In Toronto the best place to do archery is at the Toronto Archery Range, located in E. T. Seton Park (near the Ontario Science Centre).
Visit archerytoronto.ca/Toronto-Archery-Range.html to see maps and parking info.
The legality of doing archery in your backyard depends upon how safe you are doing it. If a neighbour complains about your lack of safety precautions and police investigate they could charge you with reckless endangerment with a firearm. Since Toronto has a public archery range however it is generally accepted that you should really be practicing archery at the archery range.
What is the cost of equipment? Do I have to shell out big bucks or can I do it on a budget?
Either. Nobody is forcing you to spend a lot of money. A typical beginners budget for equipment is about $350 CDN to buy bow, arrows, arrowheads, arrowrest, shooting glove or tab, bowstringer, etc. Alternatively you could just make your own equipment if you are skilled at woodworking and want to try your hand at bowmaking / fletching arrows.
Yes. You will want:
- Arrowheads
- Arrowrest
- Shooting glove or tab
- Bowstringer
- A bag or box for carrying your equipment to and from the archery range.
- Various optional items like a quiver, arm guard/bracer, arrow nock bead, paper targets, portable targets, 3D targets, and a variety of other accessories.
Do I need archery lessons? Can I just go and shoot or do I need to be instructed on technique, safety, best practices, etc...?
No, you absolutely do not need lessons, but it is definitely helpful to have archery lessons and you should definitely pay attention and abide by all the safety bylaws as they are for your own protection and to protect others.
What types of bows are there? I have seen some complicated contraptions and more Robin Hood looking bows, but what is the difference and which should I choose?
The most common styles of bows are:
- Recurve Bows
- Longbows / Flatbows
- Horsebows / Shortbows
- Olympic Recurve Bows
- Compound Bows
Recurve Bows are the easiest to learn how to use. Longbows/Flatbows and Horsebows/Shortbows are stylistically similar, but have a more difficult learning curve. Olympic Recurves are more specialized and use gadgets to help the archery increase archery. Compound Bows are typically decked out with every gadget you can find. The biggest difference between the styles is how much the individual archer wants to embrace specific traditions or whether they prefer to use gadgets to get extra accuracy.
It varies significantly upon a number of factors.
- Whether or not you get archery lessons.
- How many archery lessons you get.
- Whether or not you buy/read any archery books or read websites about improving your archery form.
- How good is your posture.
- How often your practice.
- What your definition of "good" is.
It takes years to get really good at archery. It isn't something that happens overnight. Getting archery lessons / reading a good book on the subject really speeds up the process.
What types of arrows are there? What do you call the feathers at the end? What is the best arrow I can buy?
There are many types of arrows, usually made from wood, bamboo, carbon fibre, aluminum or fibreglass. The feathers are called fletching. The "best arrow" depends on what you are using it for. An expensive arrow doesn't necessarily mean it is better at a specific task. Eg. A lightweight arrow would be better for long distance (flight archery), but a heavier arrow can often be better for hunting purposes. So it really depends.
Historically "footed shaft" arrows were considered to be the best of both worlds because they were heavier on the front and lighter on the back, which improved accuracy.
More Frequently Asked Archery Questions
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