05 December 2018 | ACTIVITIES
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www.thevillagenews.co.za
The skilful art of horse archery Writer Tweet Gainsborough-Waring
D
aniel Griffin is a man with many strings to his bow. Not only is he a talented horse archer, but also a craftsman, coach and internationally-recognised, horse-archery judge. According to his mother, Daniel was virtually “born on a horse”. As a keen walker, she found him too heavy to carry and had him on a horse at 18 months old. This enabled her to take him walking on the lead rein, and by the age of three he was riding independently. Ever since, horses have been part of his life. Then came the bows and arrows – first shooting at tree trunks. As Daniel grew older his passion for archery and horses merged into a logical conclusion – mounted archery. Living on a farm in Wolvengat, a remote area near Elim, meant there were too few players for team sports, so one had to find a suitable individual sport. While being predominantly self taught (he started shooting from a horse in 2010), Daniel had the privilege of being coached by the Hungarian master of horse archery, Lajos Kassai. He has demonstrated his prowess locally at wine festivals and agricultural shows, and has competed at an international level, most recently in the Al Faris International Horseback Archery Championship III in Jordan. The competition attracted 48 riders from 25 countries. Daniel, who was a silver medallist in the Oriental Style of shooting, had the honour of receiving his prize from King Abdullah.
Describing himself as a professional horse archer, Daniel has meticulously created a training facility of an international standard on the farm. It includes a shooting arena, where archers can warm up before mounting, holding paddocks for the horses, a track with electronic scoring system and seating for spectators. With the advent of sophisticated timing and scoring equipment, the age-old art of mounted archery has catapulted into a modern-day sport. As the archers enter the 100m measured track they set off an electronic timer that allows them to judge their speed (ideally, they should cover the distance in under 20 seconds). Once out of the timed zone, their times and scores are displayed on a board. The instant result adds to the excitement as the next archer knows the score to beat. Daniel trains for up to four hours a
day and is ranked in the top 20 internationally, in the Hungarian Style of shooting. In addition, to foster the development of the sport in South Africa, he runs a horse archery club which has a three-day training weekend every month. Members travel from as far as Cape Town and Stellenbosch, as well as from neighbouring areas such as Bredasdorp and Caledon. It’s an invigorating weekend. Members can stay on the farm and families are encouraged to get involved with tasks such as scoring, as well as collecting the used arrows after an archer has finished on the track. Training emulates the actions that horse archers would have used in battle. Riders collect their arrows and ride to the track. They pass through the electronic sensor and begin firing at the target until they reach the end of the timed zone. This involves rotating from the hips so that they are always facing the target. Easy enough when starting out and moving toward the target, but more challenging toward the end of the track when facing backwards in the saddle. Each horse archer gets nine firing runs past the targets, after which the overall scores are totalled. Horse archers use saddles with high fronts and backs for better support when rotating to face the target. Newcomers, however, execute their first sessions bareback. Daniel believes this is the best way to develop a feel for the horse and its movements. Once riders have achieved a minimum of 30 points in one session, they can ride with a saddle. “It’s a bit of a selection process,” explains Daniel. Good balance and the ability to control the horse without reins is essential because two hands are used to draw the bow. Mounted archery combines strength and precision with a keen sense of balance and a good eye. Many exponents of this sport started out as either an archer or a rider, and later combined the two. Archery alone requires a finely-honed technique if one is to be consistently accurate; now imagine that combined with the movement of a horse constantly changing the distance from the target. Mounted archers first appeared on battlefields in the 4th century. They had more speed and manoeuvrability than foot soldiers and were superb riders who could control their horses without using the reins. The modus operandi of attack was known as the “whirlwind of death” as archers operating in a circular movement would go into attack with a handful
Professional horse archer Daniel Griffin executes a backward shot. The age-old skill of horse archery is promoted and developed by Daniel through his Mounted Archery Training Centre at Wolvengat, where an international event will be hosted on Sunday 9 December.
of arrows, fire them off, then return to collect another batch. They were able to fire at a phenomenal speed – a group of 2 000 Huns in battle could fire an estimated 2 000 arrows every 1.3 seconds. As well as training mounted archers, Daniel manufactures saddles specifically for the sport. It takes anything from 80 – 100 hours to complete a saddle because the leather is hand stitched. He also makes his own arrows, with steel tips, from carbon fibre. Most of the raw materials are imported, and despite it being an age-old skill, he says there is constant refinement of the equipment used to make it lighter, faster and more accurate. Daniel practises natural horsemanship, so his 10 horses are not stabled but free to enjoy 80 hectares of grazing, when not working. His dream is to breed the ideal horse for mounted archery – one that combines speed with a steady nature. The sport, still in the developmental stage in South Africa, has been included as one of 17 disciplines in the South African Equestrian Federation, and in 2017 was accepted as a discipline by the South African National Schools Equestrian Association. Daniel is keen to contribute to its growth by hosting events and
One of Daniel’s custom-made mounted archery saddles.
training workshops at his track. He is the current South African representative of the International Horseback Archery Alliance. The horse-archery community is closely knit despite being spread across the globe. Competitions are free to competitors, who have only to get to the host country – once there, everything from horses to accommodation is provided. With facilities rated as world class, Daniel has hosted training camps and competitions attended by archers from as far afield as Hungary.
South Africa, by courtesy of Griffin Horse Archery, will host an international event on 9 December. Events are colourful affairs with the riders competing in traditional dress. Representatives from Mongolia, Hungary, UK and Romania are expected. Group visits and lessons are available at Griffins Mounted Archery Training Centre. For details about this ancient skill, Daniel can be contacted on 072 933 4524 or visit Griffins Horse Archery on Facebook.
