10-13-2010, 07:20 PM
Speaking from experience, it is no great deal to train a person to effectively use a bow (any type) in less then a week, if the purpose of that exercise is to consistently put an arrow in close proximity to or striking a target as big as a man at about 50 meters. So, if the purpose of the archers is to deliver a volley of arrows to disrupt an enemy advance or to hinder a group drawn up for battle, even a limited amount of training should get that job done. Firing a bow itself is not a great feat to master, there is just the solid stance with the body aligning the bow to the target, the abbility to hold the arrow in the bow when coming to full draw and a reasonably smooth release (achieved by just allowing the finger of the bowhand to relax). Now, when we are talking about good accuracy, like hitting a head sized target at 50 meters or more, this does require much more practice. To get to a good level of accuracy, it requires shooting at a close target (20 meters) till you group the shots well, then moving it back and repeating the proces. Once you have a good instinctive "sight picture", things start to progress more rapidly, as the sideways deviation is greatly reduced by good stance and release and all that remains is the inclination of the shot. Given that, only those well trained can target individuals consistently in longer ranged shots. Mind you, there is still a good chance of clipping the one next to him or behind him if you should miss, as long as you get the distance (inclination) right. Frankly, the only way to teach someone anything about archery is to get out to a range and fire arrows till the arm shakes with fatique and the sight grow dim .....
