Archery Sport

A compound bow is a modern bow that has a levering system, usually of cables and pulleys, to bend the limbs.

The limbs of a compound bow are usually much stiffer than those of a recurve bow or longbow. This limb stiffness makes the compound bow more energy efficient than other bows, but the limbs are too stiff to be drawn comfortably with a string attached directly to them. The compound bow has the string attached to the pulleys, one or both of which has one or more cables attached to the opposite limb. When the string is drawn back, the string causes the pulleys to turn. This causes the pulleys to pull the cables, which in turn causes the limbs to bend and thus store energy.

The use of this levering system gives the compound bow a characteristic draw-force curve which rises to a peak weight and then "lets off" to a lower holding weight.

The compound bow is little-affected by changes of temperature and humidity and gives superior accuracy, velocity, and distance in comparison to other bows. The compound bow was first developed and patented by Holless Wilbur Allen in Missouri in 1967 and has become increasingly popular. In the United States, the compound is the dominant form of bow.

AMO standard draw length is the distance from the string at full draw to the lowest point on the grip plus 1.75 inches / 4.45 cm. Because the draw force may increase more or less rapidly, and again drop off more or less rapidly when approaching peak draw, bows of the same peak draw force can store different amounts of energy. Norbert Mullaney has defined the ratio of stored energy to peak draw force (S.E./P.D.F.). This is usually around one foot-pound-force per pound / 3 joules per kilogram but can reach 1.4 ft·lbf/lb / 4.2 J/kg.

Efficiency of the bows also varies. Normally between 70-85% of the stored energy is transferred to the arrow. This stored energy is referred to as potential energy. When transferred to the arrow it is referred to as kinetic energy. The product of S.E./P.D.F. and efficiency can be called power factor. There are two measurement standards of this quantity, AMO and IBO speed. AMO is defined as the initial velocity of a 35 g / 540 grain arrow when shot from a bow with a peak draw weight of 270 N / 60 lbf and draw length 76 cm / 30 inches IBO speed is defined as the initial velocity of a 22.7 g / 350 grain arrow shot from a bow with a peak draw weight of 300 N / 70 lbf and a draw length of 76 cm / 30 inches.

Brace height is the distance from the deepest point of the grip to the string at rest. Typically a shorter brace height will result in an increased power stroke.

Arrows used with compound bows differ very little from arrows shot by recurve archers. Shafts of arrows used with compound bows are usually made of an aluminum alloy, or carbon fiber, or a combination of these. Due to the greater forces that a compound bow places on the arrow, wooden arrows may break when shot from a compound bow, possibly driving the broken shaft into the archer's arm, or the arrow may shatter because of the changes in force applied to it during release. Manufacturers produce shafts with different stiffnesses and lengths in the same model of shaft to accommodate to different draw weights and draw lengths. Arrow stiffness (spine) is an important parameter in finding arrows that shoot accurately out of a particular bow (see Archer's paradox).

Popinjay is a sport, where shooting is performed from rifles or bows. The rifle form is a popular diversion in Denmark; a Scottish variant is also known. The archery form is popular in Belgium and is shot occasionally in the United Kingdom under the governance of the Grand National Archery Society. In Germany a traditional shooting at wooden birds placed on an high pole is called "Vogelschießen" (that is "bird shooting"). These are being carried out either with small bore rifles or crossbows.

The archery form of popinjay dates back to at least the fifteenth century. The annual popinjay (or papingo) tournament of the Ancient Society of Kilwinning Archers, of Ayrshire in Scotland, is believed to have been running since 1483, though the records are only reliable from 1688. The current prize of a silver arrow was introduced in 1724.

Popinjay archery is popular in Belgium, but is less common elsewhere. Many Belgian clubs have permanently-erected popinjay masts. Popinjay can also be shot horizontally rather than vertically, though this form is even less common.

There are no international standard rules of popinjay. The definition of rules is left to national archery organisations.

The format and rules of popinjay given below are drawn from those defined for the United Kingdom by the Grand National Archery Society. The specific rules are given in the GNAS Rules of Shooting 2006, rules 1000 to 1006. (GNAS, 2006)

The object of popinjay is to knock artificial birds off their perches. The perches are cross-pieces on top of a 90-foot mast. The "cock" (the largest bird) is set on the top cross piece. Four smaller "hens" are set on the next crosspiece down. Two dozen or so "chicks" (the smallest birds) are set on the lower cross pieces. (GNAS, 2006 - rule 1000)

The archer stands near the base of the mast and shoots arrows upwards at the birds. (GNAS, 2006 - rule 1000) The arrows are tipped with rubber blunts rather than sharp points. The blunts are between 0.75 inches and 1 inch in diameter. (GNAS, 2006 - rule 1001)

Points are scored for each bird knocked off. Typically, the archer scores 5 points for the cock, 3 points for a hen and 1 point for a chick. (GNAS, 2006 - rule 1004)

The Festival of Popinjay is an old British tradition held on the first Sunday in May. On this day, a figure of a popinjay (a parrot or other brightly marked bird) clothed in coloured feathers is suspended from a pole and used as a shooting target. The man whose ball or arrow severs the string being used to suspend the bird can claim the title "Captain Popinjay" for the rest of the day.

Pipinjay is a new sport, but the fansbase grows with huge speed. I am more than sure, that we will get back with this article and take a closer look at some competitions.