Welcome aboard! First, where are you located? I'm in Northeast MS, and you are welcome to come by and shoot with me. There's also a great shoot this coming weekend in Clarkesville, TN (the TN Classic) where you could try out different bow, plus a shoot in Collierville at Herb Parson's lake once a month that is smaller but also very good.

Picking a bow will take time. My opinion is don't get caught up in nostalgia or who shot what. I love the history behind Hill bows, but they aren't the bow for me. I learned that from shooting several different Hill and Hill style bows. Very nice bows, I just don't do well with them. Same goes for Byron Ferguson's bows--met him several times, love talking to him, don't shoot his bows well.

There's gobs of great bows on the market, and if you look you can find someone that will say they are without a doubt the absolute best, and someone else that doesn't like them. Different strokes for different folks.

I would definately start out left handed. I'm right eye dominant and shoot right handed, but found I can shoot lefty if I need to, although not nearly as well. I know two different archers that shoot both left and right handed, depending on their mood--both are pretty decent shots.

Chad