Are you interested in archery? If so, there is a new afterschool activity for you, sponsored by teacher Ben Hahn. Monday, Jan. 8 was the first practice and around 20 kids showed up. “The first few practices are going to be going over form, practicing good stance and safety of course,” Ben Hahn said. “What’s kind of cool is it’s kids from all different walks of life that are into all different sorts of things, some that have never done anything for (to represent) Park High.”
The Archery Club is new to Park High this year but around 9,000 different schools around the country, generally more rural schools, have been participating in what is known as “NASP” or National Archery Schools Program. “This archery program has been around for a long time, in fact there’s 20 million students who have gone through this program through schools in the United States,” Hahn says, “All I’m doing is bringing that program that is already established, here”. One of Hahn’s goals through the archery club is to get more kids who aren’t really involved with school activities a chance to get involved and be a part of a team.
Last year Montana hosted its first state archery tournament (through NASP), and this year Hahn is aiming to take students from Park High to this year’s state tournament that will be held March 15.
“I’ve kind of shot archery my whole life,” senior Lyle McCormick says, “ever since I’ve had a bow.” In a competition you will start by shooting 15 arrows (bows and arrows are provided) from ten yards, getting scored on five, then progress to fifteen yards and shoot thirty times being scored off of ten of those shots.
Last year McCormick competed in his first archery competition, where his highest score was a 260, out of a possible 300. On top of that he also bow hunts; so far he has gotten a antelope in 2022 and a deer in 2023. MCormick is planning to participate in the archery club as one of the more experienced shooters.