|
||||||
|
Team Frady Outdoor Adventures had a great opportunity to teach a pilot program at the Biltmore Estate on Saturday September 19, 2006. The Biltmore Company wants to add a larger variety of outdoor skills for their guest to participate in while they are visiting the Estate and their newest addition, The Inn on Biltmore (hotel & restaurant). The Biltmore Estate has the “Explore Biltmore Estate Outdoor Center” and offers activities such as fly fishing, hikes, biking, kayak trips on the French Broad, horse back riding and the Land Rover Experience Driving School. They are interested in adding Trap/Skeet and archery for a mix of shooting sports.
Jim and I had two of our Pro Staffers, Gary and Carol Carver and two of our new Regional Pro Staffers Richard and Rachel Edmons to help us teach this pilot program. We would teach with two Mathews Genesis Compound bows (one left and one right handed bow), a Byron Ferguson Patriot Long Bow, a Bear Montana Long Bow, a PSE Bullseye Recurve Bow, and a Barnett Revolution XS Crossbow. We used Mckenzie/Delta 3-D targets of animals that were native to our mountains with the exception of the African Warthog target that we added for fun. We use Carbon Express Flu-Flu arrows in all of our programs, we have found from experience they are perfect to use due to the fact they are designed for bird hunting. Their large feathers create drag which allows them to only fly a short distance so they are very easily found. A special thanks to Dana Brackins at Carbon Express.
The morning was cool and foggy; each class began with safety instruction and the proper way to shoot to prevent the string from hitting their arms. We teach split finger shooting style (one finger above the nock and two below) so the string will properly roll off the fingers for the shot and to aid in keeping the arrow from coming off the rest.
All the couples had a great time and enjoyed learning the different forms of archery. We were able to set up a table and display all of the catalogs, brochures, and promotional items that our sponsors always send for our participants, they were very appreciated. We used the Lacrosse T-Shirts, Mathews hats, Muzzy and Lacrosse Koozies, Thermacell units and other promo items for “bullseye” prizes which everyone really enjoyed. The Muzzy Broadhead pins were an instant hit and everyone had one on either they jacket or hat, thanks to Mark Land and Fred Settles for your generosity. We would also like to thank Erin Patterson at Danner/Lacrosse; the T-shirts you sent were a huge hit. The temperature was in the mid 50’s and all the ladies put forth extra effort to hit the bullseye to win a T-shirt for an added layer.
Gary and Carol are very professional and everyone really enjoys their easy way of teaching. This was Richard and Rachel’s first event with us and after working through the nerves they done a great job. Jim had the job of keeping everyone moving, taking care of their needs, assisting our new staffers and taking pictures. He had the most difficult job to say the least. Jim and I began this adventure 13 years ago to do what we could to bring more people, especially women and children, to the outdoors, shooting sports and hunting, it’s our mission statement. We never dreamed we would be teaching archery to people at American’s premier castle. We would like to say a special thank you to Lee Reading at the Biltmore Company for inviting us to pilot this program and hope that archery will be one of the new activities at the Outdoor Center in the future.
We would also like to thank all of our sponsors, without your help our programs would not be possible.
Remember to “Chase your Dreams” you never know where the adventure will take you. You might end up at a majestic castle in the mist teaching others how to preserve our hunting and shooting heritage. |
||||||
|
An elegant castle nestled on eight thousand acres in the Smokey Mountains of Western North Carolina was built over a six-year period and took 1000 men to complete. This single family home was opened to guest on December 24, 1895 by the owner, George W. Vanderbilt. This home is known as the Biltmore Estate and is surrounded by beautiful woods, gardens, streams and the French Broad River runs through it. At one time Mr. Vanderbilt owned all of Pisgah National Forest and had plans to bring in game from all over the world to develop his own hunting preserve.
Our program would consist of 30 married couples, each would be taught three different activities in a 3 ½ hour period. All couples spent one hour in each, Archery, Trap/Skeet and the Land Rover Experience.
Lee Reading, Event Coordinator for the Biltmore Company wanted us to give the participants a real archery experience. I met with Lee at the sight several weeks before the event to pick out an area that would be suitable and safe for shooting 3-D archery. The Biltmore Estate is 8000 acres of paradise to say the least; the area I choose was a wooded area with easy access to our range and the other activities. There was a beautiful view of the vineyard just over the hilltop. We set the range so that each person could rotate from station to station and have the opportunity to shoot all forms of archery and the crossbow.
The women took to the instinctive style of shooting very quickly. The men on the other hand were amazed when they missed the target which was a source of joy for the women. They all had a great time and left with smiles on their faces and some fantastic products as well. Most were talking about purchasing archery equipment when they returned home; most of the couples were from the Chicago area on a weekend excursion.
