Kamakura

WHEN I think of horseback archery I think of something pretty much impossible. I've gone horse riding a few times and I'm not bad at archery, on the ground that is. But I have a hard time imagining how difficult it must be to ride a horse and shoot a bow at the same time.

So on Sunday this is what I went to see. In Kamakura for the city's festival they had a special horseback archery demonstration and competition. The archers had really nice clothing and the horses they were riding were strong looking.

It was really packed! there must have been thousands of people. We were running a bit late so we didn't get to be close to the front. This was a bit of a problem but with some careful maneuvering in the crowd we got a spot where Jen could lean over and see and I could look over the heads of the people.

I thought they would be trotting by and shooting, and some riders did go slower than others. Btu most of them galloped at full speed. It was so fast we only managed to get a few decent pictures and videos.

Later we moved to another spot where we could see more. It was much better since we weren't being crushed by the crowd.

One of the archers had his arrow get stuck, he then had trouble getting the reins back and ran off the track, into a couple officials who ran out of the way, and almost into the stage at the end of the track. I think the rider was pretty shook up. He looked pale after stopping and turning around to get ready for his next try.

It was a fun experience but I think next time we should be there early and find the best place to see the show.