Bow International

the new normal

How are you holding up? That's the question that I'm hearing, and asking, most often over the last couple of months. Rest assured, it's been plenty tough here at Bow Towers too. This situation has tested the fortitude and the mental health of introverts and extroverts alike. I've also been unable to shoot beyond a few yards until this week, but the archery world really won't miss me on the line, at least, and there's been plenty of things to worry about other than shooting. For some time, as the editor I have been mostly editing remotely anyway, so my working pattern bringing you your soaraway Bow every six weeks or so hasn't changed a great deal. But of course, everything is different, for everybody. As some of the practicalities of lockdown…

bow news

COVID-19: SPORT RESTARTS, BUT MORE COMPETITIONS CANCELLED As Bow went to press in mid-June, with the world gradually coming out of a lockdown period, the sport remained in turmoil. The vast majority of major outdoor national and international competitions for 2020 have been cancelled. The World Field Championships, due to take place in Yankton, South Dakota in September, were officially cancelled on 3rd June and postponed until 2022. The world field was planned to act as the primary qualifier for the upcoming World Games in Birmingham. That event was initially scheduled for 2021 but moved to 2022 following the delay of the Olympics. Other cancelled events include the European Youth Championships, due to be held at Lilleshall, the European 3D championships and the remainder of the World Cup circuit. The World Cup Final,…

covid-19: what now for archery?

One of the more durable cliches in the news media over the past three months has been stating that we are living in 'unprecedented times'. As a cliche, it has a strong element of truth to it. Most of the apocalypses we thought we were likely to face in our lifetime were immediate and catastrophic, something literally or metaphorically slamming into the Earth. Instead, a tiny package of cunning cells has upended the world in curious ways; forcing governments into difficult decisions, ruining the plans of billions, and causing who-knows-what kind of effects we will feel in a year or ten's time. It's not hard to feel that archery is suddenly not so important in the scheme of things, with livelihoods ruined and difficult choices to be made, finally properly capped…

rare books: archery tome smashes estimate

An extremely rare, personally-compiled manuscript on archery, put together by Sir Ralph Payne Gallwey of Thirkleby Park in Thirsk, sold at Tennants Auctioneers of Yorkshire for £2,600 plus premium in their sale on 18th March 2020, smashing the £600-900 estimate. Sir Ralph Payne Gallwey (1848-1916), it appears, was a man with an particular fascination for archery. Written in the early 20th century, the beautifully compiled manuscript includes detailed research into Turkish and Chinese archery, multiple bows, bow styles and methods of shooting, all written out in a meticulous hand. It appears Payne Gallwey was a man of many things: engineer, historian, artist and ballistics expert, and a published author on several books on shooting and the crossbow. The manuscript also includes images of an extensive collection of weapons housed at Thirkleby Park.…

advanced: bow arm stability

Keeping the bow arm stable is vital in recurve archery, but it's surprising how quickly the strength can drop off – especially if you've been out of the game for a few weeks. In this article, archers and coaches Naomi Folkard and Gunther Kuhr let you know how to keep things strong. The shoulder is one of the more complex joints in the body. It's sometime likened to a golf ball on a tee, but the ground on which the tee is sitting in can move! It's worth spending a little time looking up exactly how the shoulder works; the humeral head sits on the glenoid which is formed out of the outside corner of the scapula. Bear in mind that the scapula itself is able to move in any direction…

vanes: three of the best

INTRODUCTION Whether we're shopping online or in store we are affronted by hundreds of vanes of all sizes and shapes. This can often lead to option paralysis. The confusion leads a lot of archers of all levels to make poor decisions when it comes to making a purchase. Having a basic grasp of a few key facts and physics principles will put you in a position where you'll be able to short list your new vane candidates. Incidentally, you might prefer to call them fletchings - and that's fine too. Fletchings is a much older word and is more commonly used in Britain, whereas vanes is the universal term in North America and much of the rest of the world. North America is where a lot of them are made these days,…