hmmmmmmm...tradition...what's tradition?

as i age, i find it more and more difficult to grasp my bowstring in the customary way archers have for centuries; with the fingers of my right hand. i find myself utilizing what is referred to as a release aid. in my case i use a "mechanical" release aid as it is a machined, metal, hand held device that could also be called a triggering device.

some in the archery community refer to them as 'crutches' or 'hooks'...they seem to have a belief that you MUST not use anything that is not "traditional" if you are using a bow that is not in the compound bow family as they believe that compounds are NOT "traditional" archery.

let me say this: i don't really care what you shoot, or don't shoot, and what you use to shoot it with...if it works for you, you like it...that's what matters isn't it?

I'm sure if you look into history you'll see that the mongols used a device called a thumbring to grasp the bowstring with. would someone call the mongol archers "non-traditional"? i don't think so.

that's but one example.

drawing a bow, any bow, can be excruciating to the fingers and it's taken it's toll on my fingers over the years. not only does the string abrade the fingers if no protection is used, be it a finger tab or a glove OR a release aid, but it also can stretch the fingers in an unnatural manner causing tendon and tissue damage over a period of time. the heavier the draw weight poundage, the worse the stress. those reasons alone are justification enough to consider using a release aid, in my opinion.

some say: "i like to have as few encumbrances as possible and keep it simple...you can always lose or break a release aid; you don't normally lose your fingers..."

yeah...there is merit to that...however...to me it's like listening to those that complain about wearing helmets when riding a motorcycle. a helmet WILL help preserve life if your head hits the pavement...like it or not, it's good sensible thinking. i know that to be fact, not fiction; i rode motorcycles over forty years in all fashions and manners. my head was saved on more than one occasion by the wearing of a helmet.

in fact, i have a skateboard helmet i wear when i go out hunting; although, i have camouflaged it with dull paint patterns AND i wear safety 'goggles'...horrors!!! heaven forbid that one be cautious when out and about...at my age, I'm not nearly as agile as i once was and the trees and brush around where i live is notoriously given to have sharp, broken, branches right at eye level. they're extremely unforgiving, bayonet like, and...absolutely final in their brutality when it comes to inflicting eye poking, puncture, wounds to the face and head of the careless. that' why i wear them...common sense.

i also do NOT use sights on my bows (the recurve and longbows, that is) some are critical about that, too, both for, and against, sighting devices. again...use what you like and use best...i don't care...what ever works for you and you want/like.

now...here's a picture of what it looks like: i, quite a while back, was emerging from the bush not far from where i lived at the time and there happened to be a car parked near where i came out on the road (a dirt road in a rural area in a national forest)...along side the car was a man, a woman, and a little girl. the little girl was perhaps four or five years of age and they were, what looked like, gathering some wild flowers. it's not uncommon for folks to gather the flowers for their home decorations in this area.

i had to use this road to get home; i was within walking distance of my house.

anyway...here i come walking out of the brush wearing a skateboard helmet, elbow and knee pads, safety goggles, a back quiver full of brightly fletched arrows and carrying a bow in fully gloved hands...truly a strange sight in the eyes of a four or five year old, I'm sure, as i heard her ask her momma "what is that mom?"

it's my guess they were a city family on an outing and the little girl had just been exposed to something she had never seen or heard about; a bowhunter.

a very strange looking one, i must admit, but one that's not afraid of breaking "tradition"...one that is into being safe and sensible in the pursuit of one's interests.

"tradition" is what YOU MAKE IT...pure and simple.

cya later...