Sunday, August 26, 2012

Archery Upgrades

Since it's been getting cooler bit by bit these last few days, I've found more time to go outside (in the evening, too hot during the day) and shoot my recurve bow. I also went to Dick's Sporting Goods and got a few upgrades, mostly meaning my gear.

First, there's this. My new quiver, designed on the inside to keep arrows from falling out, and it has a screw-on lid. The whole thing is made of two tubes, one of which you can adjust to fit any arrow length. This will come in handy someday when I have a longbow, because I will need arrows that are both longer and heavier.

Two new arrows that I bought because I was missing a few. But hey, archers replace their arrows all the time.  A word of advice. Get bright colored arrows like these when you can, because there is a smaller chance of losing them if you are shooting on a grassy lawn like I always am (there aren't any archery ranges I know of nearby, and my three acres are big enough)

New arm-guard, and the only comfortable one I have ever seen. It fits like a glove, feels like a sock, and actually covers my arm unlike the strip of leather I've strapped to my arm (and get a bad itch) several times before.

 
Look closely at this, and tell me what you see...













HA! Seriously though, I hit the tree by accident. See, I shoot at a hay bale with a target spray-painted onto it, and somehow the arrow skipped off the top and sort of jumped out of the way into the tree. Crazy, huh? That this is a way-out-of-the-way tree, about thirty feet away from the target. And as you can probably tell, I couldn't resist taking a few pictures.




I also taught my mom how to shoot yesterday. The day before, she said she wanted to learn how, and I let her use my first bow with three of my longest arrows. I watched the technique and all the little details, which make the biggest difference when shooting arrows. I've never taught anyone how to shoot before, so this is definitely something new. As it gets cooler out, I'll be shooting more often and getting more practice in.