THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 3, 1994 TAG: 9409020103
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E7 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Larry Maddry
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
NO POINT IN fighting the bugs, the sweat, the no trespassing signs when you can hunt big game with your bow and arrow in the air-conditioned comfort of a virtual reality gallery.
Yep, high-tech has zeroed in archery. And the arrows are flying at moving images on a video screen at Bob's Gun and Tackle Shop on Granby Street in Norfolk.
Shoulder your bow, quiver your arrows and shake your buns over to the gallery, where you can shoot grouse, big-horned sheep, caribou, black bear, white tail deer, coyote, cougar, elk, antelope or moose moving across a screen 60 feet away.
The animals are shown in their natural habitat with birds chirping in the background and the footfalls of animals clearly audible. The archer's arrows fly toward the screen at about 200 feet per second. Whump!
And if shooting an arrow at Bambi won't be your idea of sport until the deer are equipped with hand grenades or bazookas so they can fire back, not to worry.
You can test your skill with a bow and arrows by shooting at moving traditional bulls eyes, balloons or even states of the U.S., flashed on the screen via an animated children's video disc.
But most of the archers who pay $5 for a half hour or $8 an hour use the interactive video archery system to sharpen their hunting skills, according to owner Robert Marcus.
``Our system is geared toward the hunter and the three-dimensional archer (those who shoot at target likenesses of animals),'' he said. ``We have a firearm range here, too. But archery tends to draw a younger crowd.''
The computerized video target system guides and keeps score for the competitors: ``Player No. 2, Chris, ready.'' Archers use blunt-tipped arrows to fire at a moose or deer and the screen rewards a true shot with points. On misses, a circle appears showing the place where the arrow should have struck to earn points.
After several minutes of competition the screen instructs: ``Please retrieve your arrows now. You have 45 seconds.'' The instruction is followed by a second-by-second digital countdown so that all archers are behind the shooting line before another round of competition. Point totals are flashed at the end of each round.
If you haven't been to a sporting goods outlet lately, you may have missed the change in archery equipment that has been attracting newcomers to the sport. The trend has been toward sculptured compound bows with wheels at each end to make the bowstring easier to pull, and hold, once the string is extended to its maximum distance. There are futuristic sights. And tubular stabilizers to balance the bow. Prices have changed, too. Bows at Bob's Gun and Tackle Shop start at $165 for a basic model and soar up to $650 for a machined aluminum bow. Some sights are priced as high as $200.
This week, when I dropped over to look at the competition, Jason Anderson - who has tried the range about six times since it opened two weeks ago - gave it a thumbs up. A student at Tidewater Community College, Anderson has killed five white tail deer in the wild.
``I like the range because I have to keep in practice and this helps,'' he said. He claims hunting with a rifle or shotgun is far less challenging than with bow and arrow. And you have to practice more often.
Ian Rogers, who lives in Connecticut but is working in Hampton Roads temporarily, was trying the range for the first time and liked it.
``I am strictly a white tail hunter,'' he said. ``And this is great; I love it!''
Although he has hunted with firearms, Rogers likes the challenge of bow hunting. ``Anyone can pick up a rifle and kill a deer from a hundred yards away when the deer can't see or smell you,'' he said.
``With a rifle you can take it out and shoot 10 rounds and it's ready for the season. But with a bow, you can fire a thousand arrows and you're still not happy with it. It's the purest form of hunting, you know . . . . You have to know the land better, know the deer's habits. Getting close enough to kill a deer is tough. I've never taken a shot at one any further than 20 or 25 yards.''
John Danz, the manager of the outdoor shop at Bob's Gun and Tackle Shop said league competition will start this month. Interested archers can drop by the shop to sign up, he said. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by PAUL AIKEN
Archer Jason Anderson is a regular at the Virtual Reality range at
Bob's Gun and Tackle Shop in Norfolk.
by CNB