It was a sticky Sunday evening in July, and I was bored. So, like most 1980s teenagers did, I relied on my imagination for entertainment.
Not sure what drew me to that long-abandoned PSE Citation compound bow in the corner of Pa’s garage, but I’m sure it had something to do with the rabbits that would show up on the mowed hillside behind our house just before dark.
I had been practicing pulling back my brother’s old bow for weeks. At first I couldn’t do it. Couldn’t even get it to break past the let-off point. On this evening, however, I could pull it back. Next, I scrounged up an orange XX75 arrow shaft and screwed a judo point to the front of it.
The stalk was on.
Despite having never shot the bow at a target, I thought I was ready to go bowhunting. I managed to creep within 30 yards of the first rabbit, came to full draw and kinda-sorta aimed, using the metal sight pins that my brother had painted with nail polish. I released the shot.
A puff of dirt indicated that my arrow had hit the rock-hard dirt about a half-yard in front of the rabbit. Oh so close, and what an adrenaline rush! I almost got him!
I realize that’s not a textbook example of how to take up bowhunting. But, just like that, a bowhunter was born. Watching that arrow sail for its intended target sparked something inside me — call it primal if you wish — that has remained lit ever since.
A few weeks (and several more lost arrows) later, I finally connected on a rabbit. From that point forward, I was always intrigued by archery innovation. My brother’s bow, albeit high-tech for when he bought it in 1978, was a boat anchor in my boy hands. By the time I saved up enough money to buy my own compound (a Darton Trailmaster), archers everywhere were trying to push the envelope.
Some guys were using peep sights; most were learning how to shoot with release aids (we all started out by shooting with finger tabs or leather gloves); and nearly everyone was switching over to higher let-off modules. That Trailmaster had an “amazing” 65 percent let-off … unheard of!
Hunting out of a tree from a stand was still a novel idea, and it was actually still banned in some states. No one baited or even thought of planting a crop to lure deer into range. Rangefinders? At best, you stepped off distances from your treestand and stuck branches in the ground for yardage references.
The point is we all aspired to become more efficient in the woods. We still see that today. Whether it’s a crossbow, an ozone generator or an expandable broadhead, bowhunters will always be seeking ways to improve their efficiency. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.
