For the OP (ski rush) and everyone else, please use the complaint ticket button (yellow triangle with an exclamation mark on the left of each post) and report rules violations or PM a moderator. As you can see from above, people responding in kind just makes more work for a mod, even if it's just deleting the original offensive post.

Now if getting back to the topic at hand, another possibility is known as "buck fever." This happens when a hunter sees a shootable buck, gets overexcited/nervous, etc. and rushes the shot. Not saying this applies to you but it does happen. Almost every hunter has dealt with this at one time or another, even if it's just rushing a shot.

To overcome buck fever (and other shooting issues), most people spend more range time practicing shots from hunting positions (not sitting at a range bench) and then remember to breathe and relax while making the shot at a buck after that. If this isn't applicable to your situation, the range practice stuff and breathing is still good stuff to practice.

On the plus side, you saw a buck on your first deer hunt, got a shot and are likely now hooked like the rest of us. It's a rush and a lot of fun. There's a HUGE wealth of knowledge in this forum (you've already seen some of it above) and many members willingly share their expertise, experience and knowledge with each other.

So welcome to the forums and enjoy reading and learning like the rest of us. That can get a bit addictive also.

CalHunter
Moderator