Just like everything in life, the only way to get better at
something is by practicing. Bowhunting is no exception to this! With very
little margin of error, we need to be as accurate as possible. A couple
of inches off of our mark and we could have a long tracking job ahead of us. We
owe it to ourselves and our quarry.
Just as important as practicing is, perfect practice. What do I
mean? Well, most of the time we practice standing up and a wide open shot. How
many of you have gotten snuck up on and had to shoot sitting down in
your stand, I know I have. Actually, if the deer is on my left side, I do not
even bother standing up to make the shot anymore. So, if we may encounter these
situations in the field, why not practice for them?
Shooting sitting down is a lot different than when standing up. I
find it physically harder to draw and hold my bow. A lot of my
hunting is done from ground blinds. That means I need to practice shooting out
if it also. The lighting will be low, so you need to make sure you can see your
sight pins. Also, shooting out it may let you know if you need a taller chair
to hunt from. I had a few mishaps this summer, learning I need a taller
chair to prevent shooting the bottom of the blind window. I would not
know this had I not practiced.
Clothing should play a role in your practice also. We mostly practice
in the summer, then hunt the winter. So we practiced with light clothing, then
threw on a few layers, gloves, and face mask. How close is your arrow group
now? Can you find your anchor points? I personally only wear light
gloves in the winter with a fleece hand warmer. I can put my hands in the hand
warmer, and take out without any extra movement or noise. I use a face paint
mostly, but sometimes in the winter I do wear a face mask that I can pull down
to my neck to get out of the way for a shot.
My first turkey I killed with a bow, I owe to practicing. I
practiced shooting in every way possible. I shot from my knees, a chair, and
even reacted trying to shoot a turkey behind me. The moment of truth came on my
birthday. It was 11:00 and had been sitting in a blind all morning. I decided
it was time to leave but something told me to walk to the edge of the ridge and
throw a call down it. I did and immediately had a bird answer. He was maybe 30
yds away and about to crest the hill. I dropped to ground on my knees just as
he crested that hill. His head went behind a tree and I drew, when he came out
from behind it I let the arrow fly at a mere 10 steps. Would have I still
killed the bird without practicing? Maybe, but, I did practice and I
did successfully harvest a turkey shooting from my knees. I was confident
from my practicing and that made me confident (and successful) in the field.
With only a
few days left until bow season opener here in the Ozarks, you can bet I will be
practicing. I will be shooting from a blind chair, tree stand, and any
situation I think I will find myself in. I encourage everyone to practice
in different scenarios this week. Let me know what you have found. Did
you find it harder/easier? Does it make you more confident? Thanks for
reading and interacting with my blog this week. Remember to enjoy the outdoors
and carry on the tradition. Justin Sapp
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