A fantastic one day horse archery clinic will be conducted in Narrandera this Sunday September 15, subject to there being sufficient entries.

Enthusiasts are invited to come and learn in a safe and fun environment from one of the Australian World Championships Team members and top 100 ranked horse archers in the world.

Ridden, Ground Archery and Fence Sitter places are all available and there will be limited horse hire options as well as organisers are bringing a couple of highly trained school horses along for those who don’t have their own, or want to try learning on an expert horse first.

It is not often that the organisers can coordinate having these school horses away from home so riders are urged not to miss this opportunity. Bookings close today and tomorrow at https://www.nominate.com.au/EquestDn/Event.aspx…Narrandera.

This is an introduction clinic and assumes that you and your horse have never attempted horse archery, although participants with experience will gain a lot from the clinic.

Riders will be instructed in the archery techniques from the ground, including safe carrying of equipment while on horseback, loading of arrows, shooting, targeting and safe retrieval of arrows, introduction of archery equipment to their horses, and basic shooting from the saddle.

There will also be discussions regarding competitions, technique equipment selection, further training, and clubs within Australia.

Tickets are also available for participants in the ground archery session only, and fence sitters.

The instructor Liberty Deaman is currently the highest ranked Australian horse archer (88th in the world) and was the highest scoring Australian rider at the 2023 World Championships held in Mongolia.

She is currently the Australian Representative on the International Horse Archery Alliance and has been active in the Australian Horse Archery Association (as a general member and committee member) for the past five years.

Liberty and her husband Rodney founded Riding With Sticks in late 2023 and have had great local success with bringing horse archery and ridden skill at arms to the local and surrounding regions.

All archery equipment is provided by Liberty including bow, arrows, targets and arm protection. Riders can ride in their regular tack but must have a monkey strap or similar for the front of the saddle.

Bareback riding is not permitted at this event and all riders are required to always wear a suitable helmet to Australian/EA standards when handling horses and riding.

Beginner archery kits will be available for purchase/order during the event.

As it is a one day event, no arrangements have been made for camping and there are only limited places for horse hire for this event.  

This article appeared in the  Narrandera Argus, 12 September 2024.