FIELD ARCHERY – A report by Russell Suthern

When I started teaching sword cutting & archery I had a clearly defined master plan as to what I wanted to achieve & the exercises I wanted my students to be able to perform. To this end I have organised a series of sword & archery master classes, designed to move my students forward in a very specific direction. The field archery was the penultimate adventure in my grand scheme!
Field archery is a very exciting variant on the art, wherein several targets are set up in a rural location such as a forest or a field & the participants have to run from target to target, firing at them from prearranged positions. This is very difficult as distances, angles, terrain, wind & sun all vary from shot to shot, plus you are tired from running to each target- very demanding!
Once again we were gathered at Roger’s farm where I had set up six targets in various locations. Targets are usually standard circles or animal shapes to simulate hunting. Because we are interested in battle archery, all our targets are human- enemy soldier- shaped!
In teams of two we took turns to hurtle around the course, screaming hideous battle cries, loosing volleys of arrows at our enemies. Incredibly exhilarating! It was a whole new experience for my guys to run around with a bow & a quiver full of arrows, but this is how it would be in a real battle!
The pressure of adding the running, the terrain & the speed element really affected the smooth nocking of their arrows & their accuracy of aim. However, as the afternoon progressed, they really started to get the hang of it & their accuracy really started to improve.
The adrenaline surge of running around firing was much more intense than standard target archery. Imagine the feeling of actually being on a battlefield searching out real enemies to kill! It must have been extreme to say the least!
Thank goodness we no longer have to hone these skills for real battle use, but can practice them for enjoyment & fun.
All the guys had a tremendous time, as I hope the photos show & all have moved one step closer to the ultimate trial, the final master class, but you’ll have to stay tuned to find out about that one!