The Canadian Regional Indoor Target Championships were held across Canada during the weekend where more than 900 archers competed.
And Cariboo Archers were at the forefront, coming home with two gold medals and three silver medals.
Of the six Cariboo Archers who attended, all shot their best-ever inner-10 score.
“Instead of the 10 being the size of a loonie and the 10X being the size of a dime, Archery Canada now only counts (for compound archers) the inner 10X as a 10 so, to score a 10, you must hit the dime-sized spot at 20 yards,” Cariboo Archer Al Campsall explained.
Bob Thurow equalled his best score ever to finish a respectable 23rd in the hotly-contested Senior Compound Unlimited division.
His son, Ty Thurow, easily bested his top inner score by 24 points to emerge as Canada’s number one Cub Compound Target archer.
“Ty shot very well considering the fact that he was shooting very near to his sister, 10-year-old Joelle, as she battled it out for Canadian supremacy with upstart nine-year-old Emersyn Sanford,” said Campsall, who coaches all three archers.
“Ty, between shooting ends, mentioned to his dad that he had trouble concentrating on his own target because he was watching how little sister and Emersyn were shooting.”
The girls, meanwhile, were engaged in an “epic” battle, Campsall said.
Shooting identical scores after the first 30 targets, both girls tried in vain to relax during the 10-minute break between rounds.
“Joelle and Emersyn both shot exceedingly well in the second round and with only one end of three arrows left to shoot, they were still tied,” Campsall said.
There, Joelle scored one point more with her final three arrows and emerged the victor and the Canadian gold medal by one point, while Emersyn claimed the silver medal.
“Emersyn beat her score from last year’s championships by 196 points and Joelle also beat her 2016 score by 89 points,” Campsall said. “It was an absolute pleasure to have spectators notice the excellent sportsmanship displayed by the two girls cheering each other on as they battled it out. It was a real nail biter for the parents.
“As coach of all three of the kids, I was mighty proud of their sportsmanship, skill development and ability to perform under pressure.”
Fellow Cariboo Archer Fred Streleoff, meanwhile, proved why he is the most dominant recurve archer in Canada.
With technical issues early in the contest, Streleoff had to adjust his technique to rally for the silver medal in the Senior Barebow category.
Campsall, meanwhile, beat his personal best score by three points to win the Canadian silver medal.
Next up for most of the Cariboo Archers will be the 100 Mile House Indoor 3D Shoot on March 18-19.
Additionally, Campsall will be hosting five Ladies Only Archery evening for all abilities, from beginners to experts.
“Any adult female is welcome to attend one or more of the evenings and we have all the archery gear they need, or they can bring their own,” Campsall said.
The Ladies Only Archery sessions take place on the following dates: March 13, March 20, March 27, April 10 and April 24 at the Williams Lake Sportsmen’s Association Indoor Archery Range on Bond Lake Road. They will run from 6:30 to 8 p.m. each night.
For more information contact Campsall at 250-392-9695.
