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| - One of my friends organized a mock Hunger Games events, and the first game started at the OCCS for some archery.
This place is quite a drive from where I live, but it was worth it. A group of us 16 came to this huge building to be taught how to shoot a mean bow and arrow. There are lane rentals for $15/hour, but you could organize for a group instruction. For 16, the cost came to $19/person which includes great instructors and the chance to pretend you're either Katniss or Legolas from LOTR.
What happens is you're brought into a room for a debrief on bow and arrow safety. For 16 people, there are 3 instructors, but the main one clearly loved his job which made him very endearing. Safety is paramount at OCCS and the debrief includes some funny, yet serious, stories about how different people have shot bows into people, stabbed...hopefully by accident!
After the instruction, you are brought into the main gym and the line of bows and arrows made us all quiver. The bow is actually not heavy...it's when you have to pull the string back that made my arm sore. After a while, I had to put it down often. OCCS provides finger and arm pads but they suggest you to try without first...so you can get the natural feel.
Each person get's 3 bows and you practice away. There are target practices and soon, it's over. The only sad part was that OCCS dispelled many of the movie myths of bow and arrows: you can't really shoot bows continually - it just doesn't work - you can't really shoot up or down - just straight - and it's probably not feasible to shoot 3 arrows at once. Romantic version of bow and arrow shot down for me.
All in all, this is a great out-of-the-ordinary thing to do, especially in a big group. As for me, I don't think I will be like Katniss shooting a direct hit in the eye of a squirrel anytime soon, I couldn't even hit my balloon once, but it's nice to dream...and at OCCS, you can.
Great instructors who are very passionate and funny... and great fun!
By the way, OCCS also offers fencing and "Knightschool" which if I was 10 I would totally love to attend. It's camp for kids and it involves fencing and archery and everything that involves ye old medieval!
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