Mounted Archery Clinics
For Hunters and Horsemen
We went looking for mounted archery clinics in our area and found none. To ensure horse owners interested in archery have a place to practice, we are forming a chapter with the Mounted Archery Association of the Americas. We are offering traditional AMAA clinics and our own special Forest Archery events. Our clinics begin in June and will go through August/September 2023. Are you a complete novice when it comes to archery, but interested in learning to shoot off of your horse? Are you an expert in both of these arts, yet have no place to practice because your barn won't allow mounted archery due to insurance? We offer mounted archery clinics for intermediate to expert horsemen who hope to make this primitive dream a reality. Click here for information on our 2023 mounted archery clinics.
How We Started
We started offering mounted archery with Jules' friend Tabitha, at Easton Meadows. Pam and Bruce were kind enough to sponsor us and the folks who came out to shoot on Tabitha's horses had a blast. Since then we have trained Zoey and started training Mama to handle a rider with a bow. We have the equipment, the space, the insurance and the training to offer mounted archery, and to teach other horsemen how to desensitize their horses. Our horses are so desensitized that not much fazes them. The secret is the Australian stock whip. We are now training Pepper and hopefully someday Spirit to also let us shoot off their backs.
Jules' has her bow permit in NYS. While riding Zoey this fall, she enjoyed a long encounter with a deer who was completely unafraid of her on the horse. Combining the compound bow with riding Zoey lit a real fire in her heart for hunting off horseback. What fun it would be to join with other hunter horseman out there who want to teach their horses to accept the bow and arrow. In the far future, when the acreage trails are fully formed, there may even be a possibility of hunting off horseback and camping with horses way out back where the wild part of the farm stays wild. Stay tuned!
How it Works
First, time to train your own horse. You will need to desensitize him to the tools, including the bow and arrow, the target, and any other new element that they are not used to.
You will also need to get your horse accustomed to the actual shooting of the bow and arrow. If you do not know how to shoot a bow and arrow, you will also need to learn and practice.
Once you and your horse are ready, you can practice shooting while mounted and stationary.
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Finally, if you and your horse are ready and able, you may shoot while mounted and moving. Depending on you and your horses ability, your horse will either be led, or walk with your own cues.
Here at Hearts in Hand Horsemanship, safety is paramount. Jules is a third-time EMT (beginning as as a firefighter EMT in California), and currently certified in NYS. She was a snowboarding ski patroller at Jiminy Peak, Magic Mountain and Bromley for 9 years. She spent almost 2 years in paramedic school at Hudson Valley Community College, including interning at St Mary's ER, and working as an EMT for Mohawk Ambulance in Albany and Schenectady. Precautions will be taken to ensure everyone's safety and activity will be carried out on a case by case basis.
