I think my wife finally realized the extent of my obsession when as I laid in the emergency room bed, waiting to get x-rays taken, my biggest concern was, “How am I going to be able to pull my bow back?” It was July and for my 25th birthday we decided to go camping at Rocky Gap State Park in Flintstone, Maryland. A day that I thought would be great for a mountain bike ride would turn out to be a great day to horribly wreck on my mountain bike and shatter my elbow.

It wasn’t until early the next morning and back in Virginia that I was finally out of surgery on my elbow.  Yes, I traveled to have surgery at the hospital near my house, but that’s a full story in itself about the experiences at two hospitals.  The surgeon (who turned out to be one of the top surgeons in the area) came into the room and explained the extent of my injuries and an estimated time-frame of recovery.  Long story short, I did serious damage to my left elbow and would have a long, painful recovery process with the possibility of never regaining full range of motion in that arm.  Again, my thoughts instantly went to how would I be able to save my hunting season and still be able to make it out to the woods.

It’s taken some work, but I’m happy to say I’ve been able to finally make it out to the woods for some of archery season.  A crossbow my father purchased a few years back and never got out of the box, a crossbow pulley cocking device that lets me use more of my right arm to pull it back, a set of some pretty neat shooting sticks, and I’m back in business.  My season is saved!

Have you had to deal with an injury during hunting season?  Ever had to sit out a season because of an injury?  Leave a comment below and let’s hear your stories!