Double C Archery Club members stay sharp and straight during the offseason

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — There are simulated hunts, and simulations of simulated hunts.

Members of the Double C Archery Club were doing the latter in the basement of the Charles City VFW.

“This is how we stay in shape during the winter,” longtime Double C member Paul Van Ausdall said. “It’s not so much in the arms but rather the back muscles that you really use.”

Van Ausdall was present with fellow club members Troy Koresh and Randy Gerber, who were doing some offseason shooting to stay sharp in the bright-white VFW basement that advises visitors to knock before entering.

“We have a rule about staying behind the line while we’re shooting,” said Van Ausdall, who wasn’t taking aim that day due to a nagging injury. Koresh and Gerber were, and for the most part, they were pretty much on target.

“But really, all this wouldn’t be applicable during hunting seasons,” Gerber said of the accessories fitted to his compound bow, in particular the string-threaded peep sight which — when pulled back and aligned with scope near the arrow rest — can make a coin look as large as a platter from 50 feet away.

“Thing is when you take aim at something like that bear over there,” Gerber said while referring to a life-size target rather than the real thing, “all you’ll see is brown and you’ll have no idea what part of the body you’re aiming for.”

Van Ausdall, Koresh and Gerber are not the only Double CC members, but are among the few who are Charles City residents.

“We get a lot of people who come in from a long way,” Koresh said. “What we need are more local members.

” I know there are a lot of bowhunters in town. Thing is, do they know about us?”

With both of the bowhunting deer seasons already passed and Oct. 1 — the starting day of the first of two — three seasons into the future, putting away the compound bow in favor of other pursuits seems to be a sensible option.

“But it’s like playing football or baseball,” Gerber said. “If you don’t do anything for five or six months during the offseason, you’re never going to get good at what you’re doing.

“I know that since I joined, I’ve become a much better hunter.”

Shooting at targets in a basement, even while participating in the club’s Indoor “300” League which is starting its next six-week session on Feb. 28, can only take you so far.

“That’s why we really like to promote our 3D simulated hunts,” Koresh said of the events the club puts on during the spring and summer, often at Wentlands Woods where they set up life-size animal targets — including a velociraptor.

“It’s kind of like golfing with a bow,” Koresh said. “You go from station to station, each with a different target to shoot at.”

“Like I said, if you want to be in top form for hunting season, you need to practice,” Gerber said, “and our 3D hunts are great for practice.”

But if practice ever makes perfect, the club members who set up the course know they need to turn it up a notch.

“If someone gets a perfect score, we know we didn’t make it challenging enough,” Gerber said. “No one should ever get a perfect score on our 3D hunts.”

Not even Robin Hood. For instance, the Double C Archery Club tends to set deer targets 70 yards away and obscured by trees and brush.

“Would you ever try to shoot a deer from 70 yards during a real hunt?” Gerber rhetorically asks. “Not if you’re ethical. But it’s nice to challenge yourself to see if you can make a shot like that.”

Koresh says that their 3D hunts are a great way to promote the club and provide a service bowhunters and archery enthusiasts.

“It’s just a matter of coming out for the first one,” he said. “Some people are worried they’re going to be embarrassed, thinking they’re going up against guys out of their league.

“But we have different distances for different levels … like the kids and women’s tees in golf.”

The 3D hunts and the Indoor “300” Leagues help provide the means for the club to support itself.

“Some of these targets can cost up to $400,” Gerber said. “Not too many people can afford to buy a whole set of them, and have someone set them up in the woods where they’re not expecting them.”

The club is willing to take in beginners.

“We have bows and equipment for them to use to see if they like it,” Van Ausdall said.

Even an experience bowhunter like Gerber became enlightened when he joined the club.

“I had no idea what ‘tuning paper’ was,” he said.

Van Ausdall explains.

“You simply shoot your arrow through this paper,” he said of the white-sheeted roll that you drape in front of a target, “and if leave a small hole, you’re okay as that shows your arrow is flying straight. But if you leave a wider tear, your arrow is either fish-tailing in flight or bobbing up and down like a dolphin.

“You don’t want that.”

THEY AIM TO PLEASE

For more information about the Double C Archery Club’s 300 5-Spot Tournaments or Indoor 300 League held at Charles City VFW, 1505 North Grand Ave.; about the upcoming 3D Hunts; or about the club in general, call Troy Bahlmann at 641-330-9555 or Randy Gerber at 641-330-5925, or visit Double C Archery’s Facebook page.