Vegas World Archery Festival 2008

I’ve shot enough tournaments to realize that performing well 100% of the time is nearly impossible. That being said, it never ceases to amaze me that knowledge of this fact fails to be comforting when those bad tournaments inevitably happen. If you’ve already seen my scores and placement from Vegas, you may have already guessed that the tournament did not exactly go the way I had hoped it would. Despite not shooting well, I gained some valuable friendships and managed to win $200 in the slot machines, so I can’t complain too much!

I’ve shot Vegas three times, the first time was back in 2004 where I placed 3rd. I didn’t shoot it in 2005 or 2006 because of all of my form changes but decided to shoot it again in 2007 where I finished 4th. This year, I finished 11th. Of the past three times that I have competed, this year was the toughest field by far. It included 6 of the top 7 girls from the most recent Olympic Trials, 3 of whom are past Olympians.

The beauty of failure, especially when it happens in spectacular form, is that it charges you up and forces you to rethink the way you are doing things. I have every right to sit back and blame the circumstances of the past few months for my performance but what good will come out of doing that? In life, when we are faced with a challenge, we can focus our energy on the past or change the future.

The very best indoor tournament that I’ve shot to date from start to finish was the 2005 World Indoor Team Trials. I set some personal goals and then I trained day in and day out for three months with those goals in mind. I accomplished those goals but came short of making the team by a few points. Had I shot those same scores in the 2003 or 2001 trials, I would have not only made the team, but won both trials.

Right now, the level of shooting in this country for women has never been tougher. Jenny Nichols is a 2004 Olympian and has qualified for every world team indoor and outdoor since 2003 that she has tried out for, not to mention the national titles she has won over those same years. Karen Scavotto has won so many national titles and records, she probably can’t count them anymore and was on the 2000 Olympic team. Khatuna Lorig is an Olympic bronze medalist and 3-time Olympian for the country of Georgia, she too has gone to numerous world championships and holds national titles. Lindsay Pian has been on both junior and senior worlds teams, she holds national titles and has won international medals. Kate Anderson is a national champion at both the collegiate and senior level, she has won medals internationally as well. Ashley Kamuf-First, Stephanie Miller, Phyllis Shipman, Mandy Nichols, and Kendra Harvey have all qualified and competed on teams that went to the world championships. Seven of these women have broken 1300 in a competition, something that has not happened in the history of the sport in this country.

I am honored to be a part of this group of elite women and realize that the stakes are higher now than they have ever been. Each one of these girls has failed from time to time, but one thing that we all have in common is that we have never quit. I told some of my friends back in 2004 that the 2008 Olympic team was going to be one of the hardest teams to make and that statement is proving to be true.

What does any of this have to do with Vegas? Nothing! That is the beauty of it all, Vegas has absolutely no bearing on the Olympic team, it is just a fantastic place to get the tournament season jitters out of the way and a wonderful chance to practice rebounding. The morning after I returned from Vegas I went grocery shopping. There were two cards on the card rack right at the entry of Trader Joe’s. One card said "I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning to sail my boat," Louisa May Alcott. The other card said "Fall down seven times, get up eight." I don’t doubt that God had every intention for me to see those cards and learn a valuable lesson. I hope and pray that if you are going through a difficult time in your life or that if you have recently failed you too will get up again and keep moving forward.