| Name: | Marty Sasaki |
| Nickname: | marty |
| E-mail: | marty@mss.tzo.com |
| Newsgroups: | rec.sport.archery, alt.archery |
| Type of user: | Mostly read, occasional questions and answers. |
|
| Notice my almost perfect line ;-)... |
I've "met" lots of great people on the net. Many have patiently answered my questions about form and equipment.
The newsgroups are a wonderful resource. Many folks have made my re-entry into archery much easier than it would have been if I had to figure everything out on my own.
Riser: In 2000 I splurged and purchased a red/black Hoyt Axis. I like the weight and balance of the Axis. Prior to the Axis I owned a "Black Cherry" PSE Zone riser.
Limbs: I'm shooting FX limbs on the Axis. The limbs are smooth and seem fast enough. I haven't shot them outdoors yet, and haven't shot them through a chronograph to know how fast they are.
Rest and cushion plunger: I'm using a Cavalier Free Flyte rest (in flipper rest mode) and a Beiter cushion plunger. The Beiter is a bit of overkill. It isn't any better than other plungers, it's just easier to adjust.
Sight: I'm currently using a Spigarelli Carbon 30. I also have an older Yamaha sight (carbon sight bar, aluminum extension) and a Toxonics Athenian. They all work well.
I'm using a Beiter sight tunnel.
String: I'm constantly amazed that most recurve archers don't make their own strings. A string can make a really big difference in the way a bow shoots, and by making them myself I save a lot of money. I've experimented with various materials, lengths, and number of strands.
I've experimented with Fastflight, S4, Dynaflight 97, 450+, and ASB strings. I really like the fact that S4 doesn't creep, but the Dynaflight seems a bit smoother. The ASB seems even nicer, but it's too early to tell for sure.
Arrows: Carbon Tech McKinney's with Spin wings and Beiter nocks.
Stabilizers Long (40 inch) home made multi-rod, with home made multi-rod twins. The twins are mounted on Shibuya TFCs.
Compound Setup
My compound bow is a Martin Scepter with XRG limbs and Fury-X cams, 59lbs at 28in. I use an AGF sight and a Beiter scope. The rest is a Spigarelli drop down rest. I'm using a TruBall Xtreme release, and a nocking loop.
It's a great shooting bow.
Arrows are CT McKinney's with Spin Wings.
I started shooting when I was a teenager and was fairly competitive in Southern California. My father and I spent every weekend shooting somewhere. Sometimes my sister would tag along, she shot pretty well too.
I stopped shooting almost completely when I enterred college. I was burned out, I had put a lot of pressure on myself to do well.
That was 25 over years ago (yikes!).
Back then I shot a lot of different bows including a Black Widow (don't remember the model name), a Hoyt Pro Medalist, and a TD, a Wing Presentation I, and a Presentation II. I think my favorite bow of that era was the Hoyt Pro Medalist. It had a beautiful rosewood handle and it was smooth and fast (for it's time).
I started shooting again in November 1996, and was pleased to find that I hadn't forgotten everything that I had learned years ago.
I bought a compound bow and shot with a release through the winter. I had also bought a Sky Medalist from someone on the net to see if I wanted to shoot "Olympic bow" style. I decided in late winter to concentrate on recurve shooting and sold my compound on the net and bought the Zone.
Nothing really of note since then. It's hard to juggle work, friends and family, and archery. I continue to shoot and learn.
The Well Shot Arrow There is a wonderful feeling of a well shot arrow. Everything comes together. Pulling through the clicker is effortless and the arrow goes right into the center. I find it extremely relaxing and meditative.
Unfortunately, these shots don't come very often. They sort of tease me, so I keep trying.
Archery Coachs It's too bad that there is so little high quality coaching near by. All of the coachs are capable of teaching the basics through the intermediate levels, but refining things at the top is missing.
Advice to the Young(er) If you are really interested in competitive archery, try to take advantage of the time you have to be the best you can. Unless you are wealthy you won't be able to put in the time that it takes to be near or at the top.
When I was a teenager, I was pretty good. I won a few state championships (California) and routinely finished in the top 3. But like most teenagers other things drew me away and spent less and less time on archery.
Now, 25 years later, I'm trying to get better. It's slow and at times very frustrating. I often wonder how far I might have gone if I stuck with it back then.
This comes up every time I look at competition results and see familiar names from my youth.
