WOMAN in the OUT of DOORS
Kathryn Troubridge and her husband Bill own the Excalibur Crossbow Company. When I first tried to arrange an interview, Kath was “off to Wyoming for a pronghorn hunt.” The next time it was to La Belle Province for Moose.
“You should have married her,” commented The Resident Wife.
“How was Wyoming?”
“Great. It was all open land and we had to walk and stalk our game. We used a decoy but they would only come within 40 yards. We prefer 20 to 30.”
“How do you know where to go?”
“We research outfitters, check recommendations plus we shoot some scenes for the Hunting Across America show seen on the Outdoor Channel.”
The three-day moose hunt was in Matane Park near the New Brunswick border. The Province of Quebec organizes the hunt. Participation is based upon a draw. “It was very challenging as we had to learn the lay of the land. We saw 42 moose- calves, cows and bulls. I shot a thousand pound cow at 20 yards.”
“Have you ever frozen so you could not shoot?”
“Bill and I were in Africa hunting an antelope type duiker. A trophy would weigh 40 pounds. I just couldn’t shoot. When Bill asked me why I could only explain that it was the colour of my dog. I don’t have any trouble with the larger animals.”
“Where else have you hunted?”
“Australia, Mexico, across both Canada and the United States.”
In fact Kath had just returned from a javelina hunt in Mexico. “While at the border a fellow came over and asked me if I was the Crossbow lady from the hunting shows? You never know.”
“I hunt ground hogs with a rifle. It’s usually a prerequisite where the farmers give me permission to hunt their lands. We hunt pheasant with shotgun. My dog loves that. And turkeys with both shotgun and crossbow.”
“The crossbow is perfect for women who don’t always have the upper body strength for a compound. Compounds also require more practice time. And crossbows have a cocking aid. On those cold days you can also bundle up like the Pillsbury Doughboy to keep warm. I find it hard to climb a tree stand and so prefer a ground blind with my back to a tree and my feet dug in front for support.”
“My husband Bill is my mentor. We met when we were 20-21. He did the pop can thing of throwing it in the air and I hit it shooting a BB gun. When I did that more than once he thought, ‘she’s a keeper.’”
When we lived in Fort Nelson, B.C., Bill borrowed a crossbow which broke. A machinist by trade Bill repaired it. This led him to designing his own trigger in 1982. “When we returned to Ontario Bill patented the trigger and we started Excalibur in 1983.”
A local outdoors store liked the looks of Troubridge’s crossbow and said that it was better than any on the market. “You make them and I’ll sell them.”
Kath worked at odd jobs, looked after the financing, and helped make the stocks. The hunting trips were, and are, both business and pleasure. Kath likes to hunt white tails on her own at home and she can “cook almost anything. Bill’s job is to gut it and mine is to cook it. It works out well.”
Kath also likes to fish whether it be for sailfish in Costa Rica or perch at home. “We have a pond with brown and rainbow trout. They are most flavourable when taken through the ice.”
No matter how busy she is Troubridge likes to make time for the out of doors. It’s a time for reflection, for relaxation.
“I can’t get enough; it’s so peaceful.” And, to spread the wealth, Kath also has a ladies group with whom she shares her experiences. “We have also been mentoring some of the Mennonite boys and now we are losing some of our local hunting spots. But that’s ok. It’s all part of the mentoring experience.”
The Troubridges are heading for Nunavut, Canada’s newest territory, in August for a caribou hunt. Like I said business and pleasure. And, for the record, Kath finally took her first turkey with a crossbow this season past.
Note: My wife and I met Kath and Bill at an Outdoor Writer’s conference. My wife was really shy about shooting a crossbow. Kath saw this and spent the time and patience mentoring her. So well, in fact, that she outscored me on the targets. Just like she did when first learning to shoot clay pigeons. It’s a good thing for wildlife that The Resident Wife doesn’t favour hunting.
SOLD!
Excalibur cross bows has been purchased by BOWTECH, Kath Troubridge has confirmed. Kath and husband Bill designed and built the Excalibur brand when Bill tired of repairing borrowed bows. While Kath waited tables, kept the books and did anything to keep them afloat, Bill built and marketed Excalibur. Literally they started with nothing.
“Bowtech is a vertical compound bow company and we feel that this is a win win partnership for Excalibur so we can then offer vertical bows and crossbows to our customers,” said Troubridge. “We were ready to retire and wanted to see the company continue.”
Excalibur will continue to be manufactured in Kitchener with Bill and Kath continuing to oversee new products. Nothing is supposed to change.
I mentioned that a friend loved his Excalibur Phoenix and Kath recommended a look at their new Matrix series.
Of note, the Horton Crossbow company went bankrupt and 10 Point purchased some of its assets in July 2013.
And finally….Broken pencils are really pointless.