Backyard archery!

Now that the weather is FINALLY getting nicer, and the backyard has been at least semi - cleared, I can finally take my new bow out for a spin.

My boy is turning into quite the little archer.  

After seeing how serious he was with just a simple toy bow, I may have to get him a proper youth set.

If I do, I'll post a review of the kit at a later date.

Its been awhile....

Happy 2015, all.

Its been a while since I posted (over a year!), but I've been prepping for the upcoming archery season in a big way.

I set up a new workstation so I can work on fletching and the like, and I picked up a new compound bow!  Its a 2012 Bear Encounter package, tapping out a a 60# draw weight.  The package came complete with  a Trophy Ridge 3 pin sight, whisker biscuit rest and quiver.

I'm going to get it set up sometime this week (bow was an eBay purchase from an archery retailer that is folding up shop after 30 years) with a local pro shop, South Nation Archery.

Pictures below:

Archery iOS apps

Hey archers!

As promised, I've compiled a short list of archery themed apps and games for Apple's iOS series of products.

This is by no means meant to be an exhaustive list; there are way too many apps for me to review personally.  As such, please feel free to add your own apps below!

1) Archery Score Lite/Pro

Archery Score, written by Yakoob Ali, is a solid program that I use to score my ends at the range.  The program is intuitive, and contains enough options for the standard archer, and is cheaper than other scoring apps on the App Store.

The app allows for multiple shooting parameters (Indoor/Outdoor, FITA, etc) and target faces.  Arrows are scored directly on the target face, allowing for easy identification of scoring trends over time.  The paid app allows the user to create custom shoots.

The score cards that I have uploaded to my blog come from Archery Score; the app allows the user to email a copy of the score card via the built in iOS mail client.  A nice touch.

Archery Score Lite is free.  Archery Score Pro is available for $1.99 in the Canadian App Store, and as near as I can tell, is worth every penny.

2) Archery Memo

I love this app.  If you are like me, a bit forgetful  this app is a lifesaver, and its FREE.  Archery Memo allows you to make note of all the different measurements, settings and preferences of your bow setup.  Bow poundage, range marking for your sight, arrow length and spine are all configurable.

The app even allows for multiple entries for different equipment.  Recurve and a compound shooter?  Add both.  Use different arrows or sight setups depending on the circumstances?  Archery Memo has you covered.

Thanks to this app, I rarely get caught flatfooted at the archery store by a technical question from one of the techs.

3) Archery Terms

Alright.  Most shooters will smirk at this one, but I think this is a great app for those among us that are just joining the sport.  Archery is a technical, precision sport.  There are a ton of terms and equipment that can be difficult to get a hold of for new archers (they were for me, anyway).

Archery Terms is another free app that I think fills a niche.  Simple drop down menus allow an archer to lookup any term that may be causing difficulty.  Explanations and definitions are then shown on screen.  Simple, intuitive and informative.

4) Archer's Excuses

This one is fun, even if you are having an off night.  Archer's excuses comes up with reasons why you missed the X.

Admit it.  We've all been there: when you completely screw up on the firing line, and your buddies are behind you, giving "supportive" smirks and snickers, this app can come in handy.

Okay, not all the "excuses" are gems - but there's enough funny in here to cheer me up if I'm shooting like crap.

Archer's Excuses retails for $1.99 in the Canadian App Store.  I've got mine on quick access at club nights.  :-D

5) Archer's World Cup 2

I am not a fan of gaming on the iPhone or the iPad.  Straight up, I dislike touch screen controls.  As such, I don't have a ton of games on my iOS device.

I do, however, enjoy some Archer's World Cup.  A free game, AWC lets the user fling arrows down range and try to use "Kentucky Windage" to correct for a random wind variable.  AWC2 allows for a multiplayer experience, where AWC is just a single player experience.

Only real complaint I have with these games are that they completely ignore the silence slider on your device.  Think you are going to be stealthy and get some quiet gaming in while waiting for an appointment?  Nope.  AWC sound is on.  You've got to manually turn down the sound.


Anyway, that's what I have on my Apple stuff.  I'll look into cooking up a list for my Android people next time!

Lug05 Update - 2012 11 03

Well, its been a while, hmm?

Despite my lack of postings, my love of archery continues - so I haven't abandoned you all.

I've been fighting the good fight here, but the universe has been conspiring against me a bit.  My wife had to take an unexpected leave of absence from work recently, and my shooting had to take a back seat while I took care of her.  The good news is that she's doing a lot better, so I can get back to it!

I've been fighting with gremlins in my gear, namely in my SF Axiom Sight.  This sight has been pretty good to me, but of late I've noticed that the screws CONSTANTLY need to be checked for tightness.  Things came to a bit of a head last weekend after I took a shoot and heard an ominous *snap* immediately following my release.  I figured it was my rest, or perhaps a nock that had hit the riser.  No such luck:

Yeah, that's whats left of my aperture.  After spending a few minutes looking around, I was able to find the missing part.  I kept shooting, until the entire sight slid off the rail and hit the floor.  Frustration got the better of me, so I called it quits, and headed to South Nation Archery Supply:

Larry sold me a new aperture, and checked my bow over.  After he had exorcised a few demons from the setup, things definitely improved:

More to come!

Arrow - a review

Just finished watching the new CW network television show, Arrow.

I enjoyed it, even if the archery themed bits were few and far between.  I worried that this was going to be a slightly darker version of Smallville, with an archery based hero.

The good news is that Stephen Amell, the actor that plays the lead role appears to have taken archery lessons before beginning filming; there are no embarrassing Hawkeye repeats in this series.

I fail to see how the protagonist, Oliver Queen, picked up his ninja like skill-set.  Stranded rich playboy brat gets shipwrecked on a crappy spit of land, only to be rescued, come back to the "real" world, and kick everything that moves into a coma.  I mean, even Batman took a few lessons from the ninja's, right?!

Perhaps the writers are trying to get the viewer to be more invested in Oliver Queen before starting his origin story.  Time will tell.

Thus far, I would say that Arrow is promising.  I will be turning in next week for more.

What did all of you think of the television adaptation of DC Comic's Green Arrow?

Blargh, I am sick!

Ugh.

I am sick as a dog, and it is certainly making an impact on my archery practice time.  I haven't had the opportunity (or ability) to make it out to the range this week as a result of what may be Ebola or Honta (still waiting for the lab results to confirm/deny).

But, I picked up some new hardware that I thought I would show off a bit!

Easton Powerflight Arrows

I picked these up at That Hunting and Fishing Store in Richmond a few weeks ago.  I got them for a decent price, about $50 CAD for a half dozen made arrows.  I explained my need of target arrows to the sales person, and he recommended that I go with a slightly over-spined arrow, as I would likely be upgrading my ILF limbs in the next few months (going to a higher poundage).

The only issue I have had with them so far is that I managed to rip up the fletching on one of them to the point that I am unwilling to shoot it.  (See picture below).  I will have to try and repair the damage before I feel comfortable shooting this one again - should be fun, as I do not have a fletching jig....

High Density Foam Target

Now this was a steal.  I was surfing around Kijiji.ca, and found a local that was selling a few archery targets, including this high density foam number, which I picked up for $25 CAD.

The seller was a really nice older lady that used to shoot compound competitively in Texas, and has moved up to the Great White North to retire.  She even threw in a few free targets & target pins, just because she is awesome.

I think I am going to set up a short range target downstairs in the basement.  I'd shoot outdoors, but I live in a townhouse, and would likely incur the wrath of my neighbours or the condo association if I tried to practice in my backyard.  :-/

Chest Guard

Finally picked up one of these from South Nation Archery Supply last week.  When I first started back into archery, I never understood why the guys were wearing these things; back when I started shooting, only the girls wore chest protectors.

That all changed after I had my form corrected by Kathy Millar.  I was practicing at my usual range, when WHAM!!!  I nailed my right nipple on a string release.  Have you ever had something hurt so bad that you wanted to scream, but couldn't?  Yeah, it was like that.  So, I called SNAS and promptly ordered a new guard.  Save teh boobs!

Good archery YouTube feeds

Hey Archers!

I know there is a lot of information online concerning archery online, and it can sometimes be confusing for new archers to get into the sport.

About a year ago, when I started getting back into shooting, I decided to check around the web for useful information about my new hobby.  YouTube was a wealth of information for me;  Not only were there feeds to help new archers with their form and equipment, there were hunting and trick shot videos to watch as well.

Here are some of my favourite YouTube feeds (note: I am not affiliated with ANY of the producers of these videos):

ArcheryTV

For all of us FITA/World Archery fans, this is one stop shopping.  ArcheryTV is the official YouTube account that provides coverage of various archery tournaments around the world.  This one is good for both compound and recurve shooters.  I watch this if I ever want to be both inspired and depressed about my archery skill.  :-/

Performance Archery TV

This one is great for all us rookies.  Hosted by Alistair Whittingham, Performance Archery TV gives detailed videos explaining and demonstrating proper archery form and technique with Olympic-style ILF recurve bows as well as compounds.  There are other training videos out there, but I liked this one as I felt that it was approachable and well rounded (recurve & compound?  Awesome!).  Its a shame that this feed hasn't been updated in over a year.

Grey Archer

Ah, Grey Archer,  I love this guy.  A traditional shooter that likes to post video reviews of various bows, as well as document his adventures in the woods in Sweden, Grey Archer is fun to watch.  He is currently in a "What is?" series of videos, helping newer archers understand some of the terminology around archery.

Warning:  Grey Archer can occasionally get into "grumpy old guy mode" in his videos, and get a bit ramble-y.

The Field Archer

Okay.  I don't hunt, but if I did, I would hope that I could hunt half as well as this guy.  Field Archer is an absolutely fantastic shot with a crossbow or compound bow.  Just as a heads up, some of the videos can be a bit bloody - this is hunting after all - and as such, some viewer discretion should be exercised.

Tex Grebner Outdoors

Okay, this one is more for the comedic value.  I first learned of "Tex" after watching him shoot himself in the leg on Tosh.O (video here - Warning: Language/Violence).  Tex started putting up archery related videos a little over a year ago, and while his efforts tend to end poorly for him (see above), I can't help but like the guy for the amount of effort he puts into his videos.

Trick Shot videos:

Those crazy Russians sure love their archery.  These two videos (see below) are crazy.  The girl has to be one of the fastest shots I have ever seen (mind you, that bow looks like its about 20# draw), and the technique on the guy is apparently an old Mongol horseback trick.

Anyway, cool stuff!

Well, that's it for my favourites!  Anyone else have favourite archery videos that you like to watch online?