[Max]

Getting any kid into any long term activity as early as possible pays dividends IF you can keep their interest. They learn at an alarming rate and generally do exactly what they are told without getting too analytical about it. The problem is keeping their interest. I tried to take my 8 year old daughter to archery with me, but she quickly complained of being cold, or thirsty, or any of the usual moans kids come out with when their attention span is being challenged. Stangely, now she has taken up horse riding, she will happily plod round a stable yard in all weathers for hours on end. I can see that field archery might well offer a more varied and challenging environment for a kid than standing on a line popping away at the same target for two hours.

Adults of course (particularly males) are obsessive about their interests and will live, eat, sleep and breath archery (or golf, fishing etc. etc...). To reach the top in archery I would guess that there is a time limit for the point of entry (although there are always one or two exceptions). Fitness and stamina are important, as is disposable income - good kit is not cheap and travelling round to tournaments costs money.

I took up competitive dinghy racing in my mid 30's - I quickly realised I should have started when I was 18. I started Archery at 52 and wished I had done it at 40 - maybe I could have been a contender (to paraphrase Hollywood).

The problem with investing heavily with pre-teens, is getting them to keep up the effort through puberty/beer/opposite sex/exams/college/university/job. If their interest in archery (or any other pre-teen activity) survies that onslaught, they must be very keen. So probably the ideal age is about 25 - 30.