Archers hope to be on target at 3-D National indoor championship

In order to put on a 3-D National indoor archery championship, you need a lot of space.

Fortunately, there's plenty at the Seven Chiefs Sportsplex.

Organizers will be busy for the next couple of days getting the courses ready for competition, which begins on Saturday.

Brian Struthers, president of the Calgary Archers club and event organizer, says there will be a lot of different targets.

"They're all life-size, life-like animals ranging from a skunk all the way up to a velociraptor and we have a duck-billed dinosaur, elk and anything like that. And there's some oddities in there, too," he said.

"You see the animals (here now), we probably have double this. Another load like this is still coming. There's going to be about 150 animals out there. All sizes and shapes and life-like. That kind of stuff."

FAMILY AFFAIR

Roughly 260 archers have registered for the 3-D National, ranging in age from 10 to about 70.

Wayne Puchinger, one of those competitors, got into archery because of one of his kids.

"I got into it about seven years ago with my daughter. She and I sat and watched some of the Hunger Games movies and that kind of sparked a fire in her and the whole family got involved in it.

"Since then, I've taken over as director of one of our local clubs and just grown in the sport."

GETTING MORE WOMEN INVOLVED

Joanne Corbet is one of about 20 women who will take part in the nationals.

She says that's a pretty good number but she'd like to see even more women take up the sport.

"There are quite a few women in the States. A lot of women get intimidated by the sport but I encourage you to come out and try it because it truly is easy and it's fun. You can do it with your grandchildren and your children," she said.

COOL TARGETS

There will be about 47 animals on each of the three courses and Struthers says if you come out and watch, you'll see a lot of different things.

"We have to have so many different animals, from 30 yards (27.432 metres) in for the traditional people - the old style re-curves and longbows and that type of thing - and then the guys who shoot compounds - the high-falutin type of stuff - they can shout out to 50 yards (45.72 metres)," he said.

This is the first time Calgary has hosted the 3-D National indoor archery championship.

Competition begins on Saturday and wraps up on Sunday.