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Video: Eccles Archery Club's open tournament
by Tony Flynn
Edited by Karen Morris On Sunday 23rd May, a red hot day, I attended Eccles Archery Club, off Peel Green Road, Eccles and was amazed at the terrific event that was in progress. The club was holding a UK record status double FITA 70m open tournament, I had no idea what this meant to be honest but the club secretary, Mark Leach kindly showed me around and explained more about the event and Eccles Archery Club. The club which was founded in 1953 stands in 247 acres of land adjacent to the Tindall Street allotments, it has its own clubhouse, plus an indoor range for practice and beginners, with over 100 members. The competition that I witnessed consisted of 18 archers firing six dozen shots each at the target, situated seventy metres away, with scores ranging from ten for a bulls eye and going down to a score of one, the target consisting of concentric circles. What I discovered was the variety of bows used at the event; my knowledge of archery is limited to Robin Hood and men in green tights, etc. You have a recourse bow, a compound bow and a longbow, each with its own method of being fired, some having complicated pulley systems, some of the bows are made of carbon fibre and cost in excess of £1,000 with the arrows costing several pounds each, so these people do take it seriously. Everybody seemed to be having a wonderful time, competitors and onlookers alike, many of them with tents and deck chairs to view the competition, it reminded me of a cross between a pop concert and the battle of Agincourt! Trophies and medal including a wooden spoon were presented to the winning competitors, also Eccles cakes for the runners up.
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