The Club & Field Archery

Kings Forest Bowmen was formed in 1979 when Dot and Geoff Southgate moved to Suffolk  from Dunwich where they had previously run an archery club.

The original club was centred round their house and the club hut was in their barn. There was a 14 target course near the house along with practise butts plus another course on the site of the club as it is now.

Sadly in 1995 Dot passed away and the club members decided to ask the Forestry Commission who own the land if they could put up a club hut on the site it is on now in the forest and 3 X 14 courses were also built. This made the club the only one in the country with three permanent courses. A club hut was erected in 1996 and dedicated to the memory of Dot as the founder of the club.

Kings Forest Bowmen membership has flourished, rising from around 20 original members to approximately 150 today. The club boasts many World, European, UK and Nationals champions both past and present, many have travelled all over the world to take part in competitions, from nearby Europe to further away places like America, Australia and Namibia.

Access for club members is 24/7 all year round, thus enabling one to enjoy their hobby whenever they have a chance. Although members are encouraged to take an active part in official shoots (see below) they can just shoot a round for fun. Shooting round a course for two people would take about an hour and is about a mile long. For those who wish to take it a bit further there are Club records to try for at the official shoots. Beginners and taster sessions are available on asking (see below).

Kings Forest Bowmen host an open shoot on the first Sunday of each month to which any member of the English Field Archery Association or I.F.A.A. affiliated member can attend. This comprises of an official round (2 X 14 targets) and is advertised on the club and E.F.A.A. web pages and in the Field Archer magazine. Members are encouraged to support these shoots at least twice a year.

Some club members travel to other clubs to shoot, locally on Sundays and also for tournaments which can be for 2 days nationally or 5 days for World and European competitions.

Membership is renewable on 1st January yearly, along with the compulsory E.F.A.A. fees. Children are accepted but have to be accompanied at all times by a parent or adult guardian, who must also be an E.F.A.A. member. Non- shooting memberships are also available for both because access to the courses is not permitted for non members. There is at present no set times for children to meet, it is just a case of coming to official shoots to meet their fellow young archers or to get to know other youngster from the club and arrange to meet them.

Opportunities to have up to three taster sessions are available with equipment provided. Please contact a committee member to arrange this. However, should you decide to carry on with the sport you would then need to buy your own equipment. Advice would be available to do this but it is not a good idea to just buy anything you see as it might not be suitable for you, some bows need to be bought to fit the archer and there are so many different ones on the market. Most types of bow are welcome although X-bows are not allowed.

Field Archery is a good healthy outdoor sport which can be enjoyed by all ages from 8 to 80+ (our oldest member is over 80). It can be done all year through and in all weathers over many different types of countryside, they are not all flat like the ones at Kings Forest. Field Archery is always a challenge and you can meet some very friendly people.

So if you fancy giving it a go, please contact us.