I will hunt no more with my long bow

[Paparock]

Well the verdict is in. I have a nerve disease that will not allow my to draw a bow ever again and I had just bought a custom Green Mountain Longbow. I will never be able to use it. I just wanted to say I have enjoyed the ride from growing up in Arkansas to getting to follow around and watch Ben Pearson and Fred Bear shoot ducks on the wing once and so much more. Keep up the tradition.

Rocky Latham[&o]

[lcoast]

Rocky, that definetly sucks. Will be prayin' for ya.


=keith=

[Lilhunter]

Paparock,

Whats the possibility of switch hitting?

Either way, best of wish's Rocky!!!!

[Calabash]

Rocky,
I am sure sorry to hear about your health problems.. Will keep you in my prayers..

Calabash

[Arthur P]

Rocky, I sure hate to hear about that. It's a decision we'll all be faced with, eventually, and I'm sure very few of us will be ready to accept it when the time comes.

I've been fighting hard for the past 10 years in a losing battle to keep shooting because of arthritis and multiple level disc herniations/ruptures in my spine. The doctors told me I can't walk. Spent a year in that %&*! wheelchair and couldn't stand it. Found out that I could learn to ignore the pain and get around without the chair. No, I can't walk normally or very far at a time, but I darn sure CAN gimp and totter around some.

Don't give up, my friend! Send the bow back and get the draw weight reduced or trade it off for a lighter draw bow. Or get yourself a compound. Use a release if you have to! For guys like us who know our days of shooting are numbered, it's a matter of how long we can go and I have absolutely NO qualms about using anything that will help me keep a bow in my hands. (I call my ProTec my 'orthopedic recurve' ) I've gotten an extra 10 years of shooting that the doctors told me would not be possible.

Good luck to you, and God bless.

[Paparock]

Thanks for all the support!

I knew this day would come and I have made peace with it. I handled the arthriis, muscle and ligament problems with practice and pain control. They say my nerves are permanetely damaged. They just are not sending the messages as they should. Talk about a fun set of tests. They put in needles at the start and near the end of different nerve pathways and then pass current through while measuring the difference between sent and received. It started about ten years ago when I was lifting heavy free weights. My left arm suddenly would refuse to hold weight while burning terribly. At first I thought I had just strained something but no it just kept getting worse and going into other parts of my body. Hey we all grow older and at 55 I have enjoyed more than many will. I will still teach my grandson on instinctive shooting but I will now just watch and enjoy his growth.
Rocky Latham

[Arthur P]

Man o man! I hear ya about those nerve function tests. I've had about five electromyograms myself, running all the way up from my feet and ankles to about halfway up my back, leaving nary a spot untouched. Ain't it an exquisite form of torture they've come up with? [:-]

Hang in there.

[stealthycat]

Fight it ever damn step of the way !

[Cross-Bow]

I have been dealing with bursitis in my left shoulder and had to give up archery for a few years but I have decided to give it a try again. This time I am going to use a near minimum , read that legal, weight bow of the low 40's and give it a shot, no pun intended. Most of us think we have to shoot really heavy bows to show our masculinity. I got to thinking about it and remembered that Fred Bear shot nearly everything on the North American continent with a 50# bow. I don't care if someone picks up my bow and sees that I am shooting a 42# bow, at least I am shooting again and that is what counts for me.

BTW, I am a little older than you are so if you can hang on as long as possible.

Bill

[LBR]

Sorry for my slow reply--just don't know what to say. Hope that there will be some treatment or cure come about real soon. It's great you are passing it on down to your grandson.

Chad