Idaho State Bowhunters Jamboree

Well, as a culminating event of the archery season, it was a little bit of a let down. The scenery was beautiful, of course, at the foot of the Sawtooth Range of the Rocky Mountains, and the trophy was nice, but... the competition for me was lacking. I was really hoping there would be lots of women recurve shooters, and I could find out once and for all if I'm any good. Didn't happen.

There were only six traditional shooters at the Idaho State Bowhunters Jamboree in Stanley. So yes, I won, but what an empty win. The Libby Traditional Shoot in Montana at least drew about 15 traditional recurve women (and I won that one, too, this year. That meant something). I think I liked Libby more. It was cooler in Libby (Stanley was nearly 100 degrees). If the Stanley shoot were in the Spring instead of the middle of summer, I'm sure the daytime temperature would have been better. At night it got plenty cold in Stanley. We woke up one morning with ice covering the little table and cooler at our campsite.

Last thing about this shoot. It was a really long drive to get there! 10 hours. We had to cross over the Bitterroot Mountains twice, going into Montana, and then crossing back into Idaho. I don't know if we'll make it again.

We, Don and I, have decided to go to the International Bowhunters Organization World Traditional Championships in Pennsylvania in September. Rick Welch told us about it, and encouraged us to go when we were at his archery school in April. This is the first time IBO has had this event just for traditional shooters. And since it is the first one, a person doesn't have to qualify, so this might be the only year we can go.

Don will be going for a whole week. His brothers live in Pennsylvania, close to Pittsburgh, which is about two hours south of Erie, which is close to where the event will take place. We found a time share available (that's a miracle!) close to the event also, so Don will be able to stay in a nice place for the week, and hopefully his brothers and their families will come see him there, too.

School: I'm really excited that I get to teach Social Studies and English at my face-to-face job at Sandpoint Middle School this year. I have wanted to do it for at least five years, since I earned my endorsement in Social Studies, specifically for the purpose of being able to teach this block situation. I am so happy! I am also really scared. I haven't taught Social Studies before at the 8th grade level, so the curriculum will be new to me.

I know I'll have lots of help from the two social studies teachers I'll be partnering with, still... I've brought home the textbooks. Now I just have to crack them open.

Here's the last picture from the Idaho State Shoot, part of the picturesque Sawtooth Range.

First Archery Shoots of the Season

(I had written this before, thinking I'd keep it up throughout the season... like that happened).

Archery Journal Spring/Summer 2009

4/4/09 - Our season started with a fun, one-day shoot in Hot Springs County, Arkansas. There were 25 targets. We wore muck boots. Don won his class, Recurve, and the long bow class. I won my class (since I was the only female traditional shooter), but had I been competing with the men, I would have tied for third.

4/19/09 - At our next shoot, Selkirk Bowhunters (Bonners Ferry/Moyie Springs) on April 18-19, Don took second in Men’s Recurve (with a one-day, 40 target score of 299), and I took first in Women’s Recurve (with a one-day 40 target score of 292). We both had about six people in our respective classes. We both did pretty well the first day, too. Don shot a 302 the first day (I think that is his highest points ever on a 40 target course), and I definitely had my best day ever with 288. It was really pretty shocking to me how high my points were. I kept thinking, “Rick Welch wouldn’t have approved of that shot,” or “Rick would have thought that shot was OK.” Don didn’t have any zeros his second day. I had two the second day and one the first day.

On Saturday, Don and I shot with the Neubauers and Larch and Clancy, so it was quite a big group, seven in all. Danielle kept score for us (which was great!). It was a fun time shooting with them. I’m glad that we shot with them, because I don’t think anyone would have believed my score if it had just been Don and I. I am likewise glad that we were flighted on Sunday, and someone else was keeping score. I seriously don’t think anyone would have believed my score was that high otherwise. Personally, I have never seen a woman’s score that high.

I know Vicki Winniger can shoot that well, and higher, but she did not have a good shoot this weekend, or she was only shooting for fun. Also, she has been having issues with her shoulder, she said (to others; she doesn’t speak to me). She has gone through several surgeries in the past few years, so has multiple neck and shoulder issues. It begins to appear as I will never know if I can shoot as well as her, as she refuses to shoot with me, or to take our local shoots seriously (this is the second year in a row she refused to shoot with the flighted women).

Maybe she thinks that she has proved her expertise, so why should she have to “play” with us anymore. Then again, maybe she doesn’t think about the rest of us at all, and just wants to shoot with her husband to have a good time. She has certainly earned the privilege to do whatever she chooses. In actuality, in our local archery shoots, you can do whatever you want anyway. So why has it bothered me so much? I don’t know. I’ve just got to let it go. Ever since I joined the club, I have known that she is the best female. I think my competitive nature just wants to know if I will ever be as good as she is.

But I suppose the time for that is past, so I just have to forget about her, and enjoy archery for myself. If ever we meet, then I will have to be content with her showing me up at that time. She and her husband rode away on their Harleys about a half an hour before the trophies were handed out. Had she shot with the flighted women, I think she would have come in third. I promise not to bring up this ridiculous subject again (and hopefully at our next shoot that we are both at, I can block her from my mind).

About half way through Sunday, I was wishing I was shooting with Don, as he is the most fun to shoot with, but he said he had a very good time shooting with the flighted recurve men. I enjoyed shooting with my women’s group, too, just wish Don would have been there, so I could have been myself with someone. I started talking about the shots, and where the 10-spots were with Laurie, and she did not like that, so after I had done that about 5 targets, I quit talking about it, and didn’t really talk much to anyone for the rest of our course. I guess I like talking about the shots, but Laurie did not, so I did not have as much fun after that. I felt like I had been reprimanded when she said she didn’t want or like to talk about where the 10-spot was, because she didn’t usually think about that…

What else happened this weekend? I looked really fat in the pictures, so that made me depressed on Sunday after the shoot. I had been feeling pretty good, until I looked at the pictures, and then I got bummed out.

Overall, both Don and I had a good weekend. The weather was superb: cool in the mornings, warming up in the afternoons, but not getting too hot. We ate out at Slates Saturday night with Zack, and had chocolate malts from Zips in Bonner's Ferry on our way home Sunday. The trophies are very nice. Mine is carved in the shape of Idaho, and Don’s is carved in the traditional shield, but both with very nice wood with an acrylic covering. Don got one of the Idaho-shaped trophies last year when he won first place in Men’s Longbow. So now we have a matching pair. Archery is fun.

Back Home

Even though school has been out for a month, I'm just now feeling like vacation is beginning. I did have 10 days at the end of school when I wasn't officially working, but four of those days were taken up with a conference. Then I came home, and went to see my mom for four days, and then I came home and went to the "We the People: Citizen and the Constitution" Institute for 8 days. So now I'm home, and as far as I know, I'll be home until September. We do have a few more archery shoots on the weekends to go to, but I don't consider that as really being gone. Those are just little weekend getaways.

I am teaching two courses this summer: English 10A and Entrepreneurial Economics for Idaho Digital Learning Academy. Anyone needing to take high school (and some middle school) courses should check out IDLA. It is the best in Idaho! (of course I'm biased.) :) Anyway, that will continue until the end of August, just before school starts again. So it's not as if I'm totally on vacation, but, ya, I'm on vacation.

The most exciting thing I want to share with the world today is that I get to teach three English/three Social Studies at my middle school this year! I've wanted to do that for about 10 years. Four years ago I got my social studies endorsement, so I was finally qualified to do so... And at last it has come through. I am sooooo excited.

This is my first blog ever. Hmmm... we'll see how it goes.