I would focus on a couple main things since you are rapidly approaching the season. First and foremost you absolutely have to figure out what range you are lethal at...........that means 99% you hit where you are aiming (no one's perfect) What range will that be?? Only you will know soon enough but just be honest with yourself and you will avoid heartache in the woods. You will see that once you step back to a certain range you will start to spray a little bit. Being new I would say with reasonable practice and some helping hints from someone who knows what to look for........I would say you will probably be pretty comfortable at around 20-25 yards by the time the season hits. Here comes the hard part. 25 yards on the ground in a T-shirt at a piece of paper is a joke compared to 25 yards at a live animal that is moving and on alert and not really in the mood to get killed. Sometimes you have only a small window of opportunity to shoot and it all can happen in the blink of an eye.......plus you are 20 feet up a tree. So many things can go wrong in that equation it is mind boggling. Point being your lethal range on the ground in summer clothes is NOT your lethal range from a tree with a heavy jacket on and your heart racing like a jackhammer.

Practice, Practice, Practice.............but I am a firm believer in practice for hunting..........not target shooting. If I was gonna shoot paper targets in the woods with fieldpoints then that is what I would practice for. Get yourself confident and feeling good about your gear by shooting at paper and once you are comfortable and get your feet wet a little I would say start practicing for hunting........you will be amazed at the difference!! Throw on your jacket, a face mask, a hat and climb 20 feet up and take a few shots and it will feel like a totally different world. You will also learn that broadheads do not always fly like fieldtips. Some people are afraid of heights (ALWAYS WEAR A SAFETY HARNESS!!!!!!) so they have trouble focusing when drawing because they are afraid of falling........it's important to be comfortable at your hunting height.........heck you might even find out you CAN'T get comfortable at 20 feet and need to start lower.........ya never know until you do it. You have to remember to bend at the waist when you shoot from a tree or your shots will be off target..........lots of new things to learn when you get up that tree.

Which brings me to a topic I think many new people neglect..........becoming proficient with your gear means ALL your gear. Perhaps just as important as your bow is your treestand.......as I mentined already ALWAYS WEAR A SAFETY HARNESS!!!!!! that means always!! Climbing up and down is wear a high % of falls occur. Starpping yourself in when you reach the top is asking for trouble........no harness at all and you are just plain stupid IMO. When I first started I took my Summit out and climbed a few trees and got familiar with it and my harness........I learned how to set the harness up so it didn't interfere with me drawing my bow and I also learned how to judge a trees size so I set my base platform at the right angle to be comfortable and safe when I got to my desired height. I also learned how to be quiet and fast with it.......nothing messes up a hunt faster then clanking around the woods like the ghost of Christmas Past while you are trying to figure out how to get up your tree..........and don't forget when you climb it will be dark so keep that in mind when choosing a stand because messing with pins, hooks, and clamps gets pretty frustrating at 5 am Most of all be sure you are safe.........really, nothing else matters.

So now you are all set to kill the beast and holy cow!!......there he is!!! All your practice and hours of hard work all come together when you settle that pin on him and make your shot........but now what?? If you don't know what to do next you are screwed........BIG TIME!!! You have to gather as much information as possible from the moment that arrow leaves and then use your brain to decide what to do next. They don't just fall over and everything you see and hear AFTER the shot will be the difference in finding him or not. Watch what the deer does when he gets hit.......did he hunch up or mule kick or jump straight up.......was his tail up or down as he ran.........did he stumble.........watch him until you can't see him anymore and make a mental note of something you can identify that is as close to the last point you saw him (tree, bush, log, etc) but don't stop there.......Now it's time to listen very closely.......do you hear him fall........can you hear something thrashing in the leaves.........or maybe you hear him just continue walking. Put all that information into your knowledge bank and sit down, relax (try to) and WAIT.......if you think he is hit PERFECTLY I would say get down in 1/2 hour and check your arrow if you can find it and examine the sign where the deer was hit. Decision time again..........if everything looks good.........follow the red brick road to your deer. If it doesn't or looks even a little iffy........then WAIT some more. I've never talked to anyone who said they waited too long to go get their deer............talked to PLENTY that said they didn't wait long enough.......and they lost their deer. When in doubt WAIT.

I am not gonna go into the details of what to do in certain situations based on what kind of hit you have on the deer.........or how to even know where you hit based on the signs (blood, hair, reaction, etc) That info is all here and elsewhere for you to read..........do yourself and the deer a favor and don't just read it......KNOW IT. There is nothing worse then being in the woods and saying to yourself "Now what?" If you don't know what to do next then you shouldn't be out there.

Oh yea,


HAVE FUN and take lots of pictures of the deer you get.........and join the contest.......your team mates will be a helpful audience I'm sure.

Don't be afraid to ask ANY questions here........you're in the right place. Everything you need to know is in this forum..........use the search engine and read, read, read.

Good Luck and Be Safe!!!!!