Right on Target

Eric Bennett, Engineering and Physics Teacher at Shadow Ridge High School, is no stranger to the world stage. The Paralympian has competed in the last four Paralympic Games in both recurve and compound archery competitions. He has fourteen years of international competition under his belt.

Bennett began shooting archery as a young child at the age of seven. His father was a bowhunter and taught him how to shoot and encouraged him to practice archery in the backyard. The end goal was to begin hunting with the family as he honed his skills as a boy. An injury derailed those plans and made him leave the sport at the age of fifteen when he lost his arm in a rollover accident.

Fast forward 10 years and Bennett revisited the sport with a method introduced by his Dad. “My Dad wanted me to start bow hunting with the family and I did not think it would be possible,” said Bennett. Bennett’s father encouraged him to get back into the sport when he saw a hunter shooting his bow with his feet. “It worked and I was able to shoot again and go with the family but I wanted to do it better than that.”

Eric looked for resources to perfect the shooting technique and discovered a local shop, Corner Archery. Rhonda Crabtree, the owner had been to several shows and met disabled archers and she herself had a daughter who was disabled. Rhonda shared resources with Bennett on how to begin the adaptive shooting method. “I knew I could do this with my feet but once I got started again, I asked myself, is there a better way?”

This was in the late 1990’s and the wealth of information on the internet was not readily available. Bennett tracked down a group called the Disabled Bow Hunters of America. The materials he found were limited to photocopies with content and VHS tapes from the group that had footage of disabled archers shooting bows with their feet and a new variation where the archers used a mouth tab. “I watched every minute of it and gleaned as much information as I could, ” said Bennett. He initially used a standard bow with a mouth tab attached to the string similar to those he viewed in the videos. Bennett, who studied Physical Science at Northern Arizona University, utilized his engineering and physics background to make modifications on his own and fabricate a mouth tab to suit his needs.

The custom-made mouth tab of his own design is constructed out of leather and sewn to the bowstring. In order to shoot, he had to bite down on the tab with his back teeth to pull back. Because he is using his mouth, he can’t pull back as far or with as much force compared to an athlete using both hands. “The resulting arrows are slower compared to most so I have to aim higher,” said Bennett. He also created a custom draw check or “clicker,” a device that clicks at full draw, since his arrows sit differently on the bow. “I’ve had to make modifications to what I do and invent ways to make my setup as competitive as possible.”

Bennett, equipped with his self-created gear, began shooting at state and local 3D bow hunting tournaments. His first big competition in the early years was the Bow Hunter Happening hosted in Northern Arizona with more than 1,000 archers. “It was quite prestigious to compete in and I did not win the first few times,” said Bennett. He persevered and continued competing in subsequent years. “It became an incredibly important goal for me and I won four years in a row,” shared Bennett.

He was not pursuing Olympic goals or the outdoor target discipline but that all changed in 2006 when he found out a Compound Bow class was being added to the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. “That has been my singular focus for the last 14 years,” said Bennett. He made his Paralympic debut in Beijing and earned an impressive ninth place. He placed in the top ten in the next two Paralympic games, and became the first American to compete in two different disciplines (Compound and Recurve) at two different Paralympic Games.

Eric Bennett on the practice field at the Tokyo Paralympics.

After the 2016 Rio Paralympic games, he almost left the sport altogether in 2017 and intended to retire. “The demands for training and competing and traveling are really high,” said Bennett. Bennett is a husband, a father to two children 15 and 12, and he wanted to focus on his family and his full time job as a teacher at ShadowRidge High School. But he missed the sport that brought him so much joy and knew he could still shoot at a high level. He made a deal with his wife, Rachel, who is a fellow educator. “I promised to minimize the impact on my family and basically do it for fun.”

He cut back on travel and training but was still able to make the team and participate in the 2019 World Archery Para Championships hosted in ’s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. Bennett received gold in a dramatic fashion with a last minute shot that clinched the 6-0 victory over Russia for him and his team. Bennett also received a silver medal in the Open Men’s Individual Recurve. With his victory at the World Championships, he qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.

His journey to Tokyo to compete in the 2020 Paralympic Games was delayed due to COVID-19 with the games beginning in August of 2021. The extra time was definitely a benefit to dedicate to train and improve his craft, but the postponement put extra pressure on him. “For some reason, it meant more.” Bennett has a large contingent of family and friends who followed him, encouraged, and supported him along the way. “I wanted to win for me, but I also wanted to win for them as well, and I didn’t want to let anyone down,” Bennett shared.

Bennett and the USA Pararchery team were a part of the 139 archers and nearly 4,400 athletes in total at the games. The archery events were hosted over the course of nine days at Yumenoshima Park. “The amount of effort the hosting city put into the venue is nothing short of outstanding. The colors, the signage, it is pretty spectacular to walk into the top notch venue,” said Bennett. “The atmosphere was tense but exciting. I always love the energy of competition days!”

Shadow Ridge High School Engineering teacher Eric Bennett aims his bow and arrow during the Individuals at the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo. (Photo courtesy of World Archery)

Bennett shot 72 arrows in the ranking round and 15 arrows in the elimination round to a nearly empty venue. “By far and away this was the biggest change. One of the coolest things about going to the Games is shooting in front of the crowd,” he explained. Normally the crowds at the Paralympic Games are near three to four thousand attendees in the stands. “I play to the crowd. I generally have the crowd in my favor. It plays to my strengths and gives me confidence, gives me an advantage.”

While he did not have fans in the stands, his loyal friends and family tuned into the livestream to watch him on the world’s stage. “One of the most important things to me is the support I received from my family, friends and work community,” Bennett said. The archery community rallied around him and fundraised for the equipment cost and to compete at the games. Michael Hawkins, Shadow Ridge High School Principal has been especially supportive. “He’s been my principal for the last three games, and he worked closely with me so I was able to find a good substitute and leave with confidence and know that my students were taken care of,” Bennett explained.

Bennett returned from the games this Fall and was celebrated by staff and students with a welcome sign as he entered the classroom. “Most of my older students were very excited and interested,” said Bennett. “I share my experiences in class to help educate and expose students to the world of disabled sports.” During unit one, which focuses on product development, his students develop prosthetic devices. “Additionally, I use some of the devices I created as examples of inventions and product testing,” he explained.

Eric Bennet poses for a photo during the Opening Ceremonies of the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. He will compete next at the World Championships in Dubai in 2022.

Bennett ended up finishing ninth in the 2020 Tokyo Games. “Although I finished ninth, if I could take back three arrows, I could change the entire outcome of the tournament,” said Bennett. As with any sport, it always comes down to that last minute final shot or a hail mary pass to clinch the win. Bennett faced soaring temperatures during the ranking round and rain in the elimination round. “The conditions were extreme,” said George Ryals IV, Bennett’s coach. “Eric is one of the longest standing, and most experienced members of the team. He leads by example and his work ethic and steady demeanor, even in intense competition, keeps the team on track,” shared Ryals. Bennett’s future goals include the World Championships in Dubai in 2022, the Czech Republic in 2023, as well as Para Pan Am Games in Chile in 2023 in order to make the team for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. “I’m going to approach Paris in the same way as Tokyo- continue training and shooting and doing it for fun and going to the tournaments I can go to,” Bennett said. “If I can still keep the same scores and be competitive, I’m going to keep going.” Going for gold.