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The Mounted Archery Association of the Americas is an organization formed to promote and support mounted archery events such as training clinics, demonstrations and competitive meets, as well as foster a sense of community among the many people who enjoy this horse sport as a participant or spectator.
The Association is incorporated and is in the long application process for non-profit status ."
The association is guided by a 9 member Board of Directors some of whom hold the offices of President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, in addition the association has several permanent committees, which members are encouraged to join, that cover ongoing association projects and concerns:
• Competitions and Demonstrations
• Liability and Safety.
• Promotion.
• Grants and Sponsorships.
• Native American Development.
• Membership.
Board of Directors
Lukas Novotny – Association President
Mr. Novotny was born in the Czech Republic and was educated and trained there as a glass sculptor. He came to the States in his early twenties and worked at various artistic and commercial glass enterprises. From there, Lukas’ interests branched out into traditional archery and then mounted archery. He trained under the master Hungarian, Kassai Lajos in Hungary and for three years at the International Horse Archery Festival in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Subsequently he became the head trainer at that Festival.
He is in demand for clinics and demonstrations throughout Europe, North and South America, and Korea. His keen intellect and sense of art graces all that he does and makes. Through his company called Saluki, he creates marvelous bows, cases, and saddles, and his training program works wonders with his mounted archery students.
Lukas practicing at home on Kokie
Dana Hotko – Vice President
Dana, a resident of Indiana, has been involved with archery since he was a young boy and shooting off a horse informally since 1994. His formal education in mounted archery came in 2000 after watching Kassai Lajos whom he trained with in 2002 at the International Horse Archery Festival, Ft Dodge; Iowa. Due to his skill and horse expertise he acted as the assistant trainer at IHAF in 2003 and 2004 under Lukas Novotny. Throughout the years Dana has also done countless mounted archery demonstrations for 4H and other groups to educate people about the discipline.
His involvement with horses spans most of his life, and includes his involved in breeding the Blue Star bloodline of Arab horses, an ancient desert bloodline who’s studbook is closed to all other Arab horses to protect the purity of the Blue Star line.
Dana competing in Korea 2005
David Gray - Association Treasurer
David was born in 1934 near Pittsburgh. He graduated from Westminster College in 1956 and subsequently completed graduate degrees at the University of Pittsburgh. He taught organizational and social psychology at Westminster College for 38 years. His wife Phyllis bought him his first bow in the early 1970’s which spurred his interest in traditional archery. In 1996, The Krackow Company was started to promote traditional international archery.
In 1998, David provided the leadership, with John McCullough, to bring the first mounted archery demonstration to the United States at the Great Lakes Longbow Invitational in Berrien Springs, Michigan. The demonstrator was the founder of the standardized European sport, Kassai Lajos from Kapasmero, Hungary.
David at IHAF 2004
In 2000, the International Horse Archery Festival in Fort Dodge,
Iowa was launched and became the focal site for Kassai Lajos to return to the States and train a core of mounted archers. David was responsible for bringing Kassai to the Festival for several years and he has shared some responsibility for coordinating the training. Mr. Gray has also been a mounted archery student at three of the Festivals, and once at the Neumann training camp in Bend, Oregon.
In 2005 and 2006, Mr. Gray has conducted a summer mounted archery camp at Little Neshannock Stables in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. He has also taught archery camps at Phillipstown, New York. At the African Arts Festival in Pittsburgh 2005, he demonstrated Egyptian and Nubian shooting, and provided shooting opportunities for all ages.
Also an author David has written articles for Primitive Archer magazine as well as “Bows of the World” published in 2002 which features outstanding bows from each part of the world from ancient to modern times. Currently Lukas Novotny and David are editing a collection of all aspects of the relatively new discipline of horseback archery in the Americas in a book called “Mounted Archery of the Americas”. It will include ancient Eurasian and American history, the modern launching of the discipline in the Americans in 1998, training of horse and archer, horse archery equipment, tack, horses, and organizations. Expected as a 2007 publication.
Phyllis and David have four wonderful children, with their own families scattered from New York to Arizona. David retired in the spring of 2003 and resides in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania.
Barb Leeson – Association Secretary
Already involved in a few unique equestrian sports Barb Leeson traveled to Ft Dodge in 2003 to participate in the mounted archery training at the International Horse Archery Festival; it was a great experience that set her on the road to building her own mounted archery course and becoming more involved with the sport. Since then she’s organized clinics taught by Lukas Novotny in Ontario and Oregon as well as incorporating mounted archery competitions into the skill at arms and jousting tournaments she manages.
In the past Barb has worked as the tournament organizer and secretary for the Dragon’s Lair International Jousting Tournaments and currently sits on the Board of Representatives for the European Jousting League.
Trained as a certified jeweler she is self-employed with her business “Era Equestrian” which provides a number of products and services geared towards the mounted archery and jousting community as well as equestrian
Barb trying mounted archery aside
event management. Barb lives with her husband, James Merrilees, in south-western Ontario near the shores of Lake Erie.
Jay Red Hawk
Jay Red Hawk is of Dakota and French Canadian descent and with his wife Ann, she a Sicangu Lakota, the father of 3 boys. He serves as the Director of Buffalo Culture Programs for the Sicangu Way of Life Project with his wife also on several non-profit boards such as Honor the Earth and Sister Song.
Jay has been involved in archery and horses all his life but only started to combine the two at the beginning of this millennium. With no Lakota/Dakota/Nakota (Sioux) horse archery masters in existence today, he has had to let the bow, arrow and horse teach him.
Jay has done extensive historical research on Sioux horse archery and games involving the bow which has lead to many opportunities. He has worked for Kevin Costner at "Tatanka: Story of the Bison" in Deadwood, South Dakota giving bareback horse archery demonstrations as well as being a presenter at the International Horse Archery Festival twice while continuing to work with youth from Cheyenne River, Rosebud and Yankton Sioux Tribes.
In 2003 Jay and his family, the Wanaunsapi Tioyspaye (the Family Group that Hunts Buffalo); brought back the traditional buffalo songs, dance and ceremonies as well as the hunt off horseback. This was featured in National Geographic, The World & I, Primitive Archer, Today's Horse and dozens of Native and non-native newspapers.
"To us, the bow is sacred. It has the power to give life and take life. The
Jay at IHAF 2004
arrow is also sacred for it has the same power. The horse is sacred and we consider it a relative." Some people ask me, "Why bother making old bows and practice shooting off a horse, it's has no practical use?" and to this I say, "To me it does. I still hunt buffalo off horseback." "The bow, the arrow and the horse teach me deep lessons on a daily basis that I apply to all areas of my life. I guess it's the closet art form we have to the martial arts of the Asian Countries. If I can teach Native children to be interested in horse archery which is an important part of our history and cultural identity, than perhaps our culture still lives through these ways. Who knows, maybe one day again, we will have a horse archery master."
Jay currently works as a bowyer hand crafting sinew-backed bows and arrows in his shop, a converted early 1900’s schoolhouse, using the company name “Iron Bear Bows”.
Alastair Evan Morris
Alastair has been doing Mongolian re-enactment for over 15 years in the SCA and got interested in Horse Archery after hearing about plans for the first IHAF at the Koppedrayers booth at Pennsic in 1998. He attended the first three IHAF's and started training at the fourth under Lukas, since then he has visited Lukas at his facility and trained with him several times.
Alastair acquired his first horse, Mouse, from Lindsey Rue a fellow student at the fifth IHAF.
Alastair and Mouse live in the Minneapolis, MN area and train as often as busy schedules permit with his occupation of managing a 3-D construction shop for a studio which builds store interiors and window displays.
Alastair at IHAF 2003
Scott Lesinski
Scott was born and lives in Connecticut with his wife and two children. From early childhood, he spent his summers living at a camp with his family and spending most of his day with the horses and with the bow. Never having much formal instruction, he continued his love for archery in his early adult years by making self bows and arrows, bow hunting, and teaching archery to his martial art students. His first formal instruction with horse archery was at the 2003 International Horse Archery Festival, where he was trained by Lucas Novotny.
Having trained in the martial art of Taekwondo since 1985, he has come to understand that the bow, or any weapon, is an extension of the body, and the way it is used tells much of the self. Horse archery
Scott at North Hoard 2006
is by all means, a martial art, at one time used for war and combat, but the way it is used now carries much tradition, while the goal is balance and peace, truly felt while horse and rider are connected in time, flying off the ground, and the arrow is free.
Scott continues to teach martial arts at his school, Tae San Taekwondo Academy in Hebron,CT, and hopes to develop Horse Archery in his area.
Holm Neumann
Holm W. Neumann, MD, PhD, is an orthopedic surgeon and anthropologist of note, as well as a world class Cowboy Action shooting competitor.
He first became interested in mounted archery in 2003 when he was introduced to this martial art at the Ft. Dodge, Iowa, mounted archery festival, he has since trained under Lukas Novotny and Bjarke Rink ( at Desempenho International riding school in Brazil).
Holm has developed a 250 meter horse archery course at his home set up for both the Hungarian and Korean style of mounted archery competition. Regular practice on this course earned Holm two gold medals at the International Mounted Archery Federation competition in Sokcho, South Korea in 2005 and 2006.
He and his wife, Susan, are breeders of Brazilian Mangalarga Marchador horses at thier home in Bend OR, at the foot of the Three Sisters mountains.
