outdoor sport

For many people, when they hear the word archery they probably have images of Robin Hood, running around shooting arrows as he steals from the rich and gives to the poor.  For others they think of the Green Arrow and Arsenal.  Whatever the case may be, you might be surprised to learn archery is one outdoor sport that is still going strong today.  This outdoor sport first appeared at the Olympics back in 1900 and though it’s out shadowed by the more popular sports, it’s still a good outdoor sport. 

Archery is about poise, stamina and skill.  Even though modern bows make it easier on the archer at full draw, you still use a variety of muscles in this outdoor sport.  In proper form, the archer stands erect, forming a 'T'. The archer's lower trapezius muscles are used to pull the arrow to the anchor point. Some bows will be equipped with a mechanical device, called a clicker, which produces a clicking sound when the archer reaches the correct draw length.

The outdoor sport of archery may fall into the category of watching golf or bowling matches, as far as a spectator sport, but this outdoor sport is really fun to participate in.  I learned archery as a teenager in camp, several years ago.  They taught us the proper stance, proper way to load, aim and shoot.  It’s a skill I have maintained to this day.  Though I don’t participate in this outdoor sport regularly, I make it a point to stop by the archery stalls at the renaissance fair whenever I go.  I know archery at the fair isn’t the same as the competition archery, but it’s still fun practice.  Plus, that practice is what helped me come within an inch from winning $50 off my gym teacher senior year of high school.  It was his own fault for betting us $50 that we couldn’t hit the bull’s-eye.  I still remember his all around panic when he saw my target but didn’t see who had shot that arrow.  He nearly had a heat attack as he asked who shot that arrow.  I had been bent over reaching for my second arrow when he asked, so I didn’t know what he was talking about.  It wasn’t until I straightened up and looked at the other targets, that I realized what happened. 

He saw it was me and told me not to do that again.  I would have done better on me second or even third arrow were it not for the boy behind me, knocking my right arm.  Of course he didn’t learn his lesson.  Later on that week he once again bet us money that we couldn’t hit the bulls-eye, only this time it was $10.  Sadly, I didn’t win, but it was a dead on competition between myself and one of the boys.  We were the two best archers in that gym class; I’m betting this outdoor sport was not new to my old classmate, as it was no doubt, to the rest of the class.

The next time you go to the renaissance fair, I encourage you to stop by the archery stalls and give this outdoor sport a try.  You just never know, you may find yourself wanting to take it on regularly.