Get to know an Aggie archer
Bretton Cranney, a freshman majoring in economics from Paradise, Utah, comes from a family of competitive archers. Along with his father and two older brothers, Cranney has won state competitions and placed at the national level. He’s been a member of Cache Archers for more than 10 years. Although he’s currently taking a break from competitive shooting, he continues to practice recreationally. Cranney sat down with The Utah Statesman last week to discuss the sport and its growing in popularity.
Q: How long have you been doing archery?
A: I started when I was 8 years old, and I started competing when I was 10.
Q: What sparked that interest?
A: My dad. He’s really into hunting and shooting and he likes to shoot archery as well, so he just got us all into it. I have two older brothers and they were all into it as well. So I just kind of followed them. I’m the youngest of the family.
Q: What different kinds of archery are there?
A: There’s different styles. You have more traditional archery, which is what you see like on TV, like your more medieval style … the style of the bow is what they call a long bow, which is just a piece of material and string. Then you get into more of your compound shooting, which is the more up-to-date bows with the latest and greatest technology.
Q: Where do you fit into that range?
A: Competition shooting. I shoot compound bow, which is the modern bow.
Q: Is this something you practice all the time?
A: We live on a pretty good sized piece of land … so we have some practice targets set up. … When I was competing, I would shoot at least 60 arrows a day either at my house or at the Cache Valley Public Shooting Range. … I would be there several times a week shooting as well.
Q: Do you see yourself every going back into competitive shooting?
A: Yeah, it’s a sport where there’s not like an age gap in it. You see basketball players, and they can play professionally at best up to 40 years old. Archery shooters can be way older than that.
Q: Is this an expensive hobby?
A: To get into shooting it really isn’t expensive to get basic equipment, but if you get into it more, you’ll want to get better equipment, … and it is pretty expensive. The bow I shoot, just the bow with nothing on it, was $1,000. But, I look at it like this. Some guys compare it to like shooting guns. With archery you pay everything up front, where guns you pay, then you have to keep paying for ammo.
Q: What brand do you use? What models are you a fan of?
A: Hoyt is kind of the leader of bow technology. You have also PSE (Archery). There’s also other brands, such as Fred Bear. But honestly, the way technology has progressed with bows, I don’t think you really could go wrong with any bow. I just think the shooter needs to spend time with each bow to see what feels better.
Q: If someone were to decide that they want to get into this, how much would they have to spend up front?
A: I think for someone to decide to get into this for the intermediate equipment, I would gauge $500.
Q: Archery classes are available at some USU Extension campuses, but they’re not available here. Would you like to see courses come to USU’s main campus?
A: Definitely. I really think it gains a lot of interest with whatever comes out on video, such as Hunger Games and (the TV show) Arrow. I used to work at Al’s Sporting Goods tuning bows, and I couldn’t believe how many people wanted to come in and get into archery just because they saw Katniss. … It really caused a huge influx of interest.
Q: How do you feel about that?
A: I think the more people that get involved in this type of sport, it’s a good thing. A lot of people kind of frown upon shooting, but it’s a really family-friendly sport. Even my mom is into archery. It’s kind of a family affair. It’s inexpensive to go on a family outing to go shooting. You can do it about anywhere, even in your back yard. … It’s a very accessible sport.