The picture above is the long bow that I made this past year. Kind of a random hobby to pick up on its own but this hobby has a history....
It all started when I was probably 5 or 6 - I watched Disney's Robin Hood. You know, the one with the fox. I was enamoured by this show right from the start and quickly Robin Hood became my hero. Dress up days, games and any other outlet I could find featured my hero.
As I grew I didn't play Robin Hood anymore but I expanded my horizons and dove into books about King Aurthur and his Knights, The Musketeers and other swashbuckling adventurers. It was the stuff of daydreams and I just loved them. I also got to spend my summers out at camp, and of course my favourite activity was archery. I have never been amazing but I have always enjoyed this link to the the stories and characters I read about.
Fast forward to adulthood and I still read books about some of my favorite characters, still enjoyed doing a little archery when the opportunity arose but it wasn't until Ed read 'Hood' (by Stephen Lawhead - it is the best book on Robin Hood I have ever read!) that things really got going. Ed totally got my mini obsession and instead of laughing at me dove right along with me. (Thank you Lord for soul mates!) Soon Ed was suggesting we try to make our own bows...it didn't sound too difficult.(Ha!) We did all the research online and then bought the materials and the rest is history.
I might be the SLOWEST boyer in history - this bow literally took me 6 months. Not because they take this long but because I kept getting scared it would break. In the same time Ed made 4 wooden flat bows and then two fiberglass bows. His last fiberglass bow was a work of art. So beautiful. It inspired me to just suck it up and finish my bow. True to my Robin Hood inspiration I wanted to make an English Long bow. Although design wise I cheated a little, (I backed it in bamboo) I succeeded in the end. The bow is made of bamboo and red oak, is 6 1/2 ft tall and when you pull it back it has a draw weight of 35lbs. It is such a cool feeling shooting it and I am pretty proud of my accomplishment.
I am planning to make another English Long Bow this winter and Ed has started his third fiberglass (a takedown recurve) bow. Some how Ed has convinced me that it is a good idea to get my CORE course (pre hunting course) so that we can go hunting together one day. I never would have thought I would ever do such think but here I am half way through the book and starting to get excited about my first hunting trip (probably next year).
Anyway I hope you have a beautifully random and messy day
Kate
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