after reading some of the post about people getting there first and people missing i thought i would ask this question. how many deer did you miss before you killed one? i have missed 5 and have not killed one yet. i do well on the 3-d course but can't put it togather in the woods.
6 times. The second deer I shot at 3 times! Over, under, in front of. Fortunately they all were clean misses. I've had only one bad hit since then. Shot at a deer that was out of my personal range, tracked the deer hundreds of yards and lost the trail. I still dont shoot over twenty yards because of that one experience. The deer was close to 40 yds away. Just poor judgement on my part. Live and learned. Have had three branch deflections, I guess those count as well! That would be 9 then, with one I wish I woulda missed. Been bowhunting since 86', seriously since about 92' all Trad bow since 96'
Missed a few with wheels, but am happy to say I'm 5/5 on deer with a recurve.
When I first started bow hunting in 1978(Shakespeare recurve) I missed the same 8 pointer 3 times as quickly as I could draw and release(I wish 8 pointers were still that dumb). After years of wheels I went back to a recurve and missed 9 in a row, six of which were during one sitting. I did hit a nice 8 pointer but never recovered him.
In 1999 I bought a Treadway long bow and hit the first deer I shot at, a doe at 8' from my tree. Since 2005 I've only hunted with my own self and backed bows. I've missed one and almost shot 2 others but they had somewhere else to be at the time. Pat
B-dog,
Don't worry about the misses. Try to learn from them and go on. Restict your shots to the ones you know without a shadow of a doubt you can make. This will build your confidence and with time you will be able to increase the distances.
How many deer someone else has missed before finally connecting has nothing to do with you. Some hunters just plain take stupid shots and are doomed to miss....hopefully.
Practice often, know your limitation and pick your shots wisely. I'll bet you'll see those misses disappear ;)
Brett
I've yet to hit one but it isn't for lack of trying.
This year is 0 for 3. First this year was using heavy bow hand glove and the longbow just did feel like the same stick. Shot left. Second was earlier this week. The limb tip hit a branch of the tree I was standing next to causing a funny looking bird to whiz past the chin of the deer I hoped to kill. Third this year was yesterday morning when a young buck was making his way toward me. I ground hunt mostly and concerned that he would eventually see me at 9 steps I tried to thread the arrow around one spindly twig hanging down. Didn't work and embedded the broadhead into a stick 20 yards beyond the ol boy. Killed the stick deader than 4 o'clock but it didn't eat so well. It has been good to hunt but I am ready to put one on the ground this way now.
Missed a nice buck yesterday.This was my 6th time ever hunting. Had him broadside at about 12 yards. The sun was facing me which makes it harder to see through the camo mesh of my blind. Got excited and shot low. I learned alot from that shot. Good news is, I am on the deer. I had the buck, I grunted him right to my blind. Next time he won't be so lucky!
yeah Brian, way to go bro!!!! get em next time!!!
I don't know what ya shoot but just a tought :)
http://sites.google.com/site/stringwalkerbowhunter/oleskool
rusty -missing is not the goal- Craine
after setting somekind of record for total misses at incredibly close range; I started realizing that with a one deer limit; the hunt is over with one shot.
There has been a lot of discussion and mention of shooting button bucks- well I think if you take a shot at something you are not certain you want to take: the percentage of miss skyrockets.
I now figure 'don't shoot at anything you don't want to hit'. It keeps the miss rate down.
I have a 'doe' tag that is good from now until the last day of December. I can have a shot at a doe just walking down to my mailbox- on most days.
So- I have to really decide when to take a shot. Otherwise either I hit a deer: and the hunt is over; or I miss and keep hunting.... and knowing that leads to missing.
When I miss a buck its by a hair; when I miss does its by a mile....
I am a little embarrassed to say I went o-13 in 2006 my first trad season and I'm talking gravy shots 10-15yards and less.(missed one buck 3 times) I Ended up killing 2 same afternoon that first year, one last year and one so far this year. Only thing you can do Is try to force yourself to pick a spot and keep shootin. That first one is tough sometimes. Good luck
I killed the first deer I shot at in 1969. I rarely missed thereafter but did of course. Worse was the monster buck I bounced a broadhead off of his shoulder blade or the 8 pt. I put one in too high for a non fatal hit and didn't affect the deer. Game warden reported seeing it often with my arrow in it.
I killed the first deer I shot at. But it took 4 years to get a shot. Hap
My first 5 shots at deer were misses. I had the hogs figured out; but, once in the tree I had problems. Shot every day out of a tree for over a month and did not miss another. I really think it's a confidence thing more than any. KNOW that you can do it, pick a spot, hit the spot. You can do it, trust yourself!!
I missed my first deer on opening day twice and killed it on the 3rd shot. :) Got to love quiet bows and dumb deer. :D
I was 3 for 3 with trad, but had a miss this year at about 6 yards (I've got excuses though).
Practice, pick a spot... it seems easy as pie when it happens.
Back before trees stands were invented I often shot out of arrows from the ground. Deer were a lot different back then and would stand around for second shots.
I left trad archery for 14 years. When I came back from the dark side in 89, I killed the first two deer I shot at, then missed the next 11.
I started shooting a lot of 3D and seldom miss a deer any more.
I missed my 2nd deer with trad equipment last night in about 8 years. Proly killed 20 between misses.
Missed my first, killed my second.
I started bowhunting in 1991...I shot at deer every year(minus 98-02...Marine service) until 2004 when I made my first connection.
I missed the same deer twice yesterday afternoon. 15 yards. I guess I got shook. The same deer came back 45 minutes later , but did'nt offer any better shot so I just watched. This is my first trad year and I'm lovin it. Lin
i missed 5 deer with my longbow before i finally connected
My 1st deer ever was a 10 pointer with a Ben Pearson recurve in the early 70's. Got him with one shot. However, I had shot 6 arrows at 3 different deer earlier that morning. I actually left the stand, drove into town, and bought more arrows. I returned to the same blind. Finally, when this guy came along, I got lucky. Since then I have learned a little about picking a spot and shooting within my effective range. Don't worry, hunt hard and pick your shots carefully. Misses will become kills. Good luck.
Missed my first and only shot of the season in 1965. Following year took one shot and killed a doe. (50 # Kodiak, Bear Razorhead, home made wood shafts) Had had pretty consistent luck all through the years.
When my son was 15 we put him in a stand overlooking a pear tree where I killed a 9 pt earlier, told him where they would come from, etc. I was walking up to his stand and he was on the ground with an empty bow quiver. He shot all of his arrows at two big bucks and missed. He eventually connectet on a little 5 pt though.