this ain`t the hunger Games

Recreation
This Ain’t
the
Hunger Games
But trilogy
boosts
interest in
target
archery
Story by Gayle Mavor
Photos by Gayle Mavor,
except as noted
Salt Spring is not
the Seam in District
12 by any stretch of
the imagination.
Ken Cameron with his compound bow
used in the sport of target archery.
Page 14 – AQUA – Summer 2014
You won’t find Katniss Everdeen
racing down Fulford-Ganges Road
to save her younger sister, Primrose,
from death. Thankfully, real life
isn’t like the plot in the first book
of the Hunger Games trilogy by
author Suzanne Collins, which, upon
its publication in 2010, sprung a
renewed interest in the ancient sport
of archery.
“I want to be like Katniss. I want
to kill things for food.”
That’s typical of what Ken Cameron, 67, retired principal and teacher,
and two-time Canadian National
Masters Archery Champion, hears
from young voices on the other end
of his phone. Katniss Everdeen wannabes call him about the archery lessons he teaches on Salt Spring Island
as a certified Archery Canada coach.
Salt Spring Middle School student
Zion Elliot at an archery facility at
Camp Homewood on Quadra Island.
melinda divers PHOTO
In southern Ontario, at seven years old, Cameron tagged
after older uncles toting 12-gauge shotguns to hunt rabbits
and ducks. That early introduction to hunting was sidetracked by life: a move to the city, a Bachelor of Education
degree from UVic, and a masters from Gonzaga University,
Wash. He married in 1976, and raised two daughters with
his wife Jane Cameron, a partner in The Forensic Alliance,
a forensic consulting firm in Victoria. They lived in small
places: Ceylon (Saskatchewan), Port McNeill, Pender Island,
with Salt Spring being their largest community where Ken
retired as vice principal of Salt Spring’s Middle School six
years ago.
Ten years ago, his interest in archery was ignited by
watching bow hunting on TV. He wanted to learn to hunt
using a bow. With some practice he could hit a six-inch
circle from 15 yards using the Recurve bow.
“But at 20 to 30 yards I couldn’t hit a thing. I never
seemed to improve.” He kept at it for a couple of months, was
frustrated by his inconsistency, and put the bow away.
It goes without saying that archery takes practice. Shoot 6,000
arrows a year and a bull’s eye is more likely yours. Bump that up
to 10,000 arrows and you might qualify for the Canadian National
team.
The sport of target archery (never mind hunting) is not for
generalists. Details, baby! Rules. Precision. Competition and even a
foreign lingo to learn via a glossary. Like golf, there’s lots of equipment: carrying cases, arrow rests, releases, quivers, wrist slings,
finger slings, gloves, stabilizers, nocks (nibs that fit on the end
of arrows), bow string waxes, range finders, binoculars and more.
Stance and body positioning, not to mention wind, can play havoc
with performance.
“You have to know your effective range,” he says.
He found his way back to the sport after a friend showed him a
new compound bow; a sophisticated piece of equipment capable
of launching arrows at speeds of up to 300 feet per second. Now
12 bows, 10 years and eight Canadian Masters’ records later, he’s
found perfection in a BowTech Guardian, a 40 to 60-lb. compound
bow set at a 48-lb. draw weight for target archery.
TWO SPECIAL PROPERTIES ON A SPECIAL ISLAND!
Spectacular waterfront point of land, with stellar architect designed home...
an H. Schubart original, beautifully restored & updated...a wow kitchen with
oceanside breakfast area, dramatic living, formal dining, master wing, wood
floors, feature fireplaces, 4 bed/4 bath, delectable master wing, stellar guest
spaces...an ocean/islands/mountain panoramic view, with sunny e/s/w
exposures...easy access to beach. Private, in one of Salt Spring’s premier Light filled updated log home, entertainment kitchen & dining, feature stone
neighbourhoods, with easy care landscaping to allure the senses. This wood-burning fireplace, spa style baths, 3 bed, 2 bath, sunny deck & patios,
is your special retreat...an homage to Frank Lloyd Wright’s contemporary orchard, large pond, forest. Close to town. Lovely pastoral setting! Be self$599,000
ethic...enjoy.
$3,680,000 sufficient here. MLS# V1072154
Visit Li Read at her office at #4 - 105 Rainbow Road, across from Ganges Marina
Contact Li Read today at 250-537-7647 or [email protected]
Visit www.LiRead.ca for a showcase of fine properties for sale!
See Li for Successful Solutions!
L
Summer 2014 – AQUA – Page 15
AQUA
DRIFTWOOD
AD PROOF
melinda divers PHOTO
Archery standings are calculated through national registration
of scores from local and regional tournaments sent to Archery
Canada’s ranking committee. In 2010, he qualified for the national
team at the Pan American Archery Championships in Guadalajara,
Mexico. Overall, he’s won medals at the Canadian and B.C. champi-
eaat,
E
t, psl
reeaa ep,
r
COASTAL
.. .
s
s
i
i
e
iffe plee
l
p
m
i
ssim
e dd
Lli
BOOKS
onships and Seniors Games in B.C. and Florida.
In addition to target archery, field, traditional and Kyudo (Japanese), there’s 3D archery involving life-sized targets strategically
placed in natural environments with hunters practising “ethical or
kill shots.”
community-minded l globally connected
Join us for our annual
Galiano Literary Festival!
www.galianoliteraryfestival.com
isis
iffee plee
impl
ssim
Lli
e dd
eaat,
E
t, psl
e
rreeaa p,
.. .
Salt Spring Books
the centre oF SAlt SPrinG
Salt Spring
✓ Books for everybody
Books
This with
season
online
Open year-round
overshop
25,000
titlesfrom the comfort of ✓ Nautical charts & maps
your authors,
home. Visit our webstore for
plus a great selection of Canadian
books, gifts, gift certificates and ✓ Puzzles, games & toys
used books, art supplies & gifts.
✓ 1000s of magazine titles
Salt Spring
Books
much more!
Shop online at www.galianoislandbooks.com
✓ Art supplies & stationery
Happy Holidays!
✓ Email, internet, fax service
76 Madrona Drive Galiano Island BC V0N 1P0
www.galianoislandbooks.com
3340
1 877 795 2665 | 250 539
104 McPhillips Avenue, Ganges, 250-537-2812 Fax: 250-537-1926
[email protected]
250 539 3340
[email protected]
76 Madrona Drive Galiano Island BC V0N 1P0
Shop Local...in-store and online
tannersbooks.com
e dd
Page 16 – AQUA – Summer 2014
eaat,
E
t, psl
e
rreeaa p,
.. .
isis
e
e
iff plee
pl
m
i
m
ssi
Lli
Grace Point Square 250-538-0025
Salt Spring Island
www.blacksheepbooks.ca
Hunting of wildlife takes place on Salt Spring in controlled environments with the approval of farmers on their land. Cameron says
there’s been more interest in hunting food lately, also true on Salt
Spring where deer are prevalent. “People know what’s in the meat and
it’s cost effective.”
It’s a trend that coincides with “nose to tail” eating spawned by The
Whole Beast, a book written in 2004 by Fergus Henderson, a Brit,
and a concept introduced into restaurants like England’s St. John Bar
& Restaurant, albeit, not to everyone’s taste, as indicated by this comment on TripAdvisor.ca: “Well, you either like calf ’s brain, peas and
mint . . . or you don’t.”
I meet Ken at the Salt Spring Island Rod and Gun Club off Long
Harbour Road that’s long held my curiosity. I’m struck by the incongruence of the kale-eating, CBC-loving, tree-hugging islanders that
I’ve met and those who find their way down to the club’s forested
hollow. Inside the clubhouse a big elk’s head graces one wall, trophies
collect dust in old cabinets and targets with bull’s eyes cluster like
game at the end of a field. When we meet, as I’ve requested, Ken
comes dressed in full gear. After I’ve peppered him with questions, he
asks, “Would you like to give it a shot?”
He hands me a recurve bow. It’s so lightweight. I raise it and assume the position. “Aim lower,” he says. I pull back on the bow string.
“Now just let go.” Shot taken. A seam of air. I don’t even hit the
indoor target. I try two more times. Finally I hit the outermost circle.
It’s enough to offer a taste of how addictive this could be.
That compulsion must be what keeps 82-year-old Ron Boorman
of Boorman Archery in New Westminster still engaged. He’s run his
storefront for 50 years, recently expanding to include an archery museum. Photos and all manner of artifacts testify to archery’s evolution.
Yes, he says, they’ve been swamped since The Hunger Games. No, he
hasn’t read the books.
Archery Trivia
• First time target archery included in Olympics: 1900
(Paris), discontinued in 1924, and re-introduced
permanently in 1972.
• First time women allowed to compete in Olympic
archery: 1904.
• Archery is Bhutan’s National Sport.
• Robin Hood split the arrow of a competitor and today,
doing so is still dubbed a Robin Hood.
• Kevin Evans – A Canadian archer and one of the top
Paralympic archers in the world who, after having an
arm amputated in 2000, the result of an industrial
accident, has won both Paralympic World and other
championships.
• Canadian Chris Perkins won gold in the Men’s
Individual Compound event at the 2011 World Archery
Championships in Turin, Italy.
Above: Ken Cameron at
the Salt Spring Rod and
Gun Club indoor range.
At right, from top: Two
of Cameron's medals;
provincial team name
badge.
Previous page: Salt
Spring Island Middle
School students try
target archery during
a school trip to Camp
Homewood on Quadra
Island.
In Victoria, Al Wills, president of Archery Canada and the Victoria
Bowmen Archery Club, says they’ve been overwhelmed by interest.
The lessons at Saanich Commonwealth Place are always full. Young
girls, boys and people of all ages have come out.
“They come with a romantic notion, but you can’t expect to become Katniss overnight.”
Wills has been practising for about 43 years.
Back on Salt Spring, Ken’s sights are set on the Canadian National
Archery Championships in Lac La Biche in early August where socializing with fellow archers is a favourite part of the sport. Oh, and just
in case you were wondering, target archery is the second safest sport
in the world. The first? That would be table tennis.
Let the games begin.
Contact Ken Cameron for private lessons or information at 250537-1243.
Summer 2014 – AQUA – Page 17