good to know I'm not the only one out there. If I could just get one good kill under my belt I would stick with this!

Don't beat yourself up so much man.  Hey...you missed! No big deal!  You know you can shoot.  You know you can get deer close.  Just do it again, take your time and seal the deal.  Getting the compound out won't help you kill deer with your recurve.  You CAN do it.  Hey, when I first switched to a recurve years ago, I missed the SAME BIG buck TWICE in one season!  Yep it hurt.  But I laugh about it now.  You will be posting pics on this site soon enough.  Enjoy the ride!

Thank you for all of your encouragment. Been hunting with these traditional bows for abour 7 years now and have yet shoot a deer. I have shot some small game critters like rabbits, groundhogs and squirrels. Buit when it come to deer I can't seal the deal and it gets very frustrating. Just to let you all know I was back out yesterday and didn't spot any deer but I did share my hunting spot with a red fox that was about 15 feet away from be and bedded down for a nap for 45 minutes. That was exciting for sure! I can't wait till next weekend to get back out.

All of the above info is right on so I'll give you one more thing to think about. Hopefully this doesn't sound too corny.

Deep down I think this sort of situation is exactly why traditional archery is so addictive.  We have to gain control over our body and mind and learn to manage the adrenaline rush that comes with a close encounter with a deer.

I've missed my share and hit my share but I always find myself looking for that perfect "rush" where I can control my physical body and make it work the bow and arrow to perfection. It has actually become a challenge that I can't wait to face every year.  To see if I'm up to the task.  

Instead of getting frustrated with "buck fever" or "target panic" (which I believe is a pretty natural event for all archers to experience at one time or another). I felt like I had to embrace the challenge before I could manage both.  I believe your up for it or you wouldn't have stuck with it this long.  

If it was easy it wouldn't be as much fun! Now go get "squinty-eyed" and make that bow and your mind do exactly what you want to do, and I'll be excited to congratuate you on the journey.

Chris