Not just any kind of it, oh no! It was the national championship in archery. I qualified and so did my son. My Main Squeeze accompanied us which I found very nice and reassuring.
This year they organized it 215 kilometres away and I was supposed to be there by half past eight in the morning. In Slovenia, mind you, which is so small that you actually have to think hard to make someone travel that far. I have just used Google maps to find out how far the furthest place in Slovenia is from here - believe it or not, you can hardly reach 300 kilometres!
Anyway, I didn't want to leave home at half past four in the morning and actually compete that day, so I looked for a place to stay. As early as always, I found out everything had already been booked by more diligent archers, thinking more than a week ahead.
As lucky as I am (I actually tend to be lucky when my mind fails me, or my memory in most cases and even my credit cards have proved that by waiting for me in the most inappropriate places or finding their way back to me :)) ), I found this nice couple not more than ten minutes away from the sports hall where the championship took place. I could actually practice my English, can you imagine? And see our country through the eyes of someone coming from another part of the world.
But talking in Slovene would be just as nice, of course, when you're talking to nice people, such as our hosts.
I spent two wonderful days. Not only I entered two competitions (and came last both times), I also cheered for my son (not loudly, I don't dare shout when he's shooting), I also saw a part of our country which I had not seen before and I must admit it's very nice. My son was more successful than me even if he took the 10th place while I ended up in the 9th.
It's interesting how attractive archery can be if it's organised the right way. You can't say duels are boring. The archers still shoot at the targets, not at each other, of course. But they compete in pairs against each other. And the best one qualifies for the next round. Not me, but you know what I mean. I'd love to upload some photos and I will as soon as I get them and as soon as I delete some from my web gallery.
Last place? Well, I did have some bad luck with my equipment. I managed to break the berger button less than a week before the championship. And once you change that (or any other part), nothing is really the same. Only two weeks ago I reached a score which would take me one or two places higher.
Never mind, next year there will be another national championship and I'm sure I can qualify again and do better. If not, I can still meet the same great people at the competition and enjoy doing a sport together with the people I love.
And God knows which part of our vast country I will be discovering next year!
