Pulling into the parking lot, I was surprised to see so many cars in the lot in middle of the week. Gathering my gear from the backseat of my truck, the wind slapped the back of my neck and brought a chill with it that raced down my spine, momentarily breathing life into me. The grind was about to begin… again. The next eight months would bring challenges at every corner, and I would have to find a way to navigate rough seas.
Opening the door, I instantly noticed a young man in a wheelchair at the far end of the range. After setting my stuff down and preparing to shoot, I couldn’t help but hear people giving him advice. The advice came in all sorts, including range etiquette and how to shoot a good shot. However, a lot of the advice was coming from sources who didn’t have the proper tools to help. Instead, I knew the advice would probably send this new shooter into a rabbit hole that might be impossible to escape as time wore on. Although I’m not a coach, I do have a lot of experience to draw from, and I try to save people a lot of time to get better at the craft.
A few hours later, my first practice session of the winter was over. I could feel it in my arms, shoulders and back. I got a good workout and felt ready to start putting more time into it. Everyone who was there earlier in the evening had gone home, and I clicked the lights off and headed outside into the darkness that had consumed the sky.
During my short commute home, I began thinking about the young man in the wheelchair. Why was he in a wheelchair? How did he come to like archery? How did he find out about the indoor archery range? Who was the woman standing behind him the whole time he was shooting? Should I have offered some of my own advice? While I wasn’t sure if I had done the right thing, I decided I would get to know him the next time I saw him.
The Introduction
The next time I headed to the range, the young man was there again. This time there weren’t a lot of people around, so I took the time to introduce myself and gave him a little of my background and explained that many people like to give advice and sometimes it’s better in the beginning to listen to more experienced people than a lot of people. He welcomed the advice and introduced himself as Chris Hall. Our journey to tournament archery started that evening.
Going Backward to Move Forward
Within no time, we began working on proper form and execution. Chris hammered his trigger like a jackhammer operator on a road crew, and we needed to address that first and foremost. It didn’t take him long to understand he was punching the trigger. Since he was shooting a caliper release, we worked on curling his finger around the trigger and pulling with his back. His days of playing Whack-a-Mole at the county fair were over.
A few weeks later, he was executing great shots and his scores began to climb. That’s when we decided to try our hand at a few indoor tournaments. Chris’ first big test would be the Beast of the East shoot at Turning Stone Casino in Verona, N.Y., and it would be a 450 Vegas round.
When we headed to the shoot, Chris was nervous but ready for his first indoor tournament ever. At the end of the day, he looked at the 434 on his scorecard and his desire to improve began.
Fast Forward a Few Years
Well, it didn’t take long for a few years to fly by and bring us to 2023. Chris has spent the last year fine tuning his skills. Hours upon hours at the indoor range led to the construction of a new outdoor range at his in-law’s place.
Then, in August, he attended his first World Archery para event in Chicago. Although I was attending the ASA Classic at the same time, I waited patiently for the results. I followed the live scoring on Ianseo and saw that he was shooting his average and had a good chance to make it into the elimination rounds. After all, this was his first big event. It’s just not the same when you are shooting state and regional events.
When you find yourself on the field with some of the greatest shooters the world has to offer, it can quickly humble a man and make him weak. However, Chris took the challenge and decided he would give it his best. He had new goals and aspirations and had to have a starting point to allow him to understand what steps would come next.
After getting classified prior to the event, he felt good to get that out of the way. When the round started, Chris began shooting his shot like he was practicing at home. At the halfway point, he put up numbers that were comparable to his practice average. Then, the wind picked up and a battle with the elements began.
The wind wreaked havoc on the field, and all archers found a way to navigate to the finish line. This caused some problems for Chris, but he managed them OK and found himself in the elimination matches.
Once in the elimination match, he was bounced out of the competition by an archer from Korea, and he learned things that will serve him well in the future. He must work on shooting in the wind and staying focused on every shot of the round. Confidence is one of the biggest factors that affect success. You will never succeed without being confident. However, confidence must come from a place of truth.
The Future
Now that the work has begun and goals have been set, Chris will continue his trek down a path that so few people know anything about. He will roll into the range, organize his gear, and shoot hundreds of arrows every day. He will work on his mental game, ask questions, and use the knowledge that is available to him to perfect his craft… and I will watch quietly from a distance and cheer for him.
I will look back on the day I met him and understand that some people take longer than others to find their niche. I’ll also know that when I told him he must pay his dues to get to where he wants to go, he will truly understand it when the road brings him across the world.
While all of us don’t have people like Chris to inspire us, we do encounter other things that can transform our lives and the way we think about things. Chris has inspired me to never stop trying. Even when I face bad days on the range, I remember that I can do things that so many other people are unable to do. A few bad arrows here and there don’t amount to much when I can walk to the target, pull them out and try again. Sometimes I tend to forget that I’ve been granted an ability to compete as a professional archer and be competitive at the highest level. Looking at Chris every day makes me appreciate my own journey. While I have worked hard, I have also been gifted. There are only X number of professional football players. Not everyone who plays football can find himself on the field every Sunday competing against the best of the best. People claim you can outwork others and get there. The simple fact that many people cannot is too often overlooked. Everyone has a peak and many people’s peaks will fall short of the highest level. It’s impossible for every college quarterback to become an NFL quarterback, no matter how hard they work. Some just have a higher ceiling that is unattainable by others. I encourage everyone to try to reach the peak of their skillset and be thankful for wherever that peak might be. That’s when you must sit back and enjoy archery for what it is. The mystical flight of an arrow brings different things to everyone who observes it.
I never imagined Chris would be where he is now when I met him a handful of years ago. Watching his journey to this point has been refreshing. Nowadays, I often find myself rubbing elbows with some of the best archers in the world. I’ve seen some of these people throw things through the woods and complain and cuss nonstop. It saddens me that people don’t have the ability to step aside and realize how lucky they are to do what they do. Chris cannot do those things, but he still finds a way to enjoy archery. He enjoys it whether he shoots an X or a 0. He has embraced the fact that shooting archery has brought people and things into his life that never would’ve been there otherwise.
Finding K.J. Polish, one of the best para-archers to ever play the game, has been a blessing for both Chris and K.J. They now have a friendship that will withstand the test of time because they can both relate to the other’s journey. Share your journey with others and help the ones who are in a place on the path you once walked. I can remember KJ as a 16-year-old kid who was shooting in the pro class at Nelsonville, Ohio. He was on the practice range on a brutally hot July day, and he was shooting with Johnny Heath. Johnny told him what he shot a target for, so K.J. dialed his sight into that number and shot at the target. His arrow struck below the 8-line for a 5. Johnny laughed and said, “You’ve been Johnny Heathed.” He was teaching the young pro a lesson to never skip steps in practice. Although I remember it well, I’m sure neither of them remembers it. That moment stuck with me for some reason, and when I told Chris to reach out to K.J., I knew the intangibles K.J. could share with Chris were things that I would never be able to relate to.
I will be rooting for Chris as he continues his journey. While I’m in the twilight of my competitive archery career, Chris is in the beginning. However, he will never learn to walk again. He will make do with what he has been given, and he will never complain. He will keep moving forward and living the dream, realizing he has been blessed to find his niche… the one thing that brings him peace of mind and puts him where he belongs.
Chris will get getting married to Sara in a few weeks. She always keeps him on the right track and uses her phenomenal teaching skills to help him navigate things he would have a much tougher time with if she didn't share her wisdom. #powercouple
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