A chance encounter with a rattlesnake led noted archer Byron Ferguson to a life on the road. Ferguson, who hails from north Alabama, will be one of the featured programs at this weekend’s National Hunting and Fishing Day Celebration activities at Stonewall Jackson Lake State Park.
Ferguson says he’s always been a bowman and while walking with a friend in South Alabama several years ago, a rattlesnake crawled across their path. The friend, who was terrified of snakes, ran for the hills, but Ferguson stepped in like Robin Hood to save the day.
"I pulled a blunt arrow from my quiver and shot the snake in the head,” said Ferguson. "Jimmy was just sure I’d saved his life and after seeing that wanted me to come down to his archery jamboree."
Ferguson finally relented and put on his first exhibition at the event as a favor to his friend. A man in the crowd caught the act and passed along the information to an archery retailer in Wisconsin. The Wisconsin firm called Ferguson and made him an offer to attend their upcoming exhibition–all expenses paid.
"I said, ‘You want to pay me to come shoot the bow? Man, I’m there!’" laughs Ferguson.
Since that time, he’s travelled the country putting on shooting demonstrations that defy belief. Candle lit rooms will go dark as Ferguson delivers an arrow to extinguish the only source of light. He’s also renowned for putting his arrows through the Ace of Spades when a playing car is tossed into the air. However, don’t make the mistake of calling him a "trick shooter."
"Trick seems to imply that I’m doing something I’m not really doing," said Ferguson. "We prefer the term ‘exhibition shooting’ because that’s exactly what I’m doing. All of my shots are geared around hunting situations because I am first and foremost a hunter."
Ferguson makes that clear to any and all desiring of his services. He books no shows after the archery-hunting season for deer opens.
It will be his second appearance at the West Virginia event.