The sport of horseback archery is open to all. No previous riding or archery experience is necessary, although it is preferable to get a good grounding in both before attempting to put the two together. You do not need to own your own horse, although we are happy to assist those members who own a horse to train it up for mounted archery. The BHAA maintains a list of affiliated schools and clubs. If you do not have a group near you, then it’s still possible to get started in horseback archery:
How to start out in Horseback Archery
Step by Step Guide
- Get together with few like-minded friends who are interested in having a go!
- Contact us at britishhorsebackarchery@gmail.com to find out if we have a BHAA coach near you.
- If there is no coach in your area then find an Archery GB (target archery) club near you – use their club finder – and enrol on an Archery GB beginner’s course. This will teach you the basics of archery including safe technique (so you don’t injure yourself) and range safety (so you don’t injure anyone else!). But be aware – archery is addictive so you may end up staying on at your target archery club as well as getting into horseback archery!
- Join the BHAA. You will need to do this in order to shoot in any of the BHAA competitions and so that you are covered by our horseback archery specific insurance.
- Order the BHAA Manual here. This will tell you everything you need to know about horseback archery in the UK including how help your horse get used to the equipment and how to set up the shooting run for the different types of competition in the UK. We can also advise you about what kit to buy to get started – it doesn’t have to be expensive!
- Order a Club Horseback Archer logbook, as you will need to be working towards qualification to take part in any official BHAA competitions. It’s not that difficult and you will be able to get your Archery GB coach to sign off on the archery section once you have completed the Archery GB beginner’s course.
- The ridden and horse care part of the qualification can be assessed and signed off by any BHS or ABRS instructor. If you’re not an experienced rider then we recommend you get some lessons at your local riding school – lessons on the lunge are a great way to develop an independent seat for horseback archery and you can work on your balance without worrying about what your hands are doing! The ABRS and BHS maintain a list of registered schools so it’s easy to find a good one.
- Get your logbook signed off by a BHAA Assessor. This can be done as a video submission if there is not a coach available to travel to your area.
- Now you’re ready to set up your club and start competing in our postal matches! Contact us to get all the information you need to get your club up and running and a BHAA club affiliation form. Initially people will tend to learn the Raid style of horseback archery and the Tower style as they become more experienced. A guide to different disciplines is in the manual. The sport of horseback archery is relatively new to this country and although increasing in popularity we are still a small group of people and the BHAA is lucky that experienced members are keen to advise and encourage beginners at training events and competitions. We do our best to provide events for those of all abilities and when members are suitably experienced we can help introduce them to international competition. Membership is available for active (riding) members and supporting (non-riding) members; with concessions for juniors and families.
Join the BHAA
| Level | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| Full riding membership | £50.00 per Year. | Select |
| Junior, students or those with a disability | £30.00 per Year. | Select |
| Ground/Non Riding Membership | £20.00 per Year. | Select |
| Family Membership | £100.00 per Year. | Select |