Archery for Beginners
Once you’ve decided that you would like to take up the sport of archery, it’s important to understand what you need to know in order to get started the right way. Often, new archers make the mistake of simply trusting what the sales person says, or worse, they order archery gear online without doing the proper research. Before making a purchase, you need to understand that a salesman’s job is to make a sale. Although many sales people within the industry are quite helpful, many others only care about earning a commission off of the sale. Here are some factors to consider before you get started.
Bow size is perhaps the single-most important aspect to archery for beginners. If you choose a bow which is not sized correctly, your experience might be frustrating and painful, in addition to being expensive if you choose to give up on the sport altogether. In order to prevent frustration, remember that height is not always equal to arm span. Those who choose to test this theory often find that if you stand 3 people next to each other, then measure their arm lengths versus their size, you will often come up with 3 inconsistent measurements.
Another common myth is that bow size can be determined by your age. This could not be further from the truth. There is no such thing as a “one size fits-all” approach based solely upon a person’s age. Unfortunately, there are plenty of charts available online, which claim to be able to size your bow according to such charts. The proper bow size should be considered as unique as finding the correct pair of shoes. Each person ages and grows differently, with some, especially youths going through puberty, experiencing drastic growth spurts which in turn plays a huge factor for measurements.
The main way to select your bow size is to determine your actual or calculated draw length. In order to determine your calculated draw length, simply measure your arm span, and divide by 2.5. For this step, get a friend to measure your arm length or wingspan with a tape measure. However, you must first stand with both arms outstretched into a “T” formation before the measurements can take place. It’s important to stand with your palms facing upward, and to maintain a relaxed state. This ensures the accuracy of the measurements, and thus leads to less confusion moving forward.
There are, of course, other factors to consider before getting started with archery. Once measurements have been taken, and you purchase a recurved bow, you will need proper instruction. Poor technique can lead to painful and frustrating experiences, as mentioned, so it is important to get off on the right foot. The good news is that you can start to do your homework on the sport before you ever meet up with trainer. Remember, the right type of salesperson will be genuine, and they will not attempt to simply sell you whatever they have in stock in order to make a commission.