Cranbrook Archery Club had more than a few members who finished on the podium at the Canadian Outdoor 3D Championships last weekend.
Locals faced off against other archers from across Canada at the national competition, hosted at Cranbrook Archery Grounds near Fort Steele from Aug. 4-7. Competitors shot targets at three different 3D courses leading up to the finals. They walked through the woods with bow and arrow in hand, and aimed for the bull’s eye on animal-shaped targets, which resembled, among many creatures, bears, deer, a wolf and a cougar. The finals brought everyone together in an open field to shoot targets at closer range.
Youth shone bright at the event. Narayana Howe collected gold in the Unlimited U15 Men category, ahead of fellow B.C. competitor Gustav Holmstrom. Kinsley Brulotte came out on top in Traditional U15 Women and Kaiya Tilley, another local club member, landed in the second place spot behind her.
Carson Hodges and Cohen Hodges of Cranbrook both medaled in the Unlimited U13 Men category, the former with silver and the latter with bronze. Carson finished behind Miras Djukic of Saskatchewan.
Clayton Boardman, from Cranbrook, was the only local adult to make a podium finish. He achieved third place in the Hunter 21+ Men category, behind Albertan gold medalist Matthew Gardner and B.C. silver medalist Peter Von Niessen. In the hunter category, archers must utilize hunting equipment.
READ MORE: Arrows fly at Outdoor 3D Archery Champtionships
Boardman brought strong competition in the finals when he scored 14 points on a bobcat target. He came in only a few points behind Von Niessen, so it was a close call.
“It could have gone either way,” he said.
While Boardman has been an archer for many years, this was his first time at nationals.
“I’ve been shooting bows my whole life, 25 years probably. I started competing last year with my son, going to indoor competitions and outdoor competitions.”
“You get to shoot with different people each day so you get to meet people from all over Canada. It was really fun.”
@gfrans15
gillian.francis@cranbrooktownsman.com
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