More than 1,000 Students Participate in Wisconsin Archery in the Schools Tournament
OutdoorHub 04.24.13
Results have been posted for the 2013 Wisconsin state tournament for the National Archery in the Schools Program held earlier this month at Wisconsin Rapids.
“The tournament just keeps getting better,” said Dan Schroeder, a natural resources educator and the tournament’s coordinator for the Department of Natural Resources. “We had more than 1,000 student archers competing this year and many of them shot their best scores ever at this event.”
The tournament has been so successful – the number of schools in the competition has grown by 261 percent in just three years – it has outgrown its current venue in Wisconsin Rapids and will move to Wausau West High School for the 2014 tournament, to be held April 5-6.
“This year’s event was the best to date,” Schroeder said. “We could not do it without the support and dedication of our amazing volunteers. Among them is Renee Ann Arndt, who handled all the registrations and results for this year’s tournament. With 47 schools, that is a Herculean task. And she never stopped smiling.”
Schroeder said the tournament owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to the city of Wisconsin Rapids and the staff at East Junior High School where the annual competition began eight years ago and has grown and thrived each year.
With the larger facilities in Wausau, tournament officials can add 20 targets to the shooting range and can space out the competitors more comfortably, with each shooter occupying 30 inches on the shooting line. This falls in line with standards for national and international tournaments.
There will also be more room for vendors and for extra attractions. At this year’s tournament, for instance, Ray Howell and staff from Kicking Bear – which introduces young people to the outdoors at weekend camping events – showed visiting students how to throw a tomahawk and have it stick into the log target.
“We are excited about the potential for growth as NASP continues to grow in Wisconsin, and more and more schools offer the program ,” Schroeder said.
More information is available by searching the DNR website for keyword “NASP.”
Results from this year’s tournament can be found at: www.nasptournaments.org (exit DNR).
