Cariboo Archer and Williams Lake resident Al Campsall took home a silver medal from the Canadian Indoor Target Championships recently.
The championships consisted of more than 400 competitors from across Canada.
Campsall, who normally competes in 3D archery and is a six-time national champion, said target shooting is a completely different ball game.
“For me, I’ve never done a whole lot of target shooting,” he said, adding he’s particularly happy with his result.
“I shot significantly better [than in the past] at the event, so I was happy. I was a little disappointed with my first round because it was about seven and a half points below my average [score] but my second round was near my average.”
At nationals Campsall fired a total score of 588 out of a possible 600.
“That means 48 out of 60 of my shots were inside the Toonie-sized 10 [bull’s-eye],” he said. “The shoot involves paper bull’s-eye-type targets shot at 20 yards.”
For Campsall, this was his first podium finish at a Canadian Target Archery Championship.
Much of his continued improvement, he suggests, has come from altering his style of shooting last year. While the learning curve was steep, Campsall said it’s beginning to flatten out and the results are showing.
“I have a 20-yard range in my basement and I also work on my shooting at the archery club,” he said. “The steps are small for me, as the learning curve seems to have flattened considerably, but I keep improving each week and month.”
The event was hosted at various cities across the country where certified judges and targets were required. Campsall shot his score of 588 in Quesnel.
Coming up in two weeks are the Canadian Indoor 3D Championships, being held this year in Fort St. John — the first time the event has been held in B.C.
“I’m really excited about that one,” he said. “I finished third last year but I had just started to shoot with that different style.
“My shooting right now, because I’ve been doing that type of shooting for more than a year, has improved significantly so I’m hoping for a better output this time than last time.”