Assuming you shoot a bow, have you ever had an arrow break in the process of shooting? Hopefully, no. Have you ever seen pictures on the internet of arrows sticking through the hand of an archer? You probably have and it’s pretty sickening.
I meet a fellow a few years ago who had a broadhead slip off his rest as he began his draw. He didn’t know what to do and let the bow down. As he did the broadhead sliced through the top of his hand. The cut was ugly. By the way, he could have avoided the injury if he had turned his bow upside down. It’s hard to think straight at times like that, so I didn’t fault him, but did feel sorry for his misfortune.
Although the odds are you won’t have either of these things happen to you, shooting accidents do happen every year to some unfortunate souls. I can’t imagine the pain and the permanent damage such injuries might cause. If that isn’t bad enough, you’d be out of commission and unable to shoot your bow for some time.
Fortunately, a company, Shooting Edge, decided they would do something to minimize the chances of these freakish accidents ruining your day. The invention is a glove aptly named the ProTx Hand Guard.
This comfortable glove can be the difference between a great day shooting your bow or ending up in the emergency room.
This isn’t any ordinary glove, the back of it is made of triple layered Kevlar. That’s the same stuff bullet proof vests are made of. I didn’t try to shoot a broadhead through the one I used because I plan on wearing it every time I shoot but I believe it would deflect any broken shafts and/or keep broadheads from penetrating your hand.
The glove fits snugly and is comfortable to wear. It didn’t impair my handling of the bow and I didn’t notice any negative effects on my shooting. Sizing is important, so be sure to use their sizing chart when you buy one. If you want to wear it over a glove during cold weather, consider that when ordering.
If there’s one problem with the ProTx Hand Guard, it’s that it is similar to seatbelts. You don’t need either of them because, of course, you’re never going to have an arrow break or be in an auto accident. But, like wearing a seatbelt, we all have decided to wear one because we know the chances of being involved in an auto accident is much higher than we would like to think. The same is true with shooting your bow. The more we shoot the higher the chances a shooting accident will happen. So, don’t tempt fate, buy a ProTx Hand Guard Glove and wear one every time you pull your bow back. It only takes one accident to ruin you day and your life. When that day happens, you’ll be glad you were protected by ProTx from Shooting Edge.
For more please go to: Shooting Edge.
For more please go to: Roy K. Keefer
Thanks for the tip, Roy! It was hard for this Scotsman to part with the princely sum of $43, but a Kevlar glove is cheap insurance against a catastrophic arrow failure.
Re. the Thermacell, I bought one when I moved to Pinedale WY (7,300′) four years ago. Only later did I learn that it doesn’t work over 4,000′. I’ve heard that the newer models work at a higher altitude, but I haven’t confirmed. It might be good to amend the article to discuss the subject of altitude.
Hope life’s treating you well. – Bruce