Archery equipment, rounds and classification

Archery New Zealand recognises the following types of equipment for use in New Zealand archery.

• Recurve bow

• Compound bow

• Barebow

• Crossbow

It also recognises the following age related classifications

• Kiwi (up to and including the year of their 10th Birthday)

• Cub (up to and including the year of their 13th Birthday)

• Intermediate (up to and including the year of their 15th Birthday)

• Cadet (up to and including the year of their 17th Birthday)

• Junior (up to and including the year of their 20th Birthday)

• Open/Senior

• Masters 50+ (including and beyond the year of their 50th Birthday)

• Masters 65+ (including and beyond the year of their 65th Birthday)

Progress through the sport is earned and measured by shooting ‘Rounds’ (see below).

The total score shot in any particular round translates (via a set of tables) into a particular rating. The rating is used to grade your score and monitor your progress as an archer.

Archery Rounds

Shooting in competition or for personal advancement is done in ‘rounds’. A ‘round’ is defined as a known combination of target size, distance and arrow counts.

Rounds are usually identified by name. A list of Geraldine Archery club rounds can be found on the website. Each name is associated with a particular arrow count, target size and distance combination. The particular combination defines the round and the name is used to help us remember, and easily refer to, a particular combination. By definition, each round will have a total maximum score.

Indoor rounds are generally shot at distances of 18m or 25m whilst outdoor distances range from 10m to 90m.

A round is divided into ends. An archer shoots either 3 or 6 arrows per end, depending on the type of round (most often 6). After each end, arrows are scored and retrieved.

For example, the outdoor target round CANADIAN 900 consists of 15 ends of 6 arrows each for a total possible score of 900. Because the round includes 3 different distances, the total number of arrows to shoot is split evenly across those distances resulting in 30 arrows (5 ends) being shot at each of 3 the distances (in this case 55m, 45m and 35m respectively).