The Odds Are Ever in Their Favor

The archery instructor Patricia Gonsalves aims to please, so these days it's out with the bull's-eyes, in with the squirrels'eyes.

"A couple of years ago, if I ever put up an animal target, all the girls would go, 'Eww, that's so gross," said Ms. Gonsalves, of Vancouver, British Columbia, who spends hours hand-painting her squirrels. "Now I do, and they're like: Cool. Can you shoot an apple out of a pig's mouth like Katniss did?"

Katniss, of course, is Katniss Everdeen, the bow-wielding heroine of "The Hunger Games" trilogy of young adult novels. The 16-year-old warrior, played on-screen by Jennifer Lawrence, is such a good shot that she hits squirrels in the eye - and such a big shot that she is the major cause of waiting lists for archery lessons from coast to coast.

Archery blip enjoy popularity in the last movie- "Lord Of The Rings" trilogy and the various iterations of Robin Hood Lord often mentioned- but no major or persistent current surges. Movies do not ever resonate more with the girls, he is now often taught in a changing of Katniss side braid hairstyle.

"Katniss has helped give archery a hip factor it's just never had before," said Teresa Iaconi, the spokeswoman for USA archery, which fields the Olympic team. "No disrespect to Kevin Costner" - the star 1991's "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves," she added, "but he was an old guy in tights."

Stacy Smith, 16, Smith Station, Alabama, has been around hunting her entire life. She wanted to shoot a bow "is my dad thing," she said, until she saw Katniss. :I thought it was cool, she can protect themselves," Ms.Smith said.

Lauren Tang, 14, of Delta, British Columbia, considered archery after reading the series, but the sport became a must-try for her after Katniss shot the apple on-screen. "If anything ever happens, I could survive in the wilderness," said Lauren, who attended a four-day intensive camp in July with her best friend, Alli Petheriotis.

Boys, meanwhile, appear hero worship "Eagle Eye" from this year's movie "The Avengers" - archery arrows slings and more teachers upset. Although Katniss and merida are "awesome" form, Jeremy Renner Hawkeye "is terrible," Ms. Gonsalves said that in her 20 years of teaching, has accumulated 45 minutes  reel Hollywood archery taboo. "If they try to shoot like him, and we spent the whole rescue the arrow from the ceiling.

The Child-archer craze is also spurring adults to try the sports.

News from: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/29/fashion/hunger-games-heroine-helps-make-archery-hip.html?ref=archery

By: WK