outdoor briefs

TIME TO CELEBRATE

National Wildlife Week
kicks off Monday

With spring officially arriving soon, it's time to get outdoors and celebrate National Wildlife Week, which starts Monday. National Wildlife Week is a public awareness campaign sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation. Its purpose is to bring awareness of wildlife conservation to people of all ages across the country.

The event originated in 1938 and has involved such celebrities as Walt Disney, Shirley Temple and Robert Redford. Communities come together to perform service projects or to embark on nature hikes. Some of the projects include habitat restoration, clean-ups and animal counts.

But you don't have to participate in a formal event to celebrate National Wildlife Week. Families and friends are encouraged to celebrate just by enjoying their local wildlife and connecting with nature.

The National Wildlife Week Web site, www.nwf.org, offers a number of resources on how to spend time outdoors. NDOW also has information on local species and tips for viewing them at www.ndow.org.

A SUCCESS

Fallon students dominate
in archery tournament

By the end of the first National Archery in the Schools Program Nevada State Championship Tournament, one thing became very clear -- they sure know how to handle a bow in Fallon.

When the results were posted, the top scoring high school male, top scoring middle school participant and top scoring teacher all hailed from the Fallon area.

Sponsored by the Nevada Department of Wildlife, the state tournament took place at the Riviera on Feb. 18, in conjunction with the National Field Archery Association's World Archery Festival. More than 130 students from six schools participated in the event, five from Clark County and one from Churchill County.

The highest scoring high school male shooter, with a score of 261 points, was Hunter Mori of Churchill County School District in Fallon. The highest scoring high school female shooter, with a score of 225 points, was Shay Sipes of Veterans Tribute CTA in Las Vegas. However, the highest scoring shooter of the tournament with a score of 274 points was middle school division participant Jordan Schultz of Fallon. Both Sipes and Schultz were awarded black and chrome state champion Genesis bows. The coaches from each of the schools also had their opportunity to take home some hardware. Eight coaches participated in a teacher shoot-off, with Dean Schultz from Fallon posting the highest score to take home the silver cup.

Awards and trophies were presented to the top five individuals in each division (male/female: elementary, middle, and high school), the top three highest-scoring elementary, middle and high schools and a spirit award for the school demonstrating the most sportsmanship and positive support.

LEARN MORE ABOUT IT

Big game application workshops offered by NDOW

Southern Nevada hunters who would like to learn more about Nevada's big game tag application process can attend a free informational workshop hosted by the Nevada Department of Wildlife.

Information on Nevada's big game management, tag quotas and allocations, draw odds and bonus points will be discussed. NDOW staff will explain common application errors, the computerized draw system and any new procedures or regulations for this year's drawing.

Two workshops are scheduled for March 22 and March 31 at the Clark County Shooting Park Hunter Education Center, 11357 N. Decatur Blvd. The March 22 workshop will be from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., and a special morning workshop will be offered from 8-11 a.m. on March 31.

The workshops are free and reservations are not required, however seating is limited.

Call NDOW at (702)486-5127, Ext. 3501 for more information.