CUSTOM MADE ARROWS
Part 7 of a series on independent archery businesses. This month: regular Bow columnist Adrian Tippins on his finger slings
culture. In the standard Russian version, a tzar orders his three sons to get married. All three go out into the field and, facing in different directions, shoot an arrow into the sky. Wherever the arrow lands, there each will have to find a wife. Typically, the youngest, often considered the weakest, the simplest, or the least ambitious, finds his arrow near the frog. The frog turns out to be a bewitched princess, but the spell is not broken by the typical ‘frog kiss’. In most Russian adaptations, the frog is not cursed - she is in fact a ‘shapeshifter’, who is a beautiful young woman in ordinary life, but is forced to live in this form for one reason or another, most often as a means of avoiding a forced marriage to an ugly old suitor. In actuality, the future wives were never determined ‘by lot’ or chance - marriages were usually arranged.
‘Shooting arrows to find a bride’ is of course a metaphor for a hunt. To show his virility, the protagonist needs to be a good shot. In earlier traditional weddings (that usually lasted for three days), on the first day men would celebrate by shooting at the ‘front of the bride’s house’ (strelyat’ po basul’kam). The hunting and sexual symbolism is obvious. In this custom a new husband shoots at the façade of the house of his wife, until she eventually surrenders, and the wedding can continue to the next stage - the wedding feast. When rifles became commonplace, they were also used for shooting at ‘basul’kas’. In wedding songs, a man is often personified by a ‘falcon’ (sokol) who hunts a swan (lebed’), his chosen woman.
There is also a bridal custom for the woman, analogous to the idea of the Princess Frog ‘chance’ method, which was often employed in the Russian villages. Single women would walk out into the yard and shout, “Where will I find my husband?”- and would then walk into the direction where the first barking of a dog was heard.
Another curious, though much later and lesser known fairy-tale, deals with an interesting aspect of Slavic courtship - ‘smotrini’, the official first date, where, after meeting the bride’s parents, the groom is weighing up the potential bride’s attributes. Three brothers, archers and hunters, are instructed by their mother to stick their arrows into the ground overnight. They return in the morning to find their arrows beautifully painted. Next night they do the same but hang around to see who did the painting. They witness three spoonbills (waterbirds) fly down only to turn into fine beautiful women once they touch the ground. These shapeshifters paint the arrows again and each says: “This arrow belongs
"ARROWS ALSO OFTEN LEAD THE PROTAGONISTS SOMEWHERE, OR POSSESS THE POWER TO RID A PERSON OF A CURSE"
to my sweetheart”. Real customs would often dictate that a woman had to demonstrate her beauty not only through her appearance, but through her crafts. It is refreshing to see the shapeshifting brides also making the choice of partner, as well as the other way around. Often in these narratives, the Russian brides, though modest, are perhaps not as submissive as in other cultures. (Some would argue the same trait persists today.)
Another common courtship scenario in these tales involves a young man having to prove his worth as a ‘husband material’ to a young woman’s father. The father is often a tzar, and the young suitor is often a poor farmer’s son. Skill in archery is usually one of the tests he has to undergo, and the feat he must achieve is to ‘Robin Hood’ the arrow - or something along those lines. This is the most realistic task he is asked to do. And yes, he has to complete three tasks, as the number three is the universal magic number in most, if not all, Russian stories of all genres.
When fairy-tale arrows are shot at random, it suggests a method of choosing by lot. Things are essentially left to chance, and most often this method is employed by young or immature fairy-tale characters. It signifies the lifting of responsibilities and the leaving of things to Fate or some ‘higher power’. The motif of allowing Fate to decide destiny in Russian folklore is usually also connected to the idea of direction, as in the random shooting of arrows. The arrow in Russian fairy-tales may also be used to distract – but again, in order to aid searching for, hunting down, or winning the desired wife.
The Harsh Realities of Siberian Upbringing
Ancient Russian warriors of those times were excellent archers and horsemen, and many battles were won thanks to that. The bow and arrow provided one of the most common games for children, along with ‘stick fighting’, ‘bareknuckle boxing’, ‘tree climbing’, ‘chasing games’ and other activities aimed at developing physical strength and prowess.
Archaeological finds from Ancient Novgorod (10-13th. C.) feature a vast number of children’s bows, most not exceeding one metre in length. And many Siberian teenagers and women had to learn to shoot a bow in self-defence, during periods when the father of the house, most often a professional ‘druzhina’ warrior, was away working or hunting. As one contemporary account puts it: “Boys of taiga live by one craft - shooting. Parents teach their young. They (teenagers) don’t exercise anything else in their lives, but this one craft. They can kill the strongest beast: a bear, a moose, a deer…and even birds, not only those on water, but also in the sky.”
One of the most popular training games was as follows. Six sticks in two rows of three were stuck into the ground; he who hit the stick advanced forward by the distance of his bow’s length. If he missed, the opponent took his arrow away from him. But not all games were fun. Some were rather cruel, intended to prepare a young warrior for the grown-up realities of the harsh Siberian landscape. For example, a young boy would stand in the middle of an open field, whilst being shot at with blunt arrows. His task was to try to avoid them. The speed and quantity of arrows would gradually increase. And strength and stamina were taught by giving a boy a blunt axe with which to chop wood.
It would take hours, and his palms would likely be bloody and calloused by the time he had finished his task. His eyesight would be tested in a simple way – “if he can see the middle star in the Greater She-bear (Ursa Major) his eyes are good”. Thus, by the age of fifteen or sixteen, he would be ready for any eventuality.
Imake custom made arrows and carry out renovations to existing arrows. I also make deluxe double and single loop finger slings.
I never really wanted to be self employed or run a business. I was made redundant in 2011. The redundancy came at a time when I had a lot of health issues. The business was born out of just doing what I could, and playing to my strengths. I was coaching at that time and I wasn't happy with the arrows and finger slings that new archers were purchasing. I knew that I could do things better.
I had to work out an optimum sling size that was going to suit most recurve and compound shooters alike. The prototypes were then destruction-tested to see just how much punishment they could take. The slings were also given to a host of top-tier archers to use in a real world test, I knew the slings would get a very high rate of use in varying environments. I caught up with Adam Ravenscroft at a tournament around three years after he has received some slings to test. He was still using the same one after all that time. It had been around the world a few times and was still performing well.
Sling sales started pretty much from the get go in 2012. Originally I focused on providing two types of slings in around ten key colours that would find favour with most archers. My slings can now be found at five UK retailers, and you can order directly too.
The slings are a little different to others in the fact that the material is super soft, padded and has an oval contour. This is much kinder and nicer feeling on the fingers compared to paracord versions. This shape also spreads the load better too. I get the factory to make bespoke colours and colour combinations for me, so I can make limited edition runs. I made Tri-colour Team GB slings in 2016 and most recently LGBTQ+ rainbow slings to celebrate gender diversity and equality in our sport. I currently offer around fifty different variants so most people can find something they like.
I deal with all aspects of the slings myself, including the manufacturing and packing. They tend to get made in the more quiet times between arrow building. The hardest part about making them is that it's repetitive and very boring. Normally it's just me and the radio for company. The biggest enjoyment from me is knowing that I have provided a quality, well made product that is going to enhance someone's performance. I do have more than a touch of the mad scientist/inventor in me so it's also really nice to see what starts out as an idea become a tangible product that you can literally hold in your hand.
Custom Made Arrows has become well known for being obsessed with perfection and our customers really value that ethos. Word of mouth has been really powerful for us, and the quality of the products speak for themselves. We do have a busy Facebook page and encourage people to come and follow us to see all the great things we're making.
Coronavirus has really hit small businesses very hard. Archery is a seasonal business and the restrictions hit hardest at the most lucrative time of year. The accounts show a 75% profit loss over last year. I'm really grateful for the Government grant that supports the self employed. I have been lucky that CMA has quite a loyal customer base. We have managed to do everything we needed to using technology without a dip in our advice & service levels.
I think the industry will be affected for quite sometime though. 2020 will have seen a vastly reduced numbers of new archers coming into the sport, and less disposable income around. I have also seen a lot of people not returning to archery. There are a lot of club archers who enjoy the social aspect of the sport; this type of archer is quickly losing interest now that the “social” element is being removed from the sport. Obviously, it's harder to socially distance indoors which causes logistical problems. All we can do is to wait and see what happens next.
My advice to anyone starting a business would be: No matter what you do, always do it to the best of your ability and do it with passion. Listen to the customer and do be afraid to go the extra mile to ensure customer satisfaction. Give an unrivalled personal service, people will respect you for that.
Visit custommadearrows.co.uk for more