A member of the North Battleford Dart Club lobs a dart during the groups wrap up party Thursday at the Tropical Inn. (Tyler Marr/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Tyler Marr

BULLSEYE

Dart club boasts stellar season, eager for provincial, national tournaments

Apr 5, 2019 | 4:59 PM

Noel Aucoin steps up a few feet away from one of six dart boards lining the basement of an event room at the Tropical Inn.

He leans in, lifts his left hand and gracefully lobs a green and yellow dart at the board.

The President of the North Battleford Dart Club and a dozen other shooters were gathered for their league wrap up party ahead of provincials later this month.

“We are a small committed bunch,” Aucoin, who is also the director for the North Battleford Zone, said.

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Noel Aucoin is the president of the North Battleford Dart Club and zone director for the North Battleford Zone. (Tyler Marr/battlefordsNOW Staff)

The dart community is about 14 strong in the Battlefords and 300 strong across the province. Fourteen provincial and two national tournaments fill the season from September to April. North Battleford will host one of the nationally ranked tournaments in the province later in the year.

“That is going to be pretty exciting to be able to bring talent from pretty much across Western Canada to North Battleford to compete,” he said.

While the club lacks strength in numbers, it makes up for it in talent, calling the top male and two female shooters in the province their own.

Angela Aucoin earned the top spot in Saskatchewan thanks to a five-tournament winning streak from October through to January. Jason Skinner is the number one ranked male courtesy of a few tournament wins and countless second-place finishes. Skinner has made the provincial team about 14 times and is a former two-time provincial champion.

“The people we have been able to bring into the fold over the last few years are folks who have that competitive drive,” Aucoin pointed to when asked what makes the local shooters so good. “[They] aren’t afraid of the people who maybe are a higher skill level and are here looking to improve and make their name on the scene.”

The club gathers every Thursday during the season for league nights, drawing a small but dedicated bunch of participants.

For Aucoin, who has played for about 10 years, it is the atmosphere and camaraderie of the game that attracts him to play.

“The dart scene is very welcoming and so social. No matter where you are, there is a range of skill levels and ways to test your game and improve,” he said.

Further, he appreciates the individualized nature of the game, noting each shooter plays their own board and all one’s competitor can do is finish first.

Muscle memory is the driving skill behind the game, according to Aucoin.

“A lot of it is really the measure of your throw and finding comfort in releasing the dart,” he explained. “As soon as you find that you will be able to manouevre around the board and pick where you want to shoot and after that it is just repetition and practice.”

The 2018 Provincials Zone Cup was awarded to the North Battleford zone. (Tyler Marr/battlefordsNOW Staff)

With provincials and nationals on the horizon for the city, expected to attract upwards of 50 and 80 shooters, respectively, the club is enthusiastic to showcase the talent at home.

“It is something we want to share with the community and hope we get more people involved in it, maybe some youth,” he said. “Our numbers are critically low at the youth level in Saskatchewan.”

—

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr