Forget Sherwood Forest and Robin Hood; the true sprit of archery is alive, well and living in Squamish, thanks to the Squamish Valley Rod and Gun Club (SVRGC).
The organization of local target shooting aficionados and fishing buddies held this year's first Squamish 3D Archery Shoot Sunday (May 29) with resounding success.
"It really went well," said event organizer Keith Reid. "We had between 40 and 60 people who participated, both adults and children."
Squamish 3D is set to run every fifth Sunday in months that have five weeks, and features an outdoor target course that challenges even the most steady of archers. Essentially, groups of archers moved along forested paths on the club's land, shooting at targets along the way for points. The targets, however, were what made Squamish 3D, three-dimensional.
"We have deer, bear, cougar, mountain goat and there's even an alligator in a pond that we have to shoot from a tree stand above the water," said Reid.
No, the targets weren't real animals, but life-size targeting replicas, placed throughout the shooting course.
"We have about 20 different targets set up," said Reid. "And we try to place them in natural settings. For instance, the mountain goats are up on a hill and the alligator is in the pond."
Competitors racked up points depending on where they struck the artificial animal in its targeting zone.
"We have about 20 categories, including age categories and categories divided up by the type of bow used in the competition," he said.
And there were indeed a wide variety of bows being used at the event. One participant proudly showed off a $3,000 bow, complete with counter-balances and fibre-optic sights.
"We've seen a lot of growth in the archery side over the past few years," said youth archery instructor Paul Greening. "It's a pretty active aspect of the gun club."
In addition to the occasional 3D shoot, the SVRGC also hosts family archery shoots every Friday night from 7 to 9 p.m. and adult target practice on Wednesday evenings at the same time.
Drop in for non-members of the club is $3 on Friday and only $1 on Wednesday.
"We supply a bow, arrows and instruction," said Reid.
Full membership in the club runs $50 for adults and $10 for children.
The next Squamish 3D Shoot is set for July 31.
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