Buck Hollow Sporting Goods - click or touch to visit their website Midwest Habitat Company

Victim of the fever

BigBassLJP

BigBassLJP

New Member
There I was 18 yards from the biggest buck Ive ever seen in a stand and my first archery deer. I'm guessing 150 class or pretty close. I pulled back, lined up my sites and let her fly. Right over the top. clean miss:mad:. I couldnt believe it. Guess I can mark it down as a learning experience but I couldnt sleep last night thinking of what I did wrong. I assumed I bumped my site so I decided to shoot my 3D target when I got home. Perfect shot at 20yrds. Im sure I'm not the only one and sure it wont be my last time. :(:(
 
Sorry to hear that. Anyone who has bow hunted can feel your pain. I recommend you practice shooting your bow from an elevated position, even if it is just from a deck or garage roof. A shot under 20 yds from a tree stand many times will hit high compared to a 20 yd shot on the ground. Deer also tend to duck at the sound of the shot so aiming for the lower part of the vital zone can help keep your arrow in the goody! Keep your chin up and say you can, as confidence is your friend at crunch time! :way:
 
It happens to everyone eventually. Can you remember exactly where your pin was and watching it settle on the animal? Do you remember squeezing the trigger on your release?

Point is...... Talk yourself through every shot no matter if its a buck or a doe. Practice your form and repeat it over and over 100's if not 1000's of times when practicing and it will become embedded in your muscle memory.

Most people get rushed and lose focus of every thing they have practiced and learned. Big bucks have a tendency to do that to people :D

Stay at it. Everything happens for a reason, maybe you're meant to kill a bigger one :way:
 
It happens to all of us.

The great thing about bow hunting is the need to get within 20-30-40 yards of the deer and the feeling of nervous excitement as the deer approaches and we are able to pull back.

It doesn't matter if you have been at it 30 yrs or this is your first year with a bow in hand, its the excitement and adrenaline rush that we all come back for year after year...well that and the delicious back straps and venison chile ;)
 
like they said.. it happens to everyone.. There are two real nice bucks that I've screwed up on just like that and I think about it all the time.. all you can do is brush it off and learn from it and be happy you didn't wound him so you still have a chance... he may follow a doe right back under you in a couple weeks... stay positive
 
  • Deleted by N/A
Show…
BigBassLJP said:
. Im sure I'm not the only one and sure it wont be my last time. :(:(
Click to expand...

Been bow hunting for 15yrs now, and I did the exact same thing last year on a spot and stalk.

it's a crud feeling, but a clean miss isn't anything like a solid hit with no retrieval.

He's still out there and not hurt, so hopefully your next encounter goes your way:way:
 
Just be happy you got to shoot at a 150 class buck for your first deer......some of us are still waiting for our chance to shoot at a 150 class deer. ;)
 
Sucks man, just be ready for it to happen again. Fast forward to future- it's gonna happen a whole buncha more times BUT you'll also have some successes along the way (as time goes on, a lot more successes vs misses/screw ups, etc) AND it's gonna be a fun learning process. Not ONE guy on here hasn't been there in some form. Keep at it & don't beat yourself up too bad- you might get a shot at the dude again.
 
That's a bummer. Happens to us all. Preshot routine... helped me a lot. Better than saying "don't screw this up... don't screw this up... don't screw this up...." over and over to myself. :)
 
You will never forget that shot...just have to learn from it and move on. I can see every shot vividly that I have taken at a buck....kill shots and misses. The misses probably come to mind more so than others still after years gone by. Part of the whole bowhunting experience....you gotta love it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom