Letter from our President
April 2008

n Target – Some words from your President

      Oh, to be a weatherman, and get paid regardless of how your prediction pans out!  Some archers from Orange County missed our March shoot fearing showers that never materialized, but 30 or so members enjoyed a dry hunters’ round.  The local greenery had grown over six feet in six months, and red and yellow and purple and white flowers gave us a land level rainbow.  About 25% of our participants were under 15-years old, so the future of archery looks pretty secure, if our Club is any indication.

      The 3-D shoot will sport 10 new targets, an indication that whether it’s roadwork, bales, a raffle drum, or other expenditures, the last year has shown that when the Club puts its money where our intentions lie, everything improves.  Of course (considering my scores) if that’s true, maybe I should buy some more expensive arrows, or a new sight, a better bow, lessons…

      The PUMP (Public Use Master Plan) Committee will finally give us a chance later this month to put our best feet forward and find what our future on Land Conservancy property is.  The “Bow and Arrow Trail” at present goes from the entrance down the vehicle road and then past the practice range.  As long as it doesn’t go uphill of the practice range, everything should be fine.  The Committee has had recent meetings and decisions that affect us even though they’ve told us they’d let is know when the issue of the land we borrow was going to be on the agenda.  Hopefully we’ll find out what the story is.

      Keeping the Range in the best shape for practice use and for tournaments isn’t something that we can just pay for like Porta-Potties, landscaping, insurance, bales and targets, or road repair.  Although that’s perhaps most of it, work like maintaining and re-banding the bales, setting up new, sturdier pallets, and positioning targets for a 3-D shoot: these require members to roll up their sleeves and pitch in.  Even weed whacking—until we actually get a landscaper—is something members are needed to do.  Our membership hit an all-time high of 258 member families, but almost all the labor is performed by fewer than a dozen individuals.  So please—when you can—lend a hand!

Keep seein' spts,