Looking Back at My 2022 Season

Now that hunting season has rolled into northern New York, I figured I better get this annual shooting update done before I become engrossed in my other full-time hobby. Although I enjoy competitive archery, it doesn’t light my candle like hunting. There’s something about being in the outdoors and watching animals do their thing that fascinates me. I’ve seen things that I wish others could see, and I’ve experienced things I know I could’ve never imagined. With those thoughts in mind, I’ll walk back in time to when hunting season closed last year, and I picked my bow up to begin getting ready for the indoor season. 

  Going into the indoor season, I got a late start. I usually get going in early December, but a nagging shoulder issue prevented me from doing so. As I gently increased my shooting schedule, I realized my sight picture was not going to cooperate to score well indoors. Although it wasn’t horrible, the pin did not sit in the 10-ring the majority of the time. Instead, I found it wandering around the yellow. I saw these results on the paper and began scoring as well as I was holding. If you can’t consistently hold it in the 10-ring until the shot fires, all the arrows will not find their way to the highest scoring ring. 

  I battled this for the entire winter. I did attempt a few indoor tournaments and the results were not good. I had one decent round the entire winter, and that was at Hall’s Arrow for the New England Indoor Championship when inner-10 scoring was in effect. It wasn’t a stellar round, but it was solid, and my shooting was better than my score. 

  I did break some of my old records along the way. I shot my lowest score ever at the NFAA Indoor State Championship. Although the score was embarrassing, I still handed my card in. Unlike some other people I know, I take the good with the bad and hand the card in. The next day at the State Classic, I had an experience I’d like to forget, but I somehow managed to get through it and shot a 50x round, I think. It wasn’t great for the confidence, but I knew my shot was solid, so I rode that into the outdoor season.

  When the snow faded away and spring rolled in, I was caught in a battle between focusing on the National Senior Games in Florida and the First Leg of the IBO National Triple Crown in West Virginia. I attempted giving each game an ample amount of practice to be competitive at both. 

  After the first day at the National Senior Games, I was satisfied to see that I had withstood the blazing heat and the mercury of the thermometer climbing into the 90s to shoot the highest score of any archer in the tournament.

  The second day didn’t treat me as well. I’d like to blame it on the heat or something else, but I have nothing to blame it on other than my hold. My hold wasn’t as good as it was the first day, and I shot as well as I held. The gusts of wind through the second half of the round didn’t help matters. However, after I fired my last arrow of the tournament, I knew I had broken the longstanding record. Unfortunately, the record lasted about seven minutes, as a guy on my bale beat me. I walked away with the second highest score ever shot, and I can live with that. 

  A few weeks later, I found myself at the First Leg of the National Triple Crown. My bow wasn’t cooperating with me, and I performed the best I could. I walked away with a 7^th place finish. I didn’t feel much more confident going into the second leg, but I pulled off a 6^th place finish and missed the shootdown round by two points… my last shot of the tournament. 

  The next month was a blur with all the traveling. I finished off the year well in the IBO, making the shootdown round in the 3^rd leg and shooting well enough to be in the dance on the final day at the World Championship. Unfortunately, two ricochets kept me out of the shootdown round, but I did make the shots to get in. The ricochet luck hurt badly, but I realize it’s a part of the game, and I can’t change the rules as they’re written. It simply came down to bad luck. 

  I was able to travel to the last three ASAs of the year, and I feel like I made progress in relearning the game that I’ve been away from for so long. In every event, I was near the top of the leaderboard on Day 2. I believe the lack of rest after traveling to get there kept me from performing at my best on Day 1 of the events. I will be better suited and more prepared next year after learning this valuable lesson. I can succeed at the ASA game if I manage both days equally well. 

  As I look ahead to next year, I’m hoping for some of the shoulder and elbow issues to subside in the off-season. It was difficult to shoot this year, and there wasn’t one day where I felt above 80% physically. I approached the season like a surfer riding a wave. I rode the waves to the beach and picked my board up and walked away. I neve gave in, and some of the waves knocked me into the surf this year. I got mixed up in the turbulence below the air pocket and felt like every ounce of sand got rubbed all over my face and into my eyes. I’ll try my best to avoid falling off the board next year.

  I’d like to thank all of the companies and people who supported me this year, including Eric Griggs (GAS Bowstrings), Shrewd Archery, TruBall Archery, PSE, Conquest Archery, and Bohning. If you’re looking to put new strings on your bow for next year’s tournament season, I’d highly recommend looking into the many types that GAS can supply. They’ve never let me down while hunting or on the tournament trail.

  The new tournament season is only a few months away, and I will be headed in a different direction with some of the equipment I’ll be using. Some of my well-respected peers will be my new teammates, and I look forward to what the new year brings for all of us. I hope everyone out there who hunts has a great hunting season, and for those of you who don’t, I hope you continue working on your craft while others are sleeping. 

 

 

  

 

A Look Back at Archers from My Region

  As I look back at the tournament archery season, it simply wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t take a moment to acknowledge many people in my region who made their efforts worth it in big moments. Sometimes we get so lost in our own struggles or accomplishments that we don’t take time to realize what makes us better around home. What does make us better? I’ve always believed it’s the level of competition by which we are surrounded. In reading this, please do not take offense if I left you out. It’s not because I purposely did it. Instead, there were so many people who did things that impressed me, I’m sure I failed to see or remember many of them. I encourage you to sit back and enjoy reading about people from our region whom you may have overlooked along the way this year. 

  Although many of us didn’t attend the Lancaster Archery Classic, many others did. Some got the first-time jitters and the experience they gained will surely help them in the future. The Lancaster format can be incredibly rewarding at times, but at other times, it can take your confidence and destroy it when you shoot a great round but just can’t find the 11-ring. 

  Practicing with Jeff Wagoner throughout the early winter, I knew he was well prepared when he headed to the tournament and shared a room with Rob LeLacheur. Well, both Rob and Jeff laid it down at the tournament. Rob made his way into the cut in the largest class of the tournament and gave it everything he had, getting bounced by a friend and another great shooter from our region Jay Krampitz. You win some, and you lose some.

  Wagoner couldn’t let Rob get all the notoriety, so he came out and performed at the same level as his practice rounds, qualifying in the number 4 spot in Senior Pro. Unfortunately, he was eliminated by one of the best to have played this game, George Ryals, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Jeff would go on to shoot some more stellar indoor rounds throughout the winter, and he found himself near the top of the leaderboard at the IBO World Championship after the first day of the event. Although he struggled a little on the second day, his strong showing the first day will carry him into next year, at which time he will decide if he wants to pursue opportunities in the ASA or stick to the IBO. Great job, Jeff. We are all proud of you and love watching your cool cucumber attitude on the line. Can’t wait to see what next year brings.  

  Moving into spring, I held the annual Mead Spring Challenge for my friends to get a taste of what would be in front of them in the coming months at national and regional events. I do this every spring to get everyone’s feet wet and help them realize their shortcomings and find areas to spend their time to improve. 

  We spread the crowd between two days due to the miserable weather on one of the days. I had the pleasure of shooting with Cole Bromley and Jake LaFontaine, as Cole was getting a look at what he would be seeing with his jump to the Semi-pro class this year. We had a good day in the misty rain, and everyone came off the course with things to work on. 

  Less than a month later, Jake was standing on the podium at the first leg of the IBO National Triple Crown in West Virginia. He was on the podium two times, as he captured a third-place finish in BBO for the 3D and a second-place finish for the Field. Jake would go on to struggle a little bit in the Second Leg, but he finished off the season in strong fashion, securing a top 10 finish at the third leg before going on to learn he was the first guy out of the shoot-off at the IBO World Championship. Great job this year Jake. It was nice to see you rebound after the Second Leg and get back to the top. Your experience this year in many different situations should help you grow. I look forward to following your journey to the top. Don’t ever let the finish at the World discourage you. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been the guy who was on the bubble, only to find out I was the first guy on the outside of the cut line.

  Cole would leave the Mead Challenge with a few things on his mind, and he quickly got himself into a different bow that seemed to work a little better for his shooting style. He went to the first leg and had two days of solid shooting. He finished two places away from cutting a check. Cutting a check at any national event is a tough task to accomplish, and he almost did it in his first event in SPM. He had the normal growing pains the rest of the year and gained a lot of experience along the way. His investments should help him in his pursuit of consistent top finishes in the future. Great job, Cole. It’s always a pleasure to be around you. Work on getting your bow-arm shoulder down and hold the bow with your bones instead of muscles. That should help steady your sight picture up a little bit. 

  Jeremy Flagg, Joe Ricard and Ron Sargent also made the trip to the Mead Challenge if I remember correctly. I’m positive all three of them came last year, and I’m pretty sure they all made it this year, but I could be wrong. However, I know how they all fared this year, and their showing should make X-Spot Archery proud. 

  Although Jeremy decided to take a step back and not attend any national events this year, Joe and Ron chased the elusive success on the tournament trail – and found it.  With Jeremy sticking close to home, I believe he was able to secure the IBO Northeast Triple Crown Champion title in Semi-pro. Great job, Jeremy. I guess that made your decision to move into a different class this year worth it. If you ever put the time into competitive archery that you do into fishing, you would be a world-class shooter.

  Joe and Ron both decided to move into MBO this year to test their skills against some of the best archers in the country. Deciding to concentrate their efforts on IBO tournaments, they also found themselves in the top peer group for the final leg of the IBO Northeast Triple Crown. Although they came up a little short in that one, the experience they gained should serve them well in the future. 

  Joe was a model of consistency this year, as he hovered around that even mark most of the summer, and it made him realize that the difference in winning and losing usually comes down to one or two shots in every tournament. He secured a top 10 finish at the second leg of the IBO National Triple Crown, which, combined with his score from the first leg, allowed him to get a letter in the mail telling him he had made peer groups for the final leg. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to attend due to family obligations. Joe is a family guy first and foremost, and we should all follow his lead. Joe also cashed his first check from a national event this summer. Way to go, Joe! Your decision to move up a class proved to be the correct decision.

  I’ve often noticed over the years that having good shooting partners and traveling partners is essential. The people with whom we surround ourselves will ultimately determine our successes and our failures. Misery loves company. If you hang out with negative people and focus on the negative, you will see negative results. If you hang out with positive people, you only focus on the positive even in the worst of times. Positivity will lead to positive results. Let the bad go and give it no attention and focus on the positive. 

  Ron Sargent travels with Joe most of the time, and Ron proved that he made the right decision too. Ron’s year began at the base camp with many other people at the base of Mt. Everest. He struggled a little bit in the early going, but he gained momentum as he picked his way toward the top of the mountain. Then, he achieved what we all seek: a podium finish at a national event. At the third leg of the IBO National Triple Crown in Ohio, he tried his hand at the field event and found himself in second place after the dust settled. He beat some stout shooters in the process. 

  Ron didn’t stop there, either. He built upon that success and shot his highest score of the year for a national event at the IBO World Championship, missing the cut by a few shots. Great job, Ron. It was fun to watch you climb the mountain this year. 

  Massachusetts has always produced great 3D shooters, and Chris Hartley proved that to be true, too. Hartley decided to travel to the IBO National Triple Crown with Jake and Cole this year, and his decision proved to be a good one. In the three legs, he never finished out of the top 15 in BBO, and he gave himself a chance to podium at every event. Consistency is the key in this game, and Chris proved he can play at the highest level. He ended up finishing in 5^th place overall in the National Triple Crown and missed podiuming by two points… one shot over the course of three events. That’s impressive. Although the World Championship didn’t pan out the way he had planned, he learned a few valuable things on his ride home with Barry Gates, and I expect he will work on those things and come back even stronger next year. Unlike many people, he has found the secret to success and never knew what he was missing in the past. Once he unlocks this secret, he will be one to reckon with next year. Great job, Chris. I’m always happy to help people who are willing to listen and learn, and Chris is that guy. We also can’t forget Barry. Barry had his best performance ever at the Worlds this year, and I expect Barry to improve next year. He has been accumulating a lot of tools for his tool belt, and he finally learned that you must pay attention to the small tools to succeed. If you’re a carpenter, you need to learn how to use a hammer before you jump to a nail gun. Barry has all the right tools now. 

  It wouldn’t be fair to leave out the man from Massachusetts who puts a smile on everyone’s face. This guy found a way to crawl out of the depths of hell and find his way to a better life a few years back.  After dangling from the edge of a cliff for a long time, his strength kept him from falling. Eventually, his fingertips began to sting and burn, but he pulled himself to the summit and found a new life in archery.  Finding his way to the light, he put his fingertips on the edge of the cliff and muscled his way to the summit – the Pro Hunter class, the Mount Everest for pin shooters.  

  He struggled his way through the early part of the season before finding his way in the last two events. Rob would go into the shootdown round in first place at the Third Leg, where he encountered something he had never encountered in the past: debilitating nerves. Nerves finally got to the man who never gets nervous. I guess this goes to show people that everyone gets nervous. After a train-wreck in the shootdown, Rob new he would have to work on this area before next year. 

  After getting a taste at the highest level a pin shooter can shoot at, he wanted more to eat. That’s when he buckled his chinstrap and headed to the IBO World, where he would find his way into the shootdown once again. He came out where he went in and will use the experience to help him next year. Rob shot in five national events this year between 3Ds and dot shooting, and he found himself in the shootdown three times… 60% of the time. There aren’t many shooters out there who can claim that kind of success at the national level. Rob also never finished out of the top 10 in the 3D season at national events. He even got a new nickname, Boston Rob, from Darrin Christenberry, as he went out of his way to help Erin McGladdery with a car problem at the third leg. I look forward to what’s in Boston Rob’s future. The last few years have been eye-opening while watching from afar. I even thought my eyeballs were going to pop out of my head a few times with what I saw, but he still finds a way to get it done. He works while others hunt, and he’s in the shop while others sleep. Now, stop hammering that thing like the button they hammer on the “Family Feud” game show and get it done… slow and easy. Robbie is also the only guy I know who wouldn't let the 75-year-old leader of the pack win in the Bowhunter Defense Shootoff... he even talked shit to him. See below.

    When I got into competitive archery, there was one guy whom I always chased. That guy was Wade Chandler. He had a lot of experience, and he was in the hunt at every big shoot. I wanted to be like him.

  As years passed, Wade became my traveling partner, and we experienced many highs and lows together before he had to center his attention on raising his kids. During the last few years, Wade decided to get back into archery, and has made his way back to the leaderboard. Wade never gets the attention most others get, but he has been at the top for almost 40 years. That’s pretty impressive.

  At the beginning of this year, Wade was talked into shooting on a team in MSR. I tried convincing him to shoot in MCBH, which is a class for people who are 60 and up. However, he decided to be a good person and shoot on the MSR team, even though he’s 60.

  He shot well at the First Leg of the National Triple Crown and would’ve been in the top three if he had signed up in MCBH. Then, the shit hit the fan when the person who convinced him to shoot on the team decided he wasn’t going to anymore shoots. This allowed Wade to enter the other class for the rest of the year, and he earned two podium finishes in the next two legs. If he had been in the class the entire year, he would have found himself on the podium for the overall. I guess he’s still got game. Wade, it has been a pleasure to watch you for the last 30 years, and it was even sweeter to see you get back to the top. Great job this year. It was impressive to watch. 

  It has always been a pleasure to watch Sara Kay, but I’ve never seen her perform the way she performed this year. Since I wrote the article about her Triple Crown win, there’s not much more I can say… except that she put the icing on the cake when she went out and won the IBO World Championship a month later. She won the tournament the same way she won the Triple Crown: in a one-arrow shoot-off. Sara’s game went next-level this year about halfway into the season. Her confidence increased, and she began to believe in her ability. When an archer believes in his/her ability, great things can happen. Sara, you’re an inspiration to all of us, and I’m glad you found success this year after seeing how the year started. Great job!!

  Tyler Thygesen never ceases to amaze me. Some great shooters from Vermont have found success at the national level, and Tyler seems to be the guy who is finding his way around the ranges quite well the last few years. 

  When Tyler jumped into the Semi-pro class this year, he experienced a few growing pains, but he used each event as a lesson. The growing he went through led him to the IBO World Championship, where he laid it down. He made his way through the first two days and found himself in the shoot-off. Nerves jumped on his back during the first few targets of the final round, but he found a way to navigate them and finished on the podium with a 3^rd place finish. He put in a lot of hard work this year and earned a place at the top with all the other phenomenal Semi-pro shooters who have come out of New England. Our region has always done well in that class, and it speaks volumes about the competition we all face when shooting at home. Great job, Tyler. It was a pleasure to watch you and root for you. Tribal Archery did well when they decided to let you represent them. A shop could never ask for a better guy. 

  Tyler wasn’t he only Vermonter who found success at the IBO World. The Steves family traveled to the IBO World, and Sarah brought her practice rounds to the event. She stayed strong from start to finish and qualified to shoot in the final round. She picked her way through the targets and came up just two points shy of a podium finish, cutting her first check at a national event. Sarah did a great job when she was put in an unfamiliar position. She put her head down, shot her bow and concentrated on the process. Great job this year, Sarah. We hope to follow your continued success. 

  Shane Blackmer was yet another Vermonter who saw some success at the national level. He thought he would try the IBO nationals this year, and he progressed throughout the year. He wanted to get a taste for unmarked yardage and see what he could do. Well, he did quite well. When he got to the Third Leg, he was coming into full stride. He left Ohio with an 8^th place finish, only one point from a top five. He also cut his first national check at the event. Great job this season, Shane. The sky is the limit for you if you can find the time to put into doing your thing. 

  The Thompsons were excited when the IBO announced the new husband and wife team category this year. They figured they would have a good shot, so they asked, “Where do we sign up? We are ready!” … and ready they were. They stayed strong and steady throughout the season and showed up to the dance. When all the dancers were judged, they climbed into first place at the final event and won the Triple Crown as a team. While personal accomplishments are great, there’s something about winning team events that stands out. It means both partners had to pull their weight and get it done. When one isn’t doing the best, the other must carry that person. Good teammates are hard to find, and great teammates are even harder to find. Angee had two top 5 finishes in the three legs, and Jon had one top 5. That means there were a lot of good drives back to New Hampshire. It’s always fun to talk about our success on the way home. Great job, you two. Nobody can ever take away the fact that you guys made history, winning the inaugural husband and wife team event. 

  The Thompsons weren’t the only residents of New Hampshire who impressed me. I’ve watched Walter Muzzey work harder than most the last few years. Unfortunately, Wally doesn’t get the opportunity that many of us get. Instead, he must try to make good on one national appearance a year: the IBO World. This is always a difficult task. Everything must go right for one weekend, and you simply don’t have a lot of experience to draw from. Experience will help anyone, and the more of it you get, the better off you will be. Eventually, you can understand certain situations you encounter and find ways to navigate. Anyhow, Wally finished in 7^th place at the IBO World. This is his best finish so far, and he barely missed the cut. Great job, Wally. It was good to see your work coming out on the biggest stage. Keep pushing and you will surely get to where you want to go. Just remember… no expectations… just shoot your bow. 

  In all my years of shooting, the Maineiacs have never disappointed. It seems like every shooter who comes from Maine is always at the top of the pack of whatever class they shoot. This speaks volumes about passing down the tradition. Maine probably doesn’t have as many shooters as all the other New England states, but the shooters who go to nationals are some of the best ones in the country. 

  This year proved no different. John Libby and John “Easy Rider” Freeman both made the cut at the IBO Worlds in MCBH, with Libby finishing in third and Freeman finishing in fifth. That’s a tough task to beat. Many shooters in that class are former open pro and senior pro shooters. Freeman started off the year with an appearance on the stage at the Lancaster Archery Classic and finished it with an appearance in the final shoot-down round of the IBO World. Congratulations. It’s always fun to watch you guys shoot. 

John "Easy Rider" Freeman

  The young guys from Maine respect their elders, but they wanted to show everyone the youngsters from the north country have some game too. The Rienhardt boys both came home as World Champions. Willis beat all the other shooters in his age group, and Payson bested all the shooters in BBO, an adult class that houses some phenomenal shooters. This will not be the last time you see the boys do something special with bows in their hands. They both have the ability to go a long way in competitive archery if that’s what they choose to do when they get older. Only time will tell where their interests lie as they get older, but I hope I’m sitting back and cheering them like I’ve cheered on so many other Maineiacs. Great job, guys. It’s always a pleasure to hear people talk about you. Your parents have done and amazing job with you. 

  Going back to the Mead Spring Challenge, a group of shooters from Bullseye Jim’s archery shop in East Greenbush came up to shoot, too. Although Tyler Salisbury didn’t make it, Jimmy Gagnon and Kendal Gibbons came up to try their hand at it. 

  All these guys travel together, and all of them had at least one shoot in which they finished in the top 2. That’s impressive since they all come out of the same shop. Tyler won the third leg. Kendal had a second and a third in two of the three legs, and he made the cut at the World. He also won the National Triple Crown in the Hunter Class, never shooting under a 400 the entire year at a national. Even ol’ Jimmy Joe brought his game to the third leg, finishing in second place. Congratulations to all of you for a fantastic run this year. I look forward to watching you guys do it again next year, and I wish Kendal luck in whatever new class he enters. As I’ve told everyone over the years, if you can win in one class, you can win in any class. 

  Last but not least, is Jacob Slusarz. I’m sure many of you found yourselves cheering him on when you were watching the live Illinois ASA shootdown. He was clearly an underdog, but within a few weeks, he was suddenly recognized by many as the new sheriff in town. We watched him take down two of the best who have ever played the 3D game, and he beat them at their best. The 3D season is a blur, and it’s easy to get lost in everything that happens from the beginning of the season until the end, but I got a front row seat to a lot of it. Jacob made the shootdown in three of the four IBO events and won the third one in convincing fashion. He attended three ASAs and won the one in the middle. He learned a lot at the Classic, and I expect you will see that he will take that experience and better himself next year. Although he made all those 3D shootdowns, he also made the shoot-off at Vegas and the NFAA Indoor Nationals. If you take a step back and look at that year, it’s beyond amazing. Sometimes I think people in our region might take his talent for granted. It’s not often that you can participate in the same tournaments as a professional shooter like this in any region. We should all feel fortunate for what we get to witness week in and week out, whether it’s at a local shoot, a practice round somewhere, or at a team shoot. You’re witnessing world-class talent. I would encourage all of you to soak it in and enjoy the experience. A shooter like this represents our region and puts it on the map. Congratulations, Jacob, on one hell of a year. We look forward to watching you in the future and cheering you on.

  I’m sure I left a bunch of people out, but those are the ones who came to mind first because I spend the most time around those individuals. Spending a lot of time with many of you, it’s easy to remember what you’re doing. I’m proud of all of you and the decision you all made to chase your dreams at national events. There’s nothing quite like the experience you gain. I wish all of you continued success. 

  I’ll be doing my yearly wrap-up in the next few weeks after I finalize a few things I’ve been working on. Good luck in the woods and on the range. 

Known vs. Unknown: The Pressure it Puts on Manufacturers

 As with most people who shoot 3D archery, I got into it to better myself in high-pressure hunting situations when a good shot is crucial to a clean, quick kill. I was spraying arrows through the woods, and my mental approach was severely lacking every time I drew my bow on an animal. I had no goals of becoming a competitive archer or traveling around the country to attend 3D shoots.

Instead, I wanted to go to the local clubs within an hour of my house and shoot as many lifelike targets as I could find. When I began shooting, 3D targets were just beginning to make their way into the arena. Before that time, I shot at 2D foam blocks with animals painted on them. 

  After going to many local shoots, I began to realize I was pretty good at the game and took an interest and seeing how I stacked up against other shooters in the region. That's when I packed my bags and headed to the First Leg of the Northeast Triple Crown in Merrimack, N.H., at the Anheuser Busch Plant. 

  

  Pulling into the parking lot, I couldn't fathom what I saw: there were vehicles parked from one end of the lot to the other, and there were vendors all over. In every direction, there were archers, spectators, volunteers, and security personnel. It was overwhelming. 

  At the time, I had a moveable sight on my bow, so I was put in one of three adult release classes that were available at the time: MBO. The other two adult classes for both men and women were MBR and Pro, so you had to sign up in a class that allowed you to shoot a moveable sight or one that called for fixed pins, unless you were shooting as a professional. 

  When the results were mailed out after the tournament, I saw that there were approximately 1,200 male shooters who attended, and all but a few of them were in MBO or MBR... and everyone there was shooting unknown yardage, as 3D archery was built upon having to judge yardage to the targets. Nobody complained that they didn't have time to do it, and nobody started whining because they didn't want to be in one of the two amateur classes that were available. There were no participation trophies given out, and at the end of the day, there were only three winners: one in MBO, one in MBR, and one in PMR. All but three of the 1,200 people went home as losers. Instead of starting a petition and approaching manufacturers, many of those people went home to hone their yardage-judging craft. I was one of those people. I knew the only way to compete was to be able to judge yardage. While I probably didn't need to shoot lights-out, I would be able to compete if I practiced judging yardage and made it a routine. My shooting was already above average, but my yardage estimations were not up to par. Keep in mind that there were no electronic range finders available at this time, and 3D targets were so new that nobody really owned any. The only place people saw a bunch of them was at a tournament. 

  I made a goal of improving myself over the course of the next year so I could go back to that shoot and finish near the top. I measured distances at home and taped them off. Then I learned how many paces it took me to get to 20, 30, 40, and 50 yards, as all adult classes had a maximum yardage of 50 yards, as the max yardage had recently been shortened from 60 yards. 

  It took minimal time to get accurate at judging yardage. It was easy to make use of my time while shooting my bow to kill two birds with one stone: I pictured targets at each distance from 20 to 50 yards and quickly got a feel for depth perception in judging yardage. Before beginning 3D archery a year or two earlier, I had no idea how to do it. So there's a huge fallacy in people saying it takes too much time to learn how to judge yardage accurately enough to play the unknown game with the professionals who do it throughout the summer. 

  Within a year, I went from the bottom of the pack to a podium finish in the Northeast Triple Crown, and I stood on the steps next to future pro Roger Thibault, a legendary archer from Maine.  From there, I would make my way to national ASA, IBO and NFAA events. I played each organization's game as it was designed to be played. Although I came from an IBO region, I did not recruit people at ASA shoots to change their scoring system to center 11s rather than lower 12s. I didn't request that they put 14s in play in regular scoring instead of only in shoot-down scoring to allow me to catch up when I fell behind. Instead, I played the games the way they were designed to be played. I didn't go to the NFAA marked 3D nationals and request that we make it unmarked because I spent time judging yardage and didn't want to compete against people who only shot their bows and didn't judge. Instead, I worked at perfecting the craft of each organization's game so I could compete at the highest level my skills would allow. I would go on to achieve podium finishes in the ASA, IBO and NFAA at the national level, and I put the work in to be competitive in the game that I chose to play when shooting the different organizations' events.

  I still do the same. I compete in the games as the games were originally set up to be played. Over time, the marked yardage pink elephant in the room has made itself known, and it has brought a lot of participation to the ASA. I commend the ASA for doing that because the ASA is a money-making business that is privately owned. It needed to make the right choices for the business to grow and make more money. If the money doesn't come in regularly and nothing is done to grow the attendance, the business runs the risk of running out of revenue. When a business can't make money, we all know what happens. So if I ran the ASA, I would've started the marked yardage classes too. Those classes are solely responsible for the current status of the ASA. However, over time, the shooters who are shooting become regulars, and creating more classes just dilutes the participation in all of the classes even more.

  For the vast majority of shooters, they enjoy the marked yardage aspect of the game because they can just come shoot their bows. However, the organization was started as a 3D organization in which professional classes were designed to be shot as unmarked yardage. 

  In the early days, there was no problem drawing professional shooters because of the money that could be won through non-endemic sponsors. The Open Pro Shooter of the Year would walk away with more than $50,000 and that money did not come from manufacturers. Contingency checks were still cut at every tournament, but the manufacturers weren't being drained to support tournament archery like they are these days. 

  The prize money gave these professionals incentive to hone their yardage-judging skills while sharpening their shooting skills. The pool was deep, and the money got distributed well back into the field. The shooters were not competing for each other's entry fees and a contingency check. Although they got those things, the big prize was the check from the title sponsor. 

                   Looking Back at the Era, the Passion and the People

  I still remember Allen Connor, Shannon Caudle, Randy Ulmer, Randy Chappel, Sonny Chappel, Jeff Hopkins, Jackie Caudle, Burley Hall, Dale Keene, Pete Works, Bobby Ketcher, Johnny Heath, and a host of others who went head-to-head every weekend of the summer. These guys had found a way to accurately estimate the distance to the targets and make good enough shots to find their way to the podium. Some of these shooters were successful in other areas of archery, as Jeff Hopkins won Vegas, the granddaddy of all archery events. While some competed in target archery, others did not, but the good shooters stood above the rest at 3D because they played the game as it had been designed. 

  Jim Despart, one of the best target shooters of all time, competed in a few national 3D events along the way and didn't fare too well, but he never decided a marked yardage class needed to be designed so he could succeed in the game and collect contingencies. Instead, he focused on the games he excelled at and took home titles that every competitive archer dreams of winning. Although many of the 3D shooters were probably not the same caliber of shooter as him, he didn't want his own class. Instead, he realized these 3D shooters had the necessary skills to compete at the highest level in 3D and he gave kudos where kudos was deserved. It was an archery game that he didn't excel at, but he also recognized the ones who had mastered it. They had chosen their game, and he had chosen his game, and at the time, there weren't many guys out there who could do both at the highest level.

  That was a different era, before many parents began thinking all kids should win an award. It was before we decided that we needed over 40 classes because more people wanted a chance to win. It was before manufacturers were forced to choose how to pay out contingency. However, now the pink elephant is standing in the living room and swinging his trunk around and smashing furniture while blowing out all the windows and ripping holes through the walls. The old days are gone forever and anything left from that era is a genuine antique, including people's attitudes concerning the work needed to perform in a game that people have felt the need to change over time.

 

  As I was learning the ropes at national 3D events, I watched the great ones perform and gained a lot from reading 3D Times, a magazine about 3D archery. There was no internet at the time, so information was hard to come by. 

  I saw Jack Wallace quickly make his presence known in the ASA and IBO arena. The young kid from Ohio caught all the legends by surprise when he started winning events and putting himself in a position to podium at most events. 

  I saw Danny Evans compete with Ryan Rowe in the youth class, as they battled back and forth at  IBO and ASA events. They were both long, lanky kids and both made good shots. If one of them didn't win, they were always close to the top step of the podium. 

  I watched Eric Griggs and Dave Cousins come out of New England, following in Roger Thibault's footsteps. Eric would go on to have a good career in professional 3D shooting before becoming involved in the business side of archery, eventually opening his own company, GAS Bowstrings. Dave would go on to break records worldwide in target archery. Both of these guys stayed in their lane and both started in unmarked yardage in New England. Neither one of them wanted to change the rules and create classes for themselves along the way. If known yardage 3D had started back then, would Despart, Cousins, Etheridge, Butts, Ragsdale, Hall, and others had entirely different careers? Nobody will ever know, but I do know that none of them pushed to create a class for themselves under the stipulations that they didn't have the time to hone the craft of judging yardage to compete with the people who supposedly did. Every person has 24 hours in a given day, and how a person chooses to use that time is up to him. 

  I watched Josh Ferrell when he was a kid and thought he would become an unbelievable pro in all venues of archery. However, life came along and Josh wasn't able to dedicate his life to archery. At that time, I also saw a kid from North Carolina in his class. That kid was good, too. He was a winner. His name was Levi Morgan. People don't pay attention to kids, but I watched from afar because he was in Josh's class, and this Morgan kid could flat-out pound. He could destroy other youth shooters. Eventually, he would find himself in Open Pro competing against all the legends I mentioned earlier. He would spend his time learning how to improve his shooting, and he came to realize that his shooting would not get him anywhere unless he learned how to judge distance. He took on both tasks and became the best to ever play the game. Levi put the time in to excel at the game where his passion lies. Levi went to Redding to give the orange dot marked yardage stuff a try. It turned out well for him, and he never lobbied for the tournament directors to make the tournament unmarked with lower 12s. Others, like Cousins, Broadwater and Wilde, chose to concentrate their efforts in areas where their passion could lead them to their full potential. 

  Then, ASA introduced marked yardage and Known Pro became a force to reckon with, bringing in many top-notch target shooters from around the world. Attendance quickly increased, and stars in (marked yardage) 3D were born. They came because the manufacturers were forced into paying contingencies for three adult male professional classes. Pros will not shoot if there's minimal or no money. They need the possibility of a return on investment for them to attend. Then the cries for change began. We need a female known pro class and a senior known pro class. If manufacturer's don't offer big contingency for many target archery events, it makes no sense for many pros to attend them like they used to. Instead, it makes more sense to push for more new classes where big money from manufacturers can be paid out. Is this helping the manufacturers, or is it dividing 3D archery even more than it was a few years ago? Is it now diluting the current pool or is it truly brining in more archers... professional archers?

  Anything in life comes down to the choices we make. The choices we make can change the entire path of our lives. Sometimes, a split-second choice can affect the lives of many people. In other times, one choice can end or start a life. Life is about choices. Why is our country where it is right now? Is it because so many people feel entitled? Is it because if people don't agree with us we dislike them and refuse to listen to them? Is it hypocritical if people call out all of the people who are knocking over statues and trying to erase our history, yet we have a contingent of people who want manufacturers to pay for known and unknown professional classes for seniors, males and females? Is this the same type of thing? Do people want to erase history for the benefit of themselves while forcing the establishments that make tournament archery make decisions that alienate people on both sides? I don't know what will happen or what goes through people's minds. They justify what they're doing by saying they're growing archery, but does growing archery become reliant on further separating the people already in it and forcing manufacturers to continue funding the professional shooters? If a fisherman continues fishing the same farm pond every day and keeps three bass a day, it won't take long before the pond has no fish left in it. 

  As I take a step back and look at the big picture, from the time I started almost 30 years ago until now, there have been peaks and valleys in archery. Archery seems to go as games go. Field archery was booming when that was one of the few games to be played. It took a while for indoor archery to catch on, but now it is responsible for the biggest tournament in the world. And 3D archery saw its peak shortly after McKenzie introduced actual 3D targets. It seems the ebbs and flows go along with the new games that are created. Sadly, marked yardage isn't a new game and neither is unmarked. So where is 3D headed? Is this the beginning of the end? Is it headed to the same participation rates that field archery has declined into? I'll shoot my bow as long as I can, and I'll continue to play the games that bring me the most enjoyment. What will you do? 

                                                  

  

 

2022 Annual Royalston Team Shoot

    Unlike the last handful of years, I wasn't looking forward to attending the team shoot this year. For those of you who didn't know, I came down with COVID after returning from the IBO World, and it took me for a loop. 

   I've always considered myself to be in good shape, and colds don't usually do too much to me. However, it has been a long time since I came down with anything --- until a few weeks ago. The day I returned from the world, a headache latched on and would't let go. It felt as if someone was pounding the back of my head and upper neck with a sledgehammer for a week. I had a nonstop fever during this time, too. My body gave in and became extremely weak. I never began progressing from the darkness until the Wednesday before the team shoot. At that time, I went outside to shoot a few arrows to see what the result might look like. It didn't take long to realize I probably should call it a year and not attend the shoot. I shot five arrows at a 5-spot from 40 yards. I hit two Xs, a four, and missed the paper twice. I also went to my dad's to shoot at a few targets to make sure I could hit long-range 3D targets. 

  It was grueling to get to the top of the hill to try my hand at 3D shooting, but I gave it my best and returned after a little bit with two fewer arrows in my quiver. After bobbing instead of weaving, I sent a few into the pucker brush. 

  After that episode, I decided I better text Jacob to let him know where I stood. He assured me he didn't care, so we made plans to attend the event. 

                                                                             Go Time

      After tossing a few arrows at 20 yards and a few at 40, I felt confident to head onto the course. All of my arrows hit in the dot, and the bow actually held fairly steady. I wasn't sure what to expect, but the guys told me they saw the numbers online and they said it didn't look too bad as far as yardages were concerned. That made me feel a little better, because we all know that it seems like our sight pictures are slightly more unsteady at longer distances. 

  When I got to my first target of the day, there was a pretty good backup, so we had to wait for people to shoot. When it was our turn, Jacob and I both realized that we have had a hard time killing the Delta bear at the end of the lane in previous shoots. Starting on a 60-yarder is never an easy feat, but my pin held fairly steady and I got a tweener just under the 11. We both felt good to start off even. 

  Moving to the second target, a standing bear facing backward, my pin danced wildly all over the bear. Since the target was facing backward, I had no idea where to aim at it and shot my arrow considerably right of the 10-ring. With the 14 looking the size of a beachball, Jacob decided to let it have it... and that he did. We had our first 14 of the day. 

  The next target, a mountain lion, was difficult to see, but we escaped with another 10. That's when I got into a groove and started finding the 10 ring on every shot, and Jacob started doing his thing. We made our way through that half and set a good pace. We did our thing and kept things where we felt comfortable. However, we did have three targets that I shot barely out the top of the 10-ring due to my rangefinder. Although mine read 2 to 3 yards longer on a few targets, I shot it for the number on my rangefinder and paid the price. All three arrows hit exactly where they should have hit for the error according to everyone else's rangefinder. All of the arrows hit less than an inch out the top at exactly 12 o'clock. 

                The Second Half

   We ended up getting off the first half with our highest score ever on the first half. Although I can't remember what it was at this point in time, I believe we were at +34 or +32, and we have always shot better on the bottom half. We felt good about our chances because neither one of us actually felt all that great about our shooting on the first half. 

  As we progressed through the second half, we were having a hard time seeing any of the pink dots on the targets. Then, we got to the chamois and figured we would have a good shot at the 14. Once again, my rangefinder didn't read the same as everyone else's in the group, but I went ahead and shot the target for what mine had on it. Once again, I shot a fingernail width out the top at 12 o'clock. 

  Jacob had finally had enough of the rangefinder and declared that I should no longer shoot things for the number it was telling me. On most of them, my yardages were within a yard of everyone else, but the 3 to 3 1/2-yard errors on the other ones made us pay the price. I agreed and that was it for that rangefinder if it gave me a higher number than everyone else. 

  Then, we got to the turn around and were struggling to gain any points. We simply couldn't see the dots, which made it all but impossible to hit them. Jacob was doing his part, but his arrows kept landing within an inch of the pink dots, directly under them. It was phenomenal shooting considering he was area aiming due to the inability to see the dots, but we both knew we were in trouble if we could't get something going. 

  When we got to the long, 68-yard antelope on the turn, we were both stoked when I put a good arrow in it. That was a tough shot, and we were both sure my arrow was where it needed to be, so Jacob tried shooting at the invisible 14-ring. When we got to the target, we realized that everyone in the group had been fooled by my arrow. It was barely out the left side of the 10-ring, but it hit exactly where the pin was sitting when it fired, and according every antelope I've shot, it was a no-brainer 10 by looking at it. I'm still stumped how it wasn't a 10. Jacob also missed the 14 ring, so we took a step backward on that target and knew we had a fight ahead of us to try to scavenge some points. 

  Getting near the end of the day, I was about out of gas. I had executed pretty good shots for the better part of the day. That's when we got involved in some chatting on the course while I was trying to shoot what I believe was a woodland boar at about 40 yards. I knew it was a relatively easy shot, but I suddenly got all sorts of anxiety while at full draw when my shot didn't fire. I let down, regrouped and started the process again. I ended up making my only really bad shot of the day and it hit low on the outside of the 8/5 line. I'm still not sure what exactly happened, but I felt like I had let my teammate down because it was a shot I felt like he could've capitalized on, and it was the only one of the day that I missed by a substantial margin. I was highly disappointed. 

  We took our points and moved on. When we got to the long rising boar, I made one of my best shots of the day, and the arrow hit just under the 11. Jacob followed it up with a great shot of his own, and we headed into the field for the last few shots. We didn't have any luck scoring 14s on those shots and our arrows seemed to drift to the left on all of them. The wind was blowing from right to left and my arrows weigh a mere 300 grains. That does't add up to very accurate shooting at any distance in the wind and in an open field.

  When all was said and done, we stared at a 342 on our card. We simply didn't complement each other on the second half. In all reality, I don't think either one of us shot poorly. We just didn't catch any breaks, and we never really gelled like past years. It was like being on a ship that's taking on water in the front, then you patch the hole and it starts taking on water in the back. Somehow we weathered the storm and limped to the finish line.  

  Over the years, I've been fortunate enough to win a lot of tournaments of all types. I've won some shoots when I shot terribly, and I've lost some shoots that I had better performances than I ever could've imagined. I've also learned that if you're a good shooter and you're not scoring well, there's a pretty good chance that nobody else is scoring well either. That's when you need to keep your head down and focus on getting to the finish line in one piece. The rest will take care of itself. 

  Many, many years ago, I came out of nowhere in three local leagues and shot scores that were unheard of at the time. As years passed, I was able to maintain the high level of accuracy and continued shooting the high scores. Eventually, everyone expected it from me... and I expected it from myself. Nobody will truly understand expectations until they find themselves in a position where you are expected to win. Winning is never easy. It never has been and never will be. Although some people find themselves in the winner's circle more often than not, it's simply not that easy. I've always told people and will always believe that it is much easier to get to the top than it is to say there for any length of time. Most will succumb to the pressure of creating expectations for themselves rather than just going and shooting their bows.

  Although it's an end-of-the year local thing, there is a little added pressure that comes along with it when everyone expects you to win. I think sometimes people forget that. Jacob and I are lucky to have a good friendship and relationship as teammates. I have shot with some phenomenal shooters in team events over the years in many different tournaments and never placed in a lot of them. Working with your teammate and picking each other up is more difficult than it seems from the outside if you don't have the right partner. Nothing changes at this shoot as compared to when we shoot national events. Sometimes Jacob will finish before me and have to wait until I'm done. I'll make a good shot and turn around, and he will give me the thumbs-up sign. I always root for my teammates, and it's a beautiful thing when someone has your back when you need some support. All good things eventually come to an end. I'm not getting any younger, and heading into my mid 50s, every year gets a little more difficult. I'll keep playing the part as long as my partner allows me to strap on the gear and take the punches our competitors throw at us. 

  I'd like to thank Shawn Couture and his wife, Wendy, for everything they do for all of us every year at this shoot. It always feels good to see the best shooters from our region at the shoot and talk with them. I don't get to see many of them anymore due to my schedule, so this shoot makes it really nice. We seem to have all the oldies there as well as the newbies, and it's a nice mix. 

  Many of you probably don't realize I'm a numbers guy, and I'll usually hedge my bets on statistics. If I go to a few shoots and don't shoot many 11s, I usually know I'm ready to have a breakout performance due to all the of the statistics of past years that I have. Since I found it much more difficult to see the 14s this year and the yardages seemed a lot longer, I figured it would be neat to see how people who where teammates fared as compared to last year. Did it affect all of us the same?

 Well, Jacob and I won the Booby Prize. Our score dropped the most of the 10 teams that were also teams at last year's event. We scored 35 points less than last year, but we weren't alone. Seven of the 10 identical teams from last year shot lower scores this year. Hey, Cole and Jake, I just wanted to let two know that you can join Jacob and I as the biggest losers. Looks like this course got you two too, but hey, at least we shot a 10 on the bedded doe. Do you guys remember that target? :-) You two were down 30 from last year. The Thygesens win the prize for shooting the same score as last year. You Vermonters just have something in you that allows you to spit tobacco, skin beavers, eat ravioli, chase Amish wagons, show no fear and shoot them in the middle... even if your girlfriend is giving you the stink eye... kudos to you guys.

 There's always a winner of the chicken dinner, though. Who might that be? Which team destroyed their score from last year and laid it down this year, improving by 25 points while only one team improved by five and one by 10? You can give free ice cream to Karla and Rick. They were the only team that substantially improved while all the rest of us faltered. Maybe we are missing out on the ice cream after the shoots. Hey Karla, can Rick buy us some ice cream? If it's the ice cream that does the trick, I'm all in. New Hampshire ice cream for everyone at the winter indoor shoot. 

 Oh, one last thing. Couture, this is how Jacob and I felt after we finished. Watch out if we show up with knives. We couldn't hit much with our bows, so we are trading them in for knives. We will be participating in knife-throwing contests now... watch out, buddy. 

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I'll be giving my recap of the year in the coming weeks. I hope all of you are getting ready for hunting season and looking back on the fun summer of shooting that just passed. Thanks for reading along and supporting what I do. I truly appreciate it.