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Welcome!
Although I started archery for the first time the winter after I graduated
from College, I was a major contender for the 2004 US Olympic Archery Team finishing 6th in the Finals of the Olympic
Archery Trials in Mason, Ohio held June 12th-19th, 2004. I am currently in the running for the 2008 Olympic team to
be decided in May of next year.
I have set up this site so that you might get to learn more about my quest to help the US women develop a solid international
presence in the sport of Archery. On my website you will find my latest results, my upcoming events, photos, and information
on how to become a sponsor. Currently, I am also be available for appearances and Archery demos.
Why Archery?
My novice rowing coach at Exeter, Georgia Crowley (also an Exonian) had a saying "Any boat, any seat,
anytime." I had modified that to "Any sport, any equipment, do what you gotta do to get to the Olympics." It often
shocks people that initially, I really didn't care what sport I did, as long as I went to the Olympics. Unlike most athletes, I did not start training seriously in archery because I liked
it, rather I picked up the bow in order to accomplish my goal of going to the Olympics. What I have
learned over the past two years however, is that you will never get to the Olympics if you don't love a sport enough to dedicate
the hours and patience it takes to reach an elite level.
How I got started...
Before I was an Archer, I was a Rower.
In October 2002, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) wanted to reduce the number of athletes that competed in
the Summer Olympic games so they wrote a proposal to cut lightweight rowing from the Olympic program. Although I
was not a serious contender for the Athens 2004 lightweight women's double, I was convinced that hard work would
pay off and I would work my way on to the USRowing team by Beijing in 2008. The news from the IOC crushed
me and my dreams... if only for a moment. In December 2002, the IOC decided to keep lightweight rowing in, announcing
that future non-combat sports could not have weight limit restrictions.
However, by
the time the decision had come out, I was in the thick of finding my new Olympic sport. I went down the list of sports
and checked off ones I thought I could pick up at the "late" age of 23 (most Olympians are done in their mid-20s after more
than 12 years of practice at mastering their sport). It came down to three, Cycling, Archery and Fencing. I looked
into all three sports asking the following questions: Can I find an excellent coach where I live? How many hours
a week will I have to train? How much will equipment cost? What are the chances I can go all the way? Then
I read books and signed myself up for classes. I had a certain draw to Archery, maybe it was because I was runner-up
camp champion when I was 8, maybe it was because it seemed so unique. Either way, I called Anthony Belletini, the State
Archery Association of Massachusetts (SAAM) President and told him that I was interested in going to the Olympics in Archery.
He was more than accommodating, he set me up with the top equipment and started working with me on a regular basis.
What is training like?
Training with the Olympics
in mind is on a completely different level than I have ever experienced. The only other time I've ever come as
close to dedicating as much time and effort to a sport was when I was training to win the gold medal at Women's Henley
in 2001 (a big international rowing event in England). There are three elements of my training that have to come
together if I want to get to the top. I have to be mentally tough, I have to be physically fit, and I need to have excellent
form.
During the 2004 season, I commited
to training full time and so at any point in the day on most days of the week you might have caught me on the range.
During the 2005 season, I will be balancing my training with a new job at Northwestern Mutual working
for Randy Hall (www.nmfn.com/randallhall) and Adam Neubauer (www.nmfn.com/adamneubauer). Juggling a job and training is not completely foreign to me, when I lived in Boston, I had to balance
a full time job at Schwab Capital Markets with my training which restricted me to only 20-25 hours a week of shooting.
As in most elite sports, training builds up and then tapers off as tournaments come and go.
A typical weekday for
me when I was training for the 2003 US Outdoor Nationals started at 5:30am where I was either rowing (for cardio training)
or hitting the weights at my gym. 7:15am I reported to the trading desk at Schwab, worked until 4:45pm and then hopped
in my car for a 60 mile drive (in rush hour traffic) to Exeter, NH. Once there, I set up my equipment and shot
200-250 arrows at a distances of 70, 60, 50, and 30 meters. At about 8:45pm, I was back in my car driving home and by
10:30pm I was at home in bed ready to start the next day 7 and a half hours later. On the weekends it was the same drill,
only I was able to steal a couple more hours of sleep and didn't have to go to work.
Fortunately because of
sponsorship opportunites the 2004 season was a lot more relaxed, the only thing I had to worry about was getting my training
completed to be prepared for the Olympic Trials.
Where
do I train?
Currently I train at
Morley Field, home to the San Diego archers and at Performance Archery. From January 2006-October 2007, I trained at
the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA. I moved to the training center in order to train with Coach Lee, former
coach to the Australian and Korean teams.
During my 2005 season
I relocated to Tucson,AZ to train with 2004 NAA coach of the year Alexander Kirillov. Information on PSE can be found
on the web at www.pse-archery.com.
During the fall of 2004
and the early winter of 2005, I trained in Chicago with the Lincoln Park Archery Club, found on the web at www.lincolnparkarcheryclub.org. For cross training, I rowed with the Chicago Rowing Center, they can be found on the web at www.rowchicago.org.
During the 2004 summer,
I trained in Mason City, Illinois, hometown to the number one ranked US Men's Archer, Vic Wunderle. You can check
out his site at www.vicwunderle.com.
During the 2004 winter/spring
I trained in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at the Ft. Lauderdale Archery Club. Thanks to their sponsorship, I had a
warm plact to train over the winter. You can check their site out at www.fortlauderdalearchers.com.
During the 2003 summer, I trained
at Phillips-Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. When I started training in Boston a little over a year and a half ago,
I knew I would need a place to shoot outdoors at 70 meters (roughly 3/4 the length of a football field), so I contacted my
JV swimming coach from Exeter, Kathy Nekton and asked her if she could help. She put me in contact with Malcom Wesselink,
the Basketball coach, who convinced the Athletic department to let me borrow the field next to the football stadium through
the summer. That opportunity was extremely valuable to me and I owe all my accomplishments during the 2003 summer season
to having a place to shoot and to the people who made it possible.
During the 2003 Winter, I trained at ArcheryUSA in Dedham, MA. They have
a 20-lane, fully-equipped, indoor archery range. You can find them on the web at www.archeryusa.com. Besides serving as a local archery pro shop, they host
birthday parties and JOAD classes.
How
long have I been competing, and with what kind of results?
I started
training in December 2002 and competed for the first time a few weeks later. After only 3 months of training, I
placed 44th at the 2003 US Indoor Nationals. Then after another 4 months of training, I went to the 2003 US
Outdoor Nationals and placed 25th. Among other results, I have since placed 2nd in the 2006 US Indoor Nationals and
5th in the US Outdoor Nationals in 2007, taken the broze twice at the Texas Shootout, and have won a world ranking
event in Puerto Rico. I also had a respectable 6th place finish in my first US Team Trials at the 2004 US Olympic Trials
as well as a 5th place finish at the 2005 World Indoor Team Trials.
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