She Hunts Too!

    Editor’s Note- We continue our series this week about women who enjoy the thrill of the hunt. This week we chatted with a woman who has just started to develop a love of hunting, Becky Allen. 
    Becky Allen, who lives near Fort Sisseton, might be a novice hunter, but she grew up surrounded by the hobby. Her family has several hunters. Then when she started dating her husband Ethan 14 years ago, the young couple enjoyed shooting archery for romantic date nights. 
    Allen figures that it was only a matter of time before she picked up hunting herself. Consequently, she decided to give it a try during this fall’s archery season. Allen admits that her bow was literally falling apart from a lack of consistent use. With the help of her father-in-law, Herb, and her husband, they helped her sight in her bow and get her ready.
    “They both gave me a crash course with tips and tricks, and then they sent me out to the tree stand,” explained Allen. Over the last month and a half, the new hunter said she struck out on her first two times in the stand. Then, on the third outing, her luck changed. 
    “A doe and a little basket rack buck came by me,” Allen said. She tried to get adjusted in the tree stand and admits she was a little concerned about falling out of the tree. The anticipation built. “I kept hearing some rustling,” she noted.  “Finally, I caught a glimpse of a white horn on a big buck, and my heartrate shot up. I told myself to breathe!”
 “He rubbed the bush for a while, but as soon as he started moving, I drew back and waited. I thought, ‘What do I have to lose?’” Allen knew her chance had presented itself. She let an arrow fly and dropped the big buck walking only about 15 yards from the stand.  “Then I stuck a second arrow in him because I didn’t want to have to track him down.”
    She laughs when she remembers calling her husband about her success and him asking if she fell out of the tree stand in her excitement. “In all seriousness, I was very proud of my first kill, and so was he,” Allen said. “I was also very thankful for Ethan and my father-in-law who came to help dress, load, and hang him, and for Grandma Lisa for watching the kids.” Filling the freezer the next day was a satisfying experience for Allen. 
    The huntress said she was happy she made time for hunting this season. She acknowledges that making time for hobbies for busy women and moms can be challenging. “My to-do list is a mile long like any typical mom,” she said. “It’s hard to carve out time to literally just sit and wait for a deer to walk by you without feeling guilty that the dishes are piled up and there’s laundry to fold.”
    Yet, she found the new hunting experience very enjoyable. “I loved peacefully sitting in a tree stand alone, watching the wildlife and being able to have mindless time to myself where I don’t have to be in ‘mom mode’ plus gaining the great feeling of accomplishment.”
    Allen looks forward to trying her hand again with her rifle tag in the upcoming month. She encourages other women, and interested folks in general, to give hunting a try. “Don’t let the fear or the ‘what ifs’ stop you from trying something,” she emphasized. “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take!”