ARCHERY - A CHALLENCE TO ALL WHO TAKE PART IN IT

Taupo Times, Volume XIV, Issue 42, 1 June 1965, Page 8

ARCHERY - A CHALLENCE TO ALL WHO TAKE PART IN IT

Members of a young and active club in Taupo are noting with interest ihe sale of bows and arrovvs from Taupo sports shops to people in the town. The members belong to the Terraces Archery Club which feels it could increase its membership from about 12 to over 100 if all the people in Taupo who bought archery equipment joined the club.

At present the club is ruade up mainly of adult members, but new members in the intermediate and j junior classes are wanted. Vice-captain, Mr R. Fulton, saicl some of the club's equipment was lent to the ptipils- of the Taupo-nui-a-Tia Coll-ege and he felt some of the pupils mignt like to take part in the organised activity. Affiliated to the New Zealand Archery Association

and the Bay of Plenty Association, the Taupo club has a future of competition work on a national or regional level. In October it will take part in the Bay of Plenty Kosebowl shoot and over anniversary weekend next year it hopes to hold the Bay of Plenty Association annual championships in Taupo. Learning to shoot - an arrow from a bow is a

chailenge to the participant because it is not as easy as it looks. To attain the standard required for competition work, the club holds practice nights every Wednesday and practice afternoons each Sunday, th-e latter on the Lands and Survey block, Tauhara Road. During these periods, the member is taught by an experienced archer how to stand, how to allow for wind velocity, what safety precautions to take and many other technicalities connected with the art. When first joining the club, the novice is invited to use the club's equipment until he. is sure he wants to ! continue as a member. This avoids the cost of buying a bow and arrows during the trial period. Later, when the member has reached a high standard of proficiency, he may desire to make his own ge'ar. By doing so, he saves on cost and there is the added enjoyment of using equipment he has made himself. Modern bows and arrows are far-removed from the old days when wood and string were the ingredients. Today, bows are made in a variety of ways, but one of the most common is the fibreglass with wood centre type. The wood centre is

laminated and is supported on either side by layers of specially prepared fibreglass. The bow string is made from dacron. To help promote the club's activities, members will hold a demonstration in the Midland Steel building, Taupo, tonight. People attending the shoot will be welcome

to receive coaching 011 the night and applications for membership will be received. Officers for the club are: ! Patron, the Mayor, Mr J. E. Story; president, Mr J. Fenn; secretary-treasurer, Mrs R. Fulton; club captain, Mr S. Johnson; vicecaptain, Mr R. Fulton; lady paramount, Mrs J. Fenn.