COVINGTON, Ky. — Covington Parks and Recreation is proving to kids that archery is a sport they can master, no matter their age. The department debuted its Introduction to Archery camp on Thursday, June 11.
Edith Spisak is only 10 years old, but she now knows how to shoot an arrow. Spisak says it begins by placing your feet shoulder-width apart and getting the arrow secured on the bow.
“Your fingers under, lean back as you do it, and then shoot,” Spisak said.
This is the first archery program the department has ever sponsored. Every participant learns the basics of shooting and, of course, safety. The campers were between the ages of 9 to 12.
Parks and Recreation Division Manager Ben Oldiges said he discovered archery in 2008 while getting certified to teach the skill.
“Much like golf archery is something you can do the entirety of your life. In past locations I’ve worked, we’ve had people in their 80s shooting bows,” Oldiges said.
Oldiges said the sport is gaining in popularity in school systems and he’s excited to help teach the next generation of archers.
“Most high schools in the area are having archery teams so our goal is to get them some of the base level skills so they could go into the school system and take this pre-existing knowledge and be a little more advanced,” he said.
Spisak still has some time before high school, as do the other kids in the program, but she said she had a lot of fun learning the sport. It’s a skill Oldiges said they can take with them through life.
