Bow Hunting Mistakes

Tom "We're just a couple months away from archery season and we thought this might be a good time to cover some of the most popular reasons bow hunters miss the in range shot. It's happened to just about everyone I know, you spend countless hours on the target. You get your bow all dialed in and that buck walks right out into the opening. Your heart jumps into your throat and your knees begin to buckle.. most of us know it as buck fever."

Matt "A few years back I had a nice whitetail come into range at 25 yards from my tree stand. I had recently bought a new bow and flung maybe 100 arrows through it. Enough to feel comfortable and hit my targets at my desired distances. As I put my sights on the buck, I quickly zeroed in on my 2nd pin. It was a perfect wide open broad side shot, and I knew this was my shot. As I watched my arrow fly a foot over his back I quickly realized that was my 25 yard pin on my old bow. The buck took a few hops back up the trail and was out of sight in no time. I felt like a bonehead, but these kind of things happen to everyone when you're in the heat of the moment."

Tom "Here are a few in range bow hunting mistakes. Be sure to practice with your bulky hunting clothes, as your feel of the draw will change depending on the layers of clothes we have on. Often times we get off work and we practice with our T-shirt on, but it's good to try and practice in the early morning hours with low light to give you more of a realistic feel. Often times we practice and we stand at the 25 yard mark, but sometimes it's good to walk a distance pick a pin go through your step process, find your point of aim and release your arrow."

Matt "The biggest thing to remember is practice, practice, practice. It takes time and commitment but the ultimate goal is to never find yourself in a situation you haven't prepared for."