Anyone can shoot a bow but hitting back-to-back state championships takes things to a whole new level.
SPRING BRANCH, Texas — I’ve been bowhunting for 40+ years and met a 12-year-old girl who puts me to shame.
For Natalia Reyes, the seed didn’t fall too far from the tree. Her dad is a state champion. She has one up on him though… She’s done it two years in a row!
Natalia has ice running through her veins when that bow is in her hands. Whether it’s in front of a crowd at a tournament or out in a field, it doesn’t matter.
I asked her what she thought when she heard her name announced as the state champion.
“Didn’t show it but I was freaking out!” said Natalia.
Her father, Raul, is pretty much the same way. He said he started bowhunting for the same reason most of us do.
“Hunting with a rifle was too easy,” said Raul.
That’s why I picked up a bow as well. But their dedication to the sport goes way beyond hunting. That’s where 3D shooting comes in.
Raul started shooting 3D targets after a friend suggested he try it.
“Then I got into 3D archery just to stay sharp all year long,” he said.
3D archery is where foam targets of various animals are set out anywhere from 10 yards to as far as you want to shoot.
The father and daughter duo practice almost every day. It doesn’t take much time and it makes a world of difference.
“Pretty much we’ll shoot at least 50 arrows a day,” he said.
The pair have become so proficient, each took state champions and Shooter of the Year in their respective age groups this year in the Archery Shooters Association.
To take advantage of having two expert archers available, I took my youngest son Micah who loves to shoot a bow with me to get some tips. As I said, I have been shooting for decades but about a year and a half ago, I hurt my should so badly I couldn’t pull back my bow.
Having no shot for so long, I was a little afraid to try again. After the first arrow flew, I knew I was going to be alright.
It didn’t take long for Reyes to help me regain the form and aim. I was hitting “kill shots” in no time.
Micah, on the other hand, took a little longer.
At 10-years-old, he’s growing so fast I can’t keep the bow at the right length or settings for him. Raul helped adjust Micah’s bow to fit him and then began working on the sighting.
It didn’t take very long at all before Raul and Natalia had him hitting “kill shots” and even a bullseye or two!
Now that the bow fits and he has his confidence, Micah asks me all the time: “Dad can we go into the back yard and shoot the bow?”
Who knows, maybe this time next year, Natalia may have a little more competition for that state title.