Arthur Pettijohn, 56
Denton, TX

I've had a lifelong fascination with ancient weapons. Knives, axes, swords, slings, atlatls, bows and, now, crossbows. I've been seriously messing with crossbows for the past several years, but I did have a short infatuation with a Whammo crossbow some 40 years back. An exhibition of crossbow shooting by a member of the Society for Creative Anachronism (midieval reinactors) got me enthralled with that kind of crossbow, so I've made a couple of midieval replicas to shoot. That's what it's all about for me. Although... I wouldn't mind getting my mitts on an Excal Phoenix. There's also an old Barnett Wildcat living in the garage that doesn't get out much.

Within the past month, I finally came to the conclusion that the pain I have to deal with from shooting vert bows more than offsets the pleasure I get from it. So, after 53 years (got my first bow for my 3rd birthday and never had sense enough to quit ), I've retired all my verts and am concentrating on crossbows now.

Yes, some of you might remember me as a staunch opponent of crossbows in archery deer seasons. That was before technology made the compound bow every bit the equal of crossbows in nearly every way. I decided about 5 years ago that, if I must accept the one then I must also accept the other. Now I am only opposed to arrogance, hot-headedness and stupidity... on BOTH sides of the issue.