King Of Bows: The Archery Recurve
Chuck Holloway

Out of all the different kinds of bows for archery available on the market, the most popular by far--and for good reason--is the archery recurve bow. It gets its name from the ends of the bow which, when the bow is unstrung, point back towards the target. Strung, these ends point straight up. The design is a useful one; it gives an added stability to the bow, even without stabilizers added. Besides that, a less practical if equally noteworthy effect: the graceful curves of the archery recurve bow lend it an elegance which other bows can't hope to match.

Other popular bows include the compound bow and the longbow, but neither of them even come close to the archery recurve bow. The compound bow, as the name suggests, is far more complicated than the recurve bow, and therefore harder to use, and while the longbow, on the other hand, is simplicity itself, the high noise and recoil rates mean that only rarely do you actually hit anything with it. And right in the middle you have the archery recurve bow, with some of the stability of a compound bow and most of the simplicity of a longbow, combined. Little wonder that the recurve bow is the most popular of the three by far!

The archery recurve bow is the most common in archery tournaments, probably due to its popularity as well as the other factors already mentioned; ease, simplicity, etc. Quite often, in fact, it's the only bow recognized by archery tourneys and associations. If you are a beginner, just getting into archery, you will probably at least want to start with a recurve bow--and I don't doubt you'll stay with it even once you become an expert. Of all the bows available, it truly does blend the best of all worlds for a satisfying and delightful archery experience unlike any other.

Chuck Holloway is and avid archery fanatic with 18 years of hunting experience. He is a lifetime member of the North American Hunting Club and an active member of the NRA. Chuck has a strong passion for the outdoors and enjoys capturing the details of the hunt in his journals.