Robert Hamilton II, March –
A question was asked of what makes archery fun. My last tournament was not fun, but as I have had a few days to get away from it. My bow broke in the practice end at 10M. The temporary nock locator my favorite coach tied, unraveled. I was basically shooting free form. I shot the lowest I have shot since starting elementary. But I have found some moments about that day that make me laugh. This season has been tougher than the two previous NASP® seasons. It is those differences between seasons that have made me realize what makes archery fun for me.
The first thing that makes archery fun is your teammates. They can help you forget what is going on on the range. They can make you laugh. They can ask for your help because they are having a worse day than you, and their bow is not broken. They can offer kind words every day at practice, before a tournament. There can even be a little friendly rivalry.
The target partners you have at tournaments can be fun, or can be so frustrating you have to laugh about it later. All the local schools come to our team’s tournaments and we go to theirs. There are a handful of homeschool archers I really enjoy shooting with. They have fun, but they are very focused on doing well. They push me to do better. I hope I do the same for them. I love shooting 3D with the current middle school girls national champion. I have the chance to do it twice. Now, that is pressure to perform when you are shooting with someone who is consistently almost perfect, but it is fun pressure. Then there are the target partners who are not as skilled at the NASP® 11 steps. One target partner nocked his arrow while his bow was still on his toe. One target partner threw her arms and her bow up into the air while I was shooting every time she missed the target which was a lot. It was the first time she had shot in a tournament, so it was to be expected, but her arms and bow coming over into my shooting lane was more than a little distracting. But when it is over, it is something that you laugh at. It is something that is a fun memory.
The people who you know have your back and support you make it fun. That can be your parents, your coaches, your former coaches, your friends, or archers from the other teams. At my last tournament, my brand new bow with a brand new nock locator broke. The locator started to move. I asked my very first archery coach (the man I still consider my coach) to fix it. He did and then stood there while I shot the end I missed all by myself on the line. What I didn’t know was that some of his archers were encouraging the other archers and the spectators to be quiet so I could shoot that round. They told me and my mom after the event was over. That temporary nock locator my favorite coach tied came untied after about two ends. I walked over to that coach and said, “You’re fired!!!!!” I laughed; he laughed. That made a horrible day a little fun.
So, what makes archery fun? The high scores are great. The trips to States, Nationals and The Championship are an experience. But what truly makes archery fun is the people. As we are all shooting at our state tournaments, let’s support each other and make it a fun day.
