Local teen earns state archery title

Published 7:00 pm Friday, July 4, 2014

Climax native Carson Sapp competes in archery tournaments across the state. His next competition is this weekend in Conyers, Ga.

Climax native Carson Sapp competes in archery tournaments across the state. His next competition is this weekend in Conyers, Ga.

There are a few things teenage boys are notorious for obsessing over: cars, sports, video games and of course girls.

For upcoming Cairo High School freshman Carson Sapp, archery can be added to that list. The 14-year-old Climax native was just named the Georgia Archery Association JOAD Outdoor Champion last Saturday.

Despite unfavorable weather conditions like wind and rain, Sapp secured the No. 1 spot in the competition.

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“I’m used to shooting in wind and rain, and a lot of the competitions I have won were in wind and rain, so it doesn’t affect me a whole lot,” Sapp said. “For most people it completely ruins them. They just can’t shoot well in rain. I just shoot in it and just ignore it, pretend it’s a regular ole day.”

Competitors shoot 72 arrows from one distance, which for Sapp’s age group, was 30 meters away from the target.

The shooters are scored by the rings of the target they hit, the middle being worth 10 points. Sapp shot a total of 41 10s and 25 9s and received a total of 689 points.

No. 2 Cody Lucas ended the tournament only eight points behind Sapp, making it a close finish.

“I had to switch bows,” Sapp said. “My first bow – I got out there, and I was way off the target, so I had to go and put that bow back and grab my backup bow. I kind of had to play catch up all day.”

Sapp got started with archery at the age of 10 through 4-H and won his first title, the Georgia 4-H State Championship, at age 11.

“They think I’m addicted to it,” Sapp said with a laugh about his friends who aren’t into archery.

“I shoot every day in the backyard,” said Sapp. “I have a target out in the backyard, and I shoot almost all day every day.”

Sapp’s goal is to go to Georgia Southern University and compete at the college level.

Georgia Southern recently broke ground on a 30,000 square foot Shooting Sports Education Center on a 25-acre property. The completion date is set for spring 2015.

Sapp shoots with a compound bow, which has a cable system on a set of pulleys with cams, versus a recurve bow, which has one string attached to both ends of the bow.

“Right now they do not have compound in the Olympics. All they have is the recurve, and they’re working on adding compound to it,” Sapp said. “If they do, that’s my goal.”