About Archery

There are several types of archery, the most popular being target archery which is what we normally shoot at the Royal Leamington Spa Archery Society. Also popular is field archery although professionally run field archery courses are few and far between. We also shoot a few clout rounds each year.

Archery equipment falls into three main groups; recurve, compound and longbow. Most of our members shoot recurve bows, although we also have a few compounds and longbows. All types are allowed in competitions but compete in different classes.

In target archery competitions there are different classes for lady and gentleman archers and also for juniors. For juniors there are under 18, 16, 14 and 12 years. Awards are usually made in each of the classes and for each bow type. There is also a handicap system and awards are sometimes based on handicap-adjusted scores.

Some Types of Archery

Target Archery

This is the traditional form of archery as it has been practiced for centuries. Targets are set up in a field at known distances and archers shoot aiming to hit the centre. The target consists of 10 concentric rings and each arrow scores according to which ring it lands in. There are many different rounds, each consisting of a set number of arrows at up to four different distances. Target archery can also be practised indoors during the winter.

Field Archery

This is more like hunting as groups of archers walk around a pre-defined course in fields and woods shooting at targets (sometimes on pictures of animals, but more often on concentric ring targets of different sizes) which may or may not be at marked distances. Scores are given for how close each arrow is to the centre of the target.

Clout

Here archers shoot at a very large target, the clout, marked on the ground a long way (180 yards for men, 140 for ladies, and shorter distances for juniors) from the shooting line and marked only by a flag at its centre. Points are awarded according to how close each arrow lands to the flag.

Bow Types

Longbows
	The longbow is the simplest form of bow used in competition and resembles the traditional bow used by mediaeval archers. Archers shoot wooden arrows and use the minimum of shooting aids.
Recurve Bows
	Recurve bows are the most popular and are to be seen at all major target archery competitions including the Olympics. They are characterised by the fact that the tips of the bow limbs curve away from the archer, giving more power than the traditional longbow. Some shooting aids, such as sights and stabilisers, are allowed although some archers shoot without them in a discipline called ‘barebow’. Arrows are generally of aluminium or carbon fibre.
Compound Bows
	Compound bows are the hi-tech bows of archery. They are much shorter than recurves and have a system of pulleys or cams around which the string runs. This allows for much more power and speed of arrow flight, but a lower draw weight on the archer’s fingers. A number of shooting aids which are not allowed on recurves, such as magnifying sight rings, can be used with compounds. Arrows are usually made of carbon fibre, although aluminium arrows are shot by some, especially indoors.