The twang of bowstrings...

I've been researching a potential new hobby lately which has been both interesting and somewhat daunting. As some of you may recall I do a lot of shooting, I mean with firearms and I use my skills in competitions both nationally around Australia and on a club-level locally plus in hunting and culling applications. I've been shooting, and a gun owner, since the age of 21 so for about 28 years and while I'm still learning all the time I have a vast and quite extensive knowledge.

Thinking about a new hobby meant looking into what skills I had currently, and those I didn't, to determine what I wanted to do. As someone who values a high level of preparedness and survival-type skills it made sense to look into something that aligned with that theme.

Contemplating the scenario I had a lot of choices ranging from deepening my first aid/medical skills to building better mechanical/electrical skills. Now whilst they sound valuable I already have some understanding of them. I have the ability to treat most gunshot wounds, cuts, snake bites, breaks, grazes and a myriad of minor-type injuries and whilst I'm no mechanic or electrical engineer I have an idea of such things. So I'm looking for something more foreign to me as a potential new hobby. Besides, hobbies should be fun right?

I've been putting serious consideration into archery and have done a lot of research over the last month or so. I don't mean standing in front of a target and lobbing arrows at it though, I mean practical archery, in the field. Archery that can actually assist me in certain situations. I have a few friends who do a lot of bow hunting and so have had detailed conversations about archery, bows, arrows, fletchings, arrow heads, strings and loads of other things. From my perspective understanding how to use a bow and being accurate and fast with it could have some benefit. I mean I may not always have a firearm to hand right?

In my research I turned to a resource I have at my disposal; A collection of scanned documents on... Stuff. The resource covers everything from permaculture, preserving, trapping and tanning, to bee keeping, butchering, field survival, evasion and escape, knots, foraging, medical, lock picking, stealth, shelter and several other topics that a person in certain situations may find incredibly useful. My collection also has an extensive section on archery which, until now, has gone un-investigated.

The archery component covers the topic generally but also provides extensive and detailed information, instructions and diagrams on use and technique plus how to actually make bows, arrows, fletchings and arrow heads. It's that which piqued my interest.

Most hobbies cost money and so I'm working through costings and the viability of beginning this one; The making of my equipment, over the cost of simply buying the stuff. A decent recurve bow would cost me in the vicinity of $1000-$2000 Australian dollars and arrows are somewhere around $12 upwards so getting set up isn't too costly although making my own would be a lot cheaper and, I believe, much more rewarding. I'm still weighing it up however I think I know which way I'll go if I decide to take on this new hobby.

Whilst researching I came across this guy on the internet. At first look I was pretty impressed with the practical nature of his skills with the bow and also the way he's looked back into history to rekindle lost skills. I believe there is some degree of contention in respect of his claims although his skills certainly look like they speak for themselves. I'm not sure I'd ever get this good although watching the video certainly confirmed my interest in this ancient skill. If you take the time to watch the video you will see some pretty amazing archery.

I shoot my firearms a couple times a week on average; Handguns and rifles including long range rifle shooting out to about one mile. The skills to shoot like I do have been acquired over years. I also make my own ammunition; A skill all of its own. But if I was in the wilderness and my gun malfunctioned I'd be lugging around a useless piece of steel. With a bow there's not a lot to go wrong, certainly not with a recurve bow. It's a piece of wood and some string essentially. Carry a couple of spare strings and you're GTG. (Good to go).

I'm still in research-mode and the jury's out ono whether to buy equipment or make it however I'm sure I'll reach a conclusion at some stage then move forward. I'm not sure I'll look as intense as Daffy Duck in that image above, or be as accurate and dynamic as the guy in the video however I'm sure I'll have a lot of fun with it and enjoy building my skills a little more.

*Image courtesy of Warner Bros.