A New but Familiar Direction

   I’m not sure how to start this, other than to tell you to always expect the unexpected. After walking off the course at the IBO World and finding out I was the first guy out of the shootdown round, I was left with a bitter taste in my mouth. The trip back to the vendor area didn’t bring a warm and fuzzy feeling. Instead, as many of us have found ourselves doing in the past, I sat there in disbelief. I had given it away. Nobody helped me do it. I did it all on my own. I had the tiger by the tail and let it loose before I could tame it and put it back in the cage. I had solidly beaten my opponent for the first 13 rounds, but my legs got a little wobbly in the 14^th, and I took a shot to the chin in the 15^th, and that shot wrote my ticket.

  After visiting with some people in the vendor area and watching my buddy Tyler win the Eagle Eye, I made my way back to the condo. During the Eagle Eye, I got a message that Darren Collins wanted me to call him if I got a chance. Since we had talked the previous week at the ASA Classic about a mechanical release idea he had been toying with, I figured he wanted to give me an update on it. Since I’m a release junkie, I looked forward to hearing what he had to say, but I also had to sit down and let the day’s events process before I got on the phone. 

  When I called, we BSd for a little bit before getting down to business. Although the release came up in conversation, that wasn’t the reason he wanted to talk to me. Instead, he told me that he and Dave Cousins were going to be in charge of the Factory Pro Staff and he wanted to know if I would be interested in coming back to PSE. He gave me some of the particulars and told me to think it over. 

  After stepping away from the phone, I had to let the conversation process. After all, I hadn’t pursued any avenues other than the one I was currently on, and the offer to shoot for PSE caught me off guard. However, I feel people should entertain every offer that comes their way if they aren’t bound to a contract… so that’s what I did. 

  When I got home from the event, I took a piece of paper out and wrote down all the pluses and minuses of accepting the offer. Then, I did the same for my current situation. When I got done with it, I took a few days to consider things from different angles. 

  I looked back on the last year and started from the beginning. As part of my deal last year, it was my job to build the brand in New England and New York, as the sales were lacking to almost non-existent. I took it upon myself to secure reputable dealers who could move products. In doing so, the sales in the region saw a huge increase in percentage over the previous year. I’m proud of that because I know my reputation as a good person and influencer among dealers and people in my region was the reason why many people chose to follow me. I took on the challenge last year because I knew I could succeed. The percentage of sales in the region jumped dramatically, and I looked forward to continuing in the same direction. 

  When I look back at my shooting for the year, I did OK, so I did my part on the performance end of representing the company. Although I didn’t podium this year, I was relevant in 8 of the 10 tournaments in which I participated, making one shootdown round and finding myself on the leaderboard at some point in every event except a couple. I also found myself standing on the top step of the podium as a team winner when my teammates and I won the IBO National Triple Crown. We brought home the first Manufacturer’s Cup to the company. I must admit that I was a little disappointed when it got absolutely no coverage. I can remember coming through the ranks when Mathews dominated and almost all Manufacturer’s Cups returned to Sparta, Wis. It felt good to be a part of a winning team for a manufacturer. In some small way, it was something I always wanted to be a part of. 

  When it came down to making the decision, I looked back at time I spent shooting a PSE in the four years prior to last year. I was able to rack up some notable things while shooting a PSE, including state, regional, sectional, and national championships in 3D, Humana Senior Games, and NFAA stuff, as well as breaking a few target records along the way.

  Thinking back to those things, I felt like I had performed my best while shooting a PSE. When I was dialed in with those bows, I felt like I could never miss. One year, I shot 13 11s in my last 15 shots at one of the legs of the National Triple Crown; one time I shot 57 straight Xs after dropping my first three to secure a national championship; and another time I shot over 50% 11s in another leg of the National Triple Crown. PSEs just performed well for me, or I should say I performed well with them in my hands. I made a shootdown round with every PSE I shot at a national tournament, so I know I can shoot any bow well that I choose to shoot. It gives me a lot of confidence.

  I’ve decided to return to PSE for these reasons, and I look forward to seeing where the change leads me for the next two years. I’m excited for the change, and I fully embrace it. I also can’t wait to work with Darren Collins to see what we can do together to grow the brand and get the bows in people’s hands. I’m thankful Darren reached out to me, and I’ll do my best to make sure I solidify his confidence in me. 

  Shoot straight, and I’ll see all of you in the winter. Looking forward to a few more million-dollar contingency checks in the coming years.