Hi Hank, I've taken this from our little societies website, I say society, but in reality it's just a bunch of mates messin' around ...
What Is roving Mark Archery all about
Shooting at the Marks
A brief history
FFYNEFBURY FIELD 1st September 1521 .... and who shall come hither and take a longbow in his hand having the standard therein therfor appointed and ffayest draweth, clenyest delyvreth and farest of ground shoteth, shall for his best game of shootyng at the mark, a crown of gold will be to hym ......
Shooting at "Marks" is often considered one of the oldest forms of archery competition still in existence today. From the early part of the sixteenth century and throughout the seventeenth century the open areas of north London, commonly known as The Fields of Finsbury were set aside for ordinary citizens to practice the art and skills of archery. During the early era of shooting in the Finsbury fields, the targets or "Marks", as they were commonly called, were nothing more than painted stakes placed in hedgerows and open ground with the distance between the marks set to reflect the distances required to shoot arrows during warfare. Shooting at the marks became a popular recreational pastime and soon attracted the patronage of King Henry VIII and other later monarchs who formalized the distances to be shot. The range of the marks were set out between 7 and 9 and a half score yards, which equates to between 140 and 190 yards. During the early years of the seventeenth century the wooden marks were replaced with carved stone pillars, each identified with a unique name such as "Kings Kindness, Baines his Needle, Swans Stake, Carters Whip and Wells his Phissick. At the height of its popularity there were 137 marks recorded with formalised rules of shooting and recorded distances to other marks. The last of the marks "Scarlet" was removed in 1881 and is now housed in the premises of the Honorable Artillery Company.
The Field and Roving Archery Society seeks to perpetuate this ancient form of archery competition by organising Roving Mark events around the U.K.
Spot on Ben .... taking a libation afterwards and enjoying yourself is compulsory. You can be as serious or relaxed as you like .... the idea is that a well layed course challenges the archer to commit to the shot .... if you can't make the distance .... we walk you forward so every shot is within range .... it's this informality that folks seem to enjoy
Mamba
I was shooting a self Osage ELB 75lb @28, however, the bow was tillered to shoot a 32 inch arrow, which was the arrow length I was shooting yesterday. So at full draw the bows weight is around 85lbs.
Steve
Most of the guys are shooting 32 inch arrows drawn to the ear or the with the hand at the back of the jaw
You guys would be bored shooting at our 3D shoots, too close for you. Plus trying to pull the arrows out of any targets hit, ( that hurts my back just thinking about it ) with pulling those draw weights. My hats off to all of you, I can't see 100yds let alone further shots. I must try pulling that far back on my bows. Visiting the local pub afterwards sounds good, I'll need it.
Usually an informal group on a country property with gullies and bush sometimes between hunts sometimes just a social get together, pick a target, clumps of weed a soft stump or fallen branch, closest gets to pick the next or a yellow tennis ball same procedure. Best roves were in Tasmania where we had access to a 600acre farm in the midlands, owner was an archer and we hunted rabbits, camped and even set up a field course. Great memories.
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