By Zech Sindt
We are currently in the middle of bowhunting season, and there’s no better place in Southern Minnesota or Northern Iowa to buy supplies or gain knowledge of archery, deer hunting and deer conservation than Anthem Archery at 1665 Prosperity Road in Decorah, Iowa.
Anthem Archery is owned by local business owners Curt Headington and Chris Van Gerpen. The store is managed by Andrew Nielsen. Nielsen grew up about eight miles west of Rochester in Byron. He moved to Decorah with his wife and children in 2020 to take over the management position at Anthem.
Nielsen says he’s been fascinated by bowhunting for as long as he can remember. His family has owned land just north of the Minnesota/Iowa border where they’ve always bowhunted. To him, working with archery isn’t a job. He opined, “To do this, because it’s my passion, it’s not really a job that I go to here. I have fun every day. I get to meet so many great people. Everyone that works here, all of my customers, everyone’s fun to be around.”
Anthem Archery is a local archery pro shop with a 20-yard indoor range where they stock targets, bows, crossbows and other deer-hunting and archery supplies. They also give lessons. Right next door to them is a local bow manufacturer, Xpedition.
Nielsen says their main customers are local deer hunters. “Almost everyone that comes in here is passionate about deer-hunting, but we do get a few guys who just do target archery,” he said.
Because they serve such a wide variety of bowhunting technology, they have become a go-to shop for younger folks who are starting to get into competitive youth archery, and for people who are trying to pick up the sport from other family members who did it before them, such as a father or grandfather. He’s also seen a lot of women become interested in the sport. “I’ve seen an uptick in women lately. We get whole families in here, and kids love it. Kids start shooting, so all of the sudden the parents are getting back into it, too. It’s very family-oriented,” he said.
Last year, Minnesota passed a new ruling that legalized the use of crossbows for Minnesota deer and spring turkey hunters. The new laws brought some criticism because many bowhunters believe crossbows are not legitimate archery equipment. Prior to the ruling, crossbows were limited to hunters with a special permit, people who were age 60 or older, or for use during firearms seasons for deer and turkey, but the ruling opened up a whole new class of people who became interested in archery. Nielsen says this is because crossbows don’t take nearly as much effort to learn. “People who don’t have the arm strength, or who have bad shoulders, almost anyone can learn to shoot a crossbow,” he said.
Anthem carries TenPoint and Mission crossbows. They also carry Hoyt, Matthews, Elite, and Darten bows and other archery equipment. Their Xpedition line of archery equipment, made by their next door neighbor, can customize a bow to match and fit any person. In addition to archery equipment, they also sell ground blinds, box blinds, camouflage, food plot seeds, cameras, tree stands, and minerals, or as Nielsen put it, “anything related to deer hunting.” They are also a full-service shop that can do repairs on most equipment.
Nielsen says there is excitement building about a new archery range that is being built in Decorah on the north end of Will Baker Park. He’s been working with Decorah Parks and Rec to get it up and running. “There will be a grand opening in the spring, but we may have it done soon enough to have a soft opening yet this fall,” he said. The new range will be open to the public. There will be multiple stands available, and will vary from 10-yard to 80-yard ranges.
This year, Iowa bowhunting is a split season. The early split started on October 1 and ends on December 6. The late split begins on December 23 and runs until January 10 next year. Minnesota bowhunting season started on September 14 and runs straight through until December 3.
Nielsen says if you need anything bowhunting related, stop in. “We have four part-time guys who are all avid bowhunters. We all love archery and shop talk. We like to hear and share hunting stories. It’s really a fun atmosphere around here.”
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