Crowood Sports Guides are the perfect tool for anyone wanting to improve their performance, from beginners learning the basic skills to more experienced participants working on advanced techniques. These practical, no-nonsense guides will help you give you that all-important advantage. Archery - Crowood Sports Guides gives a clear explanation of bow set and arrow tuning; detailed advice on how to produce a good shot cycle; choosing the right bow and arrows and how to prepare physically and mentally for competition. There are photographic sequences clearly illustrating how to achieve good form and close up photographs of equipment and accessories. Contents include: practice tips for performance; helpful hints to improve scores; making the move from club to competition shooting and finally, how to prepare physically and mentally for competition.

War bows dominated battlefields across the world for centuries. In their various forms, they allowed trained archers to take down even well-armoured targets from great distances, and played a key role in some of the most famous battles in human history. The composite bow was a versatile and devastatingly effective weapon, on foot, from chariots and on horseback for over a thousand years, used by cultures as diverse as the Hittites, the Romans, the Mongols and the Ottoman Turks. The Middle Ages saw a clash between the iconic longbow and the more technologically sophisticated crossbow, most famously during the Hundred Years War, while in Japan, the samurai used the yumi to deadly effect, unleashing bursts of arrows from their galloping steeds.

Historical weapons expert Mike Loades reveals the full history of these four iconic weapons that changed the nature of warfare. Complete with modern ballistics testing, action recreations of what it is like to fire each bow and a critical analysis of the technology and tactics associated with each bow, this book is a must-have for anyone interested in ancient arms.

The Way of Archery provides a detailed introduction to practicing archery in the traditional Chinese military style. It explains the basics of how to shoot using the Asian thumb ring: proper posture, training regimen, equipment, and avoiding pitfalls in shooting. The thorough translation and commentary (with original and new illustrations) provide a fresh and practical perspective on Gao Ying s 1637 archery treatise (which, itself, influenced generations of archers in East Asia). The authors themselves are active practitioners of Chinese archery, having spent an endless amount of time and effort vetting their understanding of this old manual and putting its ideas into practice. Through this process, the authors have been able to make this archery text accessible to modern readers. Not only will the reader come to understand the technical side of the Way of Archery, but will connect with the philosophy and spirit of the ancient Chinese warriors."

This unique book looks for the first time at archery techniques from the point of view of the interrelationship between the anatomy of the human body and the anatomy of the bow. By highlighting the primary power sources involved in the performance of the sport it enables coaches and archers alike to understand and perfect their skills in ways that use the natural movements of archer and bow in co-ordination.

The book is not tied to any specific national or international rules; it can be used by archers throughout the world to gain an understanding of the biomechanics of the sport. Originating from the author's awareness that the basic problems of most archers stemmed from their ignorance of these aspects, it should make an invaluable contribution to the overall improvement of performance standards.

'Kit Fielding's debut is a triumph. A story told with brutal honesty, underpinned by humour, love, hope and the inestimable power of friendship.' RUTH HOGAN, author of The Keeper of Lost Things In every pub in every town unspoken stories lie beneath the surface. Each week, six women meet at The Bluebell Inn. They form an unlikely and occasionally triumphant ladies darts team. They banter and jibe, they laugh. But their hidden stories of love and loss are what, in the end, will bind them. There is Mary, full of it but cradling her dark secret; Lena - young and bold, she has made her choice; the cat woman who must return to the place of her birth before it's too late. There's Maggie, still laying out the place for her husband; and Pegs, the dark-eyed girl from the travellers' site bringing her strangeness and first love. And Katy: unappreciated. Open to an offer. They know little of each other's lives. But here they gather and weave a delicate and sustaining connection that maybe they can rely on as the crossroads on their individual paths threaten to overwhelm. With humanity and insight, Kit Fielding reveals the great love that lies at the heart of female friendship. Raw, funny and devastating, all of life can be found at the Bluebell.

Archery for Beginners is the complete instructional guide for anyone interested in taking up recreational archery. This book covers all the essentials for the beginning archer--from basic skills and equipment to effective and safe training methods. There are chapters on both recurve and compound bows, the two most popular types, as well as information on how to track your progress. Topics included in this book are: Compound and Recurve bows Archery equipment and accessories Training preparation and safety Advanced shooting methods Fun archery games How to make your own bow With over 150 illustrations and full-color photos, step-by-step instructions, and easy-to-follow directions, Archery for Beginners is the go-to guide for anyone interested in learning archery basics. Be the next to join more than 8 million Americans who enjoy this popular pastime.

Archers long for equipment that meets their personal needs. Here are detailed, step-by-step instructions to enable them to equip themselves with personal finger guards, belt pouches, tension springs, string holders, and ten types of quivers. Learn to make bowstrings, targets (from simple to imaginative), and fittings, and gain information to make arrows especially crafted to meet an archer's individual needs, including shafts and feathering. Over 600 color photos illustrate the instructions. Fourteen experienced archers have developed this instructive text from their own practice and testing. Together, they provide information necessary to make their own archery equipment with leather, wood, antler, and bone.

First full study devoted to the archery and crossbow guilds which grew up in Flanders in the middle ages. The notion of "guilds" in civic society might conjure images of craft guilds, the organisations of butchers, bakers or brewers set up to regulate working practises. In the towns of medieval Flanders, however, a plethora of guildsexisted which had little or nothing to do with the organisation of labour, including chambers of rhetoric, urban jousters and archery and crossbow guilds. This is the first full-length study of the archery and crossbow guilds, encompassing not only the great urban centres of Ghent, Bruges and Lille but also numerous smaller towns, whose participation in guild culture was nonetheless significant. It examines guild membership, structure and organisation, revealing the diversity of guild brothers - and sisters - and bringing to life the elaborate social occasions when princes and plumbers would dine together. The most spectacular of these were the elaborate regional shooting competitions, whose entrances alone included play wagons, light shows and even an elephant! It also considers their social and cultural activities, and their important role in strengthening and rebuilding regional networks. Overall, it provides a new perspective on the strength of community within Flemish towns and the values that underlay medieval urban ideology. LAURA CROMBIE gained her PhD from the university of Glasgow.

If you're serious about improving accuracy, increasing consistency, and achieving competitive success, " Archery "is your guide.

Featuring the in-depth instruction, insight, and advice from the world's top coaches and archers, "Archery" sets a new standard in resources for those who compete with the recurve or compound bow.

"Archery" includes a wealth of information on perfecting stance, body alignment, muscle recruitment, and shot sequence. You'll master the skills and techniques taught at the U.S. Olympic Training Center by legendary coach KiSik Lee. Then you'll prepare for competition:

- Select and properly tune equipment.

- Develop a winning shot sequence.

- Set up, draw, and complete the shot.

- Maximize practice time.

- Train physically and mentally for competition.

- Develop a successful tournament strategy.

Developed by USA Archery, " Archery "is an invaluable resource you'll refer to again and again.

In the Zen tradition archery (or swordsmanship) is not just a sport or a form of self-defence but an art, a religious ritual and one of the many possible paths to Enlightenment.

Few Westerners have tried as hard as Eugen Herrigel, a German professor who lived for many years in Japan, to learn Zen from a Master. In this classic text he gives an unsparingly honest account of how he was initiated, step by step, into the 'Great Doctrine' of archery. At first he was baffled by what he was taught - that art must become artless, that the archer must aim at himself - yet gradually he began to glimpse the depth of wisdom concealed in such paradoxes. While many Western writers on Zen serve up second-hand slogans, Herrigel's hard-won insights were his own discoveries. His fine book offers a beautifully lucid introduction to one of the most haunting and subtle spiritual traditions in the world.

Since its original publication in 1953, Zen in the Art of Archery has become one of the classic works on Eastern philosophy, the first book to delve deeply into the role of Zen in philosophy, development, and practice of Eastern martial arts. Wise, deeply personal, and frequently charming, it is the story of one man's penetration of the theory and practice of Zen Buddhism.

Eugen Herrigel, a German professor who taught philosophy in Tokyo, took up the study of archery as a step toward the understanding of Zen. Zen in the Art of Archery is the account of the six years he spent as the student of one of Japan's great Zen masters, and the process by which he overcame his initial inhibitions and began to look toward new ways of seeing and understanding. As one of the first Westerners to delve deeply into Zen Buddhism, Herrigel was a key figure in the popularization of Eastern thought in the West, as well as being a captivating and illuminating writer.