Archery for Beginners: How to Shoot an Arrow

Archery is not only a sport, but also an art and a way to challenge yourself. Archery not only exercises your concentration and patience, but also lets you experience fun that you have never had before, and every time you pull the string and let it go, it is a challenge and beyond yourself!

Many people come to experience archery for the first time and their results are always unsatisfactory. Many people think archery is just drawing a bow, nocking an arrow and shooting. In fact, it is not. Archery posture, bow lifting and opening and other actions require some skills. This article outlines the 7 steps of archery techniques, including stance, arrow nocking/pull the string, gripping/draw the bow, anchor , aiming, release and recover, and explains the archery steps and movement in detail. Let's go into the world of archery together!

Stance

Since ancient times, good archery people often say: "The body end body straight, force calm, take the bow properly, set up the arrow calmly, push forward and backward, the bow is full of style into.”

The stance alone contains many small details that should not be overlooked: feet across the shooting line, both feet shoulder width apart, the centre of gravity of the body evenly between the feet and the body leaning slightly forward. Don't change your stance once you've chosen it; you can't stand differently every time you shoot.

Here are some adjustments to your body shape: knees straight, hips lightly clenched; waist straight, chest open, neck and head swung upright.

Nocking the arrow

Lay the shaft of the arrow on the arrow rest, arrow nock is resting on the bow string, the index vane or feather should be pointing away from the bow.

Draw Point

Different bow types have different drawing techniques. Generally speaking, the Mediterranean draw is used for competitive recurve bows, the lower three fingers are used for Barebow, and the thumb is used for traditional bows.

The Mediterranean draw is index finger above the arrow, and your middle and ring finger below the arrow. sometimes referred to as the split finger draw.  

Use the first joint of the middle finger and the belly of the index and ring fingers to hold the string.

Do not use the second joint of the finger to string, as this is not conducive to release.

Do not clip the arrow between your fingers when draw string, as this is not conducive to releasing the arrow and can easily result in a "false empty release".

Grip/Draw the bow

The movement of the archers’ hand directly affects the direction of the arrow shot, therefore, it is not only necessary to be reasonable, but also to be conscientious to ensure a high degree of consistency in the bow pushing movement in the daily training.

The correct way to grip should be: The bow grip has no contact beyond the life-line of the archers’ hand (no contact at the side of the little finger). There is generally no sliding of the grip to either side; the hand pushes towards the pressure point, the bow should leave the palm of the hand straight forward.

There are three ways of gripping: Low push method, middle push method, high push method.

Low Push Method: The grip is pushed with the root of the palm as the center.

Middle Push Method: A method of pushing the grip centered on the thenar eminence.

High Push Method: A method of pushing the grip centered on the between the thumb and index.

Basic requirements for gripping

Make sure the archer is not pushing against the bow grip with the entire hand or palm of the hand.

After pushing the bow, the direction of pressure between the bow and the hand should be as close to the center of the joint as possible;

The finger flexors should not be involved in the work and maximum relaxation should be achieved;

The hand pushes towards the pressure point should always fall on the same position of the bow grip to achieve the alignment of the push grip.

Draw Bow

The bow is placed to a fixed position at the lower jaw, the drawing arm is driven by the elbow in the back position, and the holding arm is pushed forward to assist the drawing. Pushing the grip arm to rotate the arm straight, straight but not locked, on the one hand, can avoid hitting the arm, more importantly, the bones are aligned to strengthen the support. It is to turn the arm clockwise until the elbow socket faces the same direction as the body.

Anchor Position

Anchor refers to the position where the bowstring or arrow shaft comes into contact with the archer's face, jaw and other parts of the shooter's body when the shooter is drawing the string. By determining the archer's resting position to confirm the draw distance and direction of pull, it ensures that the archer's draw distance for each arrow is fixed and reduces the deviation of the action; at the same time, a fixed resting position provides the archer with a better pulling force so that the arrow will land at a more focused point.

Aiming

At full draw, the dominant eye should pass through the side of the bowstring and the sight pin and the center of target coincide, so that the dominant eye, the side of the bowstring, the sight pin and the centre of yellows are connected in a straight line, thus forming the baseline for aiming.

Release

After drawing the bow and aiming at the target, the back muscles continue to exert force while the finger flexors of the string-holding hand relax to complete the release.

In such a release, the bow arm moves forward along the arrow face in the direction of the arrow, while the string hand moves backward along the arrow face, forming a natural, coordinated and explosive movement.

The release action is carried out in an instant, when releasing, the action of the front and back hands can not be divided into sequential, nor can they be divided into light and heavy, they must be overly coordinated and unified.

The action of suspense is part of the release action, the two are an inseparable collation, the suspense includes the stance posture, body structure, visual, psychological and respiratory action of the suspense. The hold is a very important part of the technique, helping the shooter to achieve a good release action and facilitating a perfect continuation of the force process.

Recover

When the process of shooting an arrow is complete, drop the bow, breathe, relax all themuscles involvedin the shot, return your body to stance position and prepare to shoot the next arrow.

The charm of archery lies in its complexity and challenge, and it provides a unique way to exercise, improve skills, build will and enjoy life. Whether you are a beginner in archery or an experienced archer, you can find your own fun and challenge in the world of archery.

Elongoutdoor Team

January 30th, 2024