A group of Prince George teens are no strangers to keeping their eyes on the prize. After years of dedication to their sport, this weekend they take aim at bringing home the gold in archery from the B.C. Winter Games.
Silvertip Archers members Natalya Sarrazin, Daniel Gialleondardo, Tony Procter, Seth Logan, Cameron Guimond and Jennifer Stern join their Quesnel counterparts Joel Scheck and Chloe Raynor as representative from their zone at the Vernon tournament held Feb. 23 to 26.
The club is situated in a zone that stretches from Fort Nelson to 100 Mile House, with five competitors allowed through. Not only did the club fill all five of those spots, they also had enough kids trying out that they got three of the province's six wild card slots as well.
Logan, who has been shooting for four years, said he didn't really believe it when he found out he was headed to the competition.
"I just never thought I was good enough to go to the Games," said the 16 year old.
As one of the oldest and largest archery clubs in British Columbia, the talent pool is deep within the Silvertips. But that doesn't make the adults who oversee the program any less proud of the young archers' accomplishments.
"There's a lot these kids can accomplish. There's a lot out there if they put theo work forward. If we see that we have to help them fulfill their dreams to get there," said Carolyn Kelly, co-ordinator of the Silvertips's Junior Olympic Program, which trains archers between the ages of eight and 20.
While some, like Proctor, 14, have been at it since they could walk or were learning to read, like Stern, 14, others have only been at the sport for the past couple of years.
In order to make it to the level necessary to compete, it takes a lot of practice, focus and self-discipline said Flo Stern, a club volunteer who will be attending the games with her husband as a judge.
"Not only physically, but the mental concentration is 99 per cent," Stern said. "It takes a lot of dedication in order to get into the nine or 10 range consistently. That doesn't happen over night," Stern said.
"They have to be self-disciplined, they have to want it. It's just like any other sport - if you force them they're not going to enjoy it," Kelly added.
The concentration necessary for archery can bleed over into other aspects of their lives.
"It definitely makes you a lot more patient," said Guimond, 16.
Stern agreed, adding, "Especially when you have brothers."
That level of focus will be important for the group, who will have to shoot in front of an audience instead of the comfort of their Austin Road indoor range.
Sarrazin, 15, is going to be focused on the target while Stern said the most difficult element will be blocking out the noise of the crowd.
"I think it's the whole mental game of it," said Procter, who just returned from participating in an international tournament in Las Vegas. "We can all shoot great, it just screws around with our heads."
While the majority of the team members don't foresee pursuing archery later in life, the adults know that it won't ever be completely forgotten.
"Once you know the basics, it doesn't take much to come back," said Stern, who has seen young archers come back to the club with their own children to learn the sport.
