Hitting the bullseye

On the approximately eight hectares of land, there are peacocks and deer, foxes and wild boars, hares and marmots, along with the targets. There’s even a dinosaur hiding in the shelter of the trees. Sophia discovered him long ago. She stands to one side, draws a bow and arrow, aims at it boldly and hits! Sophia often comes here with her big sister and dad Christian and enjoys archery. Because it’s never boring and the time flies by.

There are 24 stations on the 1.5 km circular course. The area is nestled on a meadow slope and merges into shady deciduous forest. Roman Heigenhauser, a passionate archer himself, has created everything here himself. "I fell into it by coincidence, I enjoyed it straight away." His land is filled with ambitious archers, amateur athletes and beginners. In terms of age, everyone is represented, from children to sprightly pensioners. The most important rule: the course is a one-way street.

"You can’t just go back if, at station 8 for example, you realise that you’ve left something at station 6. You have to go around the whole trail back to the beginning. There’s an emergency exit where the dinosaur is," explains Roman Heigenhauser.

If you don’t own a bow and arrows, you can hire the equipment here and there is also a crash course available. The correct posture is crucial when it comes to archery: your feet should be shoulder-width apart and at a 90-degree angle to the target. When you put an arrow in front of your toes, the arrow must point directly at the target. Seen from the side, the body, the straight bow arm and the extended puller arm form a T. The firing hand touches the “anchor point”, which is a specific area on the face, below the cheekbones. Roman Heigenhauser shows exactly how, there is a small area with targets to zero in, just below the actual course. Beginners notice fairly quickly that strength plays a role in archery, along with technique. It is not the arm that stretches the tendon that gets heavier and heavier, but the one that has to hold the bow - and steadily enough that you can aim safely. Feeling the energy, when the taut tendon releases and the arrow shoots, is a fantastic sensation.

Roman Heigenhauser is all about conveying the pleasure of archery to his guests. "It's fun and the journey is the reward. You always have a beautiful day in nature, spending time outdoors and you can let off steam in rainy weather too. It is a sport for the whole family and trains your muscles and spirit at the same time."

Little Sophia has long since moved to the ibex with her father and sister. With skilful hand movements, she draws her arrow out of the special foam material. She has hit twice. The younger the better – this is also the case with archery.