Thanks all! In spite of the way the bows look, they were designed to shoot like recurves. No sights, no stabilizers, no release aids, no let-off. They keep costs down and keep equipment on a level playing field vs. actually shooting recurves, but for all practical purposes they are shot like traditional bows.
As I understand it, the program was developed by KY Fish and Game to get more kids interested in hunting. I know for a fact that just in our little school there's been a LOT of kids shooting who otherwise wouldn't have ever had any exposure to archery...it's even got some parents interested. It gets some kids involved in a sport and on a team that otherwise wouldn't be able to due to physical limitations.
My wife and I got the program started in our county 6 years ago. It was up-hill for a long time...from the beginning the county school superintendent was against it (afraid of injuries--the current super is all for the program), the administrator at the school I work with (at the time--he has since moved on) was against it (he had no interest in archery, was afraid it would be an expense), and there were no schools nearby that had the program. With a lot of perseverance and a lot of help from our state coordinator (Waldo Cleland), we managed to get the program started in two local schools (the other school's administrator was all for it).
Now all five schools in our county have the program. Between the five of us, we have 8 State Championships in 1A, 2A, and Middle School with the other four schools shooting today or tomorrow at State (so we could possibly get 3 more first place finishes). Lots of schools in neighboring counties have also brought in the program...I'd like to think it is, at least in part, due to the example our schools have set with it.
It's an amazing program. Words can't express how much good it does for the kids. Pretty dang rewarding for a volunteer coach too!
Topic: 4 For 4 (Read 1188 times)
