Q&A with Dave Cousins
Meet one of Team Hoyt's most decorated compound shooters: I’ve been shooting Hoyt bows for over 15 years and have been a Pro Staff member since 1998
Hoyt: You've had a very successful career. Besides natural ability, what do you attribute your success to? Focus? Confidence? Determination? All of the above?Dave: Focus, confidence and determination are all qualities that any champion must possess, but I think the most commonly overlooked aspect of any top-level athlete is desire. With true desire, any skill can be learned, any task can be accomplished … any dream can become reality.
Hoyt: What are some of your most memorable wins? Most memorable moments/ highlights?Dave: I’ve been fortunate enough to experience the winner’s circle many times. One of those times that stands out in my mind the most would be the FITA World Field Championships 2006 in Sweden. My bow case didn’t arrive and I was forced to piece together a set up from what I could gather up from my teammates and fellow competitors. I went to that tournament in a state of mental and physical preparedness that would not allow me to even consider failing. I was able to shoot a perfect 360 during the qualification round on the first day of competition – placing 72 arrows in the 5-ring at unmarked distances ranging from 10m to 55m. This is a feat that only a few have ever done with their own equipment. I was able to shoot my way to a team gold medal and was just a millimeter from an individual gold at that tournament with a borrowed bow! Many thanks to my teammates and Hoyt engineer Darin Cooper, whose bow I used to achieve this memorable accomplishment.
Hoyt: What are your goals for your 2008 tournament season?Dave: I rarely set goals for a particular season. I do, however, set a goal for myself every time I take the field, and that’s to perform the way that I have trained … to perform at a level that maximizes my capabilities and enhances my chances to succeed.
Hoyt: What do you think about Hoyt's 2008 bow lineup? What target bow will you be shooting?Dave: The 2008s are as hot as ever and dealers will have a hard time keeping them on the racks. My two personal favorites are the Katera XL and the UltraElite. I hope to be staking my claim to a share of the tournament winnings with an UltraElite/XT3500. This setup has been very good to me for a long time. The UltraElite is a strong favorite among target shooters the world over and its record speaks for itself.
When I take to the woods I’ll be packing a Katera XL. This bow blew my mind in the few days I spent with it before heading off to Mexico on a whitetail hunt. My Katera XL shoots a blistering fast 292 fps with a 455-grain arrow. Do the math and that comes out to 86 pounds of kinetic energy! My Katera XL has the forgiveness that allows me to shoot golf ball sized groups at a mind-blowing 50 yards with fixed-blade broadheads.
Hoyt: Describe your practice ritual. How many hours a week do you shoot?Dave: One of the things that many people fail to understand about being a full-time professional archer is that it’s not all tournaments and training. I spend a large portion of my time just managing my business. Making travel arrangements, staying in contact with sponsors, testing and assisting in new product development, sourcing new potential sponsors, attending trade shows, sitting on air plains, sleeping in hotel rooms, driving rental cars and – if there is any time left after all that – I’ll train some.
Hoyt: Besides target shooting, you also do a fair amount of bowhunting. How long have you hunted?Dave: I've hunted all my life.
Hoyt: What's your favorite animal to bowhunt?Dave: I’m up for hunting anything. For me, it’s more important to be out in the field with friends and enjoying the outdoors – regardless of what I’m pursuing.
Hoyt: How does target shooting help prepare you for the hunt?Dave: Tournament shooting has helped me be more patient when sitting in the stand waiting for that perfect shot or watching an animal from afar as it moves into to correct position and allows me to make a stalk from the proper angle. Fact is this: Tournament shooting will make any bowhunter a better hunter regardless of the type of tournament. Honing your skills on the range is a prerequisite for any bowhunter. Nothing frustrates me more than overhearing someone at the range say, "Ah, I’m good enough to kill a deer". Well, I’m here to tell you that you aren’t. Bottom line is this: If you can’t hold it together enough to make a good shot on the range with a few people standing on the line, you aren’t good enough to ethically take a game animal. I’d like to extend an invitation to all bowhunters to step to the tournament line and become a better archer. When you become a better archer you become a better bowhunter.
Hoyt: Does hunting offer any unique challenges that target shooting does not? Compare/contrast the two.Dave: In my mind the biggest challenge hunting offers is the element of the unknown. You don’t know exactly what that game is going to do. The only elements you can control are your actions and reactions in regard to the animal’s behavior. You have to think fast and act even faster, becoming dynamic and living up to your position at the top of the food chain. Now, on the other hand, target shooting is all about mind and body control, building a wall of confidence around yourself and attacking the target with relentless consistency and never wavering from your training no matter what you’re faced with.
Hoyt: You recently shot a nice buck with your new Katera XL. Tell us about the hunt.Dave: I was lucky enough get an invitation to go whitetail hunting in Mexico with a good friend of mine. The four-day hunt took place near Anahuac on the Rancho Guadalupe, a 5,000-acre ranch managed for trophy whitetails. My hunt was for a 4 ½ year-old or older 8-pointer in the 125"–130" range.
In the 2 ½ days before I shot my buck, I saw a ton of bucks – some too small, some too big and a few that where just insanely huge … as well as a few non-typicals sporting multiple main beams.
Late on the second day of the hunt I was trying to make a move on a mature 9-pointer in the 130"-135" range that the ranch manager had given me the green light on due to the buck’s age and his lack of antler development in acordance with the ranch’s management program.
Maintaning my patience and wating for the perfict shot on the buck was growing more difficult due to the number of does that had just came into heat. It was maddness; nine times out of 10 when a shooter buck would come in, he would be on a doe with his nose to the ground and in high gear. Anyone who has experanced this knows exactly what I’m talking about. It was extremely frustrating.
The 9-pointer had finally run him self ragged and stopped in front of my blind to catch his breath before resuming his chase. As I was drawing my Ketara XL, I climbed into my anchor, centred my 30-yard pin in my peep and began easing the pin onto him just behind the leg and up the crease a little. Then disaster happned. He snorted, bolted and left me there at full draw. He left me with nothing but dust and a head full of questions, as well as a few choice words!
It just didn’t add up. I had the wind, my draw was stealthly quiet, the camera was in position and the doe didn’t pick me off. What the heck went so wrong that fast? Then the mystery was solved as four javelinas appeared from the brush upwind of the buck. Anyone who has been around javelinas knows their most distingushing trait is the pungent stench they omit. In my experance, I’ve seen this go both ways with javelinas and whitetails; however, this was one of those times when it just didn’t go my way. The 9-pointer didn’t care for a whiff of javelina when he had a nose full of sweet doe.
My decision was swiftly made. One of the javelinas would have to pay the price for spooking the buck. My Katera XL was ready to unleash some rage. I picked the biggest one in the bunch and dealt the punishment. The shot was 25 yards and the recovery even less.
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