I bowhunted for about 15 years with a compound. Then after my granddaughter was born on Jan 10th, 1999, I decided to lose weight and I did. I lost about 50#. What I didn't realize was I lost not just fat, but I also lost muscle. I went out to the garage that summer, took my compound off its hook, and drew it to fulldraw. After I got it there with some difficulty I thought to myself "OK, now dummy, what are you going to do? You don't have an arrow to shoot and you can't hold this thing forever!!"

I let the bow down and as it went back through the draw force curve, it felt like it ripped my right arm off at the shoulder. I was in extreme pain for several weeks. I couldn't lift my arm above horizontal. I had to go to therapy for about 6 weeks to get the muscle groups strengthened and to ease the pain.

Meanwhile, the owner of The Archery Shop where I went to shoot suggested I sell my compounds and switch to traditional. Now mind you he is a big Mathews dealer, but, he also personally owns somewhere around a couple dozen trad bows including a Marriah Thermal and a real nice Dale Stahl recurve I sold to him. I bought my first T/D recurve from an elderly gentleman, Mr. Jones, who lives about 15 miles from my house and has been building bows for over 50 years. My first one cost me $200. I killed my first trad deer with it.

There's been a nearly endless stream of bows, it seems at times, ever since. I now have two great shooting recurves that I will be keeping. I also just recently ordered and picked up another T/D recurve from Mr. Jones. I wanted to get another one from him while he is still alive and building bows. I especially wanted one of his new design, a split limb design with "feathers" laid in with glass at the top of the split near the tips and an arrowhead laid in with glass at the bottom of the split near the limb butt on each limb. The split serves to simulate the arrow shaft.

Bill