Pulling strings

Rick Rugroden, owner of R-Strings and Cables in Waseca and coach at Waseca Archery Club, grew up in New Richland, spending most of his life there before moving to Waseca around 1984. He’s married, with kids and grandkids, all of whom are proudly featured in pictures displayed above the counter in his shop. He went to New Richland High School, back when the school mascot was the Cardinals. After graduating, he attended Albert Lea VoTech. Rugroden started his working life at Design Homes, then Ramsey Plaster and Stucco before operating his own drywall business for 32 years. After about 20 years of being a side business from home, R-Strings and Cables opened with its own storefront in February of 2020. Just weeks later, March came calling with its now-infamous shutdowns. Orders for custom strings from string dealers in other states kept Rugroden’s new shop afloat during that time, and he’s grateful for it.

Rugroden’s interest in archery started as a child. “Dad always shot, and he had a target in our back yard when we were at home. He would stand back in the lilac bushes, and we would have to be at the backside of the house and listen to the arrows fly by. When he was done he’d tell us and we’d run to see how he did.” Rugroden got started shooting for himself at the age of twelve, using a recurve bow to shoot carp with his dad. They’d go to Mud Lake in New Richland, float in a duck boat or wear chest waders, and bow-fish. After graduating high school, however, there was a ten-year period when Rugroden didn’t pick up a bow. He was busy with young adulthood – making ends meet, getting married, and establishing himself in the community. When his son was five, Rugroden’s dad again drew him into the archery world and he shot a compound bow for the first time.

Later, Rugroden worked as the staff shooter representing Owatonna Archery Outfitters; it was in this role that he first shot competitively. Each weekend he and a carload of Wasecans would go to a 3D Shoot. The entry fee was only $5 at the time, and Rugroden would do as many as three in a weekend representing his employers. He says that’s where he learned “just how good people are” in the archery world. At his first 3D Shoot, Rugroden took all six of the arrows he owned, and felt he did well because he didn’t lose any. He remembers his score was 168 out of a possible 300, and was astounded to learn that the top score at the shoot was 298. Bruce Barrie, of Rocky Mountain Broadheads, was someone Rugroden considered a friend and he recalls asking him how people shot like that. “You need to shoot what they’re shooting,” he remembers Barrie telling him.

It was during his time doing 3Ds as a staff shooter that Rugroden learned to make bowstrings. The premade string material on bows at the time was, Rugroden says, “garbage.” Rugroden was getting his strings from a shop in Mankato and had to make the trip there prior to every tournament. Finally, the people around him convinced him to learn to do it himself.

“Do what they do,” Rugroden says, is some of the best advice he’s ever gotten. Quality equipment makes a huge difference in accuracy and consistency. High-level competitive archers combine their good equipment with many hours of practice. This was advice Rugroden clearly took to heart – he currently holds three Minnesota state records. At last year’s Indoor USA Nationals, he placed third in the nation – the best he’s ever shot at that level.

Recently, Rugroden shot at the Senior Games in Albuquerque, New Mexico where he placed fourth nationally in his age and category. The last event he attended was a qualifier for next year’s nationals and he won the Seniors. It’s the first year Rugroden has shot in the 60-64 category and he talks highly of the experience. “You get with a bunch of seniors, and most of them are retired. They don’t care about money. They don’t have a care in the world. They’re just having a blast, it’s so much fun.” Scheduling for his indoor season this fall and winter is on hold until the Waseca Archery Club has its October meeting, where President Stacy Thompson will determine the league dates and other details for the Junior Olympic Archery Development (JOAD) program.

Much of Rugroden’s current involvement in the archery community is through the Waseca Archery Club, the JOAD program, and coaching. He fell into teaching archery somewhat by accident – upon learning how much better he could be doing, he started paying a lot of money to go to weekend seminars taught by archery professionals. He remembers a clinic put on in Waseca by Alexander Kirillov, Olympic coach for the former Soviet Union, the United States, and Venezuela as particularly interesting. He bought instructional videos, and worked to incorporate everything he learned into his own practice until he’d developed the conscious and subconscious techniques that allow him to shoot at a top-three level. Once he started performing this way, people started asking him how he did it – just as he had previously asked others. It startled him, he said. He shared with people, over time, the mindset of constant change and development that he’s accepted. He declares that coaching isn’t a “job” for him, he just likes to help people get started on the right foot.

Youth classes at the Waseca Archery Club started twenty-five years ago through Community Education. Enrollment was initially free for a four-week class, with equipment provided. “We had more kids than we knew what to do with,” Rugroden remembers. At the end of the course, participants had to decide whether they wanted to buy their own equipment and join the club or if they were finished. This pattern continued for several years until a parent asked for more classes – her son was interested, but not to the point yet where she could buy him the gear and set him loose. So, the club started a class running from January to November with the goal of preparing youth to shoot at the Minnesota State Archery Association. In this class they practiced the nuances of shooting and competing, etiquette, and scorekeeping, then took part at the MSAA State Championship with up to 1,000 competitors. In the beginning, registration for this second course was only $20, but equipment costs necessitated an increase. According to Rugroden, several state champions have come out of this class. Zoie Thompson, a youth archer from Waseca who holds state and national records and is aiming to compete internationally next year, joined when she was young. She won a high score trophy among the youth at the club, and Rugroden says right then he could see “a real fire” in her.

Today, the Waseca Archery Club hosts classes through the JOAD program – typically offering  one for beginners and one for advanced students. This year Chad Miexner, who has been leading JOAD classes in Medford, will be joining Rugroden and the others involved in Waseca’s program. Rugroden observes that a major goal for these young archers is to get them used to shooting in the appropriate style, working on mental imaging and positive workflow. It can be difficult, because learners can be carrying a lot of mental baggage at the end of a day – Rugroden, like every coach, hopes his students can leave that behind at the door, but sometimes they can’t. He doesn’t hold it against them – they’re young. One thing he likes to do to help them is write a quote on the chalkboard for them to see that represents the appropriate mindset. One of his favorites, by an unknown author, “Don’t complain about the things that you didn’t accomplish because of the work you wouldn’t do.”

At R-Strings and Cables, Rugroden sells bows, arrows, and other archery equipment, but spends the bulk of his time winding custom bowstrings. Doors open at 1:30 each day, but Rugroden can be found there as early as 7 a.m. working on custom orders. From August to December, first because of hunting season and then for gift-giving, is Rugroden’s busiest time of year. Each day is different, he says, and people come in with problems, questions, or just stories. “I really enjoy getting photos from people who’ve bought something from me and seeing their success with the things they got, whether it be a string, arrows I made them, or a whole new outfit –the bow, everything.”

To get custom strings, customers typically leave their bows at the shop for a few days.. Rugroden asks them about the colors they want – and they’re often surprised by how many options they have, so he spends time showing them how different combinations can look. After winding and stretching the string, Rugroden sets it in the bow before calling the customer back – then, while they’re in the shop, he works with them to test and fine-tune everything, ensuring proper draw length and weight. He says bows are typically range-ready when they leave the shop. He often gives mini-lessons to those who buy from him while he tunes the equipment – helping them learn how to better use their release, anchor their shots, and other details. He does it naturally, but also because for many people archery coaching isn’t realistic – or they don’t know it’s an option.

Asked about arrows, Rugroden says, “There’s way more to it than people really think.” To fit customers with proper arrows, he needs to know their draw lengths and the poundage they shoot at, and the type of shooting they’re doing. He takes all of this into consideration and gives them options. There are three quality tiers for arrow shafts – 001, 003, and 006, with 001 being the straightest and thus the highest quality. Sometimes for children and others with short draw lengths, Rugroden says he can use an 006 and cut off most of the bend, improving the shot considerably. For those getting full-length arrows, however, Rugroden always recommends the higher tiers. It’s about quality – an 006 arrow at its full length won’t consistently fly straight and allow for proper aim. Rugroden buys Victory arrow shafts, cuts them to custom length, and does the fletching himself in the shop, which allows customers to choose personalized colors so they can easily identify their own arrows when shooting in a group. Rugroden also repairs fletching when arrows are inevitably damaged. He can get any brand people want, he says, but people tend to be pleased with the Victory arrows he stocks.

Going forward, Rugroden says his goal is to keep making enough money to keep the shop open. He doesn’t want to have to go back to drywall or another job, he says, because “this is too much fun.” He wants to keep adding new stock to stay ahead of the curve. “I want this to be a place where people can come and know they’re gonna get good service. To me that’s the main thing. I try to go above and beyond what people would expect when they walk into an archery shop.”