Archery – The Art of Shooting Arrows

A sport that requires patience, precision and concentration, archery involves shooting arrows at a target. The arrows have feathers or vanes attached to the end for flight purposes and have a nock at the front of the shaft.

The hand that holds the bowstring is known as the bow shoulder or string hand. The hand with the greatest dexterity is the drawing hand.

Origins

Archery, the art of using a bow and arrow, has a long tradition in many cultures worldwide. It is also a popular sport with many variations, disciplines and scoring systems.

The word ‘archery’ derives from the Latin ‘arcus’, meaning bow. It is a complex weapon, consisting of semi-rigid but elastic limbs that store mechanical energy imparted by the archer drawing the bowstring. The limbs are connected by a high-tensile bowstring, which joins the ends of the limbs and has a nock at one end to receive the arrow.

Historically, the bow has been held in the hand that most readily lends itself to shooting. As a result, the bow arm is sometimes called the bow hand and the hand that pulls the string the bowstring is known as the bowstring hand or draw hand. The stance that is most common for an archer is the “neutral stance” in which the body is perpendicular to the target and shooting line, with feet shoulder-width apart.

Equipment

The equipment used in archery consists of a bow, an arrow, and a target. The bow consists of a riser, off which the limbs extend, and an adjustable sight that helps the archer aim at the target. The arrow consists of a shaft, a fletching, and an arrowhead. The shaft is typically made of wood, aluminum alloy, or carbon fiber, and it determines the arrow’s weight, stiffness, and trajectory.

Fletchings are small, feathered vanes attached to the back end of an arrow shaft to help stabilize it during flight. The fletchings can be arranged in various ways, and the arrangement determines the arrow’s flight characteristics. The fletchings can also induce rotation, which increases accuracy by restoring the arrow’s original direction of travel when it is tilted from its intended path. A nocking point is a mark on the arrow shaft where the arrow rests before being shot. It is usually placed close to the arrowhead.

Scoring

Archery is a sport that requires a steady hand, strong shoulders, flexible muscles and a keen eye. It is also a fun and social activity that provides numerous health and fitness benefits.

In target competition, archers shoot a series of arrows at a stationary circular target with ten different scoring zones in gold, red, blue, black and white rings. The first arrow to hit the target (called an end) wins the set and the match.

The archer begins by taking a stable stance, typically with one foot-length between the feet on the shooting line, and holding the bow string in a comfortable and relaxed position called the anchor point. The bowstring is then drawn back to a full draw, a motion that may vary from archer to archer and usually involves some jerking at the last part of the pull. Fletchings on the arrow help improve accuracy by evening out pressure buildup on the arrow, enabling it to fly straight after shooting. archery