As a woman, I started out a low, low draw weight. In fact, my trusty Parker Sidekick XP came with an adjustable draw weight of 30-40 lbs. Truthfully, once I started shooting regularly, I maxed out the 40 lb maximum pretty quickly. This is bound to happen to any ladies or youth bow as a newbie eases into the sport and builds those “bow drawing muscles” that you never knew you had.
Therefore, I had a problem…and Andy is always at the ready to find a solution to any problem (lucky for me, even my problems). When he purchased my bow several years back, one of the main selling points was that the bow had the “Grow Up With Parker” program.
In short, the “Grow Up With Parker” program is a program in which any original owner of a Parker Sidekick or Sidekick XP product could return the bow to have a different set of limbs replaced, thereby changing the draw weight. I think the title fits, if the bow is purchased for a youth or lady bow-hunter, then it is eligible for Parker to upgrade the draw weight and/or draw length for a minimal cost.
Here are the instructions for using the “Grow Up With Parker” program.
- Remove accessories (i.e. sights, quiver, arrow rest)
- Protect bow with good wrapping and packaging.
- Include new specifications desired (i.e. change to 50 lbs.)
- Call Parker at (540) 337-5426 for a Return Authorization (RA) number before you ship.
- Write RA number on outside of bow box
- Ship to: Parker Compound Bows, Inc., 3022 Lee Jackson Hwy, Staunton, VA 24401
The Good, The Bad, The Ugly…
First off, I cannot say enough about the quality of Parker Bows both in the sense of customer service and quality. Andy called Parker and received the instructions above and the much needed RA number. In fact, each bow comes with a sticker naming the Parker Bow Tech that built the bow. In the case of my bow, the Tech who built it was the customer service manager that Andy spoke with. Things always come full circle, even in the world of archery. The program also requires a $50 fee, which we did not think was a bad price at all. It is a lot nicer to pay $50 to upgrade my bow than the cost of a new bow altogether. Needless to say, it took about a week for my bow to be mailed to Parker, the techs at Parker to change my limbs and inspect my string, and for Parker to mail it back to me. That’s what I call service (admittedly, if I had waited another week or two, then they would have been swamped, luck of the draw for that fast turn-around).
That was the good; here was the bad and ugly. The bad was that Parker will ship it back to you, but you need to ship it to them first. It was around $35 for UPS to insure and ship my bow (and it only was going to Virginia…not China). Here is the ugly…ready for it…Ok, here it goes. I did not have the box that my bow was originally in. Andy purchased it from a dealer; therefore the bow was on display, which equals no box. In order for UPS to put my
bow in a box with packing peanuts, it was $35. Yep, that’s right, it cost $70 total to ship my bow. Ouch!
The “Grow Up With Parker” Program currently!
Parker still honored the program on my Sidekick XP, because it was a program that existed at the time of purchase. Since then, Parker only offers the “Grow Up With Parker” program applicable on the Buck Shot Bow Series. This is due to the fact that the new Parker Sidekick Extreme is adjustable from 40lbs to 60lbs. For more information on the “Grow Up With Parker” program click here http://www.parkerbows.com/growup.html.
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