Improvers for the month:-

OUTDOOR -

• Adrian C’ (BB) & Mike W’ (BB) improves outdoor h/c score

The Castle Bowmen AGM happened, business was concluded, food was eaten, awards were awarded, including the new Val Goodman award for Services to the Club. The first recipient was posthumously awarded to Val herself for her unwavering support for the club 1989-2024.

Improvers for the month:

INDOOR -

• Becca C’ (BB) gains Indoor Bowman 2nd Class

• Adrian C’ (BB) gains Indoor Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Adrian C (BB) gain Indoor Bowman 3rd Class

• Andrew P’ (BB) improves Indoor h/c score

  OUTDOOR -

• Thomas (BB) gains Bowman 3rd Class

• Thomas (BB) gains Archer 1st Class

• Ian W’ (BB) gains Archer 2nd Class

• Owen M’ (BB), Mike D’ (BB) & Mike W’ (BB) improves outdoor h/c score

The Val Goodman Easter Sunday Tournament @ Castle Bowmen:

First opportunity of the year to take part in a tournament of 12-dozen arrows at Heath Park on Easter Sunday, with many chocolate eggs being given out instead of medals. As usual, the tournament was well attended, if a little chilly to start, and run without a hitch by our own tournament organizer Mike W’. For the first year, the tournament was renamed in commemoration of our oldest club member and long time coach, who recently passed away, Valerie Goodman. At the end of the day many PB’s (personal best scores) were broken, everyone had a good time, went away full of cakes and chocolate, and even a Welsh record was claimed by Junior archer Steffan, who also beat most of the seniors.

It is with great sadness that we have learned that our long time friend and fellow archer Val Goodman has passed away.

Val served Castle Bowmen for many years as Secretary and coach, and also as Chair of the county association for a number of years.

As our oldest member, Val had continued shooting well into her eighties but the onset of the pandemic meant that she had not been able to join us for sessions since 2020, but still took a great interest in all that was happening with the Club.

Improvers for the month:

INDOOR -

• Bernt F’ (BB) gains Indoor Bowman 2nd Class

• Nick M’ (BB) gain Indoor Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Nick M’ (BB) gains Indoor Bowman 3rd Class

• Andrew P’ (LB AND RC), Adrian C’ (BB), Steffan (BB), Andy R’ (RC) & Nick M’ (BB) improve Indoor h/c score

OUTDOOR -

• Mike D’ gains Archer 1st Class

• Jack (BB) gains Archer 3rd class

• Steve C’ (RC), Mike W’ (BB) & Mike D’ (BB) improve outdoor h/c score

Well done to the Castle Bowmen team competing at the Glamorgan County Indoor Championships, some for their first time. Nina D’ (BB), Bernt F’ (BB), Andrew P’ (BB and LB), Steffan (BB) and Becca C’ (BB) all made the long and grueling arduous trek slightly west to the historic town of Llantrisant.

After what seemed like a very long day, the highlight came when prizes were awarded, and Castle Bowmen did quite well. A bottle of wine, some chocolates and an Archery themed woolly hat were won in the raffle.

And the medal ceremony was even better. Becca took home the Bronze for the barebows with Andrew taking Silver for Barebows. But not only that, as he had shot twice, Andrew also took home the Gold for Longbows, making him the Indoor County Longbow Champion for 2024.

Congratulations to Richard D’ (RC) and Steffan (BB) for their Success at the Llantarnam Archery Club Indoor Tournament. Both getting Gold in their categories for the WA18m, with Richard getting Silver for the Portsmouth the next day.

Improvers for the month:

INDOOR -

• Steffan (BB) gains Grand Master Bowman

• Becca C’ (BB) , Adrian C’ (BB 50+) gains Bowman 3rd Class

• Becca C’ (BB) gains Archer 1st Class

• Andrew P’ (LB), Steve C’ (CUL) & Adrian C’ (BB) improves Indoor h/c score

OUTDOOR -

• Mike W’ (BB) & Owen M’ (BB) Improves Outdoor h/c score

Well done and good shooting to Richard and Steffan, competing at the RJD Archers Portsmouth round Indoor tournament, and bringing home many shiny medals, always good to see.

Well done to Steffan, Becca C’, Richard D’ and Andrew P’ shooting at the Welsh Indoor Championships in Cardiff.

Big congratulations to Andrew P' who enjoyed it so much he entered twice. In the morning shooting Longbow and in the afternoon Barebow.

And to get ahead with his medal collecting for the year he picked up TWO SILVER MEDALS.

(this also included a Barebow PB , Personal Best score)

The Castle Bowmen Annual Late Christmas/New Year Annual meal is back !!

Menu choices and monies must be submitted by January 14th AT THE LATEST !!

Improvers for the month:

INDOOR -

• Andrew P’ (R/C) , Nick M’ (BB 50+) gains Bowman 3rd Class

• Adrian C’ (BB) gains Archer 1st Class

• Adrian C’ (BB) improves Indoor h/c score

OUTDOOR -

• Mike D’ (BB) improves Outdoor h/c score

  
  
  

Last Postal League shoot of the year on Sunday 10th December - We started strong so need everyone to carry on shooting them, potentially wet, arrows into the gold :)

Well done to Richard D’ (R/C) competing at the National Indoor Championships at the picturesque sounding Hall 2, Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire. A long tough day to be shooting against the best in the country (literally olympic archers were there). At the end of the day coming away with his head held high.

Improvers for the month:

INDOOR -

• Andrew P’ (BB) gains Bowman 1st Class

• Adrian C’ (BB 50+) and Andrew P’ (LB AND RC) gains Archer 1st class

• Adrian C’ (BB), Steve C’ (CUL) gains Archer 2nd class

• Rob K’ (RC), Katie (BB) gain Archer 3rd Class

• Andrew P (RC), Adrian C’ (BB), Steve C’ (CUL), Craig J’ (BB), Sam (BB), Steffan (BB) improves h/c score

Congratulations to Steffan for taking Gold at the Gloucestershire Indoor County Championships.

After a gruellingly long day and a double portsmouth tournament he also completed the required rounds to claim his Indoor Grand Master Bowman Classification, the first to do so from the club.

Weekday Outdoor shooting has been moved to THURSDAYS unless otherwise indicated (Monsoon/Hurricane/Earthquake dependant)

Well done to Becca C’ (BB), Richard D’ (RC) and Steffan (BB) for being accepted into the Welsh Archery Association training academy.

Steffan and Richard D’ attended the SCAA Indoor Championships at Weston-super-mare. ‘A lovely friendly shoot’ was the considered opinion. Steffan, as usual took home the Gold AND a very nice Grand Master Bowman score…RIchard had a very nice group (see picture below).

Improvers for the month:

INDOOR -

• Steffan (BB) gains Indoor Bowman 1st Class (unofficial MB)

• Richard D’ (RC) & Andrew P’ (BB) gains Indoor Bowman 1st Class

• Andrew P’ (BB) & Richard D’(RC) gains Indoor Bowman 2nd Class

• Michael D’ (RC) gains Indoor Bowman 3rd Class

• Andrew P’ (BB), Michael D’ (RC) & Richard D’ (RC) gain Indoor Archer 1st Class

• Andy R’ (RC) gains Indoor Archer 3rd Class & Indoor Archer 2nd Class

• Andrew P’ (BB), Steffan (BB) & Richard D’ (RC) improves h/c score

OUTDOOR -

• Steve C’ (RCP), Steffan (BB) improves h/c score

The Winter Postal League starts next month - 3dozen@30m - Great for everyone to try for badges

• November 12th

• December 10th

• January 14th

• February 11th

• March 10th

The Annual Castle Bowmen Team Tournament was an excellent day for all, mostly because there was no rain !! .

23 of the finest archers formed lots of excellent teams and took to the field to battle against each other for the honour of taking home the giant trophy and medals at the end of the day. Michelle W, Terry N’ and Christian L’ finally took the top spot , but what everyone wanted to know was which team was taking the coveted Wooden Spoon trophies . In the end it was Wendy W’, Craig J’ & Megan D’

>More Photos and results on the tournaments page<

Improvers for the month:

• Adrian C’ (BB) gains Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Wendy W’ (RC), Joshua (BB), Michael D’n (RC) & Sam H’ (RC)) gains Bowman 3rd Class

• Henry (BB), Craig J’ (BB), Joshua (BB) & Sam (RC) gains Archer 1st Class

• Eva S’ (BB) & Jon S’ (BB) gain Archer 3rd Class

• Kathy C’ (BB), Wendy W’ (RC), Becca C’ (BB), Mike D’e (BB), John H’ (LB), Adrian C’ (BB), Michael D’n (RC) & Steve C’n (RCp) improve h/c score
  
  

Well done to all the Castle Bowmen competing at the Record Status Blandy Jenkins WA720 shoot, especially Sam, Bernt and Geoff as it was their first tournament outside of the club.

At the end of the day EVERYONE took home a medal, with a few MB and GMB scores too ! Becca C’ also shot a new Welsh record, so extra extra well done to her !!

Here is a quick summary report of the day from Andrew :

“The day started early, sun was shining, no breeze and bacon rolls on tap. What more could any archer ask for. Well two rounds with a score greater than 273 would be nice .

The first round started well with the score rotating back and forth over the first three dozen with me eventually finishing ahead by 11 points. Second three dozen more consistent but none of those high scoring ends from the first half allowing the opposition back in finishing all square on 277 points each but me technically in front with a couple of X’s.

Happy to get the first score above 273 under my belt and curry and rice for lunch, how much better could this day get Being an athlete and already having seen off three small pork pies, two Mr Kipling apple tarts and a handful of pringles I decided my body was a temple and the two bacon rolls I had on arrival would sustain me through the afternoon.

And so to the afternoon, again very good start, first three dozen finished about twenty points ahead of the opposition. Last three dozen and the wind picked up just a little and that twenty two points started to deteriorate only marginally slower than the Pringles were disappearing. One end to go and thirteen points ahead, what could go wrong. Not a lot as it happens, but unfortunately that didn’t stop the opposition putting in the highest scoring end of the day at 39, respectable for many bow types at 70 metres let alone a longbow. And that sealed it with me coming in second by eight points but still achieved my second score over 273, which would have done the job, except the opposition was person I needed to catch so that wasn’t going to work out either. So silver it was, and a medal in the shape of a tear drop, just like the one some may have seen trickling down my cheek.

But there was still hope having spent £4 on raffle tickets anticipation was high. After a couple of false calls there it was, on a pink surround 66 to 70 and I’m in. A box of M&S Viennese Biscuits RRP £5.50 and still within the best before date, finally, a winner and a packet of biscuits for less than the market value. Who needs a gold medal when you have M&S biscuits.

In other news, many battles took place up and down the line with Castle Bowmen pushing the opposition all the way to the finish with a trawl of nine medals in various colours. Archers new to competition, Bernt and Sam both earned medals in their first event. Geoff K did well to earn a medal in his second event, first in a Castle Bowmen shirt, although none of us were convinced he had a clue what was going on all day having only entered the morning session, then deciding he was enjoying whatever it was he was doing so much he would pay for and stay to do the afternoon. Much to his dismay he didn’t realise that this meant his rather better score in the morning would be diluted by his entry into the afternoon session and a not so high score. The dismay was later heightened when during the afternoon he believed that the judges had allowed him time to take a natural break only to find detail A/B had started without him, but who needs 240 seconds to shoot six arrows anyway, 150 will be more than adequate for such an accomplished barebow, but the blur that passed me trying to get to the shooting line from the WC facilities did make us all chuckle a bit. And he did get a medal out of the day.

Medals also for Steffan as usual, Caz, Kathy and Becca with Becca taking gold and a Welsh record. Rich Davis too won a gold in the SAGA category.

And so the sun set on a beautiful afternoon”

OFFICIAL RESULTS FOR THE WINTER POSTAL LEAGUE 2022/23

Castle Bowmen Team A - Division 8…..2nd place :(

Castle Bowmen Team B - Division 11…..1st PLACE CHAMPIONS !!! :)

Castle Bowmen Team C - Division 14….1st PLACE CHAMPIONS !!! :)

Castle Bowmen Team D - Division 15…..1st PLACE CHAMPIONS !!! :)

Castle Bowmen Team E - Division 16…..1st PLACE CHAMPIONS !!! :)

ALL THE CHAMPIONS WILL RECEIVE THEIR WINNERS BADGES IN DUE COURSE (PLEASE REMEMBER IT TOOK 6 MONTHS TO RECEIVE THESE RESULTS SO DON’T HOLD YOUR BREATH)

Improvers for the month:

• Gwyn S’ (R/C) & Steve C’s’ (B/B) gain Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Geoff K’ (BB), Rick S’ (R/C) and Adrian C’ (B/B) gain Bowman 3rd Class 50+

• Paul L’ (LB), Owen M’ (BB) gains Archer 1st Class

• Paul L’ (LB) gains Archer 2nd Class

• Becca C’ (BB), Paul L’ (LB), Christian L’ (LB), Owen M’ (BB), Steffan (BB), Sarah I’ (B/B), Rick S’ (R/C), Steve C’s’ (B/B) and Adrian C’ (B/B) improve h/c score

Quick tournament report from Richard D’ shooting at Exmouth:

“at Exmouth Archers for the Devon & Cornwall Archery Society WA1440. The wind was left, right, up, down, forward and backwards most of the time and it stayed dry for most of the day. Results just updated and I came in at No 11 with 999, so not my best shoot but I did get my highest ever 50m round, so happy with that! Getting to grips with the new bow, with some tweaking still to do....”

Castle Bowmen Junior Steffan was competing at the ArcheryGB Youth Archery Festival at Lilleshall (The home of UK Archery).

And despite the not ideal weather, and getting used to a brand new bow, won an individual Bronze medal in the Barebow category and a Gold medal in the mixed team event .

Awesome work and Well Done.

Improvers for the month:

• Richard D’ (R/C) gains Senior Bowman 1st Class

• Imants G’ (BB) gains Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Sarah I’ (BB), Kathy C’ (LB) gains Bowman 3rd Class

• Adrian C’ (BB50+), Christian L’ (LB), Gwyn S’ (BB50+),Connor (BB), Geoff K’ (BB) & Steve C’s’ (B/B) gains Archer 1st Class

• Richard D’ (RC), Adrian C’ (BB), Kathy C’ (LB AND BB), Geoff K’ (BB) & Imants G’ (BB) improves Outdoor H/C score

Another excellent Mid-Sumer ‘Doug Woodley’ tournament enjoyed by the Castle Bowmen archers. A mildy breezy day didn’t stop the fun of shooting arrows and hoping they hit somewhere. Lots of medals awarded to all the champions and an awesome County record claimed by Richard D’.

Tournament report from yet another wet and windy SUMMER tournament:-
’Another weekend of medals for Castle Bowmen. Rich D’ and Sarah I’ travelled to Black & Gold Archers in Cheltenham to once again face the wind and rain to bring home 2 golds.

Sarah for Barebow shooting the Hereford round and Rich D for Recurve shooting a PB (Personal Best) in the Bristol 1 round.’

Well done to Rebecca C’ & Richard D’ for surviving the ordeals of the World Record Status Deer Park WA720 & H2H tournament on one of the many many wet days this Summer archery season.

…

”It's very cold, wet and windy here at Deer Park. We are wearing about 10 layers, it's not enough”

***MID-SEASON RESULTS ROUNDUP FOR THE SUMMER POSTAL LEAGUE***

• RECURVE TEAM A - 1st place in their division (ahead by 1 win and 7 points over 2nd place)

• RECURVE TEAM B - 1st place in their division (equal on points but 334 points over 2nd)

• BAREBOW TEAM B - 1st place in their division (ahead by 1 win and 40 points over 2nd)

• BAREBOW TEAM C - 2nd place (equal on wins with 1st place but 61 points behind)

• LONGBOW TEAM A - 3rd place (equal on wins with 1st & 2nd but 93 points behind)

• LONGBOW TEAM B - 4th place in their division

• BAREBOW TEAM A - 5th… so all to play for … :)

  
  

  
  
  

Becca C’ (B/B) & Sarah I’ (B/B) competed at the Cheltenham Archers WA1440 Tournament. Here is the report:-

“So Sarah and I took away gold and silver.

A lot of Welsh archers turned up and won everything else ;)

Best end of the day for me was these sighters! The weather was also crazy, sunny and windy for 70m, torrential rain for 60m (see Facebook video) and then back to sunny and even windier in the afternoon- so windy that the compounds missed one or two at 50m

BUT we all dried out by the end of the day like it had never rained. Also they made barebow shoot on the tiny faces again which was a challenge, a fair few misses that would have all scored on the full 80cm face.

It was good fun though :)”

Richard D’ shoots the Exmouth Archers WA1440 tournament and scores a well deserved PB (Personal Best) for the day, Well done to him.

At the RJD Double WA720 tournament Castle Bowmen - Kathy C’ (BB), Becca C’(BB), Nina D’ (BB), Chris O’ (BB), Mike W’ (BB), Andrew P’ (LB), Mike B’s (RC) and Richard D’ (RC) - once again battled the ever changing wind, and despite the unpredictable gusts the results weren’t too bad.

After a challenging long day the results were announced with great fanfare (not a real fanfare, just in their heads). Andrew and Chris take the Gold and the spectacular Dragon trophies. Mike W’ and Becca get the Silver and Kathy takes the Bronze, with Richard winning Gold for the single round.

Improvers for the month:

• Chris O’ (BB) gains Master Bowman Classification

• Kathy C’ (BB) gains Bowman 1st Class

• John H’ (LB 50+) & (Steffan (BB) gains Bowman 2nd Class

• Megan D’ (B/B), Alan H’ (R/C), John C’ (LB) & Dan P’ (B/B) gains Archer 1st Class

• Mike D’ (B/B), Owen M’ (B/B), Craig J’ (B/B) & Geoff K’ (B/B) gain Archer 2nd Class

• Aneirin P’ (B/B) gains Archer 3rd Class

• Kathy C’ (BB), Rick S’ (RC), Mike W’ (R/C), Megan D’ (B/B), Dan P’ (B/B), Adrian C’ (BB), Aneirin P (B/B), John H’ (B/B), Mike R’ (R/C), Richard D’ (R/C) & Andrew P’ (LB) improves outdoor h/c score

Castle Bowmen Juniors organised and ran their own tournament, called the Coronation Competition. An excellently devised custom round for all the Junior archers to compete against each other. (an idea the Senior archers might be stealing in the not to distant future).

Lots of fun was had by all the competitiors, with the final winner, Steffan, being crowned King.

Chris O’, Richard D’ & Becca C’ travelled to Cleve Archers for one of the most challenging tournaments in the area…country…maybe the world, partly because of all the initials and numbers. The WA720 H2H + WA1440.

After a competitively windy weekend with tiny tiny targets the scores were surprisingly awesome. With Chris coming top for the Qualifying round for the H2H with a new Welsh record, and Richard scoring a PB (Personal Best) score.

Currently in the summer Postal League Tournament, Castle Bowmen have 3 teams at the top of their divisions, 1 in second place, 2 in 4th place and 1 in 5th place and none in last place, so making excellent use of nearly all the positions available. Plenty of rounds still to go to claim that shiny winners badge at the end.

Congratulations to Richard D’ for his excellent victory at Minchinhampton. 1st place and a magnificent Gold medal and trophy to take home. Also his first MB (Master Bowman 50+) score.

As the relentless burning sun blazed down on them all day, and the ever changing winds blew across from the wild Gwent plains to play with their arrows, our heroes dug deep and despite the hardships and lack of bacon burgers all managed to complete their quest of just getting to the end of the shoot.

As reward for their mighty endeavours, at the end of the day, the team took home their many and varied shiny things.

Improvers for the month:

• Steve C’ (RC) gains Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Andrew P’ (LB) gains Bowman 3rd Class

• Mike R’ (RC) gains Archer 1st Class 50+

• Mike R’ (RC) gains Archer 2nd Class

• Adrian C’ (BB) & Terry N’ (RC) gain Archer 2nd Class 50+

• Adrian C’ (BB) & Terry N’ (RC) gain Archer 3rd Class

• Wendy W’ (RC), Mike W’ (BB), Becca C’ (BB), Terry N’ (RC) and John H’ (LB) improve outdoor h/c score

Excellent news from the Black and Gold Tournament at Cheltenham, as Castle Bowmen archers claim their first shiny outdoor medals of the year. On a lovely sunny day (with some challenging windy conditions) Chris O’ and Becca C’ brought home the Gold medals for winning the Barebow Category, with Richard D’ also doing a superb job to take the Bronze in the Recurve category. And rounding out the Castle Bowmen representation, doing a sterling job against the tricky side winds was Recurve Mike B’s.

Well done to Richard D’ for scoring a Tournament PB (personal best) at Exmouth Archers tournament.

The first Summer Postal League shoot will be on Sunday 28th May. It will be a Short Metric round as usual (3doz@50m+3doz@30m) and it will also count towards your classification badges.

For those that missed the AGM or just wish to relive the highlights

Improvers for the month:

• Chris O’ (BB),Mike W’ (BB) & Andrew P’ (BB) gain classification of Bowman 1st Class

• Michelle W’ (RC), Andrew P’ (BB), Richard D’ (RC), Kathy C’ (BB), Caz’ P’ (BB), Nick M’(BB 50+) & Mike B’s (RC) gain Bowman 2nd Class

• Bernt F’ (BB) gains classification of Bowman 3rd Class

• Bernt F’ (BB) and Christian L’ (RC) gain Archer 1st Class

• Mark D’ (BB 50+),Dan P’ (BB) and Sam D’ (BB U16) gain Archer 2nd Class

• Mark D’ (BB) gains Archer 3rd Class

• Chris O’ (BB),Becca C’ (BB), Nick M’ (BB), Mike W’ (RC), Andrew P (BB), Ryan P’, John H’ (LB) and Dan P’ (BB) improve outdoor H/c score

Congratulations to all the archers who shot the 2023 Castle Bowmen Easter Sunday Shoot. The day was nice and dry and, whilst not quite as sunny as forecast, this just meant the Easter eggs didn’t melt as in previous years, so everyone was happy.

Former Glamorgan County Champion Caroline Prosser was on hand to hand out the precious chocolatey prizes, of which there were many. And as can be seen on the >Classification page< many archers also shot PB’s (personal best’s) to claim a new shiny classification badge.

Summer shooting has begun at the field. This means evening archery will be from approx’ 5pm until dusk on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays in addition to the usual weekend shooting.

Improvers for the month:

• Umberto (BB U18) gains classification of Archer 1st Class

• Mike B’y (RC 50+) gains classification of Archer 1st Class

• Richard D’ (RC) gains classification of Bowman 3rd Class

• John H’ (BB 50+) gains classification of Bowman 3rd Class

• Elaeth J’ (BB) gains Archer 1st class classification

• Megan D’ & Mike D’ gain Barebow Classification of Archer 3rd Class

• Richard D’ (R/C), John H’(B/B) & Mike W’ (R/C and B/B) improves Outdoor H/C score

• Andy R’ (RC) gains Indoor ‘D’ Classification

LAST POSTAL LEAGUE MATCH OF THE WINTER SEASON - March 12th

Improvers for the month:

• Becca C’ (B/B) is the first to gain the new grade of Senior Bowman 1st Class

• Mike W’ (R/C) is the first to gain the new grade of Senior Bowman 2nd Class

• Nick M’ (B/B) is the first to gain the new grade of Bowman 3rd Class 50+

• Richard D’(RC) gains Bowman 2nd Class 50+

• Steve C’ (R/C) gains Bowman 3rd Class 50+

• Greville P’ (B/B) & Andy R’ (R/C) each gain the Classification of Senior Archer 3rd Class & Archer 2nd Class 50+

• Nina D’, Ceri R’ & Ed S’ all gain the Indoor Classification of ‘F’

• Mike W’, Steve C’ & Imants G’ improved outdoor H/C score

Well done to Andrew P’ for all his hard work upgrading his coaching qualification, and is now a fully qualified Level 2 ArcheryGB Coach.

Congratulations to Rebecca C’ for taking Gold at the Glamorgan Indoor Championships and becoming Glamorgan County Champion and thus continuing the proud tradition of Castle Bowmen Barebows beating everyone else. Andrew P’ and Richard D’ were also there valiantly representing the Club in the Longbow and Recurve categories.

Entry form for the Welsh Junior Indoor Championships can be found >>HERE<<.

Be sure to ask a coach about Tournament rules and Etiquette if you’ve never done a competition before.

Improvers for the month:

• Rebecca C’ gains Indoor ‘C’ Classification for Barebow

• Steve C’ gains Indoor ‘C’ Classification for Compound

• Steve C’ improves Indoor H/C score for Compound

ArcheryGB have revamped the entire Classification system for everyone in Archery. The new tables, which tell you what you need to score for each Bowtype Classification can be found >>HERE<<

Congratulations to Rebecca(BB) & Steve(CUL) for gaining their Indoor ‘C’ Classifications

Postal league tournament for the New Year on 8th January. Incorporating the Club New Year Championship H/C shoot.

:Improvers for the month:

• Richard D’ improves Indoor H/C score for Recurve

• Steve C’ improves Indoor H/C score for Compound

Richard D’ decided to give some Indoor tournaments a try for the first time.

>>Here is his account of what happened<<

:Improvers for the month:

• Richard D’ gains 1st Class outdoor Classification for Recurve

• Henry gains 2nd Class Outdoor Classification for Barebow

• Rebecca C’ and Richard D’ gain ‘D’ Class Indoor Classifications

• Bernt F’ gains ‘F’ Class Indoor Classification

• Rebecca C’, Andy R’, Richard D’ and Andrew P’ improve Indoor H/C score

• Steffan, Jack, Henry & Richard D’ improves Outdoor H/C score

Congratulations to those Castle bowmen competing in the Welsh Archery Association online tournament. A different round is shot each month with the competitors gaining points throughout the winter season.

For November Rebecca C’ came top for Barebow, Andrew P’ was 2nd for Longbow and Richard D’ came 4th for Recurve.

Keep up the good work for the rest of the season.

:Improvers for the month:

• Nina D’ gains 2nd Class Barebow Classification

Well done to all the Juniors who shot the Spooky Pumpkin Halloween Shoot, fun was had by all, especially the winners:) below is a couple of pictures of the day.

The FINAL results from the 2022 Summer Postal League have been received from the organisers, and it is great news for all the victorious Castle Bowmen teams….well the ones that were victorious anyway. All can be seen on the > Postal Page <

Get ready for the Winter Postal …. November 13th (bring a mug)

After a few years break the infamous Castle Bowmen Team H2H tournament is back, with more archers competing this year than for many years. Fun was had by all which is the most important thing.

With excellent weather for archery the scores were the best scores we’ve seen since the last tournament.

For those that missed it not to worry, we’ll be doing it all again next year.

results can be found >>here<<

:Improvers for the month:

• Susannah P’ gains 2nd Class Barebow Classification

• Richard D’ gains 2nd Class Recurve Classification

• Bernt F’ gains 3rd Class Barebow Classification

• Richard D’ improves outdoor H/C score

CONGRATULATIONS to Chris O’ and Steffan for winning at the Welsh Open Championships for 2022 and becoming the Senior and Junior Welsh Barebow Champions, adding to the long list of Champions Castle Bowmen has produced over the years.

> Click Here < to see that list

The 2022 Welsh Archery Association Inter-county Tournament was held this year in Llanharen, the annual tournament where all the Welsh counties send their archers to compete against each other. As always, Castle Bowmen had some of it’s members shooting in the Glamorgan County Team. And, for the 9th time Glamorgan won !!.

Andrew P’ (Senior Longbow team), Caz’ P’ (Senior Barebow team) and Steffan (Junior Barebow team) all shot incredibly well and ALL picked up individual medals for coming first in their bow category, Which in turn helped the County to win 6 out of the 8 categories and take the title once again.

St Kingsmark 2Rivers Double WA Tournament report by Rebecca C’

“The wind is crazy, my adding is on fire, but my archery is …{censored}…

Having lots of fun, with friendly faces. My hopes for glory now rest on the raffle!

Cleve Archers ‘Afternoon Tea’ Shoot - Bank Holiday Monday report by Rebecca C’

‘The wind was all over the place but it’s still a PB for me’ :)

:Improvers for the month:

• Rebecca C gains Bowman Classification for Barebow

• Dave P’ and Rebecca C’ gains 1st Class Classification

• Richard D’ gains 3rd Class Recurve Classification

• MIchelle W’, Christian L’ and Alan H’ improve outdoor H/C score

Click For > here < for all Club Classifications

Competing in his first tornament as part of the Welsh team, Chris O’ gives his account of the recent major tournament in Scotland in which he competed, individually and as part of the barebow team, against the best England, Ireland and Scotland had to offer.

“Day 1 CACE - Qualification/H2H

Picked up 3rd for the qualification round. Shot a great first half but my groups dropped lower towards the end keeping me off pace. I only had 1 terrible shot which kept me giggling all day. 

The shoot

I was warned shooting in Scotland there would be an issue with midges, however it turned out to be spiders. Little money spiders were casting their webs and flying around the field. They were everywhere, some archers even had to de-web their bows! I’ve recently been focusing on the gold and not the tip of the arrow. It’s a lot easier to bring the tip of the arrow to the gold rather than force the tip of the arrow to the gold so as I drew my bow and focused in on the gold I noticed a spider on the tip of the arrow. At this point I was fighting back and forth with the tip on center and the spider on center. In my mind an option came into play which was to come down from the shot, however a further thought occurred “what if I shoot the spider with a spider?” Next thing I know the arrow was gone and it flew off into the 3. I honestly laughed out loud and continued shooting. 

Clare and I both finished 3rd giving us a bye into the semi final and we were both awarded beautiful glass plaques. 

Team semi final H2H match.

We both shared the first set 32-32, Then took the next 2 sets 28-21,26-24 which put into the gold medal match on Sunday. It was a minimum of silver and a shot at gold on our rookie performance.

Day 2 CACE - Finals

The barebows were the first H2H,s of the day and we gave the fans a great show. We faced England who were the top seeds in qualification, however it was a level playing field with a 20 second timer, Tv cameras and a strong supporting Welsh team behind us. 

We took the first set 31-27. James from the England team throw out a miss with a dying clock. Our confidence grew, even after England took the next 2 sets they still looked flustered. We were consistent 31,32,31 and another 32 took us into a draw and a 1 arrow shoot off. 

Final set

Sarah (England) shot a 7 and came off the line, at this point James was just stood there wasting valuable seconds. He got confused if he was next to shoot or not, i sportingly told him “quick you’re up mate” in a panic he got the the line and did well to shot an 8. 15 to beat and we’d consistently shot an average of 8. I honestly thought we had them at this point and so did they. Clare shot a 5 leaving me with a movie ending moment. If I shoot a 10 we would draw level on points but we win on the closest arrow to the center. I shot a strong 8 under the pressure and the dream was over…

Reality however was surprisingly refreshing, We left all the good and bad shots out there and all the barebow teams from all 4 countries congratulated each other before and beyond the medal ceremonies. We did the team and our country proud and came away with some envious silverware.”

Chris (silver) Oaty

THE GLAMORGAN COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS 2022:

The Annual Glamorgan Outdoor County Championships, the greatest outdoor county championships to be held in the county all year was hosted by Neath Archers, and Castle Bowmen were, of course, were in attendance.

Steffan, Andrew P’ & Chris O’ braved the relentlessly nice weather to compete in this prestigious event. The day proceeded with many arrows going into targets…well most of them, judges judging and archers getting closer to the never ending raffle.

Before the prizes were handed out by Glamorgan County chairman Mike Wo’, there were many, many raffle prizes needing to be won, and Steffan stepped up and won 3 of them bringing glory to Castle Bowmen.

At the end of the day Castle Bowmen had added 3 more County Champions to it’s long illustrious history of County Champions’ (plus a few County and Welsh records too).

Chris O’ - Barebow County Champion 2022

Andrew P’ - Longbow County Champion 2022

Steffan - Junior Barebow County Champion 2022

Well done to Chris O’ for regaining his Master Bowman classification for this year, and picking up a nice shiny Silver medal for coming 2nd at The Cheltenham Archers annual WA1440 tournament.

Rebecca C’ and Steffan shot at the RJD 10th Anniversary tournament. Here’s their report.

“They gave us a whole hour for lunch, which was nice,… I devoured my burger and chips and took a much needed sit down. I forgot to bring a chair so, that was rookie error.”

“RJD's bacon baps to start the day and chips at lunchtime were very welcome, perking up the Juniors (and the Seniors) during a long day.”

“The first end after lunch taught me a big lesson – warming back up. I didn’t bother and I paid for it, it was the worst end of the day! The afternoon brought most of the rain… quite refreshing. It was still quite warm and humid in between showers. I had also developed a blister on my string finger which was quite painful, luckily someone came to the rescue with some tape which really helped.

“I ended the shoot with the best end of the day! I didn’t have any expectations for the shoot, other than to see how well I could do. I was pretty happy overall and also looking forward to the raffle. After lunch, I spent my leftover cash on tickets and I was rewarded! After the raffle, the awards were announced and let me tell you, first place trophies are maybe the best trophies I have seen. They are cast iron looking dragons on a base of varnished wood. They look so cool!. Steffan came away with gold and I managed a respectable 3rd place”

“Steffan won U14 Gents Barebow and came 2nd overall in Junior Barebow. RJD's 'black dragon' trophies were really beautiful, and Steffan is determined to win one next year.

He was quite happy winning four prizes in the raffle while we waited for results. A very friendly event.”

”Headline: An enjoyable day with sporadic rain that, if anything, made my shooting more consistent. Steffan almost had a clean sweep with his raffle tickets. They have dragon trophies.”

General vibes: Very good, we are way more fun in Wales!

Cleve Archers record Status WA1400 tournament report-

Chris O’ and Rebecca C’ braved the heat of one of the hottest weekends of the year to travel far and wide to just over the bridge to compete at the annual Cleve Archers WA1440 shoot.

Chris provided us with an in-depth and very detailed analysis of the whole event….(” Hot !! ”)

Other than that it’s fair to say it wasn’t the easiest day due to gusty winds, although a welcome relief from the heat for the archers, didn’t do much for the accuracy of the arrows. However, Cleve did an excellent job looking after the archers with their usual efficiency, burgers, refreshments and burgers. (“…Our hosts kindly provided buckets of water which we used to wet towels to help us keep cool, and it was a massive help”)

At the end of the day Rebecca had shot very well considering the conditions (…”I was nervous shooting out in a field all day in some of the hottest weather we’ve seen in a generation, but, overall it was a good day and I didn’t die or get sunburnt”) and came away with her 2nd Bowman score of the season, with Chris taking away the Silver medal in 2nd place and also gaining his 2nd Master Bowmen score of the year.

The Castle Bowmen ‘Doug Woodley’ Summer Shoot is back for 2022.

After a 2 year break because of...well you know. Castle Bowmen archers could finally compete in mid summer again.

Shooting for personal achievement, personal bests or just for the giant medals, it was a fun and exciting shoot, would it rain again? will i hit the Gold/Flag/Target/Grass?, do I have time to eat this sandwich?.

All this and more culminating in a nice day out for all, but especially for Andrew P’ for breaking the County record for a Longbow at this round, and so now can claim another certificate for his collection.

Well done to him, and to all the archers who competed.

More photos from the day can now be seen >>here<<

REMINDER: There will be no general shooting on Sunday 3rd July due to the Annual Castle Bowmen ‘Doug Woodley’ tournament taking place. (Unless you’ve already entered the tournament that is)

:Improvers for the month:

• Lainey S’ and Rebecca C’ improve outdoor H/C score

WITH THE START OF A NEW MONTH’S ROUND OF POSTAL LEAGUE TOURNAMENTS >> click here << TO REVIEW LAST MONTH’S TEAMS AND FULL RESULTS

:Improvers for the month:

• Caz P’ regains 1st Class Barebow Classification

• Rebecca C’ and Gwyn S’ gain 2nd Class Classification

• Sophie R’, Alan H’ and Dan P’ gain 3rd Class Classifications

• Connor, Bernt F’ & Aneirin Gain Archer Classification for Barebow

• Steve C’ (comp), Joshua (BB), Umberto(BB), Bernt(BB), Jack C’(BB), Caz P’(BB) and Aneirin (BB) improve outdoor H/C scores

Click For > here < for all Club Classifications

First Postal League results are coming back to us from the organisers and we have 2 magnificent wins and….well almost a win. Details on the Postal League page.

FAO Castle Bowmen club members - Our Annual Mid-Summer shoot will be on 3rd July this year. Entry forms will be available at the field. BIG MEDALS will be making an appearance again.

Archers log 0001: Tournament report from Chris O’, The sole Castle Bowmen representative at the Black & Gold Rose Status York tournament in sunny (and cloudy…and a bit humid) Gloucestershire.

It was a pleasant early drive to Gloucester. Arriving early meant set-up was very easy with my festival trolley cart and single pop up, not blow up tent.

On to the shooting…

At 100yds the infamous cross wind through the castle wall style trees really didn’t help, and made the whole distance very challenging.

By the third end at 80yds my bow was rattling with every shot. The pressure button and the barebow weight had worked loose, but once I’d sorted the issues things picked up.

60 yards was a welcomed change of pace. The first 120 arrows shot with my #44 pound bow in the beaming heat had really taken its toll. I even got sunburnt.

What didn’t start out to be a very good day actually turned out to be very average instead! 

 In the end, despite battling with the weather and technical issues, Chris managed to shoot a magnificent Master Bowman score, the first of the year, and earn the Bronze medal.

Not a bad result considering the lack of tournament practice over the last few years.

BAREBOW POSTAL LEAGUE RESULTS NOW AVAILABLE FOR YOUR VIEWING AMUSEMENT…. >>>> CLICK HERE <<<<

The Recurve Postal League teams are now available to view on the >postal league page< (results will appear as we get them from the organisers)

The first match on Sunday 8th May with the Compounds and Longbows is now complete - Results can be found >here<.

May sees the start of the Postal League Tournaments again. The full list and results , as we get them, will be on the Postal League page.

:Improvers for the month:

• Steffan gains Junior Bowman Classification

• Elaine S’ gains 1st Class Compound Classification

• Joshua gains 2nd Class Barebow Classification

• Dave P’ (Comp) gains 3rd Class Classification

• Henry gains Archer Classification for Barebow

• Steffan (BB), Joshua (BB), Stenn C’ (BB) and Elaine S’ (CUL) improves Outdoor H/C score

• Bernt F’ gains 40y ‘252’ badge

• Bernt F’ and Stephen H’ gain 30y ‘252’ badges

Click For > here < for all Club Classifications

Click > here < for the ‘252’ badge Hall of Fame

For lots of interesting archived news >click here< to find out all of Castle Bowmen’s past achievements.

THE DATES FOR THE 2022 Summer Season Postal League have been released by the Postal League Guardian and are now available to view on the >Postal League page <

The 2022 Castle Bowmen Annual General Meeting will be on April 28th 2022.

To see the current committee >click here<

The Easter Shoot 2022:-

2022 saw the welcome return of the Castle Bowmen Easter Shoot. 24 club members battled it out for the chocolatey treats. The weather was.. .mostly kind, although a tricky gust of wind kept appearing and disappearing at random which was slightly problematic. But at the end of the day many happy archers went away clutching the greatest prize in archery…lots of chocolate, and Steve C’ being crowned overall Champion with the highest score of the tournament.

>click here< for some photos from the shoot by professional sports photographer Mac Morgan.

Easter Sunday (April 17th) will see the long awaited return of the Castle Bowmen Easter shoot.

We have been running this tournament for over 40 years with multitudes of archers over the years enjoying the day. Especially now we give out chocolates as prizes.

It does mean there will be NO general shooting unless you have entered the competition.

SUMMER SEASON SHOOTING STARTS …..TUESDAY 5th APRIL

:Improvers for the month:

• Claire M’ gains 2nd Class Barebow Classification

• Stenn C’ gains 3rd Class Barebow Classification

• Andy R’ gains the Archer Classification for Recurve

• Andy R’ (RC), Elaine S’ (CUL) and Gwyn S’ (CUL) improve Outdoor H/C score

• Claire M’ gains Indoor ‘D’ Classification for Barebow

• Andy R’ gains Indoor ‘F’ AND ‘E’ Classification for Recurve

• Claire M’, Stenn C’ and Andrew P’ all improve Indoor H/C score for Barebow

• Thomas W’, Imogen L’ and Sophie R’ gain 30y ‘252’ badges

• Imogen L’ and Sophie R’ gain 20y ‘252’ badges

Click > here < for all Club Classifications

Click > here < for the ‘252’ badge Hall of Fame

EASTER SHOOT !!! ….Entry forms coming soon to a field near you

:Improvers for the month:

• Gwyn S’ gains 1st Class Classification for Compound

• Thomas W’ gains 3rd Class Classification for Barebow

• Stenn C’ improves Indoor H/C score for Barebow

• Dan P’ gains 30yard Barebow ‘252’ badge

• Bernt F’ gains 20yard Barebow ‘252’ badge

Club classifications can be found >here<

‘252’ badge Hall of Fame >here<

:Improvers for the month:

• Lainey S’ & Gwyn S’ gain 2nd Class Compound Classifications

• Elaine S’ improves Compound outdoor H/C score

• Andrew P’ gains Indoor ‘E’ classification for Longbow

• Claire M’ improves Barebow indoor H/C score

• Andrew P’ improves Longbow indoor H/C score

• John C’ gains 50y ‘252’ badge

• Claire M’, Stenn C’, John C’, Dan P’ and Joshua gain 40y ‘252’ badges

• Sam, Guy T’, Mark D’ & Andy R’ gain 30y ‘252’ badges

• Connor and Andy R’ gain 20y ‘252’ badges

Club classifications can be found >here<

‘252’ badge Hall of Fame >here<

You wait ages for a robin hood and 2 come along in a week.

Here’s Claire M’ with her trophy.

Castle Bowmen archers enjoying shooting in the January midday sun.

First ‘Robin Hood’ of the year from Junior club Connor.

An impressive, all be it expensive, shot.

REVIEW OF THE YEAR 2021

(to view the reviews of ALL the previous years in Castle Bowmen’s archive >click here<)

Another quiet year for Castle Bowmen but all in all still a good one considering we still managed to do lots of Archery, and as someone once said.. ’we ARE an Archery club after all’.

The year started much the same as the last one ended…in lockdown… :(

But, after a few…many…lots and lots of months relaxing, we finally got to take to the field in May.

The sensible safety precautions were still there so limiting numbers, but everyone who wanted to, got to shoot.

We also managed to restart our Beginners courses in May with thanks to Beginner co-ordinator Andrew and our team of fabulous coaches led by our high performance director Rory.

In June we were able to increase the session length to give people more time to shoot. Castle Bowmen also featured in a short documentary about the history of Heath Park and all the people that enjoy it.

A brand new banner flag was procured in July for the club, courtesy of a grant from Glamorgan Archery Association- you can never have enough flags.

For the winter season we started using St Germans Church hall for our indoor shooting, and although numbers attending were low the archers shooting there had some excellent results, picking up 6 new Indoor Classification badges.

Andrew P claimed the coveted Longbow 3-Gold end badge from ArcheryGB, the first Gent Longbow in the club to do so.

Numerous ‘252’ badges were awarded to the Juniors and some Seniors, and some new Outdoor Classification badges have also been awarded throughout the year, meaning archers are still improving despite the difficult conditions over the last 2 years.

Hoping that 2022 brings lots of excellently shot arrows and equally impressive scores, which will all add up (usually using a calculator) to an amazing year of archery for the club and all of it’s members.

 Video reviews for the year are also available on the Castle Bowmen YouTube channel > click here <

:Improvers for the month:

• Elaine S’ gains 3rd Class Compound Classification

• Wendy W’ improves Outdoor Recurve H/C score

• Gwyn S’ improves Outdoor Compound H/C Score

• Andrew P’ regains the Indoor ‘D’ Classification

• Stenn C’ gains the Indoor ‘E’ Classificaion

• Claire M’ improves Indoor Barebow H/C score

• Claire M’, Stenn C’, John C’, Steffan & Joshua gain the 20yd ‘252’ badge

• Claire M’, Rufus, Theo, Umberto, Joshua, John C’ & Stenn C’ gain the 30yd ‘252’ badge

• Umberto gains the 40yd ‘252’ badge

INDOOR SHOOTING !…..Just in case you missed that… > INDOOR < Shooting has now finished for the year.

We will recommence INDOORS sometime in the New Year subject to any new Covid restrictions . Look out for information here on the website and the Club E-mails.

:Improvers for the month:

• Claire M’ gains an Indoor ‘F’ AND ‘E’ Classification for Barebow

• Sten C’ gains an Indoor ‘F’ Classification for Barebow

• Sophie R’ gains an Indoor ‘G’ Classification for Barebow

• Imogen L’ gains an Indoor ‘G’ Classification for Barebow

• Steve C’ gains a 1st Class Compound Classification

• Steve C’ regains 1st Class Recurve classification

• Steve C’ improves H/C score for Compound

• Claire M’ improves H/C score for Barebow

(all club classifications can be viewed >>here<<)

Indoor shooting is currently available on a pre booked basis at our new venue in Adamsdown, for any club members.

Indoor shooting does cost extra so a target fee is payable and masks are required. Please book in advance via Andrew P’ or by using our email address as below.

email: castlebowmen@live.co.uk to register your interest and for all the info.

:Improvers for the month:

• Gwyn S’ gains 3rd Class Compound classification

• John H’ regains 1st Class Barebow classification

• Steve C’ regains 2nd Class Compound classification

• 
  

• (all club classifications can be viewed >>here<<)

Congratulation to Andrew P’ for gaining his Longbow 3-Gold end Badge from ArcheryGB.

The first Gent Longbow in the club to achieve this.

:Improvers for the month:

• Nick M’ gains his 1st Class Longbow AND Barebow classification

• Andrew P’ regains his Bowman Longbow classification and improves his H/C score

• Rick S’ regains his 1st Class Recurve classification

• Steve C’ regains his 2nd Class Recurve classification and improves his H/C score

• Wendy W’ regains her 2nd Class Recurve classification and improves her H/C score

• Chris O’ regains his 3rd Class Barebow classification

(all club classifications can be viewed >>here<<)

****************************************

PLEASE NOTE: Subscription fees must be paid by the end of September.

If you have not paid by then you will NOT BE ALLOWED TO SHOOT.

This is a requirement by ArcheryGB for Insurance reasons.

****************************************

The Glamorgan County Team has won the prestigious Welsh Archery Association annual Intercounty tournament for an impressive 8th time, in slightly windy conditions, and as usual Castle Bowmen had someone shooting in the team.

Congratulations to Chris O’ for his contributions to the victory. Glamorgan won 6 of the 8 categories to take the title, headed by the Barebow archers, of which Chris scored the highest overall to also pick up an individual category medal for himself.

The Paralympic Archery has started in Tokyo. Check the Channel 4 schedule to see if we get to see any of it. Hopefully we do as Dave Philips, from Welsh club Llantarnam, is competing.

——————————————————-

The Castle Bowmen 50th Anniversary tournament 2020* was held in perfectly dry lovely conditions (apart from the rain) to the great delight of the competing archers.

The athletes had to score a gruelling round of more-or-less 50 arrows at a slightly obscure distance while fighting with gentle breezes and occasional light showers, but somehow they battled through.

In an extraordinary turn of events, over the 2-day competition, every single archer shot exceptionally well and managed to claim a medal in all of their particular categories, a feat not even matched at the Olympics, so very well done to everyone.

(*slightly delayed because of…you know what)

This is the schedule for Archery at the Tokyo Olympics.

Note, they are the event times, not necessarily when it's on the TV.

But, hopefully the BBC will show it live if you can't sleep, and show it again at a more sensible time later.

———————

Friday 23 July – qualifying (1am-3am BST for women and 5am-7am BST for men)

Saturday 24 July – mixed team finals (1.30am-4.05am and 6.15-9.25am BST)

Sunday 25 July – women’s team finals (1.30am-3.05am and 5.30am-9.25am BST)

Monday 26 July – men’s team finals (1.30am-3.05am and 5.30-9.25am BST)

Tuesday 27-Thursday 29 July – individual eliminations (1.30am-3.25am and 8am-12pm BST)

Friday 30 July – women’s finals (1.30am-5.25am and 6.45am-9.20am BST)

Saturday 31 July – men’s finals (1.30am-3.15am and 6.45am-9.20am BST)

Booking is now not required. However there is still a limit of 24 archers per session to comply with sensible distancing rules we have adopted. So, IF things get too busy archers coming on many multiple days may be asked to cut down a little.

PLEASE NOTE THAT SATURDAYS WILL NOW REVERT BACK TO BEING FOR THE JUNIOR CLUB MEMBERS ONLY (plus invited helpers).

A new addition to the Castle Bowmen sign/banner/flag/…thing collection.

An Interesting short film about Heath Park….which gets even more interesting around the 10 minute point.

Announcing the winner of the Castle Bowmen 50th Anniversary 50 arrow competition, without any more delay….it was actually held in 2020…..

based on Distance shot, target size and adjusted score compared with previously adjusted H/C score from when we were shooting ‘normally’…remember them days….

The winner is …..Mr Daniel G’, well done and congratulations on your victory. Here is a photo of Dan with the trophy.

We haven't forgotten the 50 Arrow Challenge.

Now Archery has started up again we can announce the winner is ..............................to be revealed........................with a picture of them holding this trophy.......which will be presented at the field.

So if you entered a score , probably best to turn up on the off chance it's you.

————————————————————————————————

Just a hint …Might be best to start dusting off any Archery equipment you may have hanging around

April is the time when new flowers bloom, the days start to get warmer (or at least less cold), and the start of summer shooting….. The flowers ARE indeed blooming, there HAS been one warmer day, the archery….oh …well 2 out of 3 ain’t bad :(

We are awaiting the Welsh Government announcement, Hopefully it’ll be good news. Stay tuned

It’s been 3 months since our last session of archery and an entire year since we could shoot with no restrictions….but you know what they say: Good things come to those that wait.. and Patience is a virtue …and eat 5 a day … not sure that’s relevant but it’s good advice.

In case you’re getting bored…

Archery News for January…..

The Archery field was covered in frost and then snow.. here is a picture of the aforementioned frost, in case you are missing what the field looks like.

Also, a picture of some clouds that sort of look a bit like a bow…if you use your imagination.

After a fun Summer season the Winter Shooting schedule starts. Be sure to check before you travel to ensure your name is on the list.

Unfortunately, as Cardiff is currently locked down, only those living in the Cardiff area will be able to attend. Travelling in or out of a lockdown area for Archery is against ArcheryGB and Welsh Government rules and would therefore invalidate the ArcheryGB insurance.

Congratulations to Jack C’ for gaining his 40yd 252 badge, the first one of the season.

The last summer shooting sessions will be Sunday 27th. Evenings sessions are ending as the lack of light makes shooting infeasible. Winter shooting will start on Saturday 3rd Oct. Check the schedule regularly for up to date information.

Covid Update. SEPTEMBER 2020

Just a quick note to ask you to remind your members that they should not travel into or out of an area that is in lockdown in order to shoot.

Please remember that as well as this being a serious health matter for all of us, under current regulations if anything were to happen while shooting, then as Welsh Government and ArcheryGB rules were not followed their
insurance may be declared void.

If we all follow the rules, we will be able to return to normal shooting sooner.

Stay safe.

Regards

Darran Cooke
Chair, Welsh Archery Association

Affiliations fees must be received by the Treasurer before the end of September for you to be able to continue shooting. If you have not rejoined by October 1st you will not be insured to shoot until we receive your affiliation fee.

REMEMBER: THE VIRUS HAS NOT GONE AWAY

We all must continue to be vigilant in light of the new restrictions being introduced.

2m is the MINIMUM YOU SHOULD BE AWAY FROM OTHER PEOPLE

DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING YOU DIDN’T BRING WITH YOU

WASH YOUR HANDS

ALL of these measures together will help.

It’s not difficult and it may mean the difference between shooting occasionally and not shooting AT ALL.

There is a local lockdown in Caerphilly from 6pm Tuesday 8th September.

The restrictions mean people cannot enter or leave Caerphilly county borough - which includes Caerphilly town, Ystrad Mynach, Blackwood, Newbridge and Risca - without a "reasonable excuse".

Unfortunately for any of our members living in them areas, Archery does not count as a reasonable excuse.

We'll see you again when the restrictions are eased again.

It’s that time of year when the days are getting shorter, the rain is getting colder and the archery is… pretty much staying the same because we shoot all year round.

But, unfortunately, it is time to pay your affiliation fees if you want to carry on enjoying all interesting weather conditions whilst shooting.

To ensure your continued membership, fees must be with Treasurer Steve before September 30th please.

The winter shooting schedule and new procedures will start from October 1st. More details to follow on that.

The next phase of the Castle Bowmen Back to Archery plan is here.

Most things are staying the same but any changes will be explained by the field captains.

In the meantime here is a quick recap of the current rules and an idea of what to expect

It may, or may not, make things clearer…

Cast your mind back to when times were simpler and we could come and go do Archery as we pleased, no masks, no worries. Well in them dim and distant times we were still competing in the Winter Season Postal League….and here are the results with 2 magnificent victories ….and a few slightly less magnificent victories but well earned non the less..

PORTSMOUTH Postal RESULTS

• team A- 5th 

• team B- WINNERS!! - Michelle W’ highest scorer in UK for Feb’

• team C- 5th - Kathy C’ highest scorer in UK for Feb’

• team D- WINNERS!! - Sarah R’ highest scorer in UK for Feb’

Nothing new to report but don’t forget to book your archery session using the information above.

Many people have been getting back into the swing of things . The sooner you start the sooner it gets easy again….easier….. ok slightly less difficult.

You can now start using the session preference booking form to express your preferences for which session you would prefer each week. Just use the link above.

Please note that Juniors must be accompanied by a Parent/Guardian for the entire session they book.

Due to restricted shooting we are unable to run Junior Club for the time being, however all juniors can book individual sessions. Saturday sessions cannot be guaranteed though.

ALL ARCHERS ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE THEIR OWN EQUIPMENT AS WE ARE NOT PERMITTED TO LOAN ANY EQUIPMENT AT THIS TIME

New ArcheryGB safety rules only allow for heavily restricted numbers and extra safety precautions.

Full details will be announced but they will include a booking system for each session (numbers are heavily restricted so you MUST NOT even turn up without a confirmed space)

Social distancing will be the number 1 rule at all times.

You must not hang around before or after your allotted session, this is not a social event it is purely for practice, then you go home.

Please give full consideration to the government rules about shielding certain vulnerable categories of people from the virus before deciding to book a session.

In case you’ve forgotten how to shoot tournaments, here’s a refresher vid.

Innovative alternative uses for Archery Equipment whilst it isn’t being used for what it was made for.

Congratulations to Chris O', Nick M', Ian M', Stuart H', Mike Wo', Steve C' and Andrew P' for shooting new Indoor Club records over the 2019/2020 Winter Indoor Season.

A full list of the current Club Indoor & Outdoor records, along with the current Indoor & Outdoor Classification & H/C lists

>can be found here<

For the first time in nearly 40 years the Castle Bowmen Easter shoot Tournament has had to be cancelled due to...well you know. Not to worry though, we have a 50th Anniversary shoot planned for later in the year just for Club members, date to be confirmed obviously.

…

Results of the ArcheryGB survey are also in the magazine this month too. It seems Barebow is more popular than Compound..who’d have thought :) Interesting to note that in Castle Bowmen Barebows make up approximately 50%, thus proving we are way above average .

…

For those of you who competed in the Glamorgan Archery Association Winter E-Postal Tournament the Final results have been posted on the GAA website . Well done to all the Club teams that entered and especially so to the 5 Winning Castle Bowmen teams.

Here’s a link to see how you did > Glamorgan Archery Association website <

…

Not Quite the start of the Summer Season we all hoped for, Especially in our 50th year. But at the very least it’ll be unforgettable. Don’t forget your stretches.

SUNDAY is Archery Day usually, so remember your stretchy band exercises. Also using your bow as a weight trainer is excellent for keeping the correct muscles working. DO NOT LET GO OF YOU BOWSTRING THOUGH !.

1: Stand as if you were on the line with your bow in your hand, try to imagine yourself at the field.

2: Raise your bow and draw back to your anchor position, always remembering correct posture, visualise the target in front of you (you may imagine the distance of your choice)

3: Hold for a couple of seconds , then slowly bring the bow down again. DO NOT LET GO OF THE BOWSTRING AT FULL DRAW !!

4: Repeat 6 dozen times to complete a full round. (Or as many times as you require)

————

Here is an entertaining Archery match between Team GB and Korea. Watch their technique closely for tips.

>CLICK HERE< .

Something to keep you busy while the real archery isn’t happening.

This will be a virtual tournament with giant virtual medals. Watch the vid,play the game, post your highest scored round every Sunday every week on the Castle Bowmen Facebook page or at glamorgan.archery@google.com (either will do not both). Winners of the giant virtual medals will be listed here and on FB.

The UK Government has announced tighter restrictions in the light of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Based on this AND advice from ArcheryGB. the committee is suspending archery sessions for castle bowmen until further notice.

Please also make use of the Castle Bowmen Facebook page to send messages and to keep in touch.

www.archerygb.org/all-grassroots-archery-should-be-postponed-for-the-forseeable-future

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if any members experience symptoms highlighted by the Chief Medical Officer, which includes a new persistent cough and a high temperature, self isolate for at least seven days . The same applies if you have come in contact with anyone displaying these symptoms.

Improvers for the Month…:- ’

• Jay S’ gains an indoor Classification of ‘E’

• Susanne K’ gains an Indoor Classification of ‘F’

• Guy T’ gains an Indoor Classification of ‘H’

• Oscar S’R’, Jay S’, Greville P’, Guy T’, Susanne K’, Ken H’ & Terry C’ improve their Indoor H/C score

Check out the Portsmouth Postal results for February on the >postal page< for an excellent read. The February Frostbite Postal results aren’t quite so amusing.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Daniel G’ and Jay S’ gain indoor Classifications of ‘F’

• Ken H’ gains an Indoor Classification of ‘G’

• Ken H’ gains an Indoor Classification of ‘H’

• Mike Wo’ (R/C), Nick M’, Ian M’, Drew M’, Susanne K’, Jack C’, Ken H’, Jay S’, Andrew P’ & Sarah I’ improve their Indoor H/C score

• Emily & Steffan improve their Outdoor H/C score

With 3 years of badge data to sort through the Postal League Guardian has produced the ‘Ultimate all-time Winter League Score Attainment Badge Hall of Fame list’ (a snappy title I think you’ll agree) >> click here to view<<

For the 14th year running Castle Bowmen had the honour of hosting the Glamorgan County Indoor Championships at our St Davids College shooting venue.

Over 70 archers from all over the county (and beyond) travelled to Cardiff to compete in this annual prestigious event in the Archery Calendar, and by all accounts had an excellent and enjoyable time. This was all down to the hard work from the Castle Bowmen working party and excellent tournament organising of Andrew P’, well done to all who contributed.

Steve C’, Drew M’, Chris O’, Mike Wo’, Sarah I’ and Sarah R’ all shot for the honour and glory of County success, and for a time Mike Wo’ and Sarah R’ were topping the leader board for the Barebows.

At the end of the day things had changed a bit, as it always does in archery, but only a little. Mike and Sarah both took home the rather shiny medals of the Silver variety.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Drew M’ & Nick M’ gain their Indoor ‘D’ Classification

• Greville P’ gains an indoor ‘F’ Classification

• Greville P’ gains an indoor ‘G’ Classification

• Lilith K’ gains an Indoor ‘H’ Classification

• 
  
  

• Susanne K’, Chris O’, Karl C’, Will W’, Greville P’ & Sarah I’ improves their Indoor Barebow H/C Scores

• Steve C’ improves his Indoor Compound H/C Scores

• Wendy W’, Mike R’ & Rick S’ improves their Indoor Recurve H/C Scores

The Annual Club dinner was, as always, a very pleasant event. Held at the New House Hotel, the food was excellent, as always. After the meal many awards were awarded culminating in the announcement of the New Year Club H/C shoot results to determine the club champion. Well done to Mike R’ for taking the title for this year. Here are a few photos.

The Llantarnam A.C Double Portsmouth tournament:-

For those who have never heard of it here are the details… Its a tournament held by Llantarnam archery club consisting of a Portsmouth round….with another Portsmouth round afterwards (hence double).

Chris O’ and Mike Wo’ travelled along the road a bit to Gwent to compete in this…interesting tournament. Whilst surprisingly chilly considering it was indoors the locals were fairly hospitable and the raffle prizes plentiful. After many hours of shooting with many excellent and valid excuses to why the arrows were misbehaving (it’s all the arrows fault never the archer),the highlight of the day (the Raffle) was presented. With many near misses and close calls Mike’s number was finally called and he won a superb Polar Bear (stuffed toy NOT real !).

The results : Well… At the end of the morning session Chris was the highest scoring barebow with Mike in 3rd position. And for the Afternoon session Mike was joint top and Chris in 2nd.

Unfortunately it was a double session so both scores had to be added together, which meant at the end of the day Mike came 2nd and Chris came 3rd.

If you require Castle Bowmen apparel with the new 50th Anniversary logo on it, be sure to return the order form to Steve without delay.

The Welsh Archery Association Indoor Championships 2020:

The Welsh Indoor Championships, the first major National tournament of the year was held in Cardiff this year, and Chris O’, Kathy C’, Mike Wo’ and Sarah I’ decided to test their skill, technique, bravery and luck against the best of the rest of all the Welsh archers.

As always in an Indoor tournament of this calibre it was tough going, especially against all the field archers that had sneaked in, but as luck would have it our intrepid archers had done a bit of practice…only a bit though.

All four Castle Bowmen archers shot a SB (a Seasons Best score) with Kathy improving on last years Championships score and Mike also shooting a PB (Personal Best score), At the end of the day Mike Wo’ took home the Silver medal for the Gent Barebows.

Kathy and Mike were also presented with their Welsh Archery Association medals for placing 1st in the Welsh National rankings last year in their respective categories.

A record breaking number of Castle Bowmen archers started our 50th Anniversary year as ‘hopefully’ they mean to continue, by shooting lots of arrows and scoring lots of points.

The Castle Bowmen New Year H/C shoot was a great success, mostly because the rain decided to keep away (mostly). Everyone shot the unique ‘Seal Round’ to ddetermine who is to be crowned the Club Champion for this special year. Results, as always, are kept super secret by Chairman Rick until the Champion is announced at the New Year Club Dinner later in the month.

REMEMBER: NEW YEAR H/C CLUB SHOOT - SUNDAY 5th JANUARY 9am

As the year is ending we once more reflect on the awesomeness of Castle Bowmen. 

The Club’s numbers are well over the 100+ members mark, as it has been for quite a few years, keeping us one of, if not THE, biggest club in Wales.

Club of Champions:

In 2019 our awesome archers won over 100 tournament medals, 7 County championship titles, numerous County & Welsh records, another 2 Welsh Champion titles, and also won the Barebow Team Medals at the WAA Inter-County Championships, Bath Archers WA1440, The Gloucester County championships (visiting team) and ended the year as the #1 Barebow team in the UK. We once again have all the top ranked Barebow archers in Wales, plus plenty of UK ranking representation too.

 Every member of Castle Bowmen shot exceptionally well over the year, many attaining new PB’s (Personal Best scores) with 55 archers being awarded new Classification badges.

Chris O’ and Kathy C’ have both claimed their Master Bowman classifications this year (Kathy with an unofficial GMB). Along with Mike Wo’ also regaining his MB classification and Sarah I’ with her JMB these are the most Master Bowmen we’ve ever had in the club at any one time.

Planning ahead for next year we designed and ordered some new 50th anniversary club banners and quality pens to go with our existing Club flags for extra advertising for the club.

Mike Wo’ was voted in as Glamorgan Archery Association Chairman, and Steve C’ as the County Secretary.

Castle Bowmen Juniors:

Castle Bowmen Juniors had some good success stories this year.

Sarah I’, in her last year as a Junior, competed at the Junior Masters tournament in Oxford, and after a long day of shooting came 2nd in her age category.

Daniel H’, also in his last year shooting as a junior, won the coveted title of Club Champion after winning the Club New Year H/C Shoot.

Up and coming champion Emily C’ competed in her first tournaments this year, and won many medals, as well as gaining her Bowman Classification.

Coaching:

Our awesome coaches have been busy as always this year filling the demand for the archery courses, with lots of trainee archers turning up to be taught, and many of them going on to become full members of the club.

Castle Bowmen AGM:

Castle Bowmen's AGM was well attended again and lots of important club business was discussed. The new committee, charged with the smooth running of the club, were sworn in and a full review of the year was given by Rick S', the Chairman. Before during and after the official proceedings the members who attended enjoyed a lovely buffet arranged by Steve C'. Rick also wished everyone good shooting in the year to come.

The Annual award for the archer making an exceptional contribution to the club, the ‘Arthur Knighton’ trophy, was presented to Kathy C’ for her dedication and commitment to shooting and keeping up the morale the club.

Club Tournaments:

We started 2019 with our customary cold New Year Handicap shoot to determine our club champion, which this year was awarded to Daniel H’ from the Castle Bowmen Juniors.

Our other tournaments throughout the year were very well attended and greatly enjoyed by all:-

From the Easter shoot, the most chocolatey competition in Wales and also a Welsh Ranking event, The ‘Val Goodman’ Junior May Metrics (The Only annual Junior-Only 12 dozen round tournament in Wales) to the Doug Woodley mid summer WA900 shoot, all the visiting archers from other clubs agreeing they had a very enjoyable time.

 And not forgetting our unique annual Club Team Head-to-Head Tournament in October, with many of Castle Bowmen’s archers competing to win officially the biggest Archery medals in Wales, and the even more sought-after Losers Wooden spoon trophies. 

Postal Leagues:-

In the winter-

Nearly all of our teams won their divisions in the Frostbite and Portsmouth Leagues and received shiny new winners badges.

In the summer-

6 out of our 8 teams won their Summer league divisions and all received their customary winners badges

Glamorgan Postal League-

9 Castle Bowmen teams win their divisions in the newly devised Glamorgan Postal league for the Summer.

Glamorgan County Team

Five archers from Castle Bowmen:- Mike Wo’, Kathy C’, Chris O’ & Sarah I’ (Barebow Team) and Michelle W’ (Recurve Team) were chosen to be members of the Glamorgan County team for the WAA inter county championships held in West Wales. 

Mike, Kathy, Chris, Sarah and Michelle also received individual category medals for winning their respective bowtype categories.

2019 Glamorgan County Champions:-

Caz’ P’ - Lady Barebow Champion (INDOOR)

Mike Wo’ - Gent Barebow Champion (OUTDOOR)

Castle Bowmen Barebow team:-

Glamorgan County Champions (INDOOR)

Glamorgan Intercounty team Champions

Gloucestershire County Champions (VISITORS)

#1 ranked Barebow club in UK

Glamorgan county records claimed:-

Mike Wo’ - National - Gent Barebow

Michelle W’ - National - Lady Recurve

Wendy W’ - St George - Lady Barebow

Emily C’ - Short Jnr Windsor - Lady B/B U12

Chris O’ - Windsor - Gent Barebow

Kathy C’ - WA70m - Lady Barebow

Kathy C’ - WA70m(Double) - Lady Barebow

Chris O’ - Hereford - Gent Barebow

Mike Wo’ - WA70m - Gent Barebow

Mike Wo’ - WA70m(double) - Gent Barebow

Chris O’ - Western - Gent Barebow

Michelle W’ - Long Western - Lady Recurve

Chris O’ - WA900 - Gent Barebow

Michelle W’ WA900 - Lady Recurve

Caz’ P’ - WA900 - Lady Barebow (master)

Mike Wo’ - WA70m(double) - Gent Barebow

Caz’ P’ - WA70m (double) - Lady Barebow

Caz’ P’ - WA70m (double) Lady Barebow (master)

Chris O’- Albion Round - Gent Barebow

2019 Welsh Outdoor Champions:- 

Mike Wo’ - Gent Barebow Champion

Welsh Records claimed:-

Mike Wo’ - National - Gent Barebow

Wendy W’ - St George - Lady Barebow

Chris O’ - Windsor - Gent Barebow

Kathy C’ - WA70m - Lady Barebow

Kathy C’ - WA70m(Double) - Lady Barebow

Chris O’ - Hereford - Gent Barebow

Mike Wo’ - WA70m - Gent Barebow

Mike Wo’ - WA70m(double) - Gent Barebow

Chris O’ - Western - Gent Barebow

Mike Wo’ - WA70m(double) - Gent Barebow

Caz’ P’ - WA70m (double) - Lady Barebow

Caz’ P’ - WA70m (double) Lady Barebow (master)

Chris O’- Albion Round - Gent Barebow

WELSH RANKINGS :-

Lady Barebow

Kathy C’ at number 1

Caz’ P’ - #2  

Sarah I’ - #4

Gent Barebow

Mike Wo’ at number 1

Chris O’ - #2

Karl C’ - #9

Ian M’ - #10

Lady Recurve

Michelle W’ - #7 

Wendy W’ - #12

Gent Recurve 

Mike Bar’ - #10

Rick S’ - #16

Steve C’ - #17  

UK RANKINGS :-

Lady Barebow - Kathy C’ = 12th 

Lady Barebow - Caroline P' = 18th 

Lady Barebow - Sarah I’ = 27th

Lady Barebow - Wendy W' = 92nd  

Gent Barebow - Mike Wo’= 4th 

Gent Barebow - Chris O’ = 8th

Lady Recurve - Michelle W’ = 212th 

Lady Recurve - Wendy W’ = 226th   

Gent Recurve - Rick S’ = 193rd  

Gent Recurve - Mike Bar’ = 398th  

Gent Recurve - Steve C’ = 409th

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Andrew P’ gains an Indoor ‘D’ Classification for Recurve

• Andrew P’ gains an Indoor ‘F’ Classification for Longbow

• Oscar S’R’, Stuart A’ & Rachel T’ gain their Indoor ‘F’ Classification

• Susanne K’ & Marek R’ gain their Indoor ‘G’ Classification

• Marek R’ gains an Indoor ‘H’ Classification

• Rick S’, Ian M’, Kate P’, Nick M’, Rachel T’, Marek R’ & Jack C’ improve their Indoor H/C score

• …

• Nick M’ gains a 2nd Class outdoor Classification

• Andrew P’ improves his Outdoor H/C score for Longbow

There WILL be shooting at the field as always for those that want it on Sunday 29th December in the morning at the usual time.

No Indoor shooting now until the 5th Jan’ (St Davids) and 10th Jan’ (St Teilos)

December’s Postal Teams for both the Portsmouth and the Frostbite leagues are now on the Postal Page for your entertainment, Did you get in a higher team than you expected ?

Results will be posted when we receive them.

The November Postal results for both the Portsmouth and Frostbite leagues are now on the Postal Page (Warning !! only 6 out of the 8 teams will enjoy looking at them).

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Peter W’ & Sarah R’ gain their Indoor ‘D’ Classification

• Jack C’ & Brian J’ gain their Indoor ‘F’ Classification

• Jack C’ gains his Indoor ‘G’ Classification for Barebow

• Peter W’, Nick M’, Rick S’, Steve C’, Brian J, Drew M’, Stuart H’, Ian M’, Chris O’, Mike Wo’, Peter W’, Jack C’ & Sarah R’ improve their Indoor H/C scores

• …

• Andrew P’ gains his Bowman Classification for Longbow

• Guy T’ gains his Archer Classification for Barebow

• Andrew P’ improves his outdoor H/C score for Longbow

November saw the 18th British indoor Barebow Championships being held at nine different venues throughout the UK. The results are then combined to give the overall Official British Barebow championships results.

Being the highest ranked outdoor Barebow archer in Wales it was down to Mike Wo’ to compete at this prestigious Indoor event…’how hard could it be’….

After an awesomely impressively average start he started to pick up even more points, than someone who hadn’t entered. The arrows were flying straight into that 10 ring as regular as clockwork, in a slightly broken clock. But by the end the score had accidentally got even higher and was as impressive as a marginally impressive thing. Mike ended the tournament as one of the highest scoring welsh archers and in the top third in the UK.

With all of Novembers Postal Leagues shoots completed the Postal League Guardian, pictured here with Kathy C’ (Master Bowman), has approved this months results for general viewing. So you can now see how you did in the Portsmouth AND Frostbite league matches.

Click >> HERE << to go to the Postal league page where you will find Novembers Teams, Scores and Top 10 position lists for both Leagues.

The first winter frostbite postal tournament will be on Sunday 17th November, remember your mugs for a hot tea/coffee/water.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Michelle W’ gains her Bowman Classification for Recurve

• Delyth G’, Serena and Steffan R’O’ gain their 2nd Class Classifications

• Steffan R’O’ gains his 3rd Class Recurve Classification

• Elizabeth R’ gains her Recurve Archer Classification

• Rick S’ gains his Longbow Archer Classification

• Steve C’, Andrew P’, Wendy W’, Serena, Rufus G’, Theo G’, Tom S’, Steffan R’O’, Delyth G’ and Emily C’ all improve their outdoor H/C score

• …

• Stuart H’ (L/B) and Will Windsor (B/B) gain their Indoor ‘F’ Classifications

• Brian J’ (R/C) gains a ‘G’ Indoor Classification

• Stuart H’ (L/B), Mike Wo’ (B/B) and Mark H’ (R/C) improve their Indoor H/C score

REMINDER: There is no general shooting until Sunday Morning 3rd November for Seniors. (Junior Club will be on Saturday Morning 2nd November as usual however)

Completely updated and also up to date Classification and H/C Club ranking tables are available for viewing on the Classification archive page now. If you don’t know where that is click the Home button on the main menu at the top of each page, then scroll down the front page until you reach the secondary menu (the one with all the coloured badges on) and click the one named ‘Classifications’…

Or alternatively, if you’re feeling lazy, just click >>HERE<<

LAST OF THE SUMMER BLING - Tournament report from the Cheltenham Archers Autumn Hereford:

“Sarah I’, our only representative from Castle Bowmen at this year's Cheltenham Autumn Herefords braved a strong breeze in this small but friendly field of archers.

With some no-shows in the morning the archers were re-organised into 3 archers per boss allowing a single detail per end. Archers were delighted to be able to rattle through the 6 doz at the longest distance.”

The smell of frying bacon lured archers on to the field, and with the whistle of steam trains plus the occasional glider overhead everyone's interest was maintained through the trickier weather conditions.

At the end of shooting Sarah prevailed to take Gold in the Senior Ladies Barebow category.

An excellent end to the season.”

First indoor shooting session will be at our St Teilos school location 7-9pm on Friday 4th October

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Kathy C’ IS a Master Bowman (MB)

• Emily C’ gains her Bowman Classification

• Steve C’ gains his Compound 2nd Class

• John H’ gains 2nd Class Longbow Classification

• Tom S’, Rufus G’ & Umberto S’ all gain 2nd Class Barebow Classifications

• Christian L’ gains 3rd Class Longbow Classification

• …

• Delyth G’, Wendy W’, Nick M’, Ian M’ and John H’ improve their H/C Scores

The end of the official Summer season brings many things: More rain, the cold, more mud and more wind….and we got all of those at the Annual Castle Bowmen Team H2H tournament, which added to the fun immensely.

Nearly two dozen of only the bravest archers gathered in the slightly damp field to compete in this unique, only slightly confusing, team shoot.

As the competitors progressed through each round whilst also progressing through the ever increasing mud the tension grew, each archer willing their team mates on to do their best, so maybe just maybe the ultimate prize could be theirs. But sadly only one team could share the prize everyone was keen to get their hands on….the wooden spoon trophy.

The team to finally take that honour was Michelle W’, Rick S’ and Greville P’.

At the end of the day for the final results the sun came out…. then went away again and it started raining, again. But the archers weren’t downhearted, mostly because they could go home to dry off. But not before they congratulated the overall winners of the tournament. And taking home the giant medals and trophies this year were Alan H’, Wendy W’ and Emily C’.

The Welsh Championships Archery Weekend 2019 at Pembrey Country Park in Carmarthenshire, hosted annually by the Welsh Archery Association to find the best of the best of the best…Castle Bowmen thought…yep, lets give that a go.

DAY 1: THE WAA INTERCOUNTY TOURNAMENT. This is where each part of Wales (Glamorgan, Gwent, Dyfed, Powys & North Wales) sends a team of their finest archers to battle against each other for victory. Michelle W’ was part of the Recurve team and Kathy C, Sarah I’, Chris O’ & Mike Wo’ made up the Barebow team.

The weather wasn’t being helpful at all: near gale force winds for most of the day… the opponents were well prepared….the nearby sewage treatment farm was…well you can guess….But Glamorgan were even better prepared in their new team shirts. Yes, Victory went to Glamorgan, the 7th time they have won it. Individual category medals were also won by Michelle, Kathy, Sarah, Chris and Mike (also claiming a new Welsh record) as they also won their bow category.

• (scroll down for Day 2: The Welsh Championships !! you’ll never guess how it ends !!…ok you probably will)

Day 2: THE WELSH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS. The weather was as nice as the day before… changeable wind conditions with added heavy rain showers thrown in for good measure….

Caz P’, Sarah I’, Kathy C’,Michelle W’, Chris O’ & Mike Wo’ all braved the not ideal conditions to compete for the title of literally being the best in the country.

The weather conditions meant that nothing was certain, Chris and Kathy took early leads for the Barebows, everyone was having to battle their hardest against the ever increasing smell from the portaloos, but as always Castle Bowmen forged on with determination, strength, and many cups of tea.

And at the end of the day the sun came out, briefly, to shine on all the medal winners.

Fending off most of the other Lady Recurve opposition Michelle took home a well deserved Silver medal. For the Lady Barebows Caz also took the Silver with Kathy picking up Gold and title of Welsh Champion with a PB (Personal Best score) AND her 3rd GMB score of the year making her unofficially Grand Master Bowman. In the other Barebow category Chris also took away some Silver bling with Mike prevailing in the end to take Gold and the Welsh Champion title for a 4th time.

Cambria Bowmen BBQ shoot report:

‘All that glitters is not Gold’….unless you’re Castle Bowmen shooting at the Annual BBQ shoot.

Rick S’, Mike Wo’, Sarah I’, Chris O’, Wendy W’, Michelle W’, Emily C’ and Steve C’ were all lured by the smell of burgers to the highly anticipated BBQ shoot. As always the tournament was excellent fun, very delicious, and a bit surprisingly, had awesome weather.

Interspersed between the food breaks there was also a little bit of archery going on. All of the Castle Bowmen shot their absolute best, sweeping aside opponents as easily as the rather delicious strawberry muffin cakes being offered up for dessert….mmmmm cake….

By the end of the day the results were in, and they were even more tasty than the triple layer chocolate cake with sprinkles….mmmmm cake…

Steve, in his very first tournament shooting the orange Compound claimed a Glamorgan County record for the St George round AND a PB (Personal Best Score). Also shooting the St George round Wendy W’ and Mike Wo’ took the Golds for the Barebows, with Wendy also claiming the Welsh AND County record.

Shooting the Albion round Michelle takes Gold AND a Welsh record with Rick also taking Gold, both for the Recurves. Sarah I’, fresh from a 12 hour flight from Oregon the night before, shot excellently and took Gold for the Lady Barebows.

Chris O’, shooting the Windsor round, was successful in his quest for the Welsh and County record also took Gold for the Barebows.

On the Short Junior Windsor Emily C’ also took Gold, the County record, the Welsh record AND her Junior Bowman classification.

All the Summer Postal Leagues are now over, and at some point in the future we’ll find out how our teams fared in the grand scheme of things.

But for now here is the Castle Bowmen Hall of Fame - Every competitors Personal Best score over the whole season.

For all those teams in the Glamorgan postal league the final end of season final results are now available for your viewing pleasure on the Glamorgan Archery Association website >>HERE<<. Extremely small badges will be presented to the winners in due course.

A link to the new Castle Bowmen Virtual Trophy Cabinet can be found >>here<< on the Champions page. This is mainly for the club’s Team achievements, but if you want your own collection of archery bling displayed in the cabinet (anything from a single medal to a whole wall full of trophies, all are welcome) there’s plenty of room, just take a pic and we’ll put it in there.

The Gwent County Championships, hosted by St Kingsmark Bowmen in Chepstow, A tournament for all the Gwent club archers to see who is the best in their county. For all the visiting counties it’s a chance to see how much bling you can take from them.

Rick S’, Steve C’, Mike Bar’, Mike Wo’, Chris C’, Kathy C’ & Wendy W’ made their way deep into enemy territory for the chance to compete against the best archers from our neighbouring County, to test their skills with only the faintest hope of taking home the prizes all archers strive for. But all doubts were cast aside when Castle Bowmen, the Club of Champions, took home not 1, not 2 but 3 !!! raffle prizes !!!.

The weather was..almost ideal.. the sun was shining nicely with only the odd brief cloud to spoil it. There was however a tricky breeze blowing in from the River Severn which caused a few problems here and there.

At the halfway point a mighty battle had emerged between Steve and Rick, with Steve taking the lead. But with arms wobbling and the wind getting even more pesky for the 50m could he hold on… as it happens, yes he could. At the other end of the field the wind was being just as troublesome, could Kathy shoot another MB (Master Bowmen) Score?, we shall see.

It turned out she couldn’t….she shot A GMB (Grand MasterBowman) score instead !!! Taking the top spot and excellent archer Trophy, beating the 2nd place Lady Barebow by nearly 400 points.

For the Gent Barebows Mike W’ had taken a slight lead after the first 2 distances over Chris, but with the wind being naughty and his tendency to shoot at the wrong target could he hold on… as it happens, yes he could. So Mike took 1st place and the archer Trophy, with Chris taking home a nicely shining Silver medal.

Also worth noting these were PB’s (Personal Best score) for Kathy & Wendy and SB’s (Season’s Best score) for Steve & Rick.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Kathy C’ shoots her 3rd master bowman score

• Gwyn S’ gains his 2nd Class Barebow Classification

• John H’ gains his 3rd Class Longbow Classification

• Daniel H’ gains his 3rd Class Compound Classification

• Jack C’ gains his Archer Classification for Barebow

• Brian J’ gains his Archer Classification for Recurve

• …

• Andrew P’. Gwyn S’, Nick M’ & Chris O’ improve their H/C score

The Llantarnam A.C record status WA1440 tournament report:

The ‘interesting’ Welsh weather played a big part in the outcome of the tournament to say the least. Even seasoned professionals struggled to get the scores they would normal attain. And speaking of professionals; Rick S’, Caz’ P’ & Sarah I’ all decided that rain, wind, teeny tiny target faces and the predicted lightning and thunder were mere trifles to contend with in the pursuit of Castle Bowmen glory.

*Spoiler*: In the end there were 2 excellent Medals for Castle Bowmen again !! read to the end to find out the names of who won, (but they were Gold and Silver for the Lady Barebows as a clue)

…

This from Rick

“It started with a complete downpour…really !!! Surely it was going to be a nice still day?. I arrived to a scene that resembled Glastonbury at its wettest. Lots of very wet bedraggled archers trying to put up tents etc etc  and no sign of faces on the bosses.” (sad face). “I stepped out of the car and the rain stopped and it actually got quite pleasant” (smiley face)

“Practice went ok – sun was out, wind nice and steady, 5 on – 5 on - 6 on - hey well at least a decent LM (Long Metric) could be on the cards” (big smiley face) …. Well that went well didn’t it (NOT !!!!) 250 for the whole LM – absolute pants – all shots felt ok  but something wasn’t right…. arrows all over the place … very windy and squally showers… Broke two arrows hitting the frame one split” (another sad face)

“A nice tub of pasta went down at lunch time, and with my revised final target score of 500 in mind (based on rubbish practice earlier in the week) I was ready to NOT give up, as last place would still get me some decent UK ranking points (123) if I finished.”

“So to the second half of Glastonbury. First up were the Small Faces - Oh well we knew they were coming didn’t we!! Followed almost immediately by Earth Wind and Fire (read Rain, Wind and Sunshine), Bob Dylan next up with “Blowing in the wind” and a “Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall”.

“But !!!!! Those 4 spots” (teeny faces) “were not as bad as anticipated – still a few misses but actually put around a 440 SM (Short Metric) with 30m close to normal comp scores. 500 surpassed – 600 no problem – gutted to finish just short of 700 which on the day would have been ok ‘ish.”

“Caz and Sarah pulled the bling - Both with very creditable BM scores considering the weather and they shot the little faces.”

“And !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I didn’t finish last !!!!!!!!!!!!! “

The joys of shooting in the interesting Welsh weather - Both photo’s below taken on the Postal Day

In the 2019 ‘Clash of Arrows’ tournament between Castle Bowmen and RJD Archers there were 26 archers battling it out for the glory and honour of their respective clubs. Shooting to their very limit in a gruelling Head-to-Head elimination battle to find the champion club. Only the highest scoring archers of all time could hope to reach the final…or so you would think….

The sun and lack of rain proved a winning combination as the archers shot their seeding round in the morning. Many high scores were achieved and hopes were high for one team as 3 RJD compound archers topped the table as expected at the end of the round.

then… as the handicap allowances were included into the H2H scores, the tables slowly but surely began to turn.

• Longbow beats Recurve !!!

• Barebow beats Recurve !!

• Compound beats Recurve…ok no surprise there.

But by the end the day the most unlikely result had materialised. After each round had been fought, many archers had fallen by the wayside, leaving the best of the best.

To fight it out for the Bronze and 4th place were a Compound…. V’s ….. A Longbow …. A truly titanic battle ending in the inevitable result… of a tie. The single arrow shoot off to resolve the tiebreak was duly fought, and by the merest of margins (A Gold v’s a Miss) the Compound archer from RJD scraped the 3rd place position.

Which brings us to the 1st and 2nd place battle. A win/win situation as both were Castle Bowmen.

Steve C’ (yes that is correct), shooting the latest in modern hi-tec orange compound technology V’s Kathy C’, shooting without a sight, stepped onto the line. As expected arrow after arrow hit the Gold in unrelenting proficiency of technique and mastery of the bow. A Compound v’s a Barebow, there could only ever be one result…… Yes, Kathy was victorious in the final showdown.

But that wasn’t the end of the story. The winning Club was decided on H2H positions from each side. Each club waited nervously as the positions were tallied up and independently verified (they were added up twice).

But regardless of who won, the day was a great success and thoroughly enjoyed by all archers from both clubs.

But just as importantly, Castle Bowmen Won :)

Bath Archers Open Hereford tournament official account by Kathy C’ & Chris O’ (because they were there):

“Off we went to Baff !” [The lovely City of Bath]

“Would we do our club proud? Or would we crash and burn?,”

“Chris started the day with 2 bacon rolls...crispy and non-crispy and we sat around drinking tea with our bows waiting patiently by. During this time, archers paused by Chris's bow to admire it. The tent wasn't ignored either, several comments were made about how nice it was.”

“We shot the 80yds [longest distance]....but towards the end of the 80...it started raining heavily, waterproofs on, stopped raining, overheated in waterproofs....waterproofs off. Rain started again....repeat cycle...again...and again...and again....until lunch. Then Thor decided to make himself known...thunder all around...and torrential rain. The judge delayed the restart to let the thunder pass over, which it kindly did.”

…

“We had poetry readings by they judge for each colour spot prize....

“I [Kathy] beat Chris to the best Barebow gold” , “The end that Kathy won the best gold was an end I [Chris] shot 5 gold arrows... that’s how good her gold was!”

Apparently Kathy’s gold was closer to the centre than the compound !!…

[Other highlights] “I [Kathy] have an extensive conversation about amphibians until we were told to get back to the shooting line....and …There was an aeroplane and a wasp buzzing around my hand at full draw.”

…

So shooting finished and...then they had a shoot off !! (Closest to the Gold stays in)

…

“Longbows v Barebows and Recurve v Compound...4 archers to a target, closest to the gold wins. 2 go through and 2 eliminated... I [Kathy] made the final 3 with Chris and a longbow. ...the longbow had a lucky shot and beat me and then Chris beat me”......” and he went through as winner of the Longbow/ Barebows. Meanwhile the same process was happening at the other end...and it was whittled down to 2 Recurves and 1 compound which Chris joined....he fought through to be up against the compound and composed himself with the whole field looking on......and lost.

But very Well done to a second place!”

…

So after a long fun day of shooting the final treasure haul was this :

Chris takes the Gold for the Gent Barebows with a Medal and Goblet trophy, takes the Welsh record for a Hereford round, A PB (Personal Best score), and a box of chocolates for coming 2nd in the shootoff.

Kathy also takes home the Gold medal and Goblet trophy for the Lady Barebows, also a PB, An engraved glass (plus bottle of beer) for the best score by a Lady shooting the tournament for the first time.

And lastly, and by no means leastly, Kathy shoots her 3rd MB (it was actually a GMB [Grand Master Bowman]) score of the year.

THE GLAMORGAN OUTDOOR COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS REPORT:

The Glamorgan Outdoor County Championships, a tournament so prestigious it is simply known as… The Glamorgan Outdoor County Championships.

A tournament like no other outdoor county championships held in Glamorgan. This is the pinnacle of some archers year. Only the best county archers hope to win, this isn’t like other tournaments where you can just turn up and take home a medal, this is where everything is tested: Concentration, Skill, Endurance, Waterproofing on your coat. Only the best will prevail and even dream of taking one medal…or 5 (hint)

Rick S’, Steve C’, Michelle W’, Sarah I’,Wendy Wo’, Chris O’ and Mike Wo’ travelled to the often wet land of Neath, and found it surprisingly not wet, for a few hours then it rained again, but then it was dry again so the surprise returned.

The day continued as days often do, most of the arrows travelling the full 70m distance, some a little more, some a little less, the odd one or two finding the wrong target somehow but we wont mention them. But by the end of it all the band of archers were more or less, some a little less some a little more, happy with the results.

After a pretty good double victory for Castle Bowmen in the raffle the main medal ceremony took place with great fanfare* ('*there was no actual fanfare unfortunately).

Michelle took a very well deserved Silver for the Lady Recurves along with an excellent Bowman classification score. Wendy took Silver for the Lady Barebows with Sarah taking a Bronze. Chris takes home a Silver medal for the Gent Barebows with Mike taking the Gold, Trophy, Welsh Record and his 13th County title.

MEANWHILE IN ANOTHER PART OF THE COUNTRY…

Kathy C’ decided to go on a long distance trek and found herself at the Worcester County Championships, and just by chance had her bow with her and so decided to take part.

After arriving early Kathy made a list of the things anyone who shot this tournament would like to know. All very important archery things you’re probably thinking….

• “ They had...pens for sale!

• The tent behind me had a full on camp stove and were cooking their own bacon....

• We had an official wasp warning in the briefing.....

• There were church bells....for AGES!

• Paragliders

• Army helicopters

• Steam train...the Cheltenham lass liked this very much

• Cows...again the Cheltenham lass liked these, they were her "support cows"

• pub singers belting out a rendition of Let It Go whilst we were on the line.”

As for the actual shooting the day started like this “It was awful!!! As awful as can be......!” “my pride wouldn't let me retire though”.

And this was a good thing because, after a quick look at the cows and a listen to the churchbells, the next distance started to get better…. and then it got even better….. and then even more better. Culminating in a PB (Personal Best score) , a 2nd MB (Master Bowman score) and a Silver medal for 2nd Lady Barebow visitor.

So the moral of the story is, don’t give up if it starts to go wrong, keep striving to be your best, and you never know what the outcome may be.

As we enter the end game for the Glamorgan Postal League Team Tournament it's all to play for with some teams tied on points. So it will all come down to the final month. Can they take the pressure ?  Will they Crumble ? Who will triumph ?  Stayed tuned...

(For some other teams the end result is a bit like Thanos...inevitable)

Updated results for the Glamorgan Postal JULY RESULTS > HERE <

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Imants G’ gains his 1st Class Barebow Classification

• Nick M’ & Christian L’ gain their 3rd class Classification

• Christian L’ gains his Archer Classification

• …

• Chris O’ improves his Barebow H/C score

• Imants G’, Mark H’, Mike R’ & Gerhard N’ improve their Recurve H/C score

The mighty West wind played upon the treetops. Sending unsuspecting leaves, branches and tiny surprised birds circling into the air on its endless quest to cause mischief and mayhem across the land.

Deaf to the pitiful cries of the mere mortals far below, the cries of anguish and pain lamenting what could have been, what should have been… the cries of “That should have gone in the Gold but the wind took it !@#!!”

The Black & Gold York/Hereford summer tournament was rather windy. Did this mean the Castle Bowmen heroes wouldn’t complain about it ?… course they would, but the shot it anyway.

Kathy C’, Sarah I’, Rick S’, Chris O’ and Mike Wo’ all shot this windy tournament in Cheltenham for a bit of fun and came away very happy bunnies too.

The weather didn’t help the proceedings at all, but pressing on regardless the band of highly trained birthday cake eating athletes finished the round with as much skill as they started it.

For the lady barebows Kathy C’ ended taking home a shiny Silver for 2nd place (plus an all important raffle prize), with Sarah taking the Bronze just behind. Sarah also winning an excellent ‘nearest to the Gold’ trophy to take away.

The Gent Barebows didn’t let us down either with Chris taking home the Silver medal and Mike the Gold. Mike just missing out on a GMB score by 4 points….4 points he just couldn’t make up….4 points that were completely out of reach and absolutely couldn’t have been scored no matter how hard he tried……. well,… apart from the 3 arrows he shot at the wrong target, but apart from that nowhere else .

Mike Wo’ was a volunteer at the British Transplant Games in Newport this month. This multi-sport event is held at different locations around the UK each year for anyone who has received an organ transplant, and is mainly to highlight the importance of organ donation. Mike was coaching at the Archery event (obviously). Here is a picture from the South Wales Argus newspaper.

In their endless pursuit of shiny things Castle Bowmen once again traversed the wild lands of Eastern Wales, across the raging River of Severn and into the strange and exotic land where only one language can be found on the road signs (weird huh?).

Chris O’ and Mike Bar’ took their place on the shooting line of the highly prestigious and very popular high level World Record Status Cleve Archers WA70m, H2H and WA1440 tournament weekend.

On the Saturday despite the tricky wind conditions Chris shot a very respectable 70m score to be ranked for the Head to Head section of the tournament, and took top spot for the Gent Barebows. Unfortunately he had to compete directly against Recurve archers in the 2nd stage of the tournament, and so being at a slight sight disadvantage, although putting in a good show, did not progress further.

“The weather conditions (for the Sunday WA1440) were humid, clammy with an occasional very light breeze, it rained pathetically at 2pm for about 2 minutes, so basically near perfect ..I had nothing to blame...Damn!..” (Mike Bar’)

Apart from the toilets being a 22 mile trek away the shoot progressed quite smoothly for all the archers. And at the end of the day Chris and Mike both agreed the results were..mostly good.

Chris picked up another Gold for his collection with another Master Bowmen score, and Mike had shot a very impressive PB (Personal Best score) for the round along with collecting a World Archery Star progression badge for attaining more than 1100 points.

“My main goals were to improve on my UK Ranking scores and I added an extra 102 points so on reflection very happy.” (Chris O’)

It was an extremely busy and full weekend of archery tournaments for Castle Bowmen. Here is the fully updated complete enormous Archery Weekend report.

includes : 2 Days, 4 tournaments, 3 Counties, 11 Castle Bowmen, 1 birthday cake and a ton of medals…Just keep reading, you’ll get through it eventually.

table of contents:-

• Tournament 1 - Supermarine Bowmen WRS Double WA70m

• Tournament 2 - Dorset & Wiltshire County Championships

• Tournament 3 - RJD Record Status Westerns Tournament

• Tournament 4 - Cheltenham Archers WRS Double WA70m

Tournament 1:

Day 1:- In the wilds of Wiltshire Kathy C’ and Mike Wo’ embarked on a gruelling 300+ arrow 2 day shoot at Supermarine Bowmen, starting on the Saturday with a World record status Double WA70m.

Shooting against many UK ranked opponents, clouds above always holding the possibility of an unlikely surprise rain shower, the smell of bacon from the refreshment tent and the extra long trek to the toilets meant it wasn’t going to be an easy task.

The day continued with many ups and downs…and a few left and rights. But at the end of Day 1 the victorious Castle Bowmen were …victorious.

Kathy had shot an awesome PB (Personal Best score), beaten the Welsh record for the Lady Barebow WA70m AND Double WA70m rounds AND took home a shiny Gold medal. Mike took home the Bronze medal for the Gent Barebows which he was very happy with considering the high quality opponents…

Day 2 :- A WA1440 awaited Mike and Kathy for day 2 and the weather was unforgiving… bright sun and no wind would make for a terribly ideal day, and no excuses.

After many many arrows of seemingly never ending shooting the results were announced (in a very nice club house bar btw).

Kathy C’, after shooting a PB yesterday had shot another one today and also shot a MB (Master Bowman) score for today too, and collected the very nice Wiltshire & Dorset Archery Association Gold medal for top Lady Barebow.

Mike Wo’ battling the perfect weather and topping the leaderboard for most of the day decided to make things more exciting and put in a miss at 30m…. and still managed to take Gold for the Gent Barebows along with his first GMB (Grand Master Bowman) score of the year.

Tournament 2:

While all this was happening a much bigger band of Castle Bowmen heroes had travelled to the Annual Record Status RJD Archers ‘Westerns’ tournament just outside Cardiff.

Michelle W’, Sarah I’, Emily C’, Ryan P’, Mike Bar’ and Birthday Boy Chris ‘Master Bowmen’ O’ were battling to see just how many shiny blings they could collect, and it turns out… quite a few.

Here’s the report:

“The Castle Bowmen archers arrive in force for Saturdays RJD western shoot. 6 members in total, 5 of which crammed into One tent, but all came away with medals. Emily C’ picked up a Silver for the under 12’s Barebow, Ryan P’ also picked up Silver. Sarah I’ battled off her competitors to take the Gold. Mike Bar’ closing out a close competition also to take the Gold. Chris O’ also taking the Gold, along with a Welsh record (and only 4 points away from the UK record), and last but not least Michelle Wood consistent as ever also took a Gold.”

“My fletchings stayed put…and I didn’t miss. So very happy” …Mike Bar’"

Tournament 4 :

Rick S’, Steve C’, Sarah I’ and Caz’ P travelled to the exotic county of Cheltenham, a place which the locals call…Cheltenham, to shoot in their Record Status Double WA70m tournament. The day promised much with steam trains and Red Arrows (the aeroplane type) on the menu.

Everyone arrived early and enjoyed the cool, calm and still weather and hot bacon rolls, ready to enjoy a nice relaxing day. Also enjoying the excellent hospitality of the host club “Cheltenham folks came round topping up people’s water bottles in the afternoon, and also came round with rolls and cold drinks for purchase a very reasonable discounted rate during a comfort break in the afternoon round.”

Sarah, only shooting the morning round, but doing it extremely well got a Senior Bowman score to add to her Gold medal she collected at the RJD shoot the day before.

Caz’ also shot an excellent PB for the morning (equivalent to GMB), Rick was very pleased after a little shakey start finished the morning nailing the 1st Class score he had set himself as a Season objective, and Steve ..was shooting with a different bow set up than usual and valiently stuck it out to the end like a hero.

The lunch break was pleasant but seemed to kill everyone off as the heat increased and that subtle wind change saw everyone chasing arrows for several ends – going low.

So in conclusion, A pleasant day’s shooting but with a deceptively tricky wind to cope with meant some slight drops in scores for the afternoon, but overall a very enjoyable day out. Rick got his 1st Class tournament score and gained some valuable UK ranking points, Sarah continued with her excellent Senior Bowman scores, Steve didn’t come last and also gained some UK ranking points, but as always the Castle Bowmen star of the shoot was of course Caz, picking up a well earned Silver medal for coming 2nd for the Lady Barebows, only being beaten by a well established Grand Master Bowman.

The highlight of the day is always the raffle… and Caz didn’t let us down in that either, taking many many prizes.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Chris O’ gains his Master Bowman Classification

• Emily C' gains her 1st class Classification

• Lydia G’ gains her 2nd class Classification

• …

• Ryan improves his Recurve H/C score

• Sarah R’, Chris O’, Emily C’ & Mike Wo’ improve their Barebow H/C score

• Andrew P’ improves his Longbow H/C score

Castle Bowmen invade the Gloucestershire County Championships:

Always eager to collect shiny pieces of precious metals, a band of Castle Bowmen’s finest archers travelled to the Gloucestershire County Championships, in the far off county of.. Gloucestershire…(obviously), hosted most expertly by one of the largest clubs in England, Deer Park Archers.

Chris O’, Mike Wo’, Mike Bar’ and Kathy C’ made the long trek across the land and water in search of gold and glory for the club, and at the end of the day had found plenty of both.

Amazingly for mid summer there was no rain the entire day !!!, something welcomed by all the archers. Unfortunately the wind had so much fun it decided to stick around for the whole tournament, something not welcomed by the archers.

But, by the end of the very long day every one of the Castle Bowmen archers had lots to smile about, with lots of sparkly bling to haul back home across the bridge.

Kathy C’ took home a Gold medal as top scoring Lady Barebow visitor, with Mike Wo’ taking Silver and Chris O’ taking Bronze for the Gent Barebow visitors. Kathy, Mike and Chris also being 1st, 2nd & 3rd Overall. In the Gent Recurve category, shooting a PB (Personal Best) score, was Mike Bar’ and he also took home a very nice Bronze medal for coming 3rd.

Additionally, Chris O’ has now officially attained the classification of Master Bowman, as he shot his 3rd MB (Master Bowman) score of the season today, so congratulations to him.

One more award was awarded, and that was the trophy for the highest scoring visitor team…. and it went to … <insert drum roll>…Castle Bowmen , the team being Kathy C’, Mike Wo’ and Mike Bar’.

The WA900 ‘Doug Woodley’ Summer Tournament Report:

Named after one of the founders of Castle Bowmen the Doug Woodley is our Annual Open Tournament for anyone to enter and in which we usually win lots of the medals… and this year was no exception.

Steve C’, Rick S’, Mike Bar’, John H’, Daniel H’, Andrew P, Wendy W’, Michelle W’, Sarah R’ (G’ Suzy), Caroline P’, Ryan P’ & Sarah I’ all took there places on the start line.

The day started with quite nice weather and ended in rain….no surprise there. But this didn’t stop our awesome archers hitting the Gold, Red, Blue.. Black…. White ……and occasional grass to sweep up all the major category medals.

Michelle W’ acting as the Lady Paramount for the day presented all the medals to the winners.

Taking the Golds were Andrew P’ (longbow), Caroline P’ & Chris O’ (barebow), Michelle W’ & Mike Bar’ (recurve). Taking home the Silvers were Wendy W’ (recurve) and Sarah I’ (barebow), and claiming a Bronze was Sarah R’ (barebow). All in all a very successful day for Castle Bowmen with many compliments given to the club by many of the visiting archers from other clubs.

Neath Archers record status Open Tournament report:

Neath .. The only archery club to guarantee the weather….they guarantee Rain.

Michelle W’, Kathy C’, Caz’ P’, Rick S’, Chris O’, Mike Bar’ & Mike Wo’ ignored the weather report and travelled west to the rainy realm of Neath Archers for their Open York/Hereford Tournament.

As a treat for all the brave archers the skies decided to use all the rain up in the morning, whilst everyone shot the longest most difficult distances. With brief, occasional and quite surprising breaks in the clouds the weather improved slightly as the targets got closer, and the soggy band of heroes shot on.

Unfortunately Mike Bar’ had to retire early again due to catastrophic equipment failure, but by the end of the day everyone else had shot magnificently (considering the conditions). Proving, once again, Castle Bowmen deserves the title of Club of Champions. Every member of Castle Bowmen that completed their round either came 1st or 2nd in their category.

Michelle W’ took Gold for the Lady Recurves with Rick S’ taking Silver for the Gents.

For the Barebows Kathy C’ takes home a Gold with Caz’ P’ taking the Silver, With Mike Wo’ taking Gold and Chris O’ the Silver for the Gents.

The WAA 2-Day Spring Tournament report:

Following an exciting weekend of rain, wind, hail, thunder, lightning, more rain and more wind you’d expect some exciting stories to come from the heroic archers shooting at the Welsh Archery Association’s 2-day Spring Festival hosted by Blandy Jenkins archers, and you’d be right.

Chris O’, Rick S’ & Mike Bar’ all decided to brave the elements to take on this prestigious event. On the Saturday Rick, shooting the WA70m and H2H rounds, shot a reasonable score in the morning considering the conditions, and in the afternoon Head-to-Head round picked up lots of well earned UK ranking points despite being knocked out in the first round.

“So todays 70m and h2h didnt go too badly despite the horrendous wind. I know its the age old excuse for a poor score but it really was awful as tents flew over our heads and arrows veered both left and right (same shot). I finished 8th (not 11th as predicted) and my predicted 9th in the h2h for a nice 221.25 points for the uk rankings”- Rick.

Mike Bar’, shooting the WA1440 round on the Sunday shot excellently in the morning……

Top praise though is reserved for Chris O’ representing the Barebows. On the WA70m round he dominated the competition winning the qualifying round convincingly despite the atrocious weather

“This was the most challenging day I’ve experienced as an archer”.- Chris

In the afternoon H2H knock-out section Chris sailed through the early rounds relatively easily, but then in the final round to decide who would take the shiny Gold medal he met his arch nemesis….Darran…

After 2 rounds of shooting they were tied…

“The H2H final came down to the last game to decide the winner. In the unpredictable winds It was very much a case of which archer risks aiming a bit higher to hit the gold. I’m glad to say I stuck to my plan... However my opponent took the risk and his arrow was swept into the 2 leaving me victorious.” -Chris

For the Sunday WA1440 round the weather had improved the tiniest amount but still a challenge. Chris however had no problem seeing off the competition, taking Gold AND his 2nd MB (Master Bowman score) of the season.

The Glamorgan County Postal League monthly results are now ready to view >> here <<. Apologies for the delay, it appears some teams (NOT Castle Bowmen) didn’t understand the instruction ‘submit scores by the end of the month’.

Well done to Sarah I’ competing at the Junior Masters tournament in Oxford. The ArcheryGB ‘Masters’ are held annually and are exclusively for archers that have reached the classification of MB (Master Bowman), which Sarah did last year.

It was a very long day for the competitors, and after many hours of shooting Sarah finished the day with an excellent result, coming 2nd in her category. Only the UK’s best of the best shoot at the Masters and silver position is a very creditable result indeed, rounding off Sarah’s Junior archery career, as she now prepares to shoot as a Senior from now on.

The latest Summer postal League teams and fully updated Top 10 Hall of Fame for June are now available for your viewing on the >Postal League page<

NEWS FROM THE POSTAL LEAGUE GUARDIAN:

The Winter Postal League final results have been announced and Castle Bowmen’s Portsmouth Teams A AND B came top of their divisions with Teams C AND D coming 2nd in their divisions.

In the Outdoor Winter Frostbite league Castle Bowmen Teams A….B……C…..AND…..D ALL came top of their divisions to take the champions League trophy (well little badges but they are shiny)

When the winners badges are received they will be awarded to all the highest contributing archers for each respective division.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• Sarah I’ gains her Senior Bowman Classification

• Andrew P’ gains his Bowman Classification for Barebow

• Mike Bar’ gains his Bowman Classification for Recurve

• Gerhard N’ & Mathew W’ gain their 2nd Class Classification for Recurve

• Gerhard N’ & Mathew W’ gain their 3rd Class Classification for Recurve

• …

• Mark H, Daniel H’, Gerhard N’, Caz’ P’,Emily C’, Jack E’,Owen C’, Mike Bar’, Mathew W’ & Andrew P’ improve their Outdoor H/C score

All the Postal League teams and Hall of Fame lists for May are on the Postal League page now

Things NOT to leave near the targets - Part 2

Do NOT leave score boards near the targets unless you are 100% guaranteed not to miss, they break if they are hit and then the club has to get new ones.

In general it’s best not to leave anything near the targets that might get broken or damage someones arrows if they accidentally hit it.

Remember the rule: If you break someones arrow (through negligence), you pay for it.

Don’t take the chance.

The Summer postal leagues have started this month with the Longbows putting in some good team scores.

All the dates, opponents, scores and results can be found on the Postal League Page and the Calendar page.

Also remember, we’ll be having tea, coffee and cakes once a month for everyone, so even more reason to check out the dates so you don’t miss out on a team place (or cakes).

The Annual Castle Bowmen ‘Val Goodman’ Junior May Metrics was shot this year under beautiful blue skies without a breath of wind to wobble the arrows.

Nearly dozens of junior archers came from clubs far and wide from all over South East Wales to shoot at this unique event in the archery calendar, the only full size 12-dozen tournament specifically for Juniors only.

Val G’, whom the event is named after, was on hand to provide Lady Paramount duties, and Steve C’, as part of his Judge training, provided the extremely competent judging decisions and whistle expertise that we’ve all come to expect from our fine Welsh Archery Judges.

The stars of the tournament though were of course the archers. Castle Bowmen Juniors were in attendance and shot superbly throughout the whole day.

Sarah I’, her last year as a Junior, took Gold in her category, which also gave her a Senior Bowman Classification. Owen C’ and Rachel T’ also took Gold for the Barebows in their age categories. In their first big tournament both Lydia G’ and Emily C’ shot awesomely well against some experienced opposition to take home a Silver and Bronze respectively.

After the tournament we received lots of positive feedback from the other clubs saying how much they enjoyed the day and how good the shoot was.

All the Glamorgan postal league teams have finally entered all their scores and the April divisional standings are available >here<

CASTLE BOWMEN @ THE LLANTARNAM WORLD RECORD STATUS 70m & H2H TOURNAMENT :-

In a chilly field in Southern Gwent 5 brave Castle Bowmen competed in an exciting battle of skills, concentration and wits.

Rick S’, Steve C’, Caz’ P’, Chris O’ & Mike Wo’ first had to focus all their attention on a WA70m qualifying round… which they did suburbly of course. Mike Wo’, Chris O’ and Caz’ P’ all ending in the top 5 overall.

Then the difficult bit began…

The Head-to Head round is a direct competition against another archer with less than a dozen arrows to beat your opponent. Focus on very single shot is vital, every single point is absolutely essential and must be fought for because failure means an immediate end to your competition, but success means progression to the next round and one step closer to the shiny shiny things at the end.

Steve had an unlucky draw for the first round and got knocked out by a very skilled opponent. Rick also had a bit of a challenge in the first round, a former Welsh Recurve Champion, but with perseverance and concentration he defeated his foe magnificently, and only just missed out on going through the next round too.

The Barebows also fared well with Caz’ getting through to the Quarter Finals before being knocked out. Chris and Mike battled through their Semi-Final rounds with determination, only to be pitted against each other in the Gold/SIlver final match.

After 2 ends they were tied …the final few ends would be the decider.

At the end of a long and cold day the final results found Chris going home with a Silver medal and Mike taking the top spot and the Gold.

REMEMBER WE ARE NOW ADDING ANOTHER SHOOTING DAY TO THE SCHEDULE -

SO YOU CAN NOW SHOOT TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY & FRIDAY EVENINGS PLUS THE USUAL SUNDAY MORNING.

Improvers for the Month…:-

• …

• Andrew P’, Ian M’, Daniel H’ & Chris O’ improve their Outdoor H/C score

CASTLE BOWMEN @ BATH ARCHERS WORLD RECORD STATUS 2-DAY WA1440 TOURNAMENT :-

A 2 day WA1440 World Record Status tournament is one of the most challenging events you can enter. Over 300 arrows shot against the best of the best opponents, every shot needing full concentration over both days as a tiny slip could spell disaster. But Castle Bowmen Barebows know no fear and had mentally prepared themselves for 2 long days of intense competition.

…

Day 1 report :…cancelled due to high winds…..

…

Ok…. well a single WA1440 is still quite tricky.

…

Day 2 report : Kathy C’, Chris O’ & Mike Wo’ travelled, once again, to the slightly far away city of Bath to try and steal some of their Bling. The winds had mostly gone, and this time, as 3/4 of the targets hadn’t fallen over, the judges allowed the shoot to start.

Kathy C’ had an extremely experienced Lady Barebow rival to compete against all day, and by lunch time was trailing in 2nd place by more than a few points... But Kathy mustered all of her psychological reserves, remembered her training, tried to do it properly, and ate more ‘delicious’ seaweed, and at the final whistle had taken a magnificent victory to get Gold and the Trophy.

Chris and Mike had many rival Gent Barebows to compete against so both had to be on top of their game. They were both fairly well matched all day and after 10 dozen arrows were exactly tied on score. SO it came down to the last few ends to see who would reign victorious, the last end of the day being particularly magnificent as both scored 10,10,10,10,10,8. But as the final scores were tallied Mike had taken the Silver medal and Chris, with his first MB (Master Bowmen) score, had a shiny Gold medal and Trophy to take home.

A team trophy was also on offer for the team of 4 archers that collectively scored more than the other teams. Each team had to fill out a form and hand it in to the organisers, which Castle Bowmen duly did, despite only having 3 archers and would have to compete against all the other teams with compounds and recurves in, because you never know....

“And the winning team, taking home another medal each and team trophy is, Kathy, Chris & Mike from Castle Bowmen “ !!!!

Other thoughts on the day :

“Veggie Burger not too shabby“ Chris

“I must find out where that woman got those archery earrings” Kathy

“We’re feeling ambitious but there’s no way we’ll win the team prize” Mike

Check out the current Welsh rankings - It makes interesting reading…

>> welsh archery association rankings <<

Spoilers … We have half the top 10 Recurve spots in Wales and the 7 best Barebow archers in the Country.

Chris O’ was the sole Castle Bowmen shooting at Bath Archers Spring Albion Shoot:

The Castle Bowmen AGM and Annual handicap improvements awards ceremony was very well attended, the highest turnout ever in fact. With more than enough food to keep everyone happy.

The Chairman thanked everyone for helping to make the club the smooth running, fun and safe place it is today, and urged newer archers who might not do tournaments to maybe give them a go to see how fun they are.

Castle Bowmen is still one of the biggest clubs in Wales and with future plans for next years 50th Anniversary in full swing it is hoped we will continue to give all our members an enjoyable place to make friends and practice their archery.

WEEKDAY OUTDOOR SHOOTING IS HERE !!!
Starts Wednesday 3rd April from 5.30pm til dark

Improvers for the month... :-

• Wendy W’ gains her 1st Class Recurve Classification

• Delyth G’ gains her 3rd Class Barebow Classification

• …

• Wendy W’ & Edith M’ improve their Outdoor H/C scores

• …

• Christian L’ (Recurve), Mark H’ (Compound) & Mike Wo’ (Barebow) gain their indoor ‘D’ classifications.

• Alzbeta S’ (Recurve), Mark H’ (Compound) & Trevor H’ Barebow) gain indoor ‘E’ classifications

• Mark L’ gains his indoor ‘F’ classification

• …

• Mark H’, Mike Wo’, Alzbeta S’, Christian L’, Chris O’ & Trevor H’ improve their indoor H/C Scores

The final indoor session of the Winter season is on Sunday 31st March at St Davids. Then it’s outdoors all the way through the summer.

The 1st weekday Outdoor Session is next Wednesday (April 3rd) from about 5-30pm til it gets dark.

For all the Indoor and Outdoor Classification, Handicaps and Club records just go to the Classification page (click the black badge on the Home page) or just click this link >here<

As the end of the winter postal season is looming, with only this month’s matches left to make a difference in the final results, the postal guardian has received notification from the central organisers of our progress so far (well up to and including Januarys matches, we don’t want to spoil the surprise too much).

Frostbite League:-

• Team A … 1st in Division

• Team B… 1st in Division

• Team C… 1st in Division

• Team D… 2nd in Division

Highest scoring archers in the whole of the UK (for their Frostbite divisions)

• December … Mike Wo’ (A), Kathy C’ (B), Caz’ P’ (C)

• January … Kathy C’ (C)

  
  

Portsmouth League:-

• Team A … 1st in Division

• Team B… 1st in Division

• Team C… 2nd in Division

• Team D… 3rd in Division

Highest scoring archers in the whole of the UK (for their Portsmouth divisions)

• December … Mike Wo’ (A), Michelle W’ (A)

• January … Mike Wo’ (A)

Well done to Chris O’ for being the sole Castle Bowmen representative at Llandaff City Bowmen’s Open Portsmouth tournament … and coming away with an awesome victory.

Not only did he win the Gold after coming top and beating everyone in his category, he also recorded a PB (Personal Best score)… AND ... claims the prestigious Red Dragon Badge too.

and in his own words…:-

“I haven’t really enjoyed indoor shooting but after arriving to a wet boggy St Fagans i was glad to be shooting indoors. It’s was a very psychological shoot having to shoot on the same target as my main competitors and do the scoring but I stayed focus on the main goals for the day. Chasing down that 520 Red Dragon badge was a great distraction from thinking of medal contention. I really wasn’t bothered by a finishing position but I was delighted I held my nerves during my last few ends. I shot a PB 525 Portsmouth and got that red dragon badge....”

Improvers for the month... :-

• Emily C’ gains her 2nd Class outdoor Classification

• …

• Chris O’ gains his ‘D’ indoor Classification

• …

• Sam C’, Umberto S’, Theo G’ & Chris O’ improve their outdoor H/C Scores

• …

• Trevor H’, Sarah D’, Caz’ P’, Chris O’, Drew M’, Karl C’ & Mike R’ improve their Indoor H/C scores

The full chart rundown for the Postals is ready to view. Click the Blue one for the Frostbite League and the Red one for the Portsmouth League. Only one more match to play this season before the winners are decided.

Teams are listed, as always, on the Postal League page.

In case you missed the Club’s New Year H/C Shoot, and also missed the presentation ceremony at the Annual Club dinner, the full list of results plus pictures can be found on the Club Shoot page -

>>HERE<<

For the 13th year in a row Castle Bowmen has had the honour of hosting the Glamorgan County indoor Championships, and as always the tournament was enjoyed by many with the highest turnout in years.

Not only did many of Castle Bowmen help superbly in the smooth running of the event but they also shot in it too, with many excellent results.

Drew M’, Gerhard N’, Christian L’, Mark H’ and Daniel H’ all were competing in their first official tournament and had some good results. Ian M’ for the Barebows came 3rd in the afternoon session and Steve shot too with no major issues.

At the end of the day, after the the entire day’s results were combined there was yet more success for Castle Bowmen’s team of awesome Barebows as they came away with medals of every colour.

The two Castle Bowmen barebow teams came 1st AND 2nd amidst a field of many good individual barebow archers.

Chris O’ took home the Silver Medal for the Gent Barebow with Andrew P taking the Bronze. Kathy C’ also took the Bronze for the Lady Barebows with Caz’ P’, shooting a PB (personal Best score), AND a Glamorgan Masters County Record to take home the trophy and Gold.

Here are a few photos to show how thoughtful and focused our team were on the day.

Here are the Postal League charts for the January Portsmouth and Frostbite tournaments - Just click the pictures below to view.

Improvers for the month... :-

• ...

• Rachel T, Stuart H' & Sarah I' improve their Indoor H/C scores

• …

• Wendy W’ improves her Outdoor Recurve H/C score

  (all the up to date Indoor & Outdoor Classification can now be found by clicking >here<)
  

Castle Bowmen Archers were in good form again at a couple of local tournaments last weekend, bringing back good news from at least one of them,

Ian M’ shooting at the RJD Archers WA18m record status tournament had an interesting time competing at a very pleasant shoot. Here is his full in-depth report;-

‘…I went, I took part, I left. The raffle hadn’t been drawn. It was cold in the hall, I finished my coffee after the first three arrows, that’s It.’

Meanwhile to the East Andrew P’ and Kathy C’ were competing at Llantarnam A.C’s annual Double Portsmouth tournament. The competition was fierce but the cake and tea was plentiful. The raffle provided no wins, but as Andrew reported;-

‘…we were luckily very fortunate not to win a raffle prize, thus saving the humiliation of another pair of slippers and a scented candle. Once the cuddly toy went we knew a plastic vacuum pack full of what looked like polystyrene wasn't going to do it.’

At the end of the 10 dozen arrows, cakes and cups of tea the final results held good news. Andrew had taken the Bronze medal for the Gent Barebows and Kathy took home the Gold for the Lady Barebows plus a well deserved Red Dragon achievement award badge.

Well done to all the Castle Bowmen archers who shot at the Welsh Indoor Championships held in Cardiff.

Mark H’, in his first Indoor tournament, Caroline P’, Kathy C’, Sarah I’, Karl C’ all enjoyed themselves at this important competition in the archery Calendar.

Congratulations must go to Caroline for picking up a well deserved Bronze medal for coming 3rd in the Barebow Category

The Castle Bowmen New Year Shoot was well attended this year, 35 of Castle Bowmen’s finest shot in what is officially the first tournament of the 2019 summer season. It was the highest number of archers shooting since 2011 when the shoot was first devised.

>>click here to see all the results from previous New Year shoots<<

All prizes and results will be presented at the Club’s Annual dinner (31st January - Book your place now).

TO VIEW MOST OF CASTLE BOWMEN’S HISTORY

THROUGHOUT THE YEARS

>CLICK HERE<