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!

Online target options :-D

Hey archers!

Based on how popular my post on my zombie targets were, I thought it might be nice to locate some fun online targets that can be easily printed and used at the range!  After all, archery can occasionally get expensive, so anyway to save money is a good thing.

Free Archery Targets

This site is great.  They offer printouts of FITA (now World Archery) target faces in various sizes.  I've used these in the past if I forgot to pick up a pack of 40cm faces at Walmart before practice.

Dewclaw Archery

These are great options as well.  Dewclaw Archery lets you download the target in .pdf format (so you are going to need Adobe Acrobat or Foxit to view these images).  Some of these targets are designed so that you can put multiple standard sheets of paper together (8.5" x 11") to form larger targets.  Very nice for those of us that don't have fancy printers.

King Joffery Targets

How much fun is this!  If you're a fan of HBO's Game of Thrones (or the books by R.R. Martin), you are more than likely not a fan of King Joffery.  So, print out a target of everyone's least favourite boy king and let the arrows fly.  Bonus points if you listen to the "Rains of Castamere" while giving Joff his due.

Other target fun:

I know that I have already shared my hatred (and therefore love of shooting at) Zombies.  So, I have located additional zombie targets.  These aren't as nice as the Visicolor options that I shared a few weeks ago, but they offer the advantage of being free:

Zombie profile - These offer a simple silhouette of a zombie.  They also look great on standard paper.  (originally located at ZombieHunters.org)

Comic Zombie - This one is nice, as it offers no scoring lines.  (original available at: www.rem870.org)

District 9 Alien - Remember these guys?  Fire a few arrows at the "prawns" with these! (originals were found  in the Bayou shooter forums)


I hope all of you have as much fun with these as I have.  It's nice to have options to shoot at once and a while, especially on club nights or 4H/JOAD clubs.

Let me know if any of you have other options for fun targets!

Archery can be social

Let's be honest.

A lot of the time, archers tend to be alone.  We are alone at the firing line; it's just us and the target face.  I don't know about all of you, but I prefer a quiet range to a crazy busy one.

That said, sometimes, it can be nice to have someone to chat with while shooting.  Yesterday night, I went to the range on "Club Night".  I was worried a bit that it might be overcrowded (our range only has five lanes), but I arrived to find it empty.  I fired a few practice ends, and then got down to practice.

About 2/3 of the way through my first round the club Chairperson came in.  It had been a while since she'd been shooting, so she was working on fundamentals, getting her form in check.  Since we were both kinda relaxed about our practice, we struck up a conversation about the club, the Olympics, the complete lack of Archery coverage on TV, etc.

It was nice.  I am a bit of a loner when it comes to sport - I tend to prefer the individual vs the team based activities, but it was nice to have someone to chat with while walking up the the target butts, retrieving arrows, or walking back to the line.

Maybe I will have to try and make it out to "Club Night" more often.  I just hope it doesn't get too popular.  :-D