Off to Ben Avery gun range again
I moseyed up the road to Ben Avery's gun range this morning and spent some time watching the Arizona Cup archery contest. USA Archery sanctions this contest, and USA Archery is the organization that selects archers for the Olympics based on scores at contests like the Arizona Cup.
Having owned and shot bows since I was 12 years old, I can appreciate the skills of these archers. And it was an honor to watch archers from across the country compete against one another.
I've always enjoyed shooting and hunting with a bow but was never very good at it. When I bought my first compound bow 20 or 30 years ago, it was like a whole different world. They are easier to shoot, the arrows are faster, and they are more accurate than the hit-and-miss wooden bows I always used.
I watched the archery contest for a while this morning, then drove to the grocery store and bought some supplies. Then went back to Ben Avery and watched some more archery... All of which was made simple and easy by having my home with me everywhere I went.
I knew it was going to happen, and it did. Watching all of those archers made me want a bow. As I mentioned earlier, I had many hobbies before becoming a full-timer, and archery was one of them. But like most things I owned, I sold my compound bow and never really missed it very much until I watched these experts shoot.
I've got six or eight wooden bows in storage; most of them are old Bear recurve bows that I collected over the years. And it wouldn't take much for me to bring one of my short Bear Kodiak Magnums with me in my travels; it wouldn't take up too much space... But carrying a target capable of stopping an arrow would be a problem. If I stayed at RV parks, I wouldn't even consider it, but boondocking out in the desert ???
Theboondork
There were many contestants here, no spectators, just family and friends.
I parked off by myself, so I felt more like being at home than around a crowd of people.
The Arizona Cup archery contest. I think this is the biggest archery contest of the season.
This is the firing line; the targets are off to the right.
When I got there at 8 AM, it was still pretty chilly, but an hour later, I was in a T-shirt…..it’s a desert thing.