Are You Any Good?

[Mike Bolin]

Bought my first recurve in '84. Young and dumb and it was too heavy at 74#. Shot it until it broke in in '88 and went back to a compound until '91 when I got a bit smarter and bought a 55# Widow. Switched to a longbow in 2002 and longbows are what I prefer now. Have dropped in weight to 45-50# so that I can hopefully keep this up for awhile longer!

Everyone has their own goals, if a three arrow group at 10 yards is one's goal, good for them.  I have seen lots of folks do good with three arrows when taking 'their' shot at their specific distance, but add arrows and start mixing things up and that good group is gone.  Groups are one thing and hitting specific targets at a non-specific distances is a whole nother category. Some rate themselves with those three arrows, some with target scores and others by game hit and game missed.

[mn butch]

I shot single string first dozen yrs of my life,
got away form it work, girls and family.
started with shooting single string again 84 have not lost the passion yet.

[David McLendon]

Since 1962, I started out with many bows made from any suitable stick until I got my first glass bow about a year into it. I have never owned a compound although I did shoot a friends enough times to know that I didn't need one. Am I any good? I wouldn't imagine that you would stick with something for that long if you aren't successful.

[Ky longbow]

Began shooting a bow when I was 7. My grandfather got me an old fiberglass bow, he shot with me at least a few times a week. He had a 1968 bear grizzly that he bought new. It took years before I could say I was actually good and accurate enough to hunt with. It was a major learning curve. Tradgang of course helped tremendously for me when I was really the only person shooting traditionally once my grandfather passed away. I am now 22 and I practice like I hunt and feel I am a pretty good shot within my hunting ranges, always room for improvement though.

[ron w]

Got my first recurve in 1967 after seeing my uncle Herb practice for bowhunting. Been at it ever since. I was 15 at the time, I'll be 65 in June.

[Red Beastmaster]

30 years

[tradrookie93]

I'd say I'm OK, good enough to be confident inside 20 yards. Been shooting for almost 3 years.

[woodchucker]

I couldn't hit water, if I fell out of a boat... But hey, it's suppossed to be fun!!! Been at this about 55 years. Started shooting about the time I started walking...

[kstout]

I've been shooting over 50 years.  Started hunting deer with a bow in 1968.

[Arrowcraft]

started shooting a little fiberglass bow when i was about 6 years old 60 years later still shooting . i have bounced a few times to wheels and cams but felt a loss and it was trad and the pure joy of shooting . Am I good ? some days ok
and yes most others still trying to lock it all down and tighten up my shots . I still think the the journey is the joy and the memories .
   -------Black Wolf  68" 57#@28" -----
   -------Tall Tines  60" 52#@28"------
   -------Tall Tines  60" 45#@28"------

[katman]

45 years trad. I do alright but am still striving to improve. As mentioned the journey is the pleasure.

[Bowwild]

Made my first bow when I was in 3rd grade in 1962.  Made THE arrow too, no fletching. Both were saplings.

First hunting bow was Ben Pearson Cougar when I was 14 or 15.

Shot recurves until 1976. Left curves for wheels in 1976.  

Returned to recurves in 2010.  

I'm effective at 20 and under. I would like to make it 30 but I doubt I'd shoot that far on anything white-tail or smaller.  

I'm not 100% recurve.

[kennym]

I'm pretty decent under 20 but I like 15 better when hunting.

Don't really think about range til after the shot hunting. More a go or no-go before the shot when hunting.

So, no I'm not as good as I wanna be, but still working on it after 44 years of trad hunting and 1 year with the other bow two different times.

[Duncan]

"Good" being relative I had to say no because if you mean can I win tournaments then the answer is definitely no. Can I take game animals? Yes I can and I have over the years. Been shooting traditional since I was 12 and I'm now 60 and still just OK by some standards. I don't shoot everyday throughout the year but I do concentrate my efforts before hunting season and during the season. I've been doing this so long my first few shots are dead on. I suppose if I had more time and dedicated my time to improving I could then say that I am "good" but I'm still working and I often get home after dark. If I need to shoot like during the season I have a lighted target and often I do shoot at night. Other activities also take up my time but fortunatelt archery is a sport one can continue on into old age and I intend to continue with it in retirement.

[WVbowhunter]

Been shooting trad for almost four years, can hit a three inch target ninety percent of the time out to about 30 yards until I get tired and shaky

[koger]

Been shooting a bow, of all types for many years, but since the age of 10, I have had one or more trad bows and shot them constantly, since I am 55 that means 45 years of trad bow shooting/hunting!

[Msturm]

5 yrs

[McDave]

The results are about what I expected, and I think are probably accurate. "Are you any good?" is different from saying "Are you in the top 10th percentile?"  "Any good" to me means a person has a consistent enough shot to be effective at some range, and the shooter knows what that range is. Kind of like "any good" with a hammer means that a person can generally drive a nail without bending it over, and knows what nail to use for the job.

[BWallace10327]

Mcdave; I am fully aware of the difference between "any good" and "top ten percentile".  The more open ended question should have yielded a greater variety of answers, and the results did not disappoint.

This poll was designed to ask a little, but get a lot.  How good someone is was more or less a decoy question and the good stuff came from typing out a response. I think it is great when people share their origins and motivations pertaining to traditional archery.  There is certainly a theme of "more fun" from the newer and more experienced archers alike.  

By the way, I've been shooting a traditional bow almost exclusively for 10 years.  I have practiced a bunch and am capable of making some very good shots, but I wouldn't go so far as to say good-just inconsistent. Although my shooting is not likely to impress anyone on a 3d range, I have all the confidence in the world to go hunting thanks to the luxury of taking only the shots I want to. I couldn't agree more with what many have already stated; traditional archery is just a darn good time.