the cruse continues

[hunterjohn]

set out this morning little lighter dressed than yesterday woods quiet birds chirping squirrels waking up.. great morning look over to the left and i can make out that there was a deer coming right towards me. so i got ready he came in closer and closer bigger and bigger he got at 15 years feeding on acorns turns broadside. i draw back settle in right behind the should and whack !! he runs off 30 yards and stands there walks off and im thinking to my self that whack didnt sound like i hit him!! let him run off about two hours later i climb down to find not only did i miss the deer but i was a good foot in front of him and 2 foot low? i know you all are going to say buck fever but ive shot numerous bucks 6 pointer being a normal best ... went back to the house and threw a couple arrows flew true as could be!! just disappointing usaully only get one chance at a great buck a year. and i normally blow it.. hopefully this year i have three other bucks on the hit list and the one this morning i never seen before so hopefully god willing i will get my chance of redemption!!

john

[d-bone20917]

It happens. Keep your head up and get right back out there.

[biggamefish]

Sounds like you might have hit a small twig or something that deflected the arrow. They are hard to see sometimes. It is murphy's law when bowhunting. Good luck and keep your head up there is lots of time left.

[growalot]

Did you subconsciously grip your bow...that will pull a shot...Good Luck on the rest of the season...I had same shot on the first doe I let loose on...not low but in front of her...Happens

[WNYBuckHunter]

It happen. Better a clean miss than a bad hit IMO. Get back out there, its just starting to get close to the best time to be out there...

[wdswtr]

Dont forget to bend at the waist. I rarely stand for a shot no days and stay seated. It forces me to bend at the waist that way, also helps with the rubber legs on bigger deer lol. I have become so comfortable taking deer while sitting its just akward for me to do it any other way now. Like WNy said a miss is better than a bad hit.

[hunterjohn]

he was there for 15 minutes talked my self right back down waited and drew back when he turned broadside focused and stuck that 15 dollar g5 broadhead in to a old oak tree actually bent the tip of it for some reason !!

[Pointer]

It's so hard to get a chance at a really nice buck...especially because I have so little time to hunt. Just a day here and there really..Last season my brother finally got back into it...I was psyched to have my old hunting partner back!!..to keep him encouraged I put him in my best blind which is along a well-used trail that has been carrying hot scrapes for several years now. Killed my last buck there with my recurve a couple of years prior and have had sightings of several others that i couldn;t get a shot off at...Well dont you know that the 8 pointer of a lifetime hits one of the scrapes right in front of him at about 15 yds...this is the kind of deer that lower NY just doesn't get very often...Well my brother missed by more than a foot and buried the broadhead into a tree...& didn;t see another deer for the rest of the season..This is a guy who shoots instinctively with a recurve as well as anyone I've ever known...he can not practice for 6 weeks then pick up the bow and shoot a group on a pieplate at 25 yds...no problem..He's just one of those people who's gifted with excellent hand-eye coordination...

Did he choke?...I guess so...I just know it was a bummer to blow your only chance for the season..

[phade]

You learn more from your defeats than victories. Use it as ammo.

I'll be the first to admit I have suffered from major bouts of buck fever...it was unmanageable for the first few years...my knees would shake so bad, the whole ladderstand and tree were moving. Such an adrenaline dump...part of what draws me to this sport to say the least.

[StripedBuck]

At least it was a clean miss, you now know where he's coming from and you'll make it all happen the next time your in those woods...Best of luck HunterJohn!

[hunterjohn]

do you think that its possible to for him to come back in to the stand ?when i shot he ran about 30 yards looked back and trotted off didnt seem to spooked but i know this big guys only take one thing and he'll turn nocturnal before you know it!!

thanks for the words of encouragement guys

[Guns&ReligionCop]

Hey just because you have shot a few bucks doesn't mean buck fever goes away. Hell my dads almost 70 and he thought he was having a heart attack after shooting his buck last year!

[hunterjohn]

not saying its gone but i had alot of time to breathe and steady my self i think i grab my bow handle...... bottom line i choked!!!!

[arrow nocker]

you gripped the handle to tight.Torqued the shot.Ever pull back your bow the grip the handle then move bow and string side to side.yep thats bow torque.Thats what happens when a monster is in front of ya.I may even get it even though i practice not to.never had a monster in front of me.Just shot over big bucks from not bending at waist.

[hunterjohn]

crazy how the fever hits when you think everything is good and your ready to take the shot. then a fundemental skill is what you mess up on..

[arrow nocker]

Thats what keeps us addicted.LOL.

[NYbuck50]

if there's acorns in there and u didnt hit him he will definitley be back. especially as the rut starts to kick in.. Go get em

[Guns&ReligionCop]

Hell its amazing I could hit a 25 cent piece at 30 yards but when a deer is 10 yards away my pin looks the size of a a softball and the deer turns into the size of a squirrel.

[vincy]

^{what tips do you all use to judge distance when shooting. sometimes I question which pins to use especially if I think the deer is in that in between yardage. Shot clean over a 5 pointer last year at what what I thought was 20 yrds, after I paced it off it was 10yrds.}

Edited October 16, 2012 by vincy

[Guns&ReligionCop]

My bow shoots the same between10-25 yards and only drops a little at 30. beyond that I would use a range finder but I have never taken a shot past 30 yards.

[hunterjohn]

best way to judge yardage is practice down there there are 3d archery shoots i believe they are called tri county archery great time and realistic shots of all ranges great practice