RALEIGH, North Carolina - The 2018 JOAD Nationals kicked off today in beautiful shooting conditions. The last time JOAD Nationals was separate from the U.S. National Target Championships was in 2011 and nearly 300 archers participated. This year, over 700 U.S. archers and international participants from almost 10 countries took the field for a week of intense competition.
Today's scoring featured the first 72 of 144 arrows of qualification for each division. The largest division on the field, the cadet recurve men, had 98 archers vying for top spots. Two of the top finishers Andrew Park and Trenton Cowles were happy to finish in front despite challenges throughout the morning. "You just have to go deeper inside yourself and find a way within," shared Park.
The two agreed that humidity was a hurdle today and for the rest of the week, shared advice: "Make sure you drink a lot of water to stay hydrated and don't let your hands get too moist," commented Cowles.
On the junior compound field, Alexis Ruiz smoked a 706 to break the junior and senior national records. "Everything was just working for me today," commented a beaming Ruiz. "It was a little windy so I had to really focus on my shot and trust where I chose to aim and just let my form go. It just went in the middle and it worked out for me!"
Christopher Clade's 604 smashed the barebow cub national record and he aims to break it again tomorrow. The barebow cub women's division was the largest barebow category on the field and after day one, Maggie Baus leads the pack. "Today was really fun and I made new friends," shared Baus. While Baus was out in front for most of the day, her mom told her she was in second, so it was a surprise after competition to learn she was leading: "I was like what?!" laughed Baus. "I didn't think I was that good today!"
Quin Ryals pulled a strong 700 - his first ever in competition - to shoot the compound bowman men's Gold Olympian Achievement Award Pin score and end the day leading his division. In addition to great excitement over his accomplishments, Ryals shared that he also had a lot of fun during the competition: "We found a butterfly on the field and it kept landing on Stone Hendrickson's bow and I kept trying to catch it." Commenting on the key to his recent success, Ryals said he worked to keep steady in the wind and added. "I've been working on trying to flow my release better and I think that helped me today."
Mirror twins Samantha and Allison Roberts competed together in the compound cub women's divison at their first JOAD Nationals. "It was a lot more competition than other tournaments we've gone to," shared Samantha. The twins got started in archery in 4-H and practice together six days a week, pushing each other to be their best and improve. The two enjoyed sharing the line today and making new friends from around the country.
Competition resumes tomorrow with the second half of qualification. Complete results and live scores tomorrow are available here. Photos are available here. Follow USA Archery on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram for more from the event. Join the conversation with #JOADNationals.
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