And the saga is…………………………………………………………

The saga begins at the renaissance fair in 2021. Julie wanted to take the grand kids so she and Mike along with Kathy and I took the three grand kids. We had a good time and they had several activities you could enjoy like knife throwing, hatchet throwing and archery. The kids wanted grandpa to go with them to shoot some arrows so I went along. Bottom line they just needed someone to pay for them. Anyway, I had shot a bow when I was a kid still in high school but just fooling around. Never anything serious. Well I got lucky and put all 5 of my arrows in the target. The kids thought that was great and that I should come back next year and compete. I made the mistake of laughing and saying sure. Well then they insisted that I do it in costume as well. So the trip started.

I had an old bow that was ordered from Sears probably in the early 60s and given to me. I dug it out of a closet and found it was missing a string. I figured out how to order a string and got one. The first time I pulled the bow back, the wooden parts separated. So, I got some recommended glue for bows and glued it together. I essentially rebuilt it. But, it turns out it was not strong enough and was the wrong size for me. So, I bought a new bow that was stronger and built for my size. I got straw bails and set up a target in the back yard and still couldn’t hit anything. So, I spent a few dollars on a coach to teach me how to shoot a bow. All was good. With some practice I could at least hit the target from 20 yards without too much difficulty.

At the same time I started my research into renaissance appropriate clothing. I made a trip to a store called The Dragon’s Hoard in Florence, KY about a 2 hour motorcycle ride from here. I got some ideas and the guy that ran the place was very helpful. He explained that you don’t have to be accurate as people there dress as almost anything. So, I bought a pair of pants and a shirt. Then got online and ordered some things. Asked for other things for Christmas and my birthday. I managed to put an outfit together. I picked out a pattern for a vest at Hobby Lobby along with some material. Kathy was going to sew it for me but at the last minute she got it done by a friend of ours.

The result:

Then to the line for preparation:

And finally the competition:

At home I was successfully hitting the target from 20 yards. At the competition they started at 10 yards. You got up to three shots to get an arrow in the target. No problem. First arrow was in the target. Then back to 20 yards. Again, no problem. First arrow in the target. Back to 30 yards. Again no problem. Then 40 yards. Took three tries to get an arrow in the target. Then to 50 yards. Couldn’t even come close. I didn’t feel too bad. 17 people started. By the time we got to the 50 yard line there were only 9 of us. After that there were only 4.

So, I accomplished my objective. I didn’t make an idiot of myself and I satisfied the expectation of my grand children.