Instinctive Shooting

INSTINCTIVE SHOOTING is defined as the technique of use and above all of aim normally used with TRADITIONAL BOWS.

This technique derives directly from the hunting and military use that accompanied the long history of the bow and is, in my opinion, the most beautiful, natural, fascinating and fun way to use a bow.

First of all, the bow is used without everything, even the rest. The arrow is placed on a mat glued on the base of the window or even directly on the wood. The string is held with the index above the nock and the middle and ring fingers below. It is pulled with the bow and head slightly inclined and with both eyes open. It hooks with the index finger to the corner of the mouth and releases it after a few moments of intense concentration on the target.
This natural shooting technique now internationally defined “Instinctive Shooting” is confirmed by most of the news that we have received on primitive archers.

The most fascinating and controversial part of the Instinctive shooting is, surely, its aiming sistem. Above all who has just familiarity with other methods of aiming, will consider impossible to address the arrow to the center without coinciding (to superimpose optically) some point of the bow or the arrow with the target.

For the big teachers of this school, as Howard Hill or Fred Bear, the thing resulted absolutely instead natural, they spoke of concentration on the center and they defined the bow as natural prolongation of our arm.

These concepts are more difficult for newbies to understand. In our shooting, the inclination of the bow and the ancor point so low remove any reference from the target leaving us only a good field of vision.
This allows our brain to analyze, without our realizing it, the three-dimensional space between us and the target and to look for the feeling that the shaft is aimed correctly; in that moment the hand will open by itself!
This, like all human faculties, needs exercise to refine itself but the results it can lead to, over time, would amaze anyone. Think for example of certain champions of bowls or tennis, how can they control so well where the ball will go?


The greatest satisfaction for those who try to spread this philosophy are children. Naturally led to believe in fairy tales without preconceptions, they obtain the most amazing results in a short time. The instinctive shooting has its logical application in particular shooting situations. It is absurd to think of competing with these bows in Olympic shooting competitions, where you shoot up to 70 meters. We can no longer speak of instinctive shooting beyond 40 meters, where the parabola of the arrow becomes such that it can no longer be subconsciously conceived and corrected.

Our technique finds its most suitable application, and becomes even more advantageous than others, in practical shooting, at unknown distances, always unique situations, with moving targets (clay pigeons, sliding shapes or rolling balls). as Bowhunting or where you want to shoot in a very short time. time and without the ability to accurately estimate the distance to the target. Competitions with situations of this type are organized by various organizations. The best expression of the event dedicated to INSTINCTIVE SHOOTING in Italy is the ROVING.
INSTINCTIVE VENATORIO shooting competition conceived by Giusi Pesenti in Alzano Lombardo BG in 1958.