For me, it was actually more of a coincidence. For many years, I had thought from time to time that archery would certainly be fun. As quickly as the thought was there, so quickly it was forgotten again. Until the day when a contact to an archery club came about. This club is focused on traditional (intuitive) archery. Immediately I was bitten by the archery bug and soaked up all the information I could find. I train a lot and try to improve constantly.
Why now traditional? Well, on the one hand by the coincidence of the choice of the club, but on the other hand also by the experience I have gained so far. The simple fact that I have to constantly work on myself to improve gives me the most fun (and also the most frustration). It’s not primarily about tuning the gear, it’s about personal fine tuning. It’s sometimes incredible to see what humans are capable of. And that’s exactly what can give you a lot of pleasure. I’ve also tried out a lot of things over the course of time. Yes, I once shot a compound bow. You should always be open minded and make new experiences. There is nothing like trying things out. Because that showed me that the traditional way is exactly the right way for me. I don’t want to shoot a bow with a sight. But the experience of having it confirmed through trying it out is something I don’t want to miss.
As nice and open as I have experienced the archery community, unfortunately I have also had to experience many biased views. I would also like to say a few words about this. In personal conversations and, of course, in the social media, you can always find discussions that, in my opinion, are not purposeful. On the one hand, I am concerned with the tiresome discussion “intuitive vs. instinctive” and the quibbling that is sometimes made behind it, the scorn of aiming techniques without sights of some “traditionalists” or the partly unhealthy attitudes between traditional shooters and, for example, compound shooters and Olympic recurve shooters (and vice versa). In the meantime I have learned not to participate in such discussions. I prefer to use my time wisely and will stand on the range or shoot in the course. I think that makes more sense. No matter what bow you shoot and what technique you use, you have found your own way, and that is good. And if you keep an open mind, then each shooter can learn from the other, no matter what bow they have in their hands. To me, we are all sisters and brothers in archery.