A 14-year-old boy from rural Albert Lea finished first in his age category in the World Archery Festival last month in Las Vegas.

Hunter Tuveson, an eighth-grader at Southwest Middle School, shot a perfect score on the first day of the two-day competition and was two points away from perfect on the second. He competed in the freestyle division for archers ages 12 to 14, beating Steven Manfull from Kansas by a single point.

“It’s a good mental sport. It teachers you a lot discipline,” he said.

Tuveson is the son of Steven and Ronda Tuveson of 70616 County Road 46. Steven noted that the freestyle division attracts the greatest number of competitors and generally is the main attraction at archery contests. The division allows archers to use any equipment meeting the standards of the National Field Archery Association.

Hunter Tuveson shoots with a bow by Hoyt and carbon arrows by Gold Tip. He doesn’t release the arrows; he has a release device that when he pulls back on the strings, he clicks a button to shoot. There also is a sight and a level that helps him aim.

“Bull’s eye” is really a term for darts. In archery, the 10-point ring is called the “center,” but in the center of the center there is a black, penny-sized circle called the “X-ring.” Tiebreakers are determined by which archer had more arrows puncture the X-ring. At the World Archery Festival in Las Vegas, Hunter Tuveson hit the X-ring 24 times of 30 arrows the first day out and 20 times the second.

The World Archery Festival was Feb. 19 and 20. The perfect score on the first day of 300 means that he hit the center of the target on 30 arrows. The center, which is worth 10 points, is 1 1/2 inches in diameter. He shot from 60 feet away.

In fact, the contest was held indoors. It took place in a conference room at the Riviera Hotel.

Steven Tuveson said it is the largest indoor archery tournament in the world. Archery competitions, even the major ones, are sort of like the “Robin Hood” stories in that anyone can participate. There are no qualifiers, like in major golf or bowling tournaments. Participants just pay an entrance fee.

Though the word “field” is in the NFAA name, the indoor tournaments are target archery. Target archery can be indoors or outdoors. Field archery always is outdoors and often involves shooting in rough terrain.

He said sometimes local archers take a shot at top-level tournaments just for the thrill of it.
On Target: Tuveson takes second at nationals

On the second day, Hunter shot 298. He had 28 arrows score 10 points and two scored nine, on the ring just outside the center.

Manfull shot a 299 the first day and a 298 the second. There were 32 archers competing in the division.

Hunter participates in soccer in the fall, but otherwise archery is his sport. The family has an archery range in the hayloft of its barn, and he has a coach, John Carlson, who lives in Lake Mills, Iowa. Hunter practices each day at 4 p.m. and took a week off following his victory. He now is gearing up for the NFAA Indoor National Championships on March 19 and 20 in Louisville, Ky.

Steven Tuveson said the National, now in its 31st year, is the most prestigious tournament on the archery calendar. It takes place at the Kentucky International Convention Center.