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Blind luck helps archer make one-in-a-million Robin Hood shot[Blind Archer]
Telegraph ^
| 27 Mar 2008
| Telegraph
Posted on 03/29/2008 4:12:30 PM PDT by BGHater
An archer has achieved a one-in-a-million feat of marksmanship after splitting one arrow with another. What makes the shot even more remarkable is that Tilly Trotter is blind.
The 74-year-old grandmother pulled off the shot, known among archers as a "Robin Hood", at a practice session of the Wellington Bowmen in Somerset.
Mrs Trotter, who has been an archer for two years at the invitation of granddaughter Charlotte, said: "The second arrow made such a noise going into the back of previous arrow I thought I had hit the ceiling or done some expensive damage.
"Then I heard people jumping up and down shouting that I'd done a Robin Hood.
"It was a one-in-a-million shot and a bit of a fluke really."
Mrs Trotter, from Uffculme, North Devon, lost most of her sight following a head injury 17 years ago. "I can see movement but I have no central vision," she said.
Her husband, Tony, is crucial to her success, telling her how near her shots are to the target each time she shoots.
"He isn't allowed to tell me to aim left or right before I let loose an arrow," Mrs Trotter said. "I can only make my own adjustments to my aim before I shoot."
She may dismiss the shot as a fluke, but she also won a gold medal at the British Blind Sports National Championship last year.
Peter Jones, a spokesman for the Grand National Archery Society, said: "It's a very rare feat - like getting two holes in one on the same round of golf."
Tilly Trotter holds the bow she used to split one arrow with another, an extremely rare feat known as a Robin Hood
TOPICS: Miscellaneous; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: archer; archery; blind; bullseye; godsgravesglyphs; northdevon; robinhood; shot; somerset; tillytrotter; uffculme; unitedkingdom; wellingtonbowmen
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1
posted on
03/29/2008 4:12:34 PM PDT
by
BGHater
To: BGHater
so a blind lady walks into a bar with compound bow and some arrows....
2
posted on
03/29/2008 4:15:04 PM PDT
by
the invisib1e hand
(How much worse would things be if Eve had been "empowered?")
To: BGHater
She may dismiss the shot as a fluke, but she also won a gold medal at the British Blind Sports National Championship last year. Wonder what the insurance policy costs for a blind archery event?
3
posted on
03/29/2008 4:17:02 PM PDT
by
IllumiNaughtyByNature
(Senator McCain, what did GWB promise you back in 2000? And you believed him? BWAHAAAAA!)
To: BGHater
To: BGHater
Why can’t they just tell the story straight. I mean, it is truly a remarkable tale. 74 year old grandma who can barely see, splits an arrow a la’ Robin Hood.
5
posted on
03/29/2008 4:23:26 PM PDT
by
Krankor
(kROGER)
To: the invisib1e hand
“... so a blind lady walks into a bar with compound bow and some arrows....”
That’s HYSTERICAL! LOL
6
posted on
03/29/2008 4:24:40 PM PDT
by
Eurale
To: BGHater
As opposed to the 'Steve Martin' shot
7
posted on
03/29/2008 4:25:49 PM PDT
by
Always Right
(Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?)
To: Krankor
Anybody that has loosed enough arrows has done the same thing. Now, do it on purpose. Consistantly. I would admire ya...
8
posted on
03/29/2008 4:28:18 PM PDT
by
chadwimc
(Proud to be an infidel ! Allah fubar !!!)
To: chadwimc
Yup. And I’ve done it with darts.
9
posted on
03/29/2008 4:33:29 PM PDT
by
sionnsar
(trad-anglican.faithweb.com |Iran Azadi| 5yst3m 0wn3d - it's N0t Y0ur5 (SONY) | UN: Useless Nations)
To: BGHater
"While demonstrating the technque that led to the million-and-one 'robin shot' shot, blind archer Tilly Trotter accidently shot the Telegraph photographer."
10
posted on
03/29/2008 4:36:18 PM PDT
by
Fido969
("The hardest thing in the world to understand is income tax." - Albert Einstein)
To: BGHater
Somebody needs to contact Mythbusters.
They just disproved this a while back and said it was impossible.
11
posted on
03/29/2008 4:42:59 PM PDT
by
chaosagent
(Remember, no matter how you slice it, forbidden fruit still tastes the sweetest!)
To: chaosagent
That is the first thing I thought of, as well!
12
posted on
03/29/2008 4:46:23 PM PDT
by
ozaukeemom
(Nuke the ACLU and their snivel rights)
To: chaosagent
Didn't they try it with a Robin Hood period type arrow? I remember seeing parts of that episode, too. I'm just not sure if they used modern equipment or not.
13
posted on
03/29/2008 4:48:23 PM PDT
by
repubpub
To: BGHater
Baaah, Kim JOng Il does this every time.
14
posted on
03/29/2008 4:58:17 PM PDT
by
tet68
( " We would not die in that man's company, that fears his fellowship to die with us...." Henry V.)
To: chaosagent
The Mythbusters episode concerned splitting another arrow from knock to point. They were able to hit them on the knock, but the shafts blew out the side.
I think it was probably due to the way that modern dowels are produced, by mechanical lathe. This means that the grain is not continuous. In medieval times, the shafts would have been split from a log into thin sticks with a froe along the grain. They would then be warmed and run through a series of round holes in a metal plate until they were the right diameter and straight, which would have made the grain run the full length of the shaft.
15
posted on
03/29/2008 5:17:17 PM PDT
by
LexBaird
(Behold, thou hast drinken of the Aide of Kool, and are lost unto Men.)
To: BGHater
I thought Mythbusters said this couldn’t be done. If THEY say it, then it’s true!!
Maybe I’m remembering it wrong.
To: BGHater
Mythbusters did everything imaginable to attempt splitting one arrow with another from knock to tip. The grain of the wood in the arrow shaft must be absolutely perfect to permit such a split. The Mythbusters team couldn't find or buy such an arrow at any price. The marksmanship part of the equation is only half the story. Even the finest marksman is likely to be disappointed with a target arrow that is incapable of being split the full length under any circumstances.
17
posted on
03/29/2008 6:29:25 PM PDT
by
Myrddin
To: LexBaird
I think your explanation probably covers why modern arrows won't split from knock to tip as the ancient ones did. Most of the arrows in the Mythbusters test ended up with the split ripping through the side of the shaft. The broad tip arrow points just followed the grain.
18
posted on
03/29/2008 6:32:40 PM PDT
by
Myrddin
To: Myrddin
My aluminum shafts just sort of crumple. My carbon fiber shafts explode. Haven't hit a cedar shaft in a long time...
19
posted on
03/29/2008 10:06:45 PM PDT
by
chadwimc
(Proud to be an infidel ! Allah fubar !!!)
To: chadwimc
I found the high speed cams on Mythbusters to be somewhat enlightening. The flying arrow experiences an end to end oscillation. The tip and knock are moving continuously. Getting a precise hit becomes a mix of marksmanship, timing of the oscillation of the flying arrow and being lucky enough to have a target arrow with a perfectly aligned grain.
I suspect your aluminum and carbon fiber arrows are quite a bit stiffer than the average wood shaft. My wife purchased a bunch of aluminum arrow shafts to build Yagi antennas for her radio receiver. The receiver is used to track her birds of prey when hunting. There's still a small supply of shafts somewhere in the basement.
20
posted on
03/29/2008 10:41:40 PM PDT
by
Myrddin
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