I missed one doe this past season. The good thing is that I know what happened and why I missed. As far as practice...yes I practice just as much as everyone else. But like it's been stated before, confidence is where it's at. I practice out to 40 yards but will I take a shot at a live deer at 40? I don't know, I haven't been given that opportunity. But rest assured, I'll be ready if the time comes. The main reason I practice at 40 is to make me more comfortable at 30. Practicing consistently at 30-40 yards will make 15-20 fell like a chip shot I can do in my sleep. Confidence in myself and my equipment. Bottom line.
I agree 100% but shoot year round but confidence is soooooo important with out that your screwed. I have killed over 90 deer with bow and I have lost only 6 with last one being over 10 yaers ago and a complete miss I would be guessing to when that has happened but it has been a long time ago.Not trying to sound cocky but when I draw my bow all I see is a dead deer nothing else, I feel you need this.. Walt
I practice, or just began last season, shooting from my climber. We mark off 5-50 yds. and practice for the situation. Whether behind us or just behind that stikin' low limb. It did pay off in January when I had a doe slightly angled at 25ish yds, with a slight quartering away and a limb that was covering up her back side. I made a good shot and she ran no more than 30yds. Thinking back to that moment, I got pumped! I think I would give up bowhunting whitetails if I ever lost that feeling. I don't think you can ever prepare yourself enough. In essence...that's what we live for!
I agree... confidence is everything if you have done your practicing. After shooting under a buck last year by misjudging the distance... my confidence took a big hit. It cost me a doe later on. Should have been a slam dunk shot and I botched it. I was hunting on the ground. She was standing behind a low hanging branch broadside at around 20 yards. She caught me on the draw but wasn't on high alert... more curious then anything. I waited until her vitals cleared the branches and took the shot. As much as I wanted to blame hitting one... I remember telling myself don't miss instead of the usual... your dead... when I released. I think I panic on the shot as it just didn't feel right. I pushed the shot when I should have just let down. She ran well over a hundred yards before we found any blood. Dark red and just a drop every once and a while in the snow. Must likely a muscle hit. We never found her. I walk the area this spring after the snow was gone. Tyler tromp the area for sheds also and I told him to keep an eye out for any remains of a dead doe. It was still bugging me. He didn't find anything. I hope she made it. Tim
The only reason I practice is to get my bow muscles in shape. If you have your bow sighted in the year before and it has not been bumbed or nothing has not come loose that bow should be right on [ compound or crossbow] so every body who shoots all the time doe's it because they enjoy it not because they have to, to be accurate.I have missed before, I have lost a deer before, is it because I didn't practice enough? No I screwed up it happens, I'm human and so are you and everybody else. The longest shot I have took 32yrds dead buck the shortest shot 15yrds dead doe 22yrds lost doe It happens.
I'm with you on this one. I've lost one deer in 20 years of hunting. The one I lost was more of me being an idiot on the recovery when I was young and stupid (took up the trail too soon, jumped him to the next county). Still pisses me off to this day because I should have 0 lost. But... lesson learned. Hasn't and will never happen again. I attribute it to the type of practice and shot selection. I'm a firm believer in practicing real life (hunting) situations. It drives me nuts watching people wearing flip flops, shorts and tee shirt standing in their backyard drinking a pepsi and flinging arrows at a target standing on the ground I practice as many different hunting situations as possible without having a live deer to practice on. Practice in the woods and mix it up!! Practice with the sun in your face, sun at your back, wind in your face, wind blowing across you, in your hunting clothes, every yardage out to your maximum range, quartering away, broadside, quartering to (if you choose this shot), practice tired, low light, drizzle, rain (if you hunt in rain), different elevations, practice getting up from stand and moving to your right, left, behind, to position for a shot, open field edge shots, between 2 tree shots etc....... The more you can feed your brain for hunting situations the better prepared you will be for the moment of truth. Your brain can't transfer standing in your open backyard to being 20 feet in a tree in the woods. Yeah so I'm a little anal when it comes to the practice thing :d It probably comes from golf (which is very similar to bowhunting believe it or not). Same practice concept. I dont sit there and hit ball after ball after ball and continue to roll one over after the other. I go through my pre shot routine with every practice ball I hit just like I would playing a round of golf. Same with putting. It kills me watching people smack putt after putt from the same spot without even looking at the break. It's not doing anything for you when you play. I hit every practice putt and give it the same attention as if it was the last hole of the US Open and I needed it to win. I can't stress enough that if you train your brain for real situations you are so much more ahead of the game for when those situations arise.
One of things I do is visualize the shots while in the tree stand. I do this with every possible shot I could have in that stand. When an opportunity to shoot at an animal comes I have already made that shot a 100 times. This also helps me past the time in a stand when times are slow.
I disagree 100%... Until you've actually practice like that, you can't understand. There is a reason that Tiger doesn't set the sticks down in November and pick them up again in February in Hawaii. There is a reason that Peyton Manning doesn't go from January to August without throwing a football. It's no different. And if "good enough" is what you're after... how much do you really respect the animal you're shooting at?
Opps my post combined with Dubbya some how..Walt Dubbya is 100% correct about this being in law enforecment you will always fall back on your training in stressfull situations and bowhunting is the same. When the deer is walking in and your nerves and stress go all to h#ll you go into what I call robot mode and at times you don't even remember the actual shot.. That is why you practice all year long.. Walt
I think it varies from person to person. With modern compounds there are guys who don't need to shoot year round to maintain a level of proficiency and make the shot when it counts. And there are guys who can practice all they want and still fall to pieces and blow a shot on a live animal.
I agree Rybo. The question is "what level of proficiency is good enough?"... If hitting a grapefruit at 40 yards was the level of proficiency that I was looking for, then you're right shooting all year wouldn't be necessary. But if I want to shoot golf balls at 50 and quarters at 40 that'll take a lot more work to maintain. And if I do that, my margin of error at 40 is significantly smaller than if I do not... No offense meant here.
None taken. I guess much of my view stems from having 98% of my shots at deer 20 yds & under, many under 15 yds. If a guy needs all year to maintain that level... But if your definition of proficiency means being very precise at far distances, then yea that's going to take more practice.
I believe experience is key,what Jeff has said is a big part of that.Putting animals on the ground helps to build that base of experience. Although I have never lost an animal,I have made a couple of should of lost hits,that I got lucky on,I have also missed completely a couple of times.Those experiences have gotten me so disgusted with myself and have contributed to the mind set I now have when I am about to shoot.In my mind I am repeating "you owe it to the animal" meaning to take a very high percentage shot and to be calm enough to get it done.
I practice daily during the season, But im only human, and stuff like this happens: Wounded buck Thats just hunting. Live and learn.
I am to the point where I just want to kill the deer I shoot at. It isn't that had to be effective if you are shooting withing your range. I havn't shot my bow in a few months, but I bet I could easily go out and hit a 2" circle at 50 yards. I enjoy shooting my bow, don't get me wrong, but its not something that demands daily practice to master. As far as shooting a deer goes, when I started out I was "hoping" to hit the deer, now that thought never crosses my mind. If I draw back on a deer it's because I know for a fact that I am going to kill that deer! I have lost two deer in my hunting career and I don't plan on letting that happen again.... it really isn't that hard! If I keep my wits about me, I will pick the right time to draw and release my arrow, its all about resisting the urge to push my luck. This past season I had a very nice buck come in, but I never even drew my bow back when he was at 30 yards because I knew he wasn't going to give me the shot that I am willing to take!
