Williamsburg, KY – Kentucky S3DA archers are accustomed to battling wind, rain, sleet, mud, and many other elements that get thrown their way, but this year archers were faced with a battle that no one saw coming. People from across the country have been impacted by COVID-19. Kentucky Governor, Andy Beshear, announced guidelines that included youth sports and how they could resume practices on June 15th. With less than 10 days of practice time and after at least 3 months of recommended social distancing, Kentucky S3DA archers were itching to get their bows out and compete again on the archery range. The Kentucky S3DA 3-D State Championship was held in conjunction with the ASA Pro/Am at the London-Laurel County Fairgrounds in London, Kentucky.

KY S3DA State Coordinator, Kristi Wilson stated, “This was not our typical archery tournament. We had to alter how we would normally host a tournament due to the COVID-19 guidelines, but it was well worth the adjustments to see the kids on the range, back with their friends and happy shooting their bows. I feel that everyone adapted well to the changes and I can confidently say that the tournament was a huge success. Now that these kids have gotten back into the rhythm of competing again, we are ready, as a state, to take on 3-D Nationals at the end of July.”

“The S3DA Kentucky State event was a great shoot. London was a good location and it is not too far for anyone in the state to travel. I felt the timing was great with the ASA following the event. My boys really enjoyed getting to see all their friends and being able to get back to a normal life,” stated parent and coach, Brad Pack.

West Carter Archery, S3DA archer Rickalyn Rayburn stated, “The Kentucky tournament was by far one of my favorite tournaments. I went through a bad archer habit and finally got back to my old dancing self with the help of archers, coaches, and Kristi. The tournament was safe, well-organized, and overall amazing! I especially loved seeing all the smiles and positive attitudes no matter how the archers shot. Kentucky S3DA made this event one for the books even during a pandemic.”

S3DA Board member and coach, Jack Fares stated, “This tournament was thought out and prepared very well from the moment we came through the gate for temperature checks to spacing out the shooting stakes on the ranges. Kentucky S3DA was well prepared to institute social distancing on the ranges and throughout other areas to the best of their ability and everyone was made aware of the COVID-19 guidelines. ASA did a remarkable job with spacing out vendors and we were able to visit and shop. Both KY S3DA and ASA working together did a fantastic job in trying to keep not only the archers, but everyone present, safe.”

Kentucky S3DA archers came out and brought their best and produced some amazing scores! Without the help of the Archery Shooters Association (ASA), Kentucky S3DA would not have been able to host this tournament due to the large number of participants. Mike Tyrell, ASA President, worked with the city of London and was able to arrange for his tournament to take place while including the Kentucky S3DA State Championship in his proposal.

Kentucky S3DA would like to thank Competition Archery Media (CAM) for the photography and video coverage.

For more information on the KY S3DA program, be sure to check out their Facebook page here.

About Scholastic 3-D Archery

Scholastic 3-D Archery (S3DA) is a unique, family-oriented youth archery program which has grown exponentially across the United States as a next-step initiative to follow introductory archery programs. The mission of the Scholastic

3-D Archery program is to foster, educate and guide youth in the areas of 3-D, indoor target, and outdoor target archery as well as safe, ethical bowhunting practices. The goal of the S3DA program is to provide archery and bowhunting opportunities to youth in after-school settings, as well as with archery-affiliated clubs and businesses in the community. S3DA students participate in 3-D and target archery using compound and traditional archery equipment. Students can participate at local, regional, state, and national archery events and earn college scholarships from colleges and universities across the United States. S3DA addresses the need for a program to bridge beginning target archery experience and more advanced activities such as 3-D shooting and bowhunting. The program currently operates across the United States with hundreds of certified coaches serving thousands of young archers, grades 3–12.

Contact the Scholastic 3-D Archery National Office at:

www.s3da.org or 225 North 3rd Street, Williamsburg, KY 40769, Ph: 606.524.3685

Media contact Kayla Bolton at kayla@s3da.org, Ph: 423.494.2204