SJSUCS Athletics

In the wake of COVID-19, Club Archery players have adapted to new protocols for safe physical distancing by practicing on their own at the Black Mountain Bowmen Archery Club & Range in San Jose,CA.  Abram Do, Recreational Team Captain, finds the new procedures, like maintaining a minimum six feet from other persons, is adaptable. "Changing circumstances has certainly proved to be slightly inconvenient, but not impossible," Do comments. "I didn't find any major setbacks when it came to practicing on my own."

Team officers are diligently working with the administration at Black Mountain Bowmen and Club Sports at SJSU in order to discuss official plans to return to practice as a team. The plan includes specific protocols and guidelines to ensure safety at the range during club practices, such as how to line up at the bales or how members will be grouped.

The downtime has also helped Abram to improve his skills. He had plans to get certified as an archery instructor over the summer, he said. "Thanks to Zoom, I was able to go through the course online and still get certified." 
In March, while Club Archery was preparing for annual competitions, like the Western Regionals Competition in Los Angeles and the National Outdoors, Santa Clara County's Public Health Order protocols halted all club activities for the rest of the season.  In addition, the Black Mountain Bowmen range also closed for a period of time, leaving many students unable to practice. Sarah Tang, our Social Officer, remarked, "Especially being a social coordinator for the club, the amount of activities we can do have become very limited." Despite shelter-in-place, the team dedicated their time to improving internal club matters, such as creating their own website, organizing administrative tasks, and purchasing more equipment for members to use.  Sarah adds, "I hope we can reach out to new members and find creative means to fuel continued engagement with the sport so as to not let present circumstances cause further stagnance."

While most of the Fall semester was utilized for planning, the team remains optimistic and that we will look forward to more club activities in the upcoming semester. Crystal, a new member who joined early in the Spring prior to COVID-19, said, "As a highly individualized sport, I had the opportunity to explore which style of archery worked best for me and see my personal growth through my performance. Each day, I felt more and more motivated to get better. Going into spring, I hope to return to shooting at the range in the safest way possible with my friends and other club members."