Archery University
I have been shooting a bow since I discovered one under the Christmas tree when I was 8 years old. Santa brought me everything I wanted. A long black fiberglass bow, wooden arrows, quiver and even a flat round multi-colored straw target were the payoff for being good that year.
I remember shooting four hours on end trying to consistently hit the yellow center of the target. The bow was simple to use. Simply bend the limbs and slide the string in place and I was ready to shoot. Eventually I out grew that bow and got a hunting bow. It was a 45-pound bear recurve and it too was simple. After several years of trying, I did manage to take an animal with it.
While I fast forward to today and look at compound bows on the market, I am amazed. They are all better than any of us could have hoped for even 20 years ago. No matter which brand you choose, today’s equipment is full of technology, which helps archers shoot better.
I am a serious bowhunter and have had more success than I probably deserve. Call it luck or whatever you like, but I have been blessed with some fine animals taken with a bow. I can shoot fairly well, however, I actually knew very little about modern compound bows and how they work.
That is why when I heard about Bowtech Archery putting on the “Archery University” I jumped at the chance to go. I joined more than 60 archery dealers in Eugene, Oregon for two full days of classes. Detail courses included product knowledge and even bow building.
I learned that most bows (no matter who manufacturers them) shoot fairly well. Naturally some have different features and different price points. High-end bows can go for well over a thousand dollars while on the low end you can get started for well under $400.
It surprised me to learn that many shooters try to improve the performance of their bow. More times than not factory settings are changed (or parts) and it reduces the performance of the bow. I heard stores from dealers about what they call “tinkerers” tinkering with their bows until they are so messed up that they don’t shoot properly. Then they show up to get them fixed.
According to Bowtech, in order to correct these kind of problems, a bow should be set back to factory settings. Bowtech is one of the top high-end compound bow manufacturers today. They have introduced the Diamond brand for the mid-range consumer. Both these brands have markings on their cams and modules (these are two of the most critical parts of any bow) so they can easily be set back to factory settings.
Although I have learned quite a bit about bows, I am smart enough to realize that today’ compound bows are so technologically advanced that I am not capable of working on one. I’ll leave that to the experts.
Most of the time when a shooter is experiencing problems with their accuracy, it is due to the equipment. If you are not hitting the target you may want to look up a good archery shop. Bow season really isn’t that far off!