2008 Woodie Awards
ERAU hosts state archery tournament
Andrew Polgreen
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On a chilly Saturday morning, archers from across the state could be found gathering in Embry-Riddle's Eagle Gym. These archers, ranging in age from ten to seventy, were here for the Arizona State Archery Association Indoor Championship. This tournament is held every year, however this year's tournament was described as "the largest tournament in over a decade."
This was the first indoor tournament ever held in Prescott and the ASAA estimated that between $7,500 and $10000 were spent by out of town archers during their stay in Prescott. The tournament was open to anyone who was a member of the ASAA, though there were also five guest archers who shot. This included both professional archers, with sponsorship, as well as novices. There was even an archer who was a Junior Olympian.
Several college archery clubs came out to compete in the tournament. Embry-Riddle had four archers, Arizona State University had six, the University of Arizona only had one, and Dine College had twelve members participate. Several High School students came as well and were introduced to Embry-Riddle's campus and program.
The four Embry-Riddle archers were, Christopher Case, Greg Floyd, Alko Noordwijk, and Steven Weaver. All four of them received a trophy for their performance at the tournament.
Though slightly remote, several archers thought the Eagle Gym was one of the better venues they'd been to. There was ample space for warm-ups, practice, and spectator seating. The preparation of the tournament organizers paid off on both days, with the scoring portion of the event starting only ten minutes after it was scheduled. No major problems occurred, which the ASAA website said was, "Thanks to conscientious Tournament Director efforts and ASAA Tournament Oversight quality control."
This tournament is the three-year culmination of efforts by the archery club to allow some form of indoor archery on campus. Tina Blake, the Assistant Director of Student Activities and the advisor for the archery club on campus, led these efforts. Talking with Risk Management at the Daytona Beach campus and Campus Safety in Prescott, they were able to find a middle ground. Particularly noteworthy is that Embry-Riddle students are allowed to keep archery equipment, however it must be kept in a locked case at all times. The more obvious result is the tournament itself, which encountered several roadblocks on the way to becoming a reality.
Overall the event was very successful. "I'm very excited and was very pleased with how well things went." Said Blake. The archery club raised $600 with the tournament. For more information on ERAU Golden Eagles Archery, contact Tina Blake at [blaket@erau.edu].