Daniel Ebner, June – 2025 has brought some of my favorite memories of archery, including traveling to a state tournament, and getting to be a Student Contributor for NASP®. One of my favorite memories I’ve made this year was attending the Oregon State Tournament. I traveled over eight hours round trip, got to stay in a hotel, eat at some new restaurants, and see other teams and contestants I hadn’t seen in a year. I was extra excited having qualified to compete at the state tournament this year because it was the first year we got to compete in 3D.
Although I practice 3D at my school and home range, and have shot 3D with a bowhunter compound bow, I was very excited to shoot my Genesis bow at a NASP® tournament. When I got to the tournament site and saw the 3D targets, I had some nerves but was happy I would have this opportunity. During the competition it was going amazing until I got to the ram target. I looked from the shooting line to see where the 10 rings were located on the target, and shot almost all 5 arrows in that spot. I was very excited to walk down and start scoring, just to find out I had misjudged where the rings on the target were. I was so happy that I had a great set of 5 arrows, but wished I had seen or judged the 10 rings better. I was able to move past my score on that target, get mentally focused on the rest of the targets, and had so much fun. I still think of that ram target from time to time, and I know what I would do differently next time. I ended up placing first in the 3D portion of the competition for high school boys, andI I earned a generous scholarship from NASP® which will help me greatly in paying for college in a couple of years. This is such a special archery memory for me, and I feel so proud to have competed in Oregon’s first ever NASP 3-D State Tournament.
Getting to take photos for the student contributor program was something I have loved doing this year and has made my archery season even more special. It has been so much fun getting to look at every moment not only as an opportunity for a photo but also something that will become a great memory.
Another great memory that archery has brought me this year was getting to practice on and photograph a new target for Rinehart Targets. It was so much fun bringing the target to one of my favorite locations, getting to be creative with my photos, and getting to experience something new shooting the Homework target. Having a new target to practice with is always amazing and some of my favorite moments of NASP® each year are at practice. There is something very fun, peaceful and fulfilling about getting the target and your bow out.
One of the best parts about being an archer is that I get to practice during school, on the weekends, and anytime in between. Some of my favorite memories of this season are practicing. I’ll continue shooting my bow through the summer, but I already can’t wait for next year’s NASP® season and the memories it will bring.
