Remember Mountain Sport?

I heard there were some kind of games going on. If you are a long time reader you may know that I am a big fan of the biathlon.

In pursuing my vast interests I have come across some YouTube influencers that have rekindled my interest in archery.

Do you remember my Mountain Sport post? The new sport I invented? Way back in 2007.

“Mountain Sport” not among the top ten posts for this blog, in my opinion, but surely read by at least one person I can think of. That would be Charlie, the Running Archer.

Alois, from Charlie’s part of the world, has one of the top ten posts for this blog proving quality out weighs quantity.

I have no problem with people taking my ideas, dumbing them down, or perhaps on the rare occasion making them better. Mountain Sport does have the problem of where one’s arrows go if one should tumble their bike down the trail.

The reality is trail running events and mountain bike events are held together at the same venue.

I can imagine a running archery course being something like those obstacle course dogs run in those Purina Dog shows; something with a grandstand.

When you add a trail run or mountain bike to the mix, trying to draw from the biathlon, there is really only one way to do it.

From the mountain bike perspective, you would stop at a station and shoot your first target from the bike.

But how do you do multiple targets or a penalty lap? You dismount and run a lap, a circle of targets outward so no one runs into a crossfire. Like a handoff zone in track and field you have a zone you must shoot from for each target (or perhaps a jump off point where you must shoot airborne). If you miss a target you must come back around the lap until you have hit all the targets once.

One arrow for each lap for each target. No second shots on the same lap. ? Do you run laps in different directions? Maybe shoot three arrows at a single target from a single zone? Speed shooting.

It would have to be done in a time trial fashion to prevent congestion.

A trail run version is just minus the bike.

The bows used would be commonly known as the horse bow variety. Korean bows, Syrian bows, Tartar, Mongol etc. I caught onto these bows, and were truly drawn to them having some experience in archery myself, through Armin Hirmer on the YouTube. An excellent source for bow reviews.

My first bow was a very basic wood and fiberglass compound that eventually cracked.

I have a simple fiberglass compound bow now. I make up for the short draw length with a trigger device and have been known to hit a chipmunk. I never paid much attention to the weight or spine strength of an arrow, but Armin Hirmer has enlightened me on that topic.

Also it is very interesting to understand the maintenance of a true horn bow. Competition categories could include traditional or compound bow construction.

And from a survivalist, or prepper sense we should have some basic ideas on how to make our own bows and arrows. In fact before I discover the two aforementioned archery sites I was watching Kramer Ammons and his Shatterproof Archery; he builds bows.

Yes, the future is uncertain in my eyes, and potentially dangerous. Many a bush craft site will show you how to make a basic bo, string and arrows.

“You’re going to buy one of those bows now, aren’t you?” my wife grilled me as I watched so many videos, but I answered “No, maybe if we move out to a farm someday.”

Yes, I will be back on the mountain bike with a vengeance this coming Spring. I do not think it will involve carrying a bow.

I saw some ethnic/horse bows on Amazon… I used to think I would be near perfect but for my outbursts at other drivers on the road while driving. Then I started reading Amazon reviews.

I saw multiple reviews of this type of bow, negative reviews. They all mentioned the notches for stringing the bow were on the wrong side… Then it struck me.

The Korean bow would be the most pronounced of its’ kind. If it shaped like this, C, after it is strung it will appear like this, }. So the inside of the C becomes the outside of the curve when strung. So not only did the reviewers not comprehend the bow would be bent back to such a great degree they did not even research or have any former knowledge of the type of bow they were buying.

A sad commentary on what society has become.

Considering I am shadow banned lets see how many new subscriptions we can get for these guys the aforementioned websites. I’ve noticed bump ups when I have mentioned sites before.

Of course, looking to establish an Olympic event course with bows one could always try shooting horse bows from… horses.

Thank you for reading.

I forgot about the contest page I have been running for my last two posts. I will be updating the contest page and all my links in the near future for this blog and my others.

The $171 question: What were my three most favorite WORS races? (some may no longer exist as venues have changed) Check out the Charity Jackpot Page link in the sidebar to possibly triple the amount.