Archery

A Kids Costume Archery Birthday Party, with the theme set in Sherood Forest, Participants dressed in Robin Hood Costumes, Members of Robin hoods merry men would include Little John, Friar Tuck, Alan-a-Dale, Mutch the Miller, Maid Marion,and of course how can we forget the evil Prince John, or the Sheriff of Nottingham with his men-at-Arms, this setting can be an unusual type of Party,

If bows and arrows are to be used then this party should be held outdoors where the merry men can enjoy themselves as they sit under a greenwood tree and feast on chicken legs in one hand and a goblet of pop in the other, don't forget to have them wash their hand before and after, hopfully the weather will co-operate, but be prepared to carry the party into the Boars head Tavern, namely the front room or to the dungeon, called the Basement.

This kind of party, may take careful planning if you intend to use the bow and arrow, my suggestion is to find a local club that will participate in teaching the young Merry Men of Sherwood to use the bow and arrow properly with regards to safety as well, they may even like to take part to make sure that no accidents occur,who knows maybe one of these merry men may well be an olympic gold medalist.

The English Longbow, there are many types of bows most notable was the English Longbow which had a size equal or bigger than the height of a person, this bow had a devastating effect in warfare before the invention of firearms.

A Short Bow, similar to the long bow but more maneuverable but lacked the power and distance of the longbow,

A compound bow will reduce the force that the archer must use and will increase the energy stored in the bow, by the use of cams or wheels, this is todays choice among archers,

A Crossbow, a variation of the bow design but has a mechanical mechanism for using and firing, the arrows for this weapon are called quarrels or bolts.

Today arrows can be made of Wood, aluminum, fiberglass, or carbon fiber shafts, Turkey feathers are used for fletching, a point of interest, many English names may be a clue as to who your forefathers were, ie, Fletcher, Bowman, Armstrong, Smith