery range. Hunting with bows and arrows is recognized as an international sport.
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