ORANCO BOWMEN MONTHLY NEWSLETTER - JULY 2023
ORANCO BOWMEN ARCHERY CLUB
Club President   

By: Al Wiscovitch - Club President

Wow, here we are in July, already and we just celebrated our 4th of July. Hope you all had a great day? I know I did. Catalina Island puts on a great 4th of July event where the whole town gets involved with a parade through the town and finishes the evening with a great firework show at the Avalon harbor.

Few updates around our range as I have been talking about for a few months. We have started that connex project. I would like to thank a few of our members for giving so much of their time with this project. Pete Whitworth Mark Houston Bill Waltz these guys are always there when I ask them if they can help with our projects. As for our range you may all may agree that our new range captain Jose Lara has been doing a great job with keeping up with the range and bringing our club members together to help him keep up with all the work that it takes to keep up. If you can and would like to be part of the help team please reach out to Jose or myself or any board member and see what you can do to help us keep up with all the work it takes to manage our club.

Congrats, to all of our club members who won or made the podium at the State field championships. It was nice to see so many of you on the podium representing our club. State Field is a very tough shoot and considered the Ironman of archery so be happy if you finished this event.

I would like to make everyone aware that Roland Fraterringo has stepped down as our membership chairman. I would like to thank him for his work as our membership chairman. And hope to see him stay on board as a good club member moving forward. So please thank him when you see him.

We have put Mariela Gonzalez in as our new membership chairman. She has been working hard already to help our members with their memberships. Please give her some love and thank her for stepping up with these duties. This is a very challenging job and requires all of us to be supportive as she learns the task at hand.

Last few things, We will be hosting the 3-D marked state championships this coming July 16th so please come on out and shoot this event should be a lot of fun.

Ps. Brad Belvedere, our league chairman, started our 3-D summer league last week and it was a lot of fun with good shots. Check with him for more details.
 
I hope this will help you keep In Touch with your club!

Al Wiscovitch

Oranco Bowmen President

Al Wiscovitch
(909) 322-3869
Club Vice President

By: Pete Whitworth - Club Vice President

So, what has been going on over the last month?

First: We hosted the State Field tournament and on the first day of that tournament we simultaneously set up a booth at Prado Regional Park, where we passed out information for ORANCO and Archery in general, while running a 5 lane archery instruction range with 4 people. Events like this that we do for the Parks Department are very beneficial for us as a club, because; they give us a chance to interact with the Parks Officials that ultimately oversee our lease. We also get to see some of Archery’s next generation as they get the feel of a bow in their hands for the first time. There were only 4 of us this time, Jim Teel, Bernie Ortiz, Al Wiscovitch and myself, due to the State Field being in full swing that day. I can’t thank these guys enough, quite frankly the club can’t thank them enough, for getting out there and showing the Parks Department exactly what ORANCO is all about.

Second: After listening to our members difficulties we came up with ways to streamline the membership process. Hopefully you will like the improvements that we have implemented. If not, I expect you will let us know.

Third: The Education Connex has been delivered and set in place on top of the road base gravel pad that Bill Waltz prepared for us. Al cut a trench from the closest main Connex to the new one and Al, Mark and myself ran power over to that new Connex.

Fourth: The Firecracker shoot went fairly well. We set it up on Saturday as usual with a great crew who set up some interesting shots (also as usual). I am only aware of one complaint, and that is being worked on.

Fifth: We have been playing with spot painting on our 3D herd to where I have cut stencils that match the x rings of the Field Round targets, found that those were done in error because the plan was to use the entire field target spot, so I cut those sizes in just paper to see how they compared to the spots on our animals and they don’t (those are spot Hog size spots by the way). So then I cut stencils for the sizes of our standard 3D’s 10 ring (the 11 ring when used for marked yardage 2 arrow shoots). Honestly, we aren’t sure what we like yet but we need to make that call before next Saturday (July 15th) when we set up for the State Unmarked 3D that will be held on Sunday the 16th.

Let me throw this in… I need help for this coming Saturday the 15th at 8:00 AM over at the maintenance Connex to set up this State Marked Yardage tournament. See you then.

I know I am missing stuff, oh I ran off the usual things like temporary membership cards for use with the streamlined membership policies, a new form for transactions on Sundays at the clubhouse, the tri-fold that we brought to that event at Prado. I think that about covers my movements for the month. Al wants the board to keep up with newsletter articles, and to the extent that it gives everyone a look into what it takes to keep this club moving forward, I agree to make the effort.

Oh, I have the seed of a plan for the shoot that will take the October slot once we move the Tomahawk to February. A lot of people have said they miss the Stump and Varmint shoot, so it’s a prime contender at this point.

That’s all for now.

Pete Whitworth
(909) 223-5822
Club Secretary

By: Amanda Duchardt - Club Secretary

Nothing to report.

Amanda Duchardt
Treasurer

By: Louie Lopez - ob.treasurer@outlook.com

Nothing to report.

Louie Lopez
(714) 538-7202
Range Captain
 
By: Jose Lara - Club Range Captain
 
Nothing to report.

Jose Lara
(909) 706-1149
Hunt Chairman

By: Chriss Bowles - Club Hunt Chairman  

Nothing to report.

Chriss Bowles
(951) 757-4571
Range Secretary

By: Mark Houston - Club Range Secretary

Hi Oranco Bowmen,

Hope you've all had a safe and fun 4th of July with family and friends. The weather is heating up and so is our 2023 Archery Tournament Season! With 2 league shoots under the belt were taking a break next weekend to shoot the State Marked 3D Championship here at Oranco Archery Range, which the Oranco Summer League shooters have been shooting the same format to help give our Club members a sharper competitive edge! Big kudos to our League Chairman Brad Belvedere, Al Wiscovitch, Pete Whitworth and all the regular crew and volunteers who make these League Shoots such a huge success. Not only sharpening our skills for hunting, but helping our archers become top notch competitors on the tournament circuit as well! 

Summer League will take another break the 1st weeknd of Aug. for 2 different 2-day major tournaments, Cherry Valley, Big Bear Shoot and San Francisco Archers, 1 Million BC Shoot. Both are well done long standing tournaments. Big Bear shoot located near Jenks Lake with most archers camped on site with 60 unmarked 3D 2 arrow 2-day event. Can be hot and dusty, I've shot this tournament many times, they tend to cater more to compound shooters. Cherry Valley usually provides breakfast and lunch Sat. & Sun. with dinner on Fri. & Sun. awards and a huge raffle late Sun. afternoon. Always a great experience if you love to camp with family or friends.

San Francisco Archers 1 Million BC Shoot is usually the same weeknd, a bit of a drive up to Pacifica. No camping so food and lodging is required for most of us. This will be my 3rd year shooting this event. Even though the cost is higher overall I've enjoyed this shoot much more. When it's 95°- 100° at the Big Bear Shoot the average temp. of the 1 Million BC Shoot is 65°- 72° and who doesn't like shooting huge 3D dinosaurs! 60 targets 2 arrow marked. 2-day tournament breakfast & lunch provided Sat. & Sun. awards on Sun. afternoon. The range is located just south of San Francisco and the Golden State Bridge in Pacifica with lots of really great restaurants and attractions near by and I must admit a hot shower, comfortable bed and room is hard to beat at the end of the day!

Either way these are both excellent destination tournaments that won't disappoint you! 

So get out there with family, friends, buddies, or bro's and bend a bow! 🎯

Mark Houston
(760) 605-1155

Tournament Chairman

By: David Bacon. - Tournament Chairman

Nothing to report.

David Bacon
(909) 217-4441
Membership Chairmen 
 
By: Mariela Gonzalez - Club Membership

Nothing to report.

Mariela Gonzalez
League Chairman

By: Brad Belvedere - League Chairman

Nothing to report.

Brad Belvedere
(951) 545-9462
Two Year Board Member

By: Bill Waltz - Two Year Board Member

Nothing to report.

Bill Waltz
If you are looking for photos of previous shoots, check out Tony Nguyen's fantastic photography in the link below! He has an amazing gallery organized by shoots and dates he's participated in:


Barn Owl Colony Update
from Jim Teel

The number of barn owls that we’ve fostered each year continues to grow — and this year is no exception to that rule. As of June 28th we have a total of 16 new barn owls, ready to hunt and devour any gophers and ground squirrels foolish enough to venture onto the club property. 

I check in on the 6 nesting boxes spread out around the club’s property every so often, to get an idea as to how they’re doing. Unlike last year, where all of the boxes had eggs and then baby owls right about the same time, this year’s batch has been decidedly more staggered. The owl box in Bear Valley (creekside) was the first box to produce offspring, which was personally very satisfying to see. That box has had eggs in it in the past, but unfortunately they never hatched. I reasoned that it was due to the location and how much direct sunlight it was getting. I’ve since moved it to another location this past winter where it is now more protected from the afternoon sun. As it turns out, that was the right thing to do. The three owls in the picture are from that box and will be the first ones from this year's offspring to begin hunting. 

I plan to make videos specific to each owl box location so in a single video you can see how each box progresses over the nesting season. Right now, there are six standalone videos showing each of the boxes in order: Clubhouse, Sniper hill, Tree stand, Valley (creekside), Valley (deep) and Shady. Here is a link to the most recent video: Barn Owl Colony Check; June 9, 2023 - June 28, 2023

Sometime later this year I will be pulling down all of the boxes for their yearly cleaning and to refinish some of the more weathered boxes. If you’d like to help out with that endeavor for work party credits, just let me know so I can coordinate with you when the time comes. 

-Jim Teel

Oranco Bowmen Archery Range

Occupying about 45 acres, Oranco Bowmen Archery Club is a NFAA certified 5-star range. This is the highest certification given by NFAA. We are the only range in Southern California with practice butts from 10-80 yards in 5-yard increments. If you need a place to "dial in" your bow, this is it! 

Oranco also has two NFAA roving courses: Our Valley Course is a level 28-target course, consisting of 14 animal and 14 hunter paper targets. For those who desire a bit more of a physical challenge, our Mountain Course is a hilly 28-target course offering 14 Field targets and another set of 14 animal paper targets. The Layout changes occasionally.
Oranco Bowmen Archery Club - Range Map 
Oranco is not responsible for lost or stolen belongings.

Please remember to lock your vehicles when you are not present and always take your equipment home with you. We have received reports about stolen equipment, and want everyone to understand that you alone are responsible for your belongings. We advise you to put your identification information on your belongings and try not to leave anything unattended.

Remember: We are open to the public on Sundays and during shoots. During these events it is much more difficult to track who is on range property, especially if people do not sign in at the office.

Be safe and responsible everyone.
 Announcements 

Range Beautification Party: We would greatly appreciate your help and support to the upcoming Work Parties. Keep an eye out for the email blast. All Club Members and their families are invited. Per Al Wiscovitch, Club President there will be an “ALL YOU CAN EAT LUNCH” served for ALL of our Volunteers who come out and help.

Your assistance ensures that the Oranco Bowmen Archery Club remains the best in Southern California. There is a reason why people travel from all over California to shoot at our Archery Club. Get involved and help us out.  
 
Cook Shack Workers Needed: Positions are still available for volunteers to help out during the upcoming shoots.

Please contact Steve Baker in order to reserve your spot at: Cell# (951) 285-1550. First Come, First Served.  

Target Camping: This is NOT Allowed...Period. Your Membership will be terminated for doing this! The Practice Butts are for sighting in, improving your archery skills, and honing your accuracy. The Roving Range is just that, Roving. Shoot 4 arrows, Score them, then move on to the next target. 

You have been warned. Don't do it. It is not worth it. 

How to Make Stuffed Venison Burgers

For anyone wanting to spice things up on burger night, the recipe below is one you’ll want to add to your lineup, for sure. It’s a great way to turn ordinary burgers into an extraordinary burger option that’s sure to please every one sitting at the table. This month, our buddy, Cody Marshall, of the Wayfinder’s Galley gives us a step by step look at how to make stuffed venison burgers. Check it out below.


Four medals in one day as the USA crowns two more world champions

LIMERICK, Ireland – It proved to be a golden day in the Emerald Isle on Saturday as Team USA added to their already healthy haul of medals at the World Archery Youth Championships.

An emotional Sydney Sullenberger claimed gold in the compound U21 women’s event, having watched Dewey Hathaway become a double world champion with victory in the compound U18 men, to go with the gold he won in the mixed team event earlier in the week.


 NEWSLETTER GOAL 
Mission Statement:
My Goal as Newsletter Editor is to help Members stay informed with the Operations and Activities that are going on in and around the Oranco Bowmen Archery Club. Your suggestions are welcome and appreciated. Check out our Club Website: Oranco Bowmen Archery Club Website