Dropping out for a year.

[Fuzzy]

Due to work commitments, I might be sent somewhere without archery for a year. No ranges, clubs, national body, nothing. I'll be lucky if there's a local variant of a strung bent stick. :shocked:

Of course this is a major blow, but I need to be pragmatic about it and more importantly keep myself fit for my return. I shoot 39.6lbs off the fingers so I can't get away with nothing for a year. I don't really like the idea of coming back to a reduced poundage and building up to my old weight again either.

I'm already thinking about taking a few exercise bands with me - is there anything else I can do?

 

[Munsterman]

can you bring your bow and find a target of some sort to practice on?

 

[Reg]

The Saunders Power Pull is a good training aid.

Merlin sell them at http://www.merlinarcherycentre.co.uk/acatalog/exercise_Bands.html.

Nice piece of kit and you can add weights to the 'bow' handle as well.

 

[Fuzzy]

can you bring your bow and find a target of some sort to practice on?

I very much doubt it. I can find nothing on the net to indicate that there's even so much as a straw boss where I'm going.

 

[Tom]

So where is it? You've got us interested now.

 

[Fuzzy]

So where is it? You've got us interested now.

West Africa.

 

[mf78]

Take your bow and a formaster. You can do reversals in your room with the elbow sling or even shoot using it at an upturned mattress or something (the arrows wont pierce if you set the formaster up properly). In fact, although its a bit dull, I'd bet you could come back as a better archer doing just that for a whole year!

 

[Tom]

Sounds like a great opportunity.

Serious question - have you considered shipping a boss over and taking your kit (or a 40# bow you wouldn't mind getting lost in the post)?

 

[Fuzzy]

Sounds like a great opportunity.

Serious question - have you considered shipping a boss over and taking your kit (or a 40# bow you wouldn't mind getting lost in the post)?

First off let me say thanks for all the help so far - the Saunders stuff looks like it might be useful. I'm hesitant to take my own bow with me or have it shipped across since it is my baby , so now might be the time to take a look at cheap and cheerful kit that won't hurt if it goes missing for whatever reason. Getting a boss shipped will probably prove fun, but I could get my practice boss shipped I suppose. I'd have to have a word with HR about all this anyway.

 

[Furface]

Get yourself on a Leaders course, buy a FITA Standard bow and suitable other kit - then start up the sport in that country. That is what the FITA Standard was designed for. Somewhere near must have an NGB that would help. The archery equivalent of Dr Livingston.

 

[donk]

Wots aboot clout shootin fer 12 months lol,you wont have golfers/rugby/football players complainin about wreckin the pitch .Nah only kiddin, you can make a target outa cardboard, 'x' inch wide strips either rolled together like bog roll or lay flat.You've got the weather, the space and plenty of time to perfect a cardboard boss.(Or even a straw boss).

 

[duffy]

i am right in saying you shoot 39.6lbs? you could go all year and still pull that, its not that heavy, you would have to work on form more than anything!!

 

[King Custard]

looking at a long lay-off myself,
and i can tell you - it ain't appealling.
i still shoot arrows in my sleep and 'totally ITCH' for that 'burning trap muscle' occaisioned from over shooting...leaves me next to insane with jealousy to hear how mates are progressing and I cant even lift a bow.

do whatever it takes to find or make a target.
Then again- who says you have to shoot your tournament arrows? i was under the impression that there's enough shootably straight sticks in WAfrica to weight/fletch/nock...and shoot into a tree??

 

[Tom]

i am right in saying you shoot 39.6lbs? you could go all year and still pull that, its not that heavy, you would have to work on form more than anything!!

I beg to differ. I shoot a 40# recurve and notice a dip in score levels and strength after only a 2-3 week break. A year off and I'd be back at square one - but then I'm not exactly a prime physical specimen

 

[mk1]

West Africa is rather large can you narrow it down a bit? There are 7 archery regions. Togo has a club that meets on the beach!! and there was in International Archery Tournament in Benin this August.

If you Google "FITA Congress" you will get the August and October FITA newsletters - perhaps emailing someone at FITA can help you. Seems you could have a very interesting time. I'd take some coaching books out with you for the people there

As Furface says you could start a Club

 

[Fuzzy]

It's either Togo or Ghana. Here's hoping for Togo, I love the idea of shooting on a beach. If everything pans out and there's no chance of joining a club out there, then I'll take the Saunders device. Shipping a boss over is looking very, very expensive, and some retailers won't ship to that part of the world. It's more trouble than its worth.

 

[DLJ]

there's probably some sort of archery out there even if it's only hunting.

Namibia and South Africa are members of the IFAA so it's likely that other countries will have some sort of archery going on.

I'd get a cheap setup to take (things get lost easily in Africa) and make my own bosses over there.

HTH

 

[the idiots are winning]

if all else fails get a really heavy weight and attach it to your Wii remote...........