Beginners Guide to Traditional Archery

I've been shooting my longbow for about 9 months.  It is an old Byron Ferguson "Hunter".  At my 30.5 inch draw length, it pulls 64lbs.  My dad got this for himself when I was 15 or 16, and he gave it to me in my 20s.

I hadn't shot much since high school, but started shooting again after my hernia, just for something to do since I couldn't train for or compete in Highland Games.

My dad was always a compound bow hunter, and longbow was just for dinking around.  I have to say, compound never enthralled me the way traditional shooting does.  I hated messing with my sights, the tension in my arrow rest, and all the other mechanical gizmos you had to fiddle with to shoot well.

So I got a new string for my longbow, bare-shaft tuned some new arrows, and am shooting like never before. 

Like I said before, I'm a reader, so I also got a couple of books to become a better shooter and to know my arm-gaurd from a hole in the ground.  :)

This is a great book! The author keeps it simple, and offers lessons that you can put to use right away.  Right now I'm shooting a few minutes each day at a 2-inch target from only 5 feet away.  This sounds silly, but MAN!!!!!!  The goal: using only a single arrow, try and hit bulls-eye 9 of 10 shots.  So far my record in 6 in a row.

My fingers are thickening, and my finger tips are callousing.  By the time I have shot the required 800 bulls-eyes from each distance, my right hand will be well more than capable of shooting my new recurve without fatigue.

I HIGHLY recommend this short, to-the-point book.

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