Hunter Valley Traditional Archers 20th Anniversary "Gathering"

[trish]

48428151_2439039966125787_2918764911418933248_n.jpg (94.37 KiB) Viewed 8297 times

[little arrows]

there are 24 sleeps to go.

HVTA directions.jpg (57.89 KiB) Viewed 8198 times

cheers
sue

[Towball]

Thanks for the map Sue,
There is a recent change to the large intersection at the start of the M1 however.
The roundabout is now a set of lights. No U-turn is allowed at the lights. If coming from the south towards the M1/John Renshaw intersection drive straight through the intersection along what becomes Weakleys Drive. About 200m along Weakleys there is a roundabout for your U-turn.
Come back through the lights. Here is where it gets tricky. You will need to switch into the left lane as soon as the barrier lines permit. The track into the range is at the end of the safety rail just a short distance from where you cross into the left lane. Take care as this is the start of the Motorway.
Those driving down the Pacific Highway route will be following the Sydney signs and as such will already be in the left lane. Drive slowly as the track comes up quickly on your left.
There is a lock on the gate. Ringing the phone number on the gate will give you the code. The gate must be locked after you enter. There is also a number on the flyer above.

Looking forward to seeing you all.
Cheers Towball

[little arrows]

Only 4 sleeps to go. If you going you might want to pack a jumper

cheers
sue

[Zan]

What do you get when you gather close to 200 people, 150 of them registered archers, onto the Hunter Valley Traditional Archery range? Answer: An absolutely fun filled time all in the name of Traditional Archery.
This was the first time my dad Keith and I had attended the Gathering. Arriving at the gate we had to ring “Uncle Ronnie” to find out the code to unlock on the gate. The friendly voice assured us we had arrived and this was going to be fun. It was a lovely surprise to see other Queenslanders had also made the trip. As we set up camp we saw Mark Goener and Con Hendrick. Mark told us that he attended the HVTA 2018 Charity Shoot and after having such a great time could not wait to return with Con in tow. Next to arrive was Kay and Wayne Prince complete with their two little dogs. All six of us were warmly welcomed and made to feel part of what was to become a huge event. It was the clubs 20th Gathering and archers arrived from near and far not wanting to miss out on helping the club celebrate, true trad camaraderie at its best. By Friday night the large camp area resembled a small village, camp fires to sit around, lots of stories and laughter and a delicious complementary meal of chicken curry (Trish’s special recipe…Yum!) and dessert.
After a good night’s sleep we woke refreshed and ready for a Saturday of Trad Archery. Breakfast of Bacon and Eggs commenced at 7am. This was cooked to perfection by club members with expert bacon crisper and egg flipper Towball in good form with his humour. President Peter called all archers to muster at 9 am to welcome us and outline the weekend’s program. Range Captain Richard set us a challenge of 3D targets with some interesting gamble shots thrown in and the novelties that we have all come to know, speed, hunter, bow bird, running pig and rolling discs. Our group was made up of archers who in true trad form did not take themselves too seriously. We laughed, told jokes and heckled at each other’s attempts to hit the tricky shots and gamble shots.
A hotly contested axe and knife competition started at 2pm. Many whoops and hollers were heard as the double bit axe was thrown. Some major talent was definitely on show.
It was wonderful to witness so many cubs (at least 30) attempt the balloon pop event that followed the axe and knife. Excited children all vying to reach a score of 50 by shooting balloons of different colours. Each colour being worth a different score saw keen young eyes really homing in on the gold balloons worth 25. At 50 the cub earned a “party bag” filled with all sorts of goodies. Every child received at least one bag, some managed to earn themselves more. Even the parents and onlookers wanted to get in on the action! These extremely well behaved kids had fun all weekend with the freedom to ride bikes, roast marshmallows over the fire pit and of course participate with their bow and arrows. They are definitely the future of our sport.
A Spinning Chevron Challenge followed. A knock out competition accompanied by much cheering and noisy ribbing. There certainly was enough to do on this very full program.
Dinner consisted of spit roast pork and beef or chicken Maryland. The roast was delicious and cooked to perfection. The baked vegies were just as we love them, crispy on the outside and soft within. Why would anyone choose to eat on their own when for $15 they can have such a great meal and support the club? A beautiful celebration cake followed, cut by some of the original club members and competitors from 20 years ago. Roast and dessert – couldn’t ask for more!
We slept like logs after such a busy day. Sunday again saw the range blessed with fine weather. We were off to try our luck in the improvement challenge over the 30 targets. Pride and the determination to show that second time round the scores would improve hilariously only worked for some.
I’ve never been to a shoot that included a broad head range. Fantastic seeing so many archers testing their accuracy skills under hunting conditions. You don’t get this chance at many shoots.
A lovely tradition that we had not seen before was next. Archers were asked to write their name on one of their arrows. We all gathered in an area overlooking one of the pretty wetland ponds. By shooting our arrows out onto the field and then gathering another archer’s arrow we all made a new friend. It is no wonder people come back time and time again to HVTA’s events.
I was shocked to find out of such a large group of lady archers I had been selected to compete in the Top Five Shootout. Kay Prince and I ended up tying and having to repeat our shots. With so many archers present I felt honoured to accept this trophy and the beautiful glass trophy (unique and made by Towball at his Glass Fusion class) for Ladies Recurve. Kay came equal first in the Ladies Longbow and Mark first in the Men’s Primitive Division. Con took out the most improved award. Our little Queensland contingent did ourselves proud and we had to bring up the State of Origin win as well! More importantly we all had heaps of fun. From the archery shots to the very full two days of events this shoot has been fantastic. The friendly club members, the fully catered canteen, the large bush camping area with fire pits, the choice of events and the peaceful nights all mean that we look forward to returning to HVTA.
Congratulations HVTA on 20 years. You have done an exceptional job.
Zan

[Zan]

Some pics of the weekend!