When Paul Bock’s youngest son, Liam, wanted to join Cub Scouts, it was because he’d been enticed by the archery image on the Scout’s flier.
Bock soon realized that sitting around watching his son learn archery was not as much fun as trying it himself.
He began volunteering with the Scouts and took Archery Range Officers training.
For five years, he coached archery out of a 26-foot snowmobile trailer.
Then, in 2015, he and his wife, Susan, opened Black Sheep Archery in an empty building in Sanford, strategically located halfway between their home in Old Orchard Beach and their “day jobs.”
Bock is technical adviser for a boiler manufacturer in New Hampshire.
“If I was doing this for the money, I would not be doing it,” Bock says of the archery range.
Now a Level 3 USA Archery coach, Bock says he most enjoys introducing the bow to kids and adults, and watching their interest grow.
Archery classes, instruction and certification are all offered at Black Sheep’s indoor range. A six-week beginner’s class starts at $80.
The biggest challenge, says Bock, is “keeping all the finances in order,” which he implies is definitely not as fun as picking up the bow and arrow.
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