The Gorilla Bow Story

Gorilla Bow founders Chris and Tom—both executives in a previous life—met because their kids attended the same school, but quickly bonded over their athletic backgrounds and shared love of archery. Entrepreneurial by nature, they were also keenly aware of the physical and psychological benefits of this ancient sport. This knowledge, and a groundswell of renewed interest thanks to the Hunger Games movies provided the initial spark for Gorilla Bow. 

With his background in technology, Chris’ hands-on experimentation in the early stages proved critical. Based on his knowledge of NFL training camps, Chris imagined combining the ergonomic design of a bow with the ability to change resistance. Before the idea was fully conceived, he imagined using a dial to adjust resistance, similar to a seatbelt from a car. The Alpha version of the Gorilla Bow—crafted in a garage with fiberglass, pool noodles and wood—actually did use a seatbelt.

The goal from the outset was to add something new to the field of personal fitness, not take something that already existed and give it a different spin. Chris liked resistance bands in theory, but never got excited about using them. The Beta version of the Gorilla Bow featured aluminum tubing and strategic welds. It could hold a lot of weight, and it worked. There were more hurdles to overcome, but progress was being made. 

May 2017, the small Gorilla Bow team launched a Kickstarter campaign to see if others saw what they saw in the Gorilla Bow—and the response was overwhelming. After a year of R&D, and over eight iterations, the production model was ready to ship! By June manufacturing had begun, and by July—the super early birds had received their Gorilla Bows, four Gorilla Bands, and access to online workouts.

The jury was still out but based on the initial response from customers—Chris and Tom knew they were onto something that was really helping people get fit. The ability to dial in resistance (from 10 to 810 lbs.) meant Gorilla Bow could be truly be a portable gym for all ages and, because it’s so light and takes up so little room, could be used almost anywhere. In fact, Chris’ 8-year-old daughter, 10-year-old son and 102-year-old father-in-law were some of the first to use the Gorilla Bow. 

Today the Gorilla Bow is crafted from aircraft-grade T6 aluminum and can hold up to 300lbs. in resistance. Unlike traditional free weights the Gorilla Bands deliver smooth, fluid movement that reduces stress on joints, lowers the risk of injury, improves balance and encourages better form.

Athletic coaches have long praised resistance training because it helps with speed and acceleration. They were some of the first to incorporate the Gorilla Bow in their training. Chiropractors and Physical Therapists also began using the bow with patients because of how the Gorilla Bow reduces stress on joints during workouts. Elevate Gym was also an early adopter and created a dedicated Gorilla Bow section; and the owners of BullFrog Fit started incorporating the bows into mobile boot camps. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. “Gorilla Bow delivers a hardcore workout and doesn’t take up space.”

We want to bring strength, stamina and joy to the lives of all of our customers. We try to do this by providing a fitness platform that’s safe to use, delivers total-body fitness, accessible to anyone and usable anywhere. Let us know how we’re doing, or if you have questions, please email us at support@gorillabow.com.