Camp Woodland Blog
Take Aim at Camp Woodland Target Sports
This week we are taking aim at the Target Sports program at Camp Woodland. Both Archery and Riflery are popular activities at camp – there are 11 total classes offered for 2nd sign-up! If we head up to the range, these individual sports provide opportunities for many skills beyond shooting either a bow and gun to be practiced and developed.
Archery is about focus and consistency. Archers pick a point down range and focus their aim and then work to have consistent bow placement and pull in addition to having a consistent stance. Campers practice patience, concentration, tenacity, persistence, goal setting and how to overcome frustration when the arrow doesn’t quite stick where they would like it to go! Instructors Caroline, Alexis, and Sofia S with the help of CIT assists Sofia G and Valentina coach campers to make small adjustments that often make a big difference in accuracy. There is a lot of self-talk in target sports and listening to that “little voice” in your head that is saying, “you got this!”
Campers set goals to pass levels that increase in difficulty based on overall distance from the target and number of points needed. Beginner archers start out by working for their White Yoeman (shooting at 10 yards for 80 total points). Next are White Bowman (10 yards for 120 points) and White Archer (10 yards for 180 points). As proficiency is achieved, beginner archers move on to farther distances with the ultimate goal of becoming of one of Woodland’s famous “Golden Archers” (50 yards).
Success at the riflery range relies on the ability of the shooter to simultaneously focus on the target and her position. Campers learn to hold their breath as they take aim and shoot. They also work on using the strap to stabilize and provide correct placement of the gun. In time and with the help of Instructors Daphne and Aranxta and CIT assists Amelia, Estefi, and Barbie, campers find the right position that prevents their elbows from giving a steady aim. Campers also learn how to score their own targets so that they can keep track of their progress.
At Woodland, there are 14 levels in the riflery program that provide a graduated challenge of distance and accuracy at four different positions. Campers begin learning to shoot in a prone position and then progress to sitting, kneeling, and finally standing. To pass the first level (Pro-marksman) campers must score 20 points from the prone position. Accuracy increases by 5 points at each level until 40 points is reached for the various positions before advancing. The final rank in Woodland’s riflery program is Expert, where a camper works to shoot a score of 40 from 5 shots, standing. It takes a lot of patience and persistence over the course of multiple years to reach this goal!