Song of the Bow Archery

Headed out to . Totally immersive retelling of ‘phantom of the opera’ where you must be in formal masked attire as a ball guest. Don’t wait up.

Three years ago, I taught my first archery class as we opened Ravensrook Archery. Last night, I kicked off the first class of 2026 and have now taught 605 people how to draw a bow. I got into this wanting to finally be ‘good’ at something and go for rankings and medals…Turns out, the real happiness was becoming a video game NPC that shows people how to do something they never thought was possible.

Spent my lunch break finishing up my first aid kits for the year. You can see how they go from pocket sized for my man-purse, gradually going full Dwight Schrute for my car bag. Longer term I’ll need a small kit for both my daily archery bag and the small backpack I’m using for 3D and field.

What first aid gear do you carry in your quiver or bow bag? What injuries have you seen in the sport?

This is the way.

After a decade of hearing about it, thanks to the love of my life i’m seeing my first show at chicagomagiclounge! I will never turn down an invite to whoever goes here, hit me up!

Happy holidays!

Cameo by my niece, if you recognize us from Seven Suns Archery at bristolrenaissance Our boss at BowDoc Archery did NOT force us to be an elf and reindeer for the holiday shoot, we both showed up like this independently with repurposed Faire costume accessories.

Just saw this go by, and as I was squinting at the 60-arrow quiver I realized this was being posted on a prepper/survivalist board and not an archery group. As someone who needed physical therapy from spending several years working towards this style of archery, I would personally recommend sticking to other apocalypse standbys such as the crossbow, katana, or cricket bat.

"You have to maintain a targeted, cohesive brand identity!"
Screw it, I want to talk about the junk in my pockets I pretend I need.

I'm overhauling my Everyday Carry (EDC) toys, and then transferring them to this nifty pocket organizer I ordered from Maxpedition. Spending my weekend helping out at a baby shower and an art gallery opening, I've accepted my transition from 'Dwight Schrute' to 'Dad with a f***y pack.'

Current hunting goals:
-Something minimalistic to lock all my credit cards and ID card together, I don't carry cash and am replacing my wallet with this multi-use pouch.

-A small, but hand-friendly multitool. discontinued the Sq**rt and Juice line sadly, I don't trust the quality from other companies and it's frustrating. That little grey guy has been with me since high school, and two decades later it's the best tool I've ever owned. The replacement doesn't need a knife, I just need screwdrivers and ideally some pliers. Worst case, time to get a funky-colored Swiss Army Knife.

-A thinner, lighter flashlight. I'm in an office cubicle most of the week, an 18650 light is overkill. The new L-shaped headlamps that double as pocket lights are so nerdy I can't turn one down. I am not a SWAT operator, I'm a PR writer. It hurts so hard to type that.

-Upgrade the old Photon Freedom, my favorite accessory since high school. Used to wear these as necklaces daily. Their tech is now decades behind, most keychain lights are now rechargeable and brighter than the high-end lights I saved up for as a teenager.

-Small, spine-bound notebooks that will fit in a 5 x 3.5 inch organizer. Not the elaborate bullet journals with Bluetooth, something I can buy in bulk and feel fine tearing pages out of.

If anyone in Springfield found two round, frozen objects in the parking lot…Those fell off this morning loading my bow case, please drop them off at bale 29.

Guess which one is mine…

Proudly snagged last place in the first-ever Traditional Class at the Midwest Open, shooting an English longbow in a field of laminated recurves. This is the single worst bow in existence to shoot at indoor distances, but the biggest shoot in Illinois needed a little Weird Al energy in the mix.

Amazingly efficient shooting lines, extremely cool venue, and wonderful volunteers making this all happen.