Photo by Troy Huffman.

If someone would have been filming a movie at the time, they could have named it "High Noon."

Marty Stubstad had been sitting in a tree stand since dawn, watching the antics of several whitetails. But when the morning "rush hour" was over, Stubstad -- unlike most deer hunters -- refused to give up and head to camp. With all his necessary gear with him in his stand, the bowhunter stayed put, determined to take advantage of every moment of hunting time available.

"It was a wet, snowy morning the first week of November, and I knew the rut activity would be good," Stubstad recalled. "But it had slowed during midday, and I wasn't looking around as much. Suddenly a doe just appeared in front of me. She had slipped through the snow and never made a sound. I knew she was moving for a reason, so I started looking around, and pretty soon I spotted this big buck coming in right behind her."

It would have been easy for Stubstad to be pinned down in such a situation had he been unprepared. But the veteran bowhunter wore a sling that kept his bow at waist level. With an arrow nocked, all he had to do was slide his hand on the grip and prepare for the shot. When the big buck's head was behind a tree, Stubstad raised and drew the bow.

"I suppose I was at full draw for close to half a minute," he said. "I remember thinking, C'mon deer, just take a step and I can shoot. They almost never do that when you need them to! But for some reason, the buck took that step, and I had a perfect 15-yard shot. The buck crashed off and I heard him go down seconds later. When I looked at my watch, it said 12:22."

The fact that Stubstad was in his stand while most folks would be back in the shack says volumes about his approach to hunting. His expertise showed when he used the right equipment to turn a difficult situation into a skillful kill. Indeed, when Stubstad tagged the trophy 9-pointer, he illustrated that a veteran's commitment to hunting hard and smart -- as well as using modern archery gear effectively -- can pay huge dividends.

But those who know Marty Stubstad would agree that such success is no surprise. Owner of the highly successful Archery Headquarters in Rochester, Stubstad has made it his life's work to educate himself about proper bowhunting gear, techniques and practices. Even better, he has been a positive force for encouraging other people by introducing them to the sport, setting them up with quality equipment and educating them about the joys of archery.

Interestingly, Stubstad did not set out to be a pro-shop owner.

"I was a special education teacher for 13 years in the Rochester Public Schools," he said. "I opened Archery Headquarters in 1977 and ran it part-time as I taught. But in 1989, I decided to retire from teaching and go full-time with the shop. Since then, there is not a day I don't look forward to opening the doors."

The natural assumption, of course, is that the owner of an archery shop has a dream job, with oodles of time to indulge in hunting at will throughout the fall. While recent seasons have allowed Stubstad to hunt with more regularity, the reality of being a retailer means his store needs to be open to service the hundreds of customers relying on Archery Headquarters for their bowhunting needs. Though Stubstad enjoys some quality hunting close to home, those local outings are a mixed blessing.

"I'm so busy in the fall that I have trouble enjoying my tree stand time around here," he said with a laugh. "I'm always thinking of all the things I need to do at the shop. It's almost better for me to travel somewhere and hunt. Then I can totally relax and enjoy myself."

Still, Stubstad hunts enough in the deer-rich areas near Rochester to stay plugged in to the pulse of bowhunting in the region, and he feels that Minnesota archers have much to be thankful for.

"I saw more bucks (last) fall than ever," he said. "I think people are starting to ease the pressure on bucks in Minnesota, and that's going to make better hunting for everyone. Learning which bucks should be harvested and which need time to grow is an education process, and I think hunters are learning. Plus, bowhunters are lucky in that we have a long season to enjoy. In many ways, I think we have the best opportunities to take a nice buck."

Stubstad said the first few weeks after the September opener present a great window of opportunity.

"If a guy has a good spot and the time to observe and pattern a buck, the early season is one of the best times to shoot a trophy," he said. "But hunters really need to pay attention to their setup and wind direction. You always hear, 'The first time you sit on a stand is the best chance to shoot a deer,' and I believe it. I think if you could interview a lot of those guys in the record books, you would find they shot their big deer the first time they were in a particular stand."

Archery Headquarters is a Department of Natural Resources registration station, so Stubstad knows firsthand when hunters bring in the most, and the nicest, whitetails.