Kidsday reporter Brendan Moser of Wantagh Middle School practices his archery. Credit: Kerry Moser
I’m sure you’ve seen archery before in a movie like "Robin Hood" or possibly read something about it in a book. It looks easy, right? Just pull a string and let go. Well, it’s a lot harder than it looks.
I do archery and I really enjoy it. You have to focus on things like your sight, bow poundage, the position of the arrows and much more. Every Thursday I used to go to C&B Archery in Hicksville, and shoot 30 arrows a night indoors. I shot from 20 yards away. Most kids my age are shooting at 5 to 10 yards away, so I think I have a bit of a talent, even though I hit only about two bullseyes a night.
I use a compound bow, which is more complicated than a traditional recurve. A recurve is like a normal bow, just like a stick and string. A compound bow has gears and strings.
I started doing archery about two years ago. This spring, I got the bad news that C&B had closed. I am hoping it finds another location and reopens. In the meantime, I am trying a different place, and this summer I am doing outdoor archery at Cedar Creek Park in Seaford.
I started archery because I never really enjoyed other sports like basketball or baseball. My mom encouraged me to start because she wanted me to do a sport. Although I prefer to play video games over most activities, I really do like archery and I hope to continue it for many years to come.
Valentina Gatti and Bonnie Hersch’s sixth-grade class, Wantagh Middle School
