For some it is the challenge, or the getting back to the roots. For some it is much like this: Bowhunting was too easy with a compound so I switched to recurve (or longbow) and things got more challenging.
This thread is for all of us to share our insight into why we do it.
For me it is not necessarily because of the challenge. Traditional archery has, if anything made it easier to bag game. It has however cut my range down to 20 yds or less. That has been the main drawback. They biggest challenge of it was to master instinctive shooting (still trying) which took a tremendous amount of time and is still a work in progress but instinctive shooting has made it so I can hunt any animal. I could never do that with a compound because aiming was done with mechanical devices and now it is more done with the brain itself. Hunting with traditional gear has made it possible for me to make that shot where I only have a window of less than a second to take that shot. Stalking and small game hunting are viable options now.
Any other thoughts??
Why? Because it's fun and I enjoy it. For me, there's really nothing more to it than that.
Its fun and theres nothing to go wrong with your equipment if its shot in before season!
to escape the super competive world of compound shooting, and meeting some of the old timers at our archery club and the special bond they shared with each other, i had to be part of the traditional world.
I agree with Jason. For me, it isn't about being harder, or easier, or better or (worser ?)
It is just a feeling. It makes me feel good to shoot sticks with sticks. I like it and will keep doing it. It really doesn't matter if I harvest game or not, long as I get to chase thru the woods with my longbow, shooting leaves and stumps and things I am happy. Course, If one of them stumps has a ten point rack... cool !
ChuckC
Longbows and recurves, wood arrows and the like put me more 'in tune' with nature. The simplicity of a stick bow gives me much more pleasure than wheels and cables. Just looking at traditional equipment speaks of a simpler time, and most of the bows are truly works of art. You can't say that about 'modern' equipment. To each his own, but I personally don't see myself ever using compounds; I really enjoy the simple stick and string. Yes, they are harder to master than compounds; that is part of their intrigue.
i am with you widoweater its all fun that other thing you know the swear word its just well we wont go there :biglaugh:
For me it is because shooting deer with compounds had become to stinkin easy. The challenge and thrill was starting to drop a little and going back to traditional has made me feel like I am 12 years old and just discovering archery again for the first time. Now I feel overwhelmed with the challenge, the thrill, simplicity and beauty of traditional archery.
Shooting deer with a compound was actually much harder for me than killing them with a recurve. I was a better shot on targets with the compound, but routinely missed chip shots. I rarely miss a chip shot with my recurves and am more effective in hunting situations. Oh yeah-that and nothing compares to watching the flight of the arrow!!
i love seeing the spin of the arrow as it leaves the riser as well
I like bowhunting and I've been using it since it was just "bow" and before it was "traditional". I've never hunted with a wheelie before so it has nothing to with the challenge or simplicity of it. It was a sport that I was raised with and fun to do. Guess that is why I do it, enjoyment and don't feel like changin'. dino
its good fun....
longbows abd woooden arrows, recurves w/bow quiver...doesn't matter, every day afield resonates with some adventure.
plus....i look so much cooler with a longbow and back quiver chocked full o', woodies, whilst wearing a fedora and check flannel shirt,,, ha ha
ben
Trad bows and feathes are pretty. Chicks dig em.....lol
I was so serious about target shooting with compounds that it ate me up. If I ever missed an "X" indoors, I would get so angry that I wanted to kill someone, usually myself! I would beat everyone's brains out on a 3-D course and come off it cursing and pissed off because I missed some 12 rings. I didn't like myself, and neither did the guys I shot with. One day, and older gentleman offered to let me take a few shots with his recurve at the indoor range of the shop I managed. I couldn't hit anything, but it was fun. I could shoot a bow and not worry about winning or whether I achieved perfection when I shot. It still is fun, and I still don't care about winning or missing. . . .
I am a trad guy because---
I escape the modern crazy paced world, no deadlines, computer or damn cell phone.
Challenge of just "me" as a bowhunter.
The beauty of an all wood bow and arrow.
It's so much fun that this becomes a way of life.
For me it is to be a more effective hunter during the whitetail rut.
I've had deer come in on me and had a few seconds to shoot. On one week long hunt in Iowa I had two Booners within 5 yards and I couldn't get a shot off with my compound. Last year I took a deer who busted me at three quarter draw with the recurve.
I never came off my "spot" and I was able to get a double lung shot before he had a chance to react. I never could have got a shot off that fast with a compound.
For me it's IF!!! I ever get that 350 bull you know the ones you see on TV and wish I had one like that. I want to have taken him with my Stick and string. I Love the simplicity of no gadgets. Just pull back and let her go. I know it's just not that simple, but in a way it is. I Like the dedication I have to put into become proficient with my Trad equipment. It's the people on here, and 3d shoots that shooting Trad that make Trad hunting fun!! To sum it up, I shoot Trad because I CAN!!!
It's the way it's always been with me since 1962. I never jumped on the compound bandwagon. It's fun and easy for me. It's simple and beautiful. There are no excuses but my own. I don't have to think about anything. No range finder,, no sight pins, no peep sight or fiber optics and no release aid,no D loop.My God, that's not even archery!(nut)
I have kept a trad. bow for the past 25 years,always loved to shoot them, killed my first buck with a recurve. Killed a lot of deer with wheel bows over the years, but the last 3 years have went traditional, sold my compounds. like a lot of people, i got caught up in wanting to kill a P&Y deer, and after I got two of them, I realized that I would never enter them in the book because this is a personal achievement and a benchmark for me, not someone else who would always be comparing these deer to others. When I take a doe, or small buck with a self bow I built or a recurve I bought, usually under 20 yards, the instinctive shot feels better, is its own reward and any deer taken with trad. gear legally is a trophy! The oldest buck I have ever harvested, 8 point was aged at 8 years old by field biologist, first week of bow season in 2006. I shot him with a hickory self bow, #60 at 27", on the ground from a natural blind at 16 yards. His rack was still in full velvet, huge crowns, good mass, 16 inch inside,but short tines as his rack was going backwards. His teeth were just little brown nubs, worn out and he weighed 175# field dressed in the first week of Sept.! To put it simply, trad. hunting puts the arch back into archery and along with being loads of fun, the spritual aspect is the most rewarding, knowing when you have been blessed and leaving EGO out for me. Any one know what EGO stands for? Edging God Out of your life!
Mine are not noble reasons. It's simply the fact that no other weapon (not compounds, crossbows, atlatls, rifles, shotguns, pistols, or blackpowder arms) has ever peaked my interest like traditional bows have. Never felt the urge to hunt with anything else...
I also got consumed in the compound craze. The last two years I have hunted strictly traditional and it has brought the fun and enjoyment back into it for me. It also increases the shot opportunities. I harvested three deer this last season and one of them was only a split second opportunity to take the shot. No thought of aiming or what pin to use just draw back and let it go. The arrow hit right where I was looking. Thats traditional!
QuoteOriginally posted by WidowEater:
For me it is not necessarily because of the challenge. Traditional archery has, if anything made it easier to bag game. It has however cut my range down to 20 yds or less. That has been the main drawback. They biggest challenge of it was to master instinctive shooting (still trying) which took a tremendous amount of time and is still a work in progress but instinctive shooting has made it so I can hunt any animal. I could never do that with a compound because aiming was done with mechanical devices and now it is more done with the brain itself. Hunting with traditional gear has made it possible for me to make that shot where I only have a window of less than a second to take that shot. Stalking and small game hunting are viable options now.
Any other thoughts??
My reasons exactly! Plus, they are so light weight and works of art.
Mike
Because I will only live this life once; and I want to get all that I can out of it. I get that: hunting with a traditional bow.
I just purchased 2 bows, so I can start learning the basics of traditional. I was shooting balloons at a local Sportsmen's show and doing well at about 7 or 8 yards.
It was fun, and I am a little older and have more time and patience to practice, so I thought I would dive in and get started.
I don't have any big expectations, but I would like to harvest a turkey with on of my recurves this year.
The compound is still my primary weapon.
I guess I am trying traditional, because it is really a whole new hobby and with any hobby there are challenges and obstacles. Once you succeed at your hobby, their is a feeling of accomplishment.
Just about anyone can go to a bow shop today and be shooting a compound fairly well in no time. Traditional is a whole new experience and I think that is the lure that reeled me in.
I have been shooting a compound for 18 years, and the recurve is a refreshing jolt to my favorite past time, bowhunting.
The thing I love about traditional, instinctive style shooting is that it has helped me develop the other side of my brain that sometimes doesn't work all that well. I'm a very analytical guy and the "art side" doesn't get a very good workout with my old method of compounds and sights. Just pointing at a target and watching the arrow magically hit exactly where I'm looking gives me a feeling that is imposible to explain but I know many of you know exactly what I'm talking about.
I don't post much on forums, but I have to say I find myself here much more than anywhere else. It's all about the great people that post here. Knowledgeable, courteous, and helpful - what more could you ask. My thanks to all who have unknowingly helped me!
Harry
Mostly for the women...
;)
Lenny
my bowhunting experience is limited to the last five years using a crossbow. taken plenty of game with it. i've just switched to recurve and although i haven't taken anything with it yet, i'm addicted! won't pick up the xbow this year i don't think. i too like the snap shooting abilities of trad. i practise with a mate who shoots compound. i had an arrow on the string once and was about to draw on the target when he said "shoot that coke can over there", i swung across drew back and smoked that can in one motion. it felt beautiful, like archery should. i like it's unmechcanised simplicity. no sights, no mechanical release. just you and your bow and the bush around you. a simple pastime that can bring much enjoyment. an escape from a complex world to one that our ancesters lived in.
There's another kind of bow?
Traditional Archery there is beauty and simplicity.
It is hunting in it's purest form, which requires much more of the hunter.
If it were easy. Everyone would be doing it. It takes constant practice and dedication.
Traditional Archery says something about the person. Appreciation for the art, craft, skills and spirit that goes into it.
It is timeless. Been with us since the dawn of time. Longbows & Recurves were all there were when I started. Maybe when I am hunting I still have the same feelings and excitement as the 13 year old kid I was, so many decades ago.
Frankly, I don't care for the cable and wheel equipment. But I recognize and respect everyone's personal choices.
I have nothing but respect for the guys I watched setting up compound bows at the local Bass Pro shop. I was a bicycle mechanic (it paid most of college tuition) and I remember lacing up the spokes for wheels and setting them on a truing stand. It took years to master the art of matching machined parts from Asia, Europe, and even the USA. (We used to make things in the 20th Century.) Compound bow mechanics also have to assemble and tune their arrow shooting machines in much the same way.
I still have my allen wrenches, spoke wrenches, bottom bracket pullers, pedal wrenches, and a host of other specialized tools (even some bike stands), and understand why some people run for fun instead of bike.
Some of the customers clustered around the bow mechanic's counter at the Bass Pro shop had heated arguments about their mistuned bows and were looking for even more magic gizmos to attach to their arrow shooting machines. Their arrows look about like mine, but I suspect somebody will find a way to put a heat seeking device on them in the near future.
I still have my allen wrenches, spoke wrenches, bottom bracket pullers, pedal wrenches, and a host of other specialized tools (even some bike stands), and understand why some people run for fun instead of bike.
Now I look at my recurve. One piece of wood, one string, one nocking point, and one arrow at a time. When I want to send an arrow to a target, I aim with my eye. My bowholder is me. When my body is tuned perfectly, my arrow goes where I look. Nobody to blame for a hit or a miss but me.
Simplicity, is a simple way of putting it, knowing that it's more about the development of your skill, that leads into character.
It's not about the gizmos, it's more about what you can do with what you have, not what you can get to do the job for you.
It's about each step through the woods not about the end of the journey.
Carl
When I was young I was a wrestler. Just me no ball no bat just me against my challenger.
When I ski it is just me and the mountain.
When surfing nothing but a board and the wave.
When paddling kayaks; Can I beat these rapids?
Fly fishing is myself alone with just a stick and string and the river.
Trad is just "I" and getting the arrow to a point were I want it to go.
I think that for me the common thread in my life is that I am the happiest in this type of challenge. My inner space feels these rhythms, this type of pace, an earthly pace and a congruence. I gain satisfaction; no a renewal when I find this energy. When the energy is right and you go "sub conscious" or "get in the zone" maybe "transcended" picking what ever you want to call it nothing else maters in that moment. Life is both beautiful and good.
I like wood....
David
To me, there is a lot of factet's as to why I choose to use traditional equipment. A lot of it is my roots. A lot of it is the folks who also share this quest with me. They are the kind of people who you don't mind sharing a campfire with. Where else would someone (who you never met, mind you) send you a $1000 bow only on your word? In a world where people are in such a rush and distrust everybody and everything, it's very refreshing to know that your word is still worth something.
The bows that I own are functioning works of art. They perform without flaw. I'm the one who is responsible for where they shoot.
I enjoy shooting my bows! I shoot year round, as much as I can. I believe that one's time spent with bow in hand is not deducted from your lifespan...
In the scope of things, bows have been around for thousands and thousands of years. The compound has only been around for 50 or so years. If it has been taking care of business and feeding us for that long, why mess up a good thing? It's got a proven track record.
I'm glad to be livin in this era enjoying the works of the craftmen that have really taken bowbuilding to another level. The bows they produce are marvels and I often admire work that goes into them while on stand. Alloy's and cables don't do anything for me these days.
In other words, I like wood also.
JL
Why traditional...because there is just something about the feel of the bow in my hand and the release of an arrow the moves me to my core...I have not killed alot with my bow but I have had numerous opportunities to do so...I have just chosen to either not take that particular animal or simply had a misplaced arrow... either way...the hunt was successful and the bow in hand made it special...never felt that way with the wheels although I still have to use them on occasion to hunt certain ranches...
You just don't see any compound shooters getting together like at OJAM and MOJAM. That just shows how much more soul there is in the ol' stick and string.
The reason I shot a recurve is simple, my wife wanted to decorate our sons room and hang a bow in it. Since I was 10 I shot a compound because all the neighborhood kids had one. My dad has always shot a recurve, and one of my old hoyts just did not look right hanging on the wall, so I asked my dad if I could hang one of his bows on Riley's wall. Well since it was hanging on the wall, I figured I might as well shoot it. One thing lead to another and I ended up selling my new hoyt, and my shot gun and ordering a Black Widow, and as they say the rest is history.
Because anything else just aint Archery!
Eric
Add me to the, it's more fun list. I have always been a "keep it simple stupid" person, recurves and longbows fit that. Besides that, I like the look and feel of real wood, nothing better!
because I can !!!!
Wood! The archin path of the arrow! The thump of ths string, and the fact that all of that never gets old, and feels the same way it did when I discovered it at the grand old age of 9.
Its the most sporting form of hunting with projectiles. Ive never wasted a minute thinking I would shoot a gun or coupound. I knew it had to be traditional.
Because I like to shoot every day! I didn't enjoy shooting my compound as much. It's therapeutic for me. I feel like a kid every time I take a traditional bow afield! My longbows and recurves continue to amaze me every time I hunt with them.
I'm 57 years old and I just got into trad within the last year. Two things attracted me to traditional archery. (1) The bows and arrows are just so beautiful. I love seeing the wood grain and appreciate the work and craftmanship behind traditional equipment. (2) Also the guys and gals who shoot trad have so much fun and share such closeness. I suppose I could add a third reason, forums like this where people are so willing to share ideas and help out beginners.. I am really enjoying my new hobby, thanks to a lot of new friends I have met through trad.
It's ultimately more effective...
I'll be damned if I am going to miss the shot of a lifetime because I used the wrong pin,"didn't have time to shoot",or any other myriad of excuses.
Screw that...inside of 25 yards,the stickbow is the ultimate weapon.
I got into hunting almost 2 years ago, my first bow was a compound and I shot it with my fingers and I loved to shoot it. Then I worked hard over the summer to save up and buy a better compound.
After getting the new bow, I started to lose interest, I was using a mech. release and it just was not as much fun.
So then I found this website and bought a recurve just before xmas, and I now love shooting more than ever...Thanks again tradgang.
You know there is just something nice about walking thru the woods with your family at an event like the Baltimore Bowman Trad Classic or shooting in the backyard enjoying something as simple and nice as Traditional Archery and leaving the troubles and hassles of everyday life behind.
Started out with a used recurve after getting out of the Navy in 1972. Taught myself how to shoot and hunt by reading Fred Bears Bible. a few years later I went to a local archery shop to get a new recurve but didn't carry any so wound up with a #&*%$^^&& compoud. I shot the wheelie instinctive and still hunted ( sneaking along ) for years because of the challenge. Never killed large game with it but did manage to kill some small game and fish. In 1987 back to recurves and my bowfishing success increased 99.9%. Killed 3 deer with the recurve. I guess I have always been a traditionalist when it was just bowhunting long before it was called traditional. The simplicity of the recurve made it even sweeter.
I recently sold all my compound stuff to focus on TRAD. Why? Cuz I got tired of hearing and reading about all the gizmos and tweak this or that...BE careful and don't bump your sight!
When something went wrong or a target missed, several people I know immediately blamed the equipment instead of looking at themselvevs as a possible cause.
I never shot a deer with a bow YET! and up here in NEw Brunswick, it's tough with our hunting laws and thick brush to be successful even with a compound.
I found that when I carry a trad bow in the woods or shooting at the club, I catch myself grinning from ear to ear....I just enjoy myself so much more - more at ease, relaxed! Not to mention taht I have always been considered by others as being "old-school"....and that's fine by me.
SteveMcD said very well.. "Traditional Archery says something about the person. Appreciation for the art, craft, skills and spirit that goes into it."
Going hunting List:
bow-check
arrows-check
tab-check
armguard-check
I love the simplicity of a recurve bow. All the equipment I need to hunt is listed above. I don't want to be complicated by a bunch of gizmos on my bow.
Brett
I resisted reading this thread for quite a while, but I figured there were others who have traveled a similar path as mine. May not be worth reading, if you can't see between the lines. I suspect most of you can, though.
First "real" bow (don't get your nose out of joint - I mean something other than a sassafras sprout and a length of yarn) was a Bear Whitetail Hunter, bought with lawn-mowing money when I was a kid. Quickly figured out I wasn't an archer, and lost it to a garage sale. "Inherited" a Browning wood-riser compound as a young man and again figured out I wasn't an archer...
Bought a Shawnee Traditions longbow in my early 20's and struggled with it for a year or two. Traded it off for a White River recurve, and struggled with it for a year or two. I sensed there was an archer in me, but I had no guidance, no consistency, and no confidence...
Traded the recurve for a super-duper-deluxe High Country compound, and you guessed it... in less than a year, I figured out I wasn't an archer. I could hit my mark, but why wasn't it any fun?
After a decade and a half away from bows or contraptions of any kind, I bought a new recurve, and found some good information on the web. I found Trag Gang, and found out what "form" was. I've lurked here and a couple other sites for a lot longer than I've been posting, and thanks mostly to Terry and a few others on this site, I found that old, elusive, "archer" in my soul.
I enjoy bowhunting, but I finally matured enough to figure out that the experience was less important than the outcome. I'm not enough of a poet to describe the joy and satisfaction of a well placed shot with a simple bow. Others have done that. I'll just say that watching an arrow fly to its mark, delivered with simple, quiet, and beautiful bows, can make any man an archer!
For me, it's was not just a decision to simplify, it was a practical matter. I had Lasik surgery which corrected my distance vision but could not do anything for the inevitable aging related near vision issue. Because of this I cannot see bow sight pins or open sights on a rifle/handgun well enough to use them anymore.
So being, I have to shoot bow with both eyes open and focused downrange on my target. Tailor made for Trad or my Reflex Caribou shooting barebow/fingers...
I guess I am just a firm believer in the K.I.S.S. Principal... "Keep It Simple Stupid"..
Secondarily I have found out I can miss them just as well with a wheelie bow as I can a stick, so why carry all that other stuff.
When you are a kid, fun comes easy. You have fun with almost anything you do.
I`m not really sure when you change from being a kid to... something else, but when it happens things aren`t always so fun.
Shooting a traditional bow brings back the kind of fun I had when I was a kid.
Top 10 reasons I'm Trad
10- After building , shooting and hunting with flintlocks for 27 yrs, wheel bows just don't make sense
9-I grew up poor and am still cheap to a point.
8- I like "old " stuff.
7-I cut my hunting teeth on al old Mossberg .22 bolt action
6-And still have that gun- a traditional trait
5-As a kid, the first time I saw Errol Flynn (Hill)loose an arrow, something stirred inside me.
4-For me, a hotrod has a small block Chevy, no fenders and Moon hubcaps
3-I still open doors for ladies and take my hat off for the Star Spangled Banner
2-It's just easier!!!
1-But the number one reason I go Trad- I just look too damn good in a Fedora and back quiver.
IT JUST SEEMS RIGHT! :thumbsup: