Why do you shoot over the deer?
12-17-2009, 08:26 AM
#1
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: central Wisconsin
Posts: 479
Why do you shoot over the deer?
Here is a tip that some new bowhunters might not be aware of when shooting down at a deer from a treestand.
When practicing do you notice your arrows hit over where they do when on level ground? This is not due to gravity!!
What I see normally is the bowhunter moves his arm down while continuing to stand erect in the stand. This changes the whole reaction from what it was when shooting level.
The arm and shoulder relationship to the upper torso when shooting level should not be changed when shooting down from a treestand.
The solution is to bend at the waist to keep this arm/torso relationship the same from the treestand as from shooting level.
You'll find you won't have to compensate much anymore. I learned this from shooting over 30 years in NFAA field archery competition on yardages (uphill and down) out to 80 yards. It works.
When practicing do you notice your arrows hit over where they do when on level ground? This is not due to gravity!!
What I see normally is the bowhunter moves his arm down while continuing to stand erect in the stand. This changes the whole reaction from what it was when shooting level.
The arm and shoulder relationship to the upper torso when shooting level should not be changed when shooting down from a treestand.
The solution is to bend at the waist to keep this arm/torso relationship the same from the treestand as from shooting level.
You'll find you won't have to compensate much anymore. I learned this from shooting over 30 years in NFAA field archery competition on yardages (uphill and down) out to 80 yards. It works.
12-17-2009, 07:29 PM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NW Montana / SW Alberta Rockies
Posts: 3,258
I don't shoot over a deer, its just that the deer drops down and the arrow goes over its back and the deer springs back up. Theres a lot of difference shooting at targets and then shooting at deer. 
Bobby
Bobby
12-17-2009, 10:07 PM
#4
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NW Montana / SW Alberta Rockies
Posts: 3,258
Theres noise off every bow, as the sound will travel faster than the arrow. At that last moment that deer knows something ain't right or else some how his within 10 yrds from you out of no where and he's right there. I've had three deer drop before my arrow got there but the deer were within 11 yrds out. They actually drop down and spring up and bolt and sometimes they might stop and look back. Seen it. Never seen a target do that.
Bobby
Bobby
12-17-2009, 10:27 PM
#5
Banned
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 77
SAME AS HAVIN SOMEONE POP A BALLON BEHIND YOU WHEN YOUR NOT EXPECTING IT. WE FLINCH..SAME EFFECT..
HE IS RIGHT..YOU SHOULD DRAW AND THEN AIM DOWN USING YOUR HIPS TO GET THE DEER IN THE SIGHTS....UNLESS , LIKE I DO....YOU PRACTICE FROM YOUR STAND AND HAVE YOUR PINS ON TIME THAT WAY. CERTAINLY THAT WONT KEEP THE DEER FROM JUMPIN THE STRING.
HE IS RIGHT..YOU SHOULD DRAW AND THEN AIM DOWN USING YOUR HIPS TO GET THE DEER IN THE SIGHTS....UNLESS , LIKE I DO....YOU PRACTICE FROM YOUR STAND AND HAVE YOUR PINS ON TIME THAT WAY. CERTAINLY THAT WONT KEEP THE DEER FROM JUMPIN THE STRING.
Theres noise off every bow, as the sound will travel faster than the arrow. At that last moment that deer knows something ain't right or else some how his within 10 yrds from you out of no where and he's right there. I've had three deer drop before my arrow got there but the deer were within 11 yrds out. They actually drop down and spring up and bolt and sometimes they might stop and look back. Seen it. Never seen a target do that.
Bobby
Bobby
12-18-2009, 05:17 AM
#6
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: central Wisconsin
Posts: 479
The whole point of this thread was to help.
When shooting level the bow comes off the hand a certain way and the arm in relation to the torso. If you drop your arm to a different position the way the bow (and arrow) reacts changes, usually shooting higher.
This was a shooting tip and has nothing to do with the deer jumping the string. That's another topic in itself. I guess I should have given this thread a different title.
I've won two state championships, tied for third in a different state, won a five state championship, took 17th at the national tournament and shot 31 straight perfect 300's indoors one winter. I shot for Bear Archery as a pro and taught 3 state champions and I've killed deer with a bow. If you don't find this works fine. You're on your own.
When shooting level the bow comes off the hand a certain way and the arm in relation to the torso. If you drop your arm to a different position the way the bow (and arrow) reacts changes, usually shooting higher.
This was a shooting tip and has nothing to do with the deer jumping the string. That's another topic in itself. I guess I should have given this thread a different title.
I've won two state championships, tied for third in a different state, won a five state championship, took 17th at the national tournament and shot 31 straight perfect 300's indoors one winter. I shot for Bear Archery as a pro and taught 3 state champions and I've killed deer with a bow. If you don't find this works fine. You're on your own.
Last edited by warbirdlover; 12-18-2009 at 05:22 AM.
12-18-2009, 05:47 AM
#7
Guest
Posts: n/a
The whole point of this thread was to help.
When shooting level the bow comes off the hand a certain way and the arm in relation to the torso. If you drop your arm to a different position the way the bow (and arrow) reacts changes, usually shooting higher.
This was a shooting tip and has nothing to do with the deer jumping the string. That's another topic in itself. I guess I should have given this thread a different title.
I've won two state championships, tied for third in a different state, won a five state championship, took 17th at the national tournament and shot 31 straight perfect 300's indoors one winter. I shot for Bear Archery as a pro and taught 3 state champions and I've killed deer with a bow. If you don't find this works fine. You're on your own.
When shooting level the bow comes off the hand a certain way and the arm in relation to the torso. If you drop your arm to a different position the way the bow (and arrow) reacts changes, usually shooting higher.
This was a shooting tip and has nothing to do with the deer jumping the string. That's another topic in itself. I guess I should have given this thread a different title.
I've won two state championships, tied for third in a different state, won a five state championship, took 17th at the national tournament and shot 31 straight perfect 300's indoors one winter. I shot for Bear Archery as a pro and taught 3 state champions and I've killed deer with a bow. If you don't find this works fine. You're on your own.
I know some great 3D shooters, and people who can hit a skoal can every time at 50 yards, but same people miss deer. boggles the mind. Deer hunting and target are entirely two different disciplines. I usually do not see both exclusively being good at the other. In fact, its rare. Usually see the target guys come out in the field wit a bow that looks like he is going to take on the clingons with 12" stabilizers and all that garbage.
Thanks for the tip.
12-18-2009, 08:14 AM
#8
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: central Wisconsin
Posts: 479
Interesting. I have had just the opposite experience. "Some" of the best bow hunters were the best target shooters, mainly because they had their "form" so perfected and could apply it to hunting situations. But, being a good shot doesn't make you a good hunter. It just could help you be a better hunter maybe. Bottom line is any bowhunter needs to practice all summer (deer targets or whatever) to be able to skillfully hit the kill zone repeatedly. What I hate to see is the hunters who grab the bow and shoot 10 arrows the day before the season and call themselves ready.
I was a good target shooter but quit bowhunting because I just didn't have the patience it takes to sit there all day with the bugs biting me. I can sit in a comfortable box stand rifle hunting though. And I fell out of a tree stand climbing down and really wrecked my my ankle and to this day HATE tree stands.
Got a kick out of your discription of target shooters hunting equipment. That might be very accurate, LOL.
I was a good target shooter but quit bowhunting because I just didn't have the patience it takes to sit there all day with the bugs biting me. I can sit in a comfortable box stand rifle hunting though. And I fell out of a tree stand climbing down and really wrecked my my ankle and to this day HATE tree stands.
Got a kick out of your discription of target shooters hunting equipment. That might be very accurate, LOL.
Last edited by warbirdlover; 12-18-2009 at 08:16 AM.
12-18-2009, 09:04 AM
#9
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Middletown PA United States
Posts: 3,625
Interesting. I have had just the opposite experience. "Some" of the best bow hunters were the best target shooters, mainly because they had their "form" so perfected and could apply it to hunting situations. But, being a good shot doesn't make you a good hunter. It just could help you be a better hunter maybe. Bottom line is any bowhunter needs to practice all summer (deer targets or whatever) to be able to skillfully hit the kill zone repeatedly. What I hate to see is the hunters who grab the bow and shoot 10 arrows the day before the season and call themselves ready.
I was a good target shooter but quit bowhunting because I just didn't have the patience it takes to sit there all day with the bugs biting me. I can sit in a comfortable box stand rifle hunting though. And I fell out of a tree stand climbing down and really wrecked my my ankle and to this day HATE tree stands.
Got a kick out of your discription of target shooters hunting equipment. That might be very accurate, LOL.
I was a good target shooter but quit bowhunting because I just didn't have the patience it takes to sit there all day with the bugs biting me. I can sit in a comfortable box stand rifle hunting though. And I fell out of a tree stand climbing down and really wrecked my my ankle and to this day HATE tree stands.
Got a kick out of your discription of target shooters hunting equipment. That might be very accurate, LOL.
The comparison between shooting targets and hunting is also solid. Yes, they are two different venues, but the discipline of shooting the bow is the same in that the upper torso has to be kept in alignment to duplicate the shot no matter whether shooting level, up, or down hill if you want to hit the same spot.
True things can be different sometimes for hunting, but with diligent practice the mind and body will become disciplined, the muscles will develop memory and know what a proper shot feels like. So much so that it becomes even easier to vary a little for those awkward shots that hunting demands at times.
Train the brain and the brain will train the body. Following a consistent shot sequence rewards you with confidence. With this confidence in hand a person doesn't need things as lighted nocks and such to know where their arrow hit. It's right where the pin was when the bow went off. Too many people get concerned about where their arrow hit instead of how it got where it's at.
As to deer jumping the string? Different set of circumstances, but sometimes it's better to have a slower more quiet bow. And it's not always the noise the bow makes, but the kind of noise, but that should be in a different thread.
12-21-2009, 05:42 AM
#10
Fork Horn
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: S.Illinois
Posts: 333
I agree that you need to bend at the waist to aim not raise or drop your arm to get on target if you do this it changes the angle of your peep and sights,almost like changing your anchor point. I started teaching my son to shoot this year and had a hard time teaching him to bend at the waist so I tried this little trick and it worked very well to get him to bend at the waist,I simply had him take a broom stick place it behind his neck and stretch out his arms to hold it and told him to try and point it at the target by just lowering his bow arm of course he couldn't,and it made him understand that you have to aim the same way! If you raise and lower your bow arm and DON"T keep that same left right arm angle you have bad form and will never shoot to your best ability.