This is why its called hunting and not getting!
Last year hunting I had 2 different opurtunties at 140" class deer while hunting with the recurve, thats what I hunt with. Both times I had a 140" buck at 25 yards, I didn't feel right in taking the shot, something didn't feel right, maybe it was the yardage, I'm thinking so! I've been asked by my friends why I didn't take the shot? My good friends know me and know why I didn't take the shot, most of my buddiesare compound buddies. My problem is allot of my buddies told me that when they bought there particular bow, the salesman told them that these new compounds these days can get out there. Does that make it right? To me I don't think so. The last 5 years my friends shooting compounds have wounded a heck of allot more deer then I have, actually I haven't wounded any. I'm not against compounds by any means but I do believe the salesman these days are terrible, what happened to the old ethics on our shots? The bows may be faster but the animals were shooting are still the same animals! The same people that I've talked to that were taking long shots years ago aren't having much better luck now with the same bows! This is not a post verse traditional verse non traditional! This is a post concerning the people who sell these bows and think they know there stuff! The reason I did post this is my buddy who shoots a brand new compound, 300 fps, I'm not mentioning the brand, that doesn't much matter! He took a 40 yard shot at a deer tonight standing still, calm as you can get he thought and he hit the deer high in the back, who knows if he shot high or if the deer ducked the arrow a little! When it comes right down to it the only reason he shot at this deer is because of what the big shot salesman told him, I've preached to him no on these long shots but I don't think he much cares coming from a traditional guy like myself! After 3 hours of looking he looks at me at starts to gripe, what happened? I feel terrible for the guy because I really have no answers. In the back of my mind I'm thinking, 40 yard shot, you get whats coming to ya! This friend of mine is huge into compounds, he's excellent on picking his spots on deer and is very good when target practicing at 40 yards at home, he respects me and my traditional ways of shooting and I respect his ways as well, when it comes right down to it he's wounding animals on these long out there shots, and so far I'm not because I choose not to take these long shots. I've preached to him my 2 cents on taking long shots but he keeps going back and saying the guys who sold me the bow tell me these bows are quick enough to take 40+ yard shots, there the pro's he tells me, there suppose to know what there talking about! Are they pro's? Heck no In my opinion, the speed of bows these days does increase arrow flight, does a 1/4 of a second mean much from what they use to be, heck no it doesn't!