2009 TSAA State Field Championship Summary
By TD Rick Stonebraker 

Another successful field shoot, but then again, when it is at the Blaschke Deer Ranch with hundreds of exotic deer roaming the woods, and archers bounding hill & dale having a good time, how can it not be successful. When all was said and done, 61 archers participated in the 27th annual state field championship and the eighth time it has been held at the deer ranch. 37 records were broken and the 61 archers is a near record turnout being surpassed only by 62 in 2004 and 63 in 2008. 2010 should be a record breaker as the field event may move into late April. Be there to make it happen.

Adding to the success was a first, actually two firsts. The first first was the Victoria JOAD club (head chef Tom Barker) having a concession stand featuring freshly grilled hamburgers and hot dogs along with assorted drinks, chips and the like. This was highly received and met with everyone’s approval and hope it will become a mainstay.

The second first was a great idea: Mr. Cliff Brister brought popsicles each day in a Styrofoam container chilled with dry ice. Warnings were given to wait a few minutes before “enjoying” as they were VERY cold; even then, someone took a big lick and got stuck. A close-by group of archers “donated” their water bottle to pour over the frozen treat and the lips of the stuck person. It was hilarious; then minutes later, thinking enough time had elapsed, I got one of the frozen treats stuck to my lower lip; and yes, there is a photo of that on the photo gallery. John Blaschke drove Mr. Brister and the frozen treats around the course and people enjoyed the cool treat while battling the high heat. Without keeping accurate records over the years, it was thought this was the hottest it has been at the field event in Eagle Lake but our archers are real troopers and no one succumbed due to the heat. John made sure there were ample barrels of water and gator-ade throughout the course.

I can’t thank enough, the people that made this possible, especially those who came to the work parties and gave many hours, even days of their time. The True family of Andy, Lanette, Claude, Jessica and Andrew spent three Saturdays helping whip the place into shape and also the Friday before. Our President, Mike Hojnacki spent an equal number of days as well. Co-director John Blaschke works behind the scenes with mowing and numerous other unglamorous chores. Without the support of these types of people, we cannot have such successful events. And to those archers & family who hang around after Sundays events to help take down the course. Days and weeks go into preparing the course and dismantling it takes a few hours. It is an amazing event!   RWS

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