A new program from the Austin Park and Rec has brought an old sport to some new eyes.

In it’s first summer, the archery program — which is held twice a week in Packer Arena — has 36 participants, ranging from young kids to full grown adults. About 90 percent of those participants are taking on archery for the first time.

“This is a good way to start doing archery because everything is provided,” said program participant Gary Handel, who usually shoots with his 13-year old daughter, Margaret. “Otherwise we may never have started it. But now there’s a good chance we’ll go out and buy some equipment for ourselves. We’ve got a big back yard and I could see us setting up targets back there.”

A lot of the first timers are kids, and a lot of those kids are no longer novices as the program started a month ago. Park and rec archery instructor Steve Scott said a few of the kids have picked up the sport quickly.

He also pointed out that three of his best shooters are girls and archery is a sport open to anyone.

“The thing about archery is, you could be 80-years old and 600 pounds or 10-years old and 80 pounds and still be just as good at it,” Scott said. “You could be in a wheelchair. Anyone can shoot a bow and arrow.”

Scott is no stranger to archery as he has traveled to California and Las Vegas, Nev. to shoot in tournaments. When he shoots at targets it can be up to 40 feet away. The program’s participants shoot from 10 feet away.

“It’s a good distance for them. The main thing is they get a chance to come in and shoot,” Scott said. “It’s been a lot of fun and a lot of the kids have gotten better.”

Scott has also found out some interesting things about his archers. For instance, he discovered that 12-year-old Dalton Underdahl and 10-year-old Dillon Underdahl both shoot better with their left hand, even though both are right handed. The two struggled from the right side before Scott made the switch.

“What are the chances that one family would have two left-handed shooters and neither of them knew it?” Scott said. “Once we figured that out, they started doing pretty well.”

The program also provides some healthy competition between Handel and his daughter.

“We try to compete with each other and we keep getting better,” he said. “It’s always fun when you get better.”

Handel said the program has been a blast and he’d recommend it to others.

“It’s a risk free trial and it’s very nice to have it here. You can do it in good or bad weather,” he said. “I’m really glad we did it and I’d encourage other people to try it. It’s fun to bring your family out.”

The archery program has groups for 9-11 year-olds, 12-15 year-olds, and 14-16 year-olds. There are also a few adults enrolled in the program, which meets every Tuesday and Thursday night at Packer Arena and runs until the end of July.

Of the 36 archers signed up, they usually shoot in groups of 12 for 45-minute sessions.