(Adrian St.Onge / CHAT News)

By Adrian St.Onge

NEW

‘Every day I get to shoot an arrow is a good day’: Medicine Hat plays host to Archery Shooters Association tournament

Feb 21, 2024 | 4:00 AM

This year’s archery shooters association took aim at their first tournament of the season.

The Medicine Hat Archery Club hosted the event at the Cypress Center over the weekend.

Nearly 200 archers from across the Prairies, Montana and Oregon met for the provincial tournament.

The tournament is held annually in Southern Alberta and the archery community saw people in all age ranges and skill levels.

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Amber Peatman picked up her first bow last year and said that the accessibility is part of the draw,

“It’s a sport anyone can get into. Kids, seniors, even people that are in wheelchairs or people who have physical handicaps,” Amber said Saturday, Feb. 17.

“There are people who shoot with mouth tabs if they don’t have the use of their arms,” she said.

“It’s really a sport anyone can try and get into.”

Amber’s seven-year-old daughter River thinks it’s a sport everyone should try.

“I think everyone deserves a chance and I think they would really like it,” River said.

Registration costs help fund the club’s operational costs for their next year and of the archers who attended, some were nationally ranked.

Archery has been a part of Monica Higgins’ life for over twenty years and in that time, she’s seen friends leave the sport only to return later.

While she’s not ready to hang up the bow just yet, her career has definitely evolved.

“Everyday I get to shoot an arrow is a good day,” Higgins said.

“I think of the social aspect of it, besides it being provincials, I get to see a lot of people I’ve created a lot of deep friendships over the twenty plus years,” she said.

“Being able to come out and spend time with other people, come out and mentor younger ladies that are shooting and help them through challenges, I think that’s probably one of the most important things for me at this stage in my archery life.”

While the stakes can be high for national competitors, archers like Amber echoes Higgins’ sentiment.

“For me the funnest part if you get to come out and you generally end up shooting with a new group of people you may have never met,” she said.

“You get to meet a lot of new people and it’s a sport where most people are very friendly and are happy to give you advice or some ideas if you’re having a hard time.”

“It’s really just a fun sport to participate in.”