How do you quiet yourself?

[splat38]

Found the monkey ...whatdo you know, he was on my back all the time .Maybe i missed the point in my first post to this site:In the UK we don'hunt..we stump shoot.Now if something gets in the way of an arrow,well,thats just bad luck.Bow hunting is not allowed in the UK.Having said that,due to the number of accidents we have,some during broadhead practice,i must add that the size of prey makes no difference:they all deserve the same respect.Pick a spot...search you'r heart

[splat38]

Found the monkey ...whatdo you know, he was on my back all the time .Maybe i missed the point in my first post to this site:In the UK we don'hunt..we stump shoot.Now if something gets in the way of an arrow,well,thats just bad luck.Bow hunting is not allowed in the UK.Having said that,due to the number of accidents we have,some during broadhead practice,i must add that the size of prey makes no difference:they all deserve the same respect.Pick a spot...search you'r heart

[N. Naiden]

What IS a 'traditional dress?'  I'm sure I don't have any!

I'm not sure if this question, or the answers, make the process more complicated. It is rarely as simple as 'just take the shot' though, and learning to be still, to be aware of surroundings and to forget the  ceaseless distraction of Self is essential to hunting well. Ortega i Gasset's quote about being alert comes to mind.

I started out shooting without a goal of stillness prior to the shot. Monty pointed out that successful hunting, for him, involved not projecting his intention with his attention to the animal - because the animal can sense the intention.  We had many conversations about sheilding the intention, and finally about not permitting it to surface in to consciousness until the arrow was released. It is a disconnecting in order to concentrate, to make the process come from muscle memory rather than cognition, and in order to avoid making a connection with the animal that will send the message for it to run.

After that I began examining ways that I could do it, and practice it, both while hunting and elsewhere.  The adrenaline response always comes after the arrow is long gone, and unlike some it is not a feeling I have ever really enjoyed, whether in a kayak on a river, or in the forest. It is trying to manipulate my own awareness and responses that provides the mystery I seem to never solve.

And one I don't mind puzzling over.

[B.O.D.]

Noelle, I don't think an animal can sense your impending death thoughts...maybe if they catch a glimpse of you eyes, then just maybe. Deer, elk, moose, etc, all have a super tuned flight response geared towards us 2 legged predators, we did afterall evolve at the same time, us a thier predator, them as our prey. I highly doubt my Algonquin ancestors ever worried about projection problems. They did pretty well at feeding themselves. They did take a great deal of time to thank and pay homage to the game they killed, but this was more to keep them in favour with the power(s) above. Game animals do not think problems or threats out, they simply react to their surroundings, if you are not there , they know it, if you are there and any one thing in a multitude of things is out of place, scent , wind,movement etc....they know that to. you have to have everything in place to beat them. I have been shaking so bad before a shot  that I thought the deer would hear my arrow rattling off the bow, still killed the deer... if they had of winded, heard or saw me, I would have had no shot. Plain and simple. Not being sexist in any way( just looking at the facts), but I think the hunting -adrenaline response you speak of is a fairly new( last 5,000 years or so) evoulutionary thing for the female sex. Men evolved to be hunters, hence the heavier bones,( not always true, my wife can probably outlift most men I know, think it is the hormone-laced milk thing of the 70's...lol!) greater speed and strength, and our hairy faces! It still gets to me sometimes, the feeling of a deflated balloon after I kill an animal, quickly goes though. Keep at it Noelle, just asking the question is saying that you are having an inner war with your own genome. sounds like you are winning! ASHSTYK  

[Dalebow]

Noelle

I know I had to slow down to put my bow together and string it before I could approach my lion a few days ago and the whole time I just focused on each task and it helped calm me down from my chase.  I told myself to pick a spot and then I did what I do before any shot I pray, I ask for a clean hit or no hit at all, I thank God for the opportunity that I hope to soon come.

Dale

[Irondog]

I shot a "rifle" for the Marine Corps many moons ago.  The visualization of a large yellow maple leaf fluttering (slowly)down to the ground, calmed my shots. I carried it over and used on archery. The thing with this technique, is that you can use it on warm up draws, or visualizing your kill shot.  Sorry if that one's kinda weird.

[Alsea]

"In the moment before the release what do you do to calm yourself, or quiet yourself, so the shot will fly true?"

I just take a parsec to make sure that my anchor is solid, my stance is fully extended, the shot is lined up and then I let it go.

I visualize the trajectory of the arrow to the target. I pick a spot before I start to draw and bring everything into alignment with it.

In practice I try to complete the movements from picking a spot, starting to draw, drawing the bow to anchor and release as one.

I love to watch Howard Hill shoot. His form is so fliud that I can never catch the moment that he hesitates before the arrow flies.

[Alsea]

As some have said, confidence comes with the doing.

I've been hunting for a very long time. I've taken so many animals that it's been a long, long time since I've experienced any kind of emotion or nerves leading up to the shot. I'm just intensely focused on getting the job done right. No shakes or tremors.

All my kills have been from the ground. I'm usually on a par with my quarry and many times it's aware of me before I kill it. Things usually happen fast.

My emotion comes as I near the fallen critter, sometimes while it is still expiring. I try to extend the moment and relive the details of the hunt for a bit before I have to get to work taking care of the meat. I am respectful of the animals gift of sustenance and superstitious enough to say a few words of thanks.