By By Otha Barham
June 8, 2001
Brian Stokes likes to hear the twang of a bow string and see his arrow find its mark. It's an obsession that affects serious archers. This archer, who lives in southeast Lauderdale County, enjoys target shooting, 3-D events and bow hunting.
To satisfy his thirst for competitive shooting, Stokes competes in the Archery Shooters Association (ASA), a national organization. He recently returned from French Lick, Indiana, home town of the famous Boston Celtic, Larry Bird, where he competed in an ASA Pro-Am event titled the 3-D Pro/Am Team Shoot. The shooting teams consisted of one professional and three amateurs. Stokes team finished first on the second day of a weekend shoot.
Top archers
Targets on the 3-D life-like animals have a 12 point bull's-eye, a 10-point ring and an 8 point ring. A hit anywhere on the animal earns 5 points and a miss is 0. Competitors at French Lick shot 20 targets each day of the event.
Challenging targets
Annual competition in the ASA circuit consists of accumulating points throughout the season with high qualifiers competing in the ASA World Classic at the Olympic facility in Atlanta. For instance one ASA Pro-Am shoot will be held this month in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The pro-am format is the same as used by Bassmasters, Women's Bass Fishing Association and many other fishing tournament circuits. The events are open to any member of ASA.
The Indiana shoot was filmed by ESPN television for an upcoming telecast.
Stokes is a member of the Laurel Bowhunters organization and is sponsored in competition shooting by Custom Shooting Systems (CSS).