Obviously shooting during the day is good so you can see the targets better. Speaking for myself, I find the early mornings are tricky because the sun is sometimes in your eyes. As such I prefer to do archery between 10 AM and 6 PM.
I also have a fondness for doing some night shooting in the hours after sunset - in which case it is useful to have lighted LED nocks, like the ones shown below. I also recommend bug spray, as depending on the time of year there will be lots of mosquitoes after dark.
Lighted LED Nocks for Night Shooting
Some people also prefer to shoot on weekdays, when there are less people at the local archery range, while others might prefer weekends or the "after 5 PM crowd" because they like to socialize with their fellow archers. Archery can be a very social activity. Not everyone is into socializing, so it really depends on your personal preferences.
Some people really like shooting in the early wee hours (5 AM to 7 AM) so they can get some shooting in before going to work. Not my thing personally. I like sleeping.
Regarding time of year...
My favourite time of year for archery is September and October, because the weather is so nice. Winter is cold and if you are a bad shot you could lose arrows in the snow. Spring is very muddy and rains often. Summer is too hot. Thus late summer / early autumn is a great time of year, weather wise.
Depending where you live in the world the seasons may vary dramatically, such as rainy seasons / dry seasons, and so forth. Whether you like shooting in the rain is a whole different topic.
For those people who love finding something fun to do in the summer - and for those people who are fanatics about both archery and swimming - here are 3 ways to have fun while combining the two.
#1. Snorkeling + Target Practice. Truly for those who love snorkeling and a challenge. Balloons that are weighted down make for good targets.
#2. Archery Diving - tricky to do, but something that will be a real challenge. Not a lot of people have attempted archery trick shots like this since the 1950s.
#3. Bowfishing while Wading in a River. Not really swimming, but still something fun to do. Just need a fishing license and a bowfishing reel. Only legal during carp bowfishing season, which in Ontario is May to July.
BONUS! #4, #5, #6. Archery Surfing, Archery Kayaking, Archery Windsurfing, etc. Just because nobody has ever done it before does not mean it is not possible to try it. For safety purposes I recommend using blunt tipped arrowheads when doing archery trick shots while doing water sports!
If you said "Absolutely nothing." you would be repeating the song lyrics, but sadly mistaken.
The mental benefits of archery are listed as follows:
Increased memory function.
Better sensory awareness.
Higher observational skills.
Increased logic skills.
Increased problem solving skills.
Increased concentration skills.
Increased pattern recognition skills.
Increased mathematical skills and numerical aptitude.
Spatial awareness skills.
Better understanding of yourself (intrapersonal skills).
More complex thinking strategies (eg. being able to think about multiple things simultaneously).
Decreased chances of developing Alzheimer's Disease and similar diseases.
Higher order reasoning skills.
= Archery effectively raises your IQ over the long term. With a side benefit of reducing the symptoms of senility and similar mental problems.
The physical benefits of archery are listed as follows:
Increased fat loss.
Increased strength / muscle mass.
Increased endurance.
Improved cardiovascular system.
Increased hand-eye coordination.
Increased balance.
Improved overall health (including your immune system).
= Archery, like many forms of exercise, has a long list of health benefits from regular exercise. Everything from a stronger heart and an improved immune system.
And lastly, the social benefits of archery - since archery tends to be a rather social activity - are listed as follows:
Increased linguistic and verbal skills.
Increased understanding of body language and non-verbal communication.
Interpersonal skills.
Increased empathy.
Better emotional processing.
= Archery will cause you to make more friends. That is really what it comes down to. Any person who is remotely social will end up making new friends when hanging out at the archery range. You would have to be completely anti-social and deliberately avoiding meeting new people to not be accidentally making new friends doing this sport. It is an extremely social sport and complete strangers will often build friendships in the span of a few hours.
CONCLUSIONS
Archery will make you Smarter, Stronger and more Social. What it is good for? Lots.
Naysayers of this might also point out that bowhunting, bowfishing, competing in archery competitions are also potentially useful, but frankly those are things that limited in their application. You would have to go out of your way to deliberately hunt, fish, or compete. In contrast, the mental, physical and social benefits will effect your life on a regular (if not constant) basis, especially if you become a regular at your local archery range.
Oh and one last benefit. Archery is FUN! What other reason do you need???
The photo below was taken when myself and two friends all brought our antique Browning bows to the archery range and we lined them up to compare them. :)
I don't normally talk about obituaries on here, but nevertheless I was saddened to hear that boxing legend Muhammad Ali has died. He was 74. The cause of death was septic shock. He had been suffering from Parkinson's disease for over 30 years.
Muhammad Ali, sometimes referred to by his birth name of Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., was three time world heavyweight boxing champion. His moral behaviour represented many of the things I admire about the sport of boxing - in the context that it is a gentleman's sport because it follows rules and a code of honour.
There is a stereotype that heavyweight boxers are huge lumbering brutes. Muhammad Ali was none of these things. He combined speed, agility and power into a fighting style rarely seen in large boxers. He was light on his feet and lightning fast with his jabs. Other boxers were often worn down by exhaustion over time by Ali's endurance. He won 56 fights over a 21 year professional career and only lost 5.
He had a sometimes brash personality, but it was combined with magnetism and personal convictions that made him stand up for his beliefs. When asked to go fight in Vietnam, Ali responded.
"Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on Brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights? No, I’m not going 10,000 miles from home to help murder and burn another poor nation simply to continue the domination of white slave masters of the darker people the world over. This is the day when such evils must come to an end. I have been warned that to take such a stand would cost me millions of dollars. But I have said it once and I will say it again. The real enemy of my people is here. I will not disgrace my religion, my people or myself by becoming a tool to enslave those who are fighting for their own justice, freedom and equality. If I thought the war was going to bring freedom and equality to 22 million of my people they wouldn’t have to draft me, I’d join tomorrow. I have nothing to lose by standing up for my beliefs. So I’ll go to jail, so what? We’ve been in jail for 400 years." - Muhammad Ali.
Born January 17th, 1942. Died June 3rd, 2016.
Muhammad Ali's boxing career started young (age 12), and by the age of 18 he won the gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Rome, Italy.
Returning to the USA after his win he became frustrated with prejudice and discrimination and according to rumour threw his gold medal into a river. He would eventually sign a 6 year contract in Lousville, where he would also be introduced to the "Black Muslim Movement" in the USA and be given the name "Muhammad Ali" by the leader of the movement, Elijah Muhammad.
By 1963 he had won 15 professional fights and was still only 21. He appeared on the cover of Time Magazine and set to fight heavy hitting slugger Sonny Liston, who he mocked as a "big ugly bear" and issued his now famous quote: "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, rumble, young man, rumble."
The heavyweight champion, Liston was expected to win that fight easily, the odds were placed as 7 to 1. But in the opening rounds of the fight it became pretty clear who had the upper hand. At 210 lbs and 6'3" tall, Muhammad Ali would dance away from Liston's clumsy punches and pepper him with jabs. By the end of the 7th round, Liston gave up. He had torn muscles swinging uselessly at Muhammad Ali. He was tired and broken.
Sonny Liston swinging uselessly at Muhammad Ali.
In 1965 Liston would be given a rematch, but Muhammad Ali took him out in the first round with what became known as the "Phantom Punch". Many speculate that Liston took a dive and bet against himself.
After refusing to fight in Vietnam, Ali was stripped of his title, but fought attempts to send him to prison. He would not be allowed to fight again until he was 28 years old, losing 3.5 years of his athletic prime. His draft avoidance case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court and during that time he worked on a film, appeared in a Broadway musical, and endorsed a burger chain called Champburger.
When finally allowed to fight again it was Oct. 26, 1970, a minor fight before he would be allowed to go up against the new champion Joe Frazier on March 8th 1971. Frazier would win the 15 round match on points, but the fight was seriously damaging to both boxers and was a close decision.
Meanwhile Muhammad Ali was winning in the courts. The United States Supreme Court looked favourably on Ali and on June 28th, 1971, it unanimously reversed a lower court decision and granted Ali his conscientious-objector status.
After losing to Frazier on points, people began thinking Muhammad Ali was done. That he should perhaps retire. But that never happened. Over the next few years he would fight in 14 matches and win 13 of them, eventually getting a rematch with Frazier and winning, and also beating George Foreman who had become the new heavyweight champion.
The Foreman fight was unusual. It took place in Zaire, on October 30th 1974 and was billed as "The Rumble in the Jungle". Near the beginning of the fight Foreman hammered Ali with blows to the chest and shoulders that hit like sledgehammers, but as the fight wore on Foreman wavered and got tired. Ali just seemed to get faster and faster and by the 8th round Ali knocked out Foreman with a blurry series of lightning punches. He took back the heavyweight title.
Ali would fight Frazier again in 1975, in a match called the "Thrilla in Manila". Unlike their 2nd match, this one lasted 14 rounds, but Ali still won by knock out.
In 1978 Ali lost a fight to Leon Spinks but would regain his title during a rematch.
Ali’s longtime ring doctor, Ferdie Pacheco, urged him to quit, noting the slowing of his reflexes and the slurring of his speech as symptoms of brain damage. Ali refused. In 1980, he lost to Larry Holmes. A year later, his last fight, Ali lost to Trevor Berbick in the Bahamas.
It was time to hang up the gloves.
Ali would later be diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Some would claim it was caused by exposure to chemicals at his training camp, but as the years went by and more boxers / football players / etc became victims of mental illnesses, it became pretty clear that the symptoms were due to head trauma.
Even after his retirement Muhammad Ali would continue to speak out on issues that concerned him. Not all of his comments were welcomed or admired, but he would speak his mind regardless. As the years went by he began to lose his ability to speak and had a loss in mobility.
More Quotes from Muhammad Ali:
"I ain’t got nothing against them Vietcong." "I know where I'm going and I know the truth, and I don't have to be what you want me to be. I'm free to be what I want." "I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.' " "I done wrestled with an alligator, I done tussled with a whale; handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail; only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick; I'm so mean I make medicine sick." "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life." "If you even dream of beating me you'd better wake up and apologize." "I've made my share of mistakes along the way, but if I have changed even one life for the better, I haven't lived in vain." "The word 'Islam' means 'peace.' The word 'Muslim' means 'one who surrenders to God.' But the press makes us seem like haters." "If they can make penicillin out of mouldy bread, they can sure make something out of you." "Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even." "I am an ordinary man who worked hard to develop the talent I was given. I believed in myself, and I believe in the goodness of others." "It's the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen." "The man who has no imagination has no wings." "My trainer don't tell me nothing between rounds. I don't allow him to. I fight the fight. All I want to know is did I win the round. It's too late for advice." "Age is whatever you think it is. You are as old as you think you are." "Cassius Clay is a name that white people gave to my slave master. Now that I am free, that I don't belong anymore to anyone, that I'm not a slave anymore, I gave back their white name, and I chose a beautiful African one." "It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe." "I don't have to be what you want me to be."
"Thanks again for the archery lessons! You are the best. We tried archery tag several times but didn't really learn how to shoot properly until we met you.
To anyone reading this, Charles is an amazing archery instructor who is very patient, very good at communicating ideas, and he helped us to get rid of a lot of our bad habits. You could not ask for a better instructor. He makes the lessons fun and we learned so much every lesson. - Amber and Muhammad"
#2.
"Charles provides quality archery instruction and service. He has good attention to detail, is nice, friendly, very knowledgeable, and I am very happy with my archery skills. They are all due to his tips which covered everything from how to stand, how to pull, WHEN to pull, how to stand up straight, how to aim, how to release and much more. I had a problem with my drawing arm that was causing me to tremble, but Charles taught me how to fix it by pulling the bow correctly after pre-aiming. I would not have thought of that. He also taught me how to use consistent power so each arrow has the same amount of power and why that is important for accuracy. I am coming back for more lessons next year. Thank you for the archery lessons! - Zhang Min"
#3.
"Charles is a great instructor. I took five lessons with him and each lesson is different and tailored to fix whatever problems I am having. By lesson 5 I was shooting long distances and even scored a few bullseyes. The part I enjoyed most was the drills in which he would challenge me to try new things, like moving a target ball around so I have to learn how to adjust my aim, adjusting my aim for windy conditions and shooting at moving targets. I never thought I would be able to shoot at moving targets or long distances so accurately, but now I can.
I surpassed my expectations and now have my own equipment. I am extremely happy with the lessons I received. - Jennifer D."
#4.
"To the reader: Before signing up for archery lessons I did my research. I did this because I want to get into traditional bowhunting and I wanted someone who understood what I was looking for. One of the things that impressed me right away is that Charles practices archery in the winter. From what I can tell he is the only instructor in Toronto who does that. He also does bowfishing, which is not the same as bowhunting, but impressed me nevertheless. I was also impressed by the amazing amount of archery tips he had on his website, all for free - which got me thinking, if that is all the tips he gives away for free, then what is he teaching? So I decided it would be worthwhile to sign up for 1 lesson. I figured 1 lesson wouldn't hurt. Wow. I learned so much in the first lesson it still boggles my mind. He started with a safety lecture, then he did an eye test to see which is my dominate eye, then he showed me how to put together a 3-piece recurve bow (at the time I didn't even know what a recurve bow was and I kept calling it a longbow by accident). Then he did a lecture on how to aim and then a lecture on proper archery form, which covered everything from what I should be doing with my toes, my fingers and even my neck. Then we started shooting. Charles was very careful to adjust my form each time I was shooting so I could get better shots and foster what he calls good habits. Sometimes he allowed me to make mistakes so I could see what a difference bad habits makes. By the end of the lesson I was shooting clusters at a target 62 feet away. Needless to say I immediately asked to sign up for more lessons. The following lessons taught me how arrow spine worked and how that effects the quality of the shot, how arrowheads come in different sizes and shapes and what they are used for, how to wax a bow string, how to properly string a recurve bow, how to string a real longbow, and he gradually increased the strength of the bows I was shooting so that I was becoming stronger. He also taught me several different aiming methods, which I found fascinating. During lesson 6 we were shooting at a paper target of a deer 165 feet away, which I found to be a lot of fun. Charles had learned that I was also interested in bowhunting and surprised me during the final lesson with the deer target. He gave me an interesting tip: If you want to hunt then you should routinely practice at double the distance you intend to hunt at. So for example if you want to hunt at 90 feet or less, then your should regularly practice at 180 feet. This way you feel confident in your accuracy at a time when you more likely to be pumped full of adrenaline and might start second guessing your accuracy. That was an important tip to me. But it was just one of many I learned from his lessons. What you see on his website is just the 'tips' of the iceberg. Thanks again! - Chris W."
Looking to sign up for archery lessons, boxing lessons, swimming lessons, ice skating lessons or personal training sessions? Start by emailing cardiotrek@gmail.com and lets talk fitness!
