Elite Event at Hidden Gems Archery

Hunger Games! In a hot and humid gym. I never saw the movie, but now somehow I believe I am equipped to star in the next film OR fulfill my lifelong goal of making it to the Olympics. At this stage, I figure curling or archery are my only options.
The staff was great at helping a newbie like me to learn the art of archery. Who said elite events need to be alcohol fueled. Thanks for shifting it up a bit Peter!

This is not the typical Unilocal events I’ve been to. This one did not come with food or booze. Cold water, yes. Air-​conditioning, no. As a matter of fact, this was one of the most fun ones I’ve been to!
The instructors were all very patient, funny and helpful. They gave us a run down and tips on how to shoot a bow and arrow. The class was very educating and I really had fun and learned a lot at the same time! Everyone was having fun despite all the body heat and sweating as if you’re really working out at the gym.
After all the introductory, we really got to shoot arrows for real! While we all lined up, everyone on my left and right were all shooting off. Well, except me… I did everything correctly, but forgot to let go of the arrow… yes, sometimes I get one of those moments. Luckily, I’m not a brain surgeon or something similar. After a few rounds of shooting, I’m surprised that I was able to hit something on the target and not one of my Unilocal friends or Peter D.
I would love to take more lessons and do this again! Thanks to the instructors at Hidden Gems Archery, Unilocal and Peter D! =)

This is one of the BEST Unilocal events I have ever been to.
How many people can say they have trained for the hunger games? How many people can say they felt like Katniss Everdeen for a day???
I do wish it was on the 4^th floor, instead of the 1^st, because it lacked AC. At least there was ice cold water to help with the heat.
We spent the first half of the time learning basics of how to stand, draw, aim, shoot with a band.
The second half of the time we spent actually shooting targets.
Unfortunately, I failed and kept missing the target. I wasn’t holding the bow correctly and my left arm got pretty bruised up from the string snapping. Really wish they provided the arm guards.
The instructors were great. Even with about 20 or so people, they were able to still give me advice on how to improve my shot. The only issue was that I didn’t know how to aim.
Thankfully, Paul H. convinced me to go back and take another class. Now, I’m hooked!!! When we went back, they gave us «sets» which allows you to aim properly. It improved my shots by 1000%. Also they gave us arm guards so no more bruising on my arm!
Overall, such a great experience!!! Thank you, Peter D., for introducing me to a new sport!

Thanks Peter, I finally made it to an event and it was a great one! I have been meaning to try archery for a while and I thank Hidden Gems for bringing it to Brooklyn.

thank you Peter D. and Hidden Gems Archery for letting me check off one of the items on my bucket list! I had an amazing time — instructions were well paced, fun, and great pointers were given on form and technique. This is probably one of the coolest Unilocal Elite events I’ve ever done. Thank you so much for putting it together!

What a fun activity surrounded by great spirited professionals who are totally passionate about their sport and want you to live it as much as they do!
The Hidden Gems Archery class was my first non-​food, non-​beverage, non-​party after work event and I really enjoyed it. I didn’t think I would be able to get that arrow on the target at all and in my first shot after Q and Tasha’s great instructions I hit blue! Which was better than black …
Living nearby in the neighborhood I will definitely stop by Hidden Gems again to take a class. The Sunday afternoons sound like they’ll be great refreshers and instructional on new skills.

Conclusion: the next Katniss Everdeen, I am not.
I was super excited to attend my first Brooklyn YEE, and I’m happy to report that it lived up to the hype. The event and Elites I met really make me want to follow through with those lurking thoughts of moving to Brooklyn.
Having grown up in a part of Pennsylvania that still hosts deer hunting season, I used to take gym classes in archery. I’ve lost all honed skills over the past 10 years living in cities, and was eager to become reacquainted with the sport.
The first hour or so was dedicated toward learning the art of shooting an arrow. The Hidden Gem archery instructors simplified the sport by walking us through each step. Even though we all signed the liability waiver form, they still always made sure that our safety came first.
We then practiced shooting the target for the next 40 minutes. The instructors walked among us, corrected our postures and made sure we had the proper bows/​arrows in correlation to our height and weight. Despite the fact that there was no air conditioning in the gymnasium, everyone kept their cool.
I love that Brooklyn Unilocal branched out into a non-​food event, and that I could participate! Thank you Peter for organizing such a fantastic and unique event! I had a blast!

The instructors at Hidden Gems Archery are pretty amazing. They are patient and funny and can deal with large groups very well. Our group was very big and they handled the logistics of getting the group trained and shooting with ease.
I had not uwed a bow since boy scout camp, but with the help of the people at Hidden Gems, I was hitting the middle of the target like a pro (sometimes).
I saw Peter hit the bulls eye several times with great force. I would not mess with him. I think he organized this event to show off. Good job Peter!
Thanks to the people at Hidden Gems for making my night awesome.
Thanks to my fellow Unilocalers for not shooting me with an arrow.

First off, a big round of applause for Peter D. This is probably one of THE MOST fun YEE I have been to in four years. My first Brooklyn YEE and I’m thoroughly impressed.
Second, it was a pleasure meeting new Unilocalers: Sarit I, Leslie D, Daniel L as well as familiar faces: Diana C, Amal D, Teresa L.
The instructors were amazing and funny. The intro in the beginning was taught so well that all the Unilocalers were hitting the targets, consistently too! Even though we had maybe 30 minutes of actual shooting time, I had a blast. So much that I’ve signed up for 4 classes!
They have two locations: Bronx and Brooklyn. Their Brooklyn location is right off the Borough Hall station.
The prices range from:
1 class for $ 25, 2 classes for $ 40, 4 classes for $ 68 ($ 17 per class!) for 1.5 hrs of shooting. These prices include their equipment. Have your own? 4 classes is only $ 48!

I’ve wanted to archer all my life. And at last, tonight… archer I have.
My gratitude to Peter Unilocal D. and the supremely helpful and friendly team from Hidden Gems Archery.
Basically, my new goal in life is to advance at archery, continue bike-​sharing everywhere, and soon enough meld the two into an ungodly Franken-​sport of bike-​back archery. I’ll be a post-​apocalypse survival machine. No gas. No bullets. Just pedals and bows.
Seriously, events like this are exactly why I love being an Elite, and I hope we get to try our hand at another something awesome, something new, very soon.

Next up: how to hunt a squirrel 101
Hidden Gems was incredible — fantastic, patient, no-​nonsense teachers, streamlined instruction, and many opportunities to perfect our aim. Their vision of safety and fun was clearly implemented, and I was exhilarated to be able to actually hit the target. (During my first round, all three arrows fell to the floor. I aimed too high). The pace was perfect — slow and thorough in the beginning to make sure that we definitely got the technique down, and then we were let loose on the targets. Okay, not completely loose; they made sure that there was order to our chaos. Nobody got hurt, nobody felt like s/​he was waiting too long for a chance to shoot, and nobody was upset.
The only issue was the stifling heat (it was so much cooler outside! what!), but the instructors were completely gracious throughout. They didn’t let the heat bother them, so we followed in their example. Not their fault at all that the AC wasn’t working.
I’m still in disbelief that I can ACTUALLY shoot an arrow.

Perhaps it was 100 degrees in the gym so that we got a true «survival of the fittest» type experience. I dunno. But what I do know, is that it was nice to attend a unique Unilocal event.
The Hidden Gem instructors were extremely passionate about their sport so we received a really thorough explanation and practice session.
Though I may never be a professional archer, I now know that I have another trick in my bag if I ever need to channel my inner badassness.
Thanks Peter D and the Hidden Gems Archery team.

To Peeta D, Unilocal and Hidden Gems Archery:
Thank you for giving me the chance to bring out my inner Katniss!
More to follow once my elbow returns to normal. I doubt JLaw ever had this problem…

For one night only, we got to live out our Hunger Games, Avengers and Game of Thrones fantasies. And I guess, also take out any pent-​up frustration we had against foam targets.
Tons of fun in a slightly warm gym room. The instructors from Hidden Gem were all amazingly helpful and friendly.
Not to brag, but I did hit the yellow circle once. I’m basically Green Arrow now (didn’t think I’d forget that comic book reference, did you?).
Thanks to the helpful staff at Hidden Gem and thanks to Peter D for always organizing awesome and unique events (even if no booze is involved!)
From now on, whenever someone asks me, «what are Unilocal events? Is all you do eat and drink?», I will tell them, «No, sometimes we do other awesome stuff like learn archery.»
They’ll probably be jealous (and a little fearful for their lives).

Don’t just stare at the target.
Be the target.
With that approach I never strayed beyond the blue ring. LOL?
It is widely assumed that all Unilocal events are about getting stuffed with goodies and maybe waking up the next day not remembering anything that happened after 9PM but that assumption is only 70% right. The rest of the time can involve fun non-​calorie focused opportunities like this one. After a 45 minute detailed walkthrough of stance, posture, technique and handling we started firing volleys of arrows at pretty decent-​sized targets. This also counts (at least for me) as one of the most risky events you could go to if you don’t pay attention but we’re elite so we’d never do anything dumb. Right? Seriously!
Everyone did pretty damn well for their first time. Peter D is also going to join my LARP group as a Paladin (we have enough archers) and of course I’m going to continue being an elf ranger.