USIAC 2005 TRIP

(updated 11/21/2005 )

5/18/2005 - The Trip
5/19/2005 9:30am(edt)
5/19/2005 - Practice & Other Stuff
5/20/2005 - James
5/20/2005 - Bryant
5/21/2005

Final Results (GAA/USIAC site)

Photos on the TSAA Website - lots of photos
Practice Day Photos on TSAA site
Day One
Day Two - women
Day Two - men

USIAC 2005 TEAM

Ashley Summers - recurve
Lindsey Carmichael - recurve
Amy Kroeger - recurve
Eric Quinnell - recurve
Nathan Gauldin - recurve
Josh Glenddening - recurve
Jonathan Bahr - compound
Bryant Chambers - water boy/James' man-servant/web updater

5/18/2005 - The Trip - (James) And the trip begins! We had a 6am flight. Yes, that means some of us were up at 3am getting ready to be at the airport at 4:30am. We figured 4:30am since that gave us 30 minutes to goof up. At least one of our group got there after 5am and gave me a scare. We won't discuss the specifics of who or why, but we'll just say he was being an "Animal House" of a college student last night.

The trip was without notable incidents. The flight from Austin to Memphis was a Canadair Regional Jet - translation, a very small jet. Nathan and Eric didn't have fun. We did enjoy our lone flight attendant's inability to speak or remember her routine. She looked and sounded like a first timer, but she wasn't. She just kept forgetting her lines. The flight from Memphis to Atlanta was delayed, but otherwise not noteworthy. We arrived in Atlanta just fine, picked up a Dodge Caravan and a Jeep Cherokee. On the way to Milledgeville we stopped off at a Hardee's for lunch. Which was noteworthy for the amount of time we spent waiting for our meals. It took them forever to get all our burgers to us. They were not having a good day.

We've checked in to our rooms at the local Holiday Inn Express. So far we are sharing our floor with Aggies and Southern Illinois University. We're scattered over 3 floors, but we'll be OK because we're a team no matter how far apart.

For dinner we ate at Peaches Old Time Smokehouse. We were expecting a backwoods country BBQ joint. We got a backwoods country BBQ joint with modern art on the walls and books on the tables to read while waiting on your food. Eric had fun with the unplugged electric guitar and the xylophone. It was like a kid in a candy store. The food was good, but we don't recommend the moonshine sauce. But the rest was excellent, including the Peaches' Stew. I'm hoping to continue to get everyone eating local instead of one of the many chain restaurant

Thursday morning Bryant the Water-boy (and the one who will hopefully be updating this page) will be picked up at the airport by Amy. Once the two of them arrive we will be complete and the world will know our wrath!!!! Bewah Hahaha!

Here's a few shots of our trip so far. I really wish I'd taken my camera with me to Peaches to photograph Eric looking like an oversized kid at the xylophone.

It's early, but everyone is awake.	Let's get James' boot in the shot like last year.	There was an attempt to get everyone to wear cowboy hats, but only Eric, Ashley, and Lindsey (not shown) were "cool" enough to wear hats.
OK, so is the plane upside down or am I reading this upside down?	I'm not giving Jonathan the camera again.	Eric and Ashley in the back of the Cherokee.
Random photo of US 441, the road to Milledgeville.	There's the Caravan in the mirror.

Done - James Corral, 5/18/2005 11:30pm(edt)

5/19/2005 9:30am(edt) (James) - I'm bored. Keep checking email and no one is sending any email. At 10am we're heading to the Super Wal-Mart to get "stuff." So for now I'm bored.

Done - James Corral, 5/19/2005 9:30am(edt)

5/19/2005 11:00pm(edt) (James) - On the agenda for today Wal-Mart, Practice, Opening ceremonies, and dinner. Now for what actually happened. We met at 10am as planned and took off for Wal-Mart. Once there we divided up so that it would make it impossible to shop in an organized manner. And Nathan ate a whole thing of Ice Breakers Liquid Ice while I was waiting to check out. If you have to ask why, then you haven't met Nathan; it's a wonder he is still alive.

After Wal-Mart we had lunch where I received a disturbing phone call from Amy. Amy was suppose to pick up Bryant at the airport at 10:30am. She called at 11:30am to tell me she couldn't find Bryant at the airport. I told her to have him paged and if he didn't show up leave. Those were her orders since she was the archer in most need of practice today. We tried calling Bryant, but got no answer. She called back and said he didn't turn up, so I told her to take off. A few minutes later Bryant calls me and tells me that he's in Cleveland! Cleveland! How the heck do you get on a non-stop flight to Atlanta and end up in Cleveland? If it was Nathan (I/we do love Nathan) I would understand, but Bryant is smarter. So after a few minutes of Bryant trying to explain how he ended up in Cleveland and me being pissed because Amy was going to miss half of practice, Bryant finally broke down and admitted they were BOTH more than half way to Milledgeville. Amy is currently alive only because she is on the team and we need her. The need for her existence will however be put to a vote after the team round. As for Bryant, I've decided that for now he also will live. But I decided to "rent" him out for free to Southern Illinois University (SIU) as a water-boy. So he will be working double time providing water; especially considering that the water cups GCSU is providing are very very small. The team has thought of other punishments for these two jokers, but I'll have to keep them seacrate for now. Don't want to tip off the ungrateful little imps.

Practice went well. Jonathan is a concern since he dislocated his shoulder Tuesday night. (Hmm...) We're hoping he will be able to drug and ice himself well enough to shoot. Everyone else just had a good time getting sight settings and getting used to the field. The guys are shooting on what looks like a flag football field. It's got a short chain link fence around it, but it's all grass. The girls are shooting on a baseball field, also with a short chain link fence around it. However, the shooting line is over the infield and therefore providing a very nice bright red dust to everyone's shoes, boots, or feet in the case of flip-flops. Lindsay looked like she had a weird foot disorder. Maybe I'll post a photo of her feet tomorrow.

There was a complaint that I'm not posting enough photos. Well that isn't going to change much. I'm only going to post a limited number of photos each day. Just enough to get an idea of what we were doing. Ron Carmichael will be posting photos by the bushel load on the TSAA web site. Just follow the link for masses of photos. (Which are not up yet. The link will be direct to USIAC photos as soon as I know it.)

After practice was opening ceremonies. Usual stuff. We were there with our banner and the Stick. The Stick, by the way, is what I use on archers that don't listen to me. I am a firm believer in beating "ungrateful little imps." Besides, the The Stick has become a bit of a good luck charm. The ceremonies were strange in that we stood by our markers along a center lane. No marching out on to the field. Easier I think.

After the ceremonies, we ate at Waffle House with the SIU guys were we got both the best and the worst service ever. It just depended on whether you got the guy with the odd growth (good) or the lady on the cell phone (bad.) After wards we split up into "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Star Wars III" groups and went to the movies. The "Kingdom" guys thought it was a great movie. No comment from the "Star Wars" guys. At the theater were also Cal State Long Beach, Dine, Columbia, and a few other archers. Looks like we're giving the local economy a serious boost.

Hopefully tomorrow you will get a short post from me, and a long fun one from Bryant. That, or I'll just let him take photos and I'll do the typing. He wasn't feeling creative tonight, so no Bryant post.

Now for today's photos.




Bryant about to do his job.	Look at him work!	Good job water-boy! And just how was Cleveland?

	There is no telling what Bryant said to get that look.	Amy marking her arrows. All arrows need to be marked with the archer's initials so that they can be identified if another archer happens to shot the same type/style of shaft.

		Bryant took the two shots of Josh. Both are here because I just liked them both.
Opening ceremonies.	The skeleton has been on the Stick since the Aggie Indoor. We added the Longhorn today.

	Bryant living on the edge of death. He put some water on Eric's chair thinking he would notice before sitting down. Nope. But it's just Waffle House.	Yes, that is Bryant's mess. One more reason to kill him before the Tournament is over.

Done - James Corral 5/20/2005 1:30am (edt)

5/20/2005 -(James) It's 2am and I just lost two hours of work due to a computer crash. That'll teach me not to hit save every two seconds! So no update other than everyone is alive and well. Check out this site for current results. Also the TSAA site has more photos. I do finally have an entry from Bryant. I'll try to type something up tomorrow and post more photos. But it's late and it'll take me another hour to try to rebuild from memory.

Done - James Corral 5/21/2005 2:30am (edt)

5/20/2005 - (Bryant) So I guess this is my first update for the archery trip. To be honest I am a horrible writer, I lied to James so that I would have an excuse to come along and distract all the archers. (I still can’t shoot as of yet) Anywhoo….. on to the log:

My journey started a little later than the travels of the rest of the team. I left Houston at 7:19 after a night of fun. I reached the airport at 5:30 AM to find that there was not much required to obtain an “e-ticket.” So after an hour or so of sleep I boarded my flight and was underway.

After a short, but fun, layover in Cleveland, I quickly found Amy (or did she find me) at the Atlanta airport and we were off. Georgia is actually a lot hillier than I had imagined it. I mean, there are actually hills here not that I will ever admit to it being as pretty as Texas because I have too much pride for that. The ride was nice but we missed seeing Atlanta because of a wrong turn on the highway system, to which I’ll say, takes an advanced degree in Civil engineering to understand. FOUR interstate markers, (three of which don’t follow the standard numbering system) can all be found as you exit the airport on to the spaghetti-ish tangle of highways. The countryside was nice with some great trees surrounding the road. Really cool stuff. Someday I’ll come see a little more of Georgia. Anyways the ride up was fun. We played games like “spot the south” which Amy won by finding a NASCAR (did I get that right) tape dispenser, and also “get lost in places so that you have to call people and make sure you are going right” I know that it doesn’t sound like that much of a game but believe you me, it is. In fact its SOOO much fun, as you read further you might notice we like to play it often. Maybe a little too often. Oh, by the way, Dale Earnheardt still lives!!!!!!!

Millegdgeville (I have the spelling of this town and will from here on out refer to it as Migle, M, or some random assortment of Arabic letters that look like Migleivsivle.) is, I think two hours, out of Atlanta and really is in the middle of nowhere. Like really, Sofar (from all the playing of “get lost”) I have created a small map of Miegelaeewa. It is more than likely a conical shape (lets work on 3D visualizing). Imagine those paper cups that you got sno-cones in when you played little league baseball in elementary school. Ok good you got it. Well that pointy end is the mialelgesase courthouse and all roads lead away from it or to it; whatever kind of person you are. So it’s relatively easy to find your way back out of old historic Milelgeasesssssssvile. I think you’ll get a better picture of milegagavilppppp as I write more. On a side note that’s to my friend, the historian, Millegd-wookie-jabba-wookie was once the capital of Antebellum Georgia.

The first day here Amy and I met up with the team at the fields, All the intramural and other just field stuff is in the GSUC (what the hell, its like they took all the names that you use with schools so you get Georgia State University and College, so maybe they just wanted to compress all there Georgia State, Georgia University, and Georgia College, plus the other permutations and combinations that you can make with these three choices excluding such combinations as Georgia College College College….. Well the complex is nice save the clay for the women’s side. They got the short end of the stick……and are shooting on a softball field(I am sure James has described all of this above so I will allow for an abridged version) and the clay just gets all over your feet and it’s a big mess and requires lots of showering. Naked Showering. …… So day one was sighting in and equipment check and opening ceremony as described by James. That’s about it.

At this point I will have to explain a little more about what “Cleveland” is as the stop over was a lie, see…..(willingly waves appear…) I (being the smooth talker that I am) talked Amy into pulling a little joke on James and getting a good laugh for the team. Amy called in an hour or so after my plane landed and was to tell James that I was no where to be seen, then 20 min later I would call in and quietly announce that I was in Cleveland. Why Cleveland, do I have any attachment to that state? NO, because I don’t really have a truly creative brain, I just took where the plane departing a gate over from me was going, but it got James and was a good laugh until my punishment started. (Wiggly waves – back to sighting in) It is for this reason James has sold me out, well not even sold me, but is just giving my body away for the purpose of watering other teams. I am the waterboy of USIAC…… mind you this was his personal punishment for me. More is to come later……. Hahahaha, Cleveland!!!

So the ceremony let out around 4:30, I guess I am not really all that good at remembering stuff, and we all went back to the hotel and “chilled.” A plan was formed as to eating at waffle house and then seeing a movie.

The waffle house was interesting. Enough said. I think we all took a little something from said experience. And well I am too lazy to write this one, so find me if you are interested.

So here is a little more about Milligwalkie (hahaha, I tried to make a joke about Milwaukee and it worked…. ok maybe not) It is in the middle of no where. I learned this not by taking a car to it but rather, I cannot make a credit card transaction anywhere in this town. I don’t think it has data line running out of it. I couldn’t get a movie ticket with my credit cards. Damn it all. Nor can you buy anything anywhere else in this town with plastic. Gahhh. Ok. So Half of our group saw Kingdom of Heaven and the other half saw Starwars…..My review of the movie can be found here: www.[editor's nore: he didn't like it].com

I am a hard person to please and my critique shows this.

And then we just all went to bed…… good night.

Day the Second. (day of the boom boom wayoooooo)

7:50 – 1:30 : I think some archery took place…. Not totally sure…. No I am kidding there was archery, and I even saw some of it, in fact this was day one, 90 and 70 for men, and what ever sissy distances it is the women shoot. I think its 70 and 60. It was just a little windy; actually I think no one out side of the people there will understand that I am making a severe understatement. In truth it was sporadically windy, and made for a little more challenge in the shots. I, although not shooting, found that the wind could be nice when it help subtract from the feel of the armpit that is Georgia. Now I know I said it is beautiful and stuff, but the humidity and temperature make it similar to what a skin bacterium must love when it builds its first home in your armpit or some other dank sweaty place on your body. I think James is updating some of this so I will just give high lights. The clock was broken. The tents crashed down in the wind. Staff stolen. Dust drawings by Lindsey. Nathan Rapped. Eric’s Teaching. Getting of water. And what tournament would be complete without Amy shooting something weird - say for instance her flag at the top of her target.

Ok enough of the serious talk. Archery Happened and was over. We went back to the Hotel and rested. I am going to stop my story here and start again tomorrow as some really funny stuff starts here, and I am too tired to adequately portray it.

Done - 5/21/2005 2:30am Bryant Chambers

5/21/2005 - The story continues (James) - Alright, it's now 9:45pm (edt) and I plan to hit save every two seconds. So this could take a while. I have to explain Bryant a bit, update on yesterday, and add to info on today. All while hitting the save button every five seconds.

I'll start with what I remember of yesterday. We shot some arrows. Some good, some bad. Ashley and Amy both managed to shot arrows past the back fence. Since neither could afford to lose arrows I got the judges to give me permission to look between ends. Out in the wilderness that was the area behind the field I found Amy's arrow, an arrow from another archer, a softball, and a golf ball. Ashley's arrow is still out there and may be spending an eternity in Georgia. We didn't stay for the lottery team round since only Jonathan was eligible and he was shooting injured, so he didn't shoot. After the first half of the FITA was over we went to Diary Queen for lunch. Yummy.

In the afternoon, while we were eating lunch at Diary Queen, a storm blew through. I don't know if the lottery team round was finished, but I do know that the tents that had been put up were blow away. And a lovely summer afternoon storm it was. On the way to the Cookout, the storm decided to reinvigorate just as we needed to de-truck. The drivers - James, Ron, and Amy - let everyone out in front of the building. Ron, got a handicap parking site close to the front door, Amy ran faster than me, and I got very wet. The cookout was OK, for an indoor cookout (due to the weather), but it wasn't very fun (due to being indoors we didn't throw frisbees; but in hindsight, I think we should have.) Amusing note, Christa from Logan CC (hangs with the SIU guys) asked Bryant for a water refill from a couple of tables over. Thanks Christa. She is helping me pay Bryant back for "Cleveland."

Remember i said there was to be more punishment for Bryant? This idea did not come from me. It came from Bryant's teammates who were concerned for him when I told them he was AWOL. The plan was put in to effect Friday night after the cookout. Lindsey asked Bryant to go to Wal-Mart to buy her Glide Petite Hypo-allergenic tampons. He went with Amy, who was confused as to why she wasn't asked to go. Bryant the good soldier went but couldn't find the right kind and called her back. She couldn't keep a straight voice on the phone and the joke was out. Bryant was not amused and threatened to kill me. I just said Cleveland and then told him the truth, it wasn't my plan - even if I had full knowledge of it and helped them flesh it out.

Went to the coaches meeting (held during the cookout.) Didn't get elected to anything, woohoo; and didn't embarrass the team by saying anything stupid, woohoo. Back at the hotel the guys decided to see Super Troopers using my laptop's dvd player. After about $40 and three trips to Wal-Mart, they finally got all the right cables they needed that I already own, but didn't bring because I wasn't planning to use my computer as a presentation tool. So we watched Super Troopers. A funny in a stupid way movie. What college students will watch and laugh at will always amaze me.

Now for some 5/20/2005 photos before I move on to the story of the 21st.


		Note the missing wind flag on target 40. Amy shot it off! Go Amy! She was aiming for it! Really she was! Oh and they had to duct tape it together because she actually shot it in half! Go Amy!!!


I'm not leaving until I find that arrow and I don't care how many scary animals come out of the tree line!	At the Diary Queen.	It was a really nice storm.
		I have no idea what caused this face, and after the Ice Breakers incident I'm honestly afraid to ask.
At the "cookout." It was cookout food at an indoor venue.		I just can't wait for the day Amy goes psycho and kills Bryant with a paper clip. She was staring at him.
Eric is an engineer.	A bored, engineer.	He wasn't pleased to be sent to the store for this errand, but I must applaud him for going without question in support of his teammate. Good job Bryant!

Ok it's 12:30am now. So I'm just going to give a quick run down of the events of the 21st and give you the details and photos later. Cold morning. No tents - blown away by the storm. Aggies bring out some of their tents for everyone to use - yea Texas Aggies! Women's line is muddy. Lake between women and their targets. Sun comes out and my guys all fry because they didn't listen to me when I said to put on sunscreen even if it was cold and cloudy. Ate really good hot dogs on the field. Lindsey got 4th in the FITA and made All-American. Our recurve guys won the Bronze in the team round. Go Horns!!!!! Ate at Amici's in downtown Milledgeville. Bryant decided not to write anymore because he doesn't like his own writing. I'll post photos tomorrow. And there is always the TSAA site for lots of photos from Ron Carmichael's camera.

Done - 5/22/2005 12:45am (edt) James Corral

5/22/2005 - It's over. (James) Well it's over. But I'm still a day behind on updates and I can't really remember what we did yesterday! Rats. Let's see we shot the short FITA distences. The men's side of the field was OK, except that they didn't have as many tents as before. We women's side was muddy and had a small lake in the middle. I'll leave the photots to tell the story.

There were several equipment failures that delayed the tournament and also a very long break between 50 meters and 30 meters that involved a judges jury. It was decided initially that everyone would shoot the individual (small) 80cm face. One of the coaches protested and after what seemed forever it was decided that if all archers on a bale agreed to shot the full 80cm face than they could. A lot of rule books were brought out on this, I'll have to go look myself. I'm sure we followed the rules, but I'm wondering what lead to the long delay in coming to the decision. We didn't finish 30 until late in the afternoon. After a short break we started the team rounds. Our ladies recurve team was eliminated in the first round (don't know who they shot against since I was over watching the boys.) The boys recurve beat Stanford, then lost to ACCC, then beat Diné for the bronze.

Today, was the individual round. Ashley won her first round, then lost her second round to Stephine Miller. But she did have fun messing with her timing when she noticed Stephine was waiting for Ash to finish before starting to shot. Lindsey made it all the way to the bronze round and got 3rd.