Practice shooting
 

I am curious if any of you aren't able to practice shootingyour bow at your house? I decided to take advantage of the nice day and setup a target in the front yard and my daughter and I were taking turns shooting. We had several people passing by in cars, bicycles and walking and not one person made a comment about it. I even had a cop pass by and he just waved. After about 45 minutes that same cop returned and informed me that the police department had gotten complaints and that a village ordinence clearly states that I was breaking the law by shooting my bow. The cop was very nice about it and actually seemed to be on my side thinking that it was a stupid law. Now I have a reason to attend the upcoming village board meetings.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I practice at my house, the only problem I could see you having is that you are to close to another house. I do practice in the backyard, out of sight, out of mind is the way I look at it. Hope you are able to change it though.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I shoot into my garage. That way if for some reason I miss, then it is my house that I hit. I make sure thatno one is in the house while shooting.

RE: Practice shooting
 

i shoot at home but its not close to other house either.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I shoot straight down the side of my house, to my target (20-25yrds)in the back yard. My nextdoor neighbors house is 25ft away. I don't shoot when they are out and about. They're young bucks, and couldn't care less.I've been shooting like this since the '70s withno problems!;)

RE: Practice shooting
 

I do the bulk of my pratice ar the range but on ocassion I shoot a few shots with practice broadheads during the season just to verify POI. But only when school is in session. I live in a suburban setting.

HH

RE: Practice shooting
 

Because my 7 year old daughter was shooting with me I actually had the target setup about 10 yards. And the house next door to me is vacant so a complaint couldn't have come from them anyways. I understand that the law now exists(I don't agree with it) so I have no choice but to live with it till I can get it changed. What I would really like to know is who called the cops on me. I love it when people can't talk to you like adults but have to get others involved.

RE: Practice shooting
 

Try the backyard if you have the room.
I shoot in the backyard towards a block of woods. Granted there are no houses in the direction I'm shooting, but I could see a neighbor complining if I was shooting in thier direction or closer to the road.

Don't forget that there are non-hunters and anti-huntersout there and we need to consider that. Not everyone is in favor of what you do and how we do it.

RE: Practice shooting
 

All my neighbors are @ssholes expect for one guy who also bowhunts. Him and I stick together when an anti starts crying because were shooting. I tell them what I tell everybody else, I ain't shooting my 7mm out there just a bow. If I where to one day flinch so bad I shoot a house or someone,it will be the day I stop.

RE: Practice shooting
 

This is why i shoot in the basement. I know if I tryed out side it would take 30-40min before the cops showed up.

RE: Practice shooting
 

You guys think that is bad, i got in trouble with admistration for just having my bowIN THE BACKSEAT OF MY TRUCK, which was parked on campus. Some dumb@$$ walked by saw it and reported me as shooting it in the parking lot!![:@]Man was i hot! So after going through a @#tch fest for 45 minutes with the head of residence life, she told me that i had to have it out of my truck by 5 that afternoon! i then politly asked her if she wanted me to put it in my dorm room? WOW did the steam come out of her ears then! OFF CAMPUS BY 5 TODAY SHE YELLED AS I WAS HEADED OUT THE DOOR! :D

RE: Practice shooting
 

i shoot im my basement in the winter, and in the backyard in the summer with no complaints at all, but both of my neighbors are bowhunting buddies, so that makes it easy...

RE: Practice shooting
 

I shot in the back yard, nothing behind me. Not to sound like a party pooper but I don't think the front yard is the best place especially with people about and houses next door. Accidents do happen and if an arrow did deflect or a release malfunctioned even though not intentionalit could end up serious. Sorry, can't go with the flow on this one. But it is sucky that the persons couldn't walk up and talk to youin person.

RE: Practice shooting
 

thank god for privacy fenses i guess, like some one else said out of site out of mind. but when i move on base next week i am kinda screwed. oh well

RE: Practice shooting
 

Yeah, any weapon on base can get you in a world of trouble.
I live in a rural subdivision,and I have a 2 3/4 acre lot with an acre of woods behind the house and an open field after that. I have a 100 yard driveway that I stand in and shoot towards the back. When I shoot at 60 yards, I'm about halfway down the drive, and traffic is going by. Haven't had any problems yet, but then again, this is rural west Tennessee.
Still, I'd hate to have my release malfunction or acidentally release during the draw if I lived in town.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I shoot in the backyard all the time....not suppose to but........

RE: Practice shooting
 

I shoot in my yard. No one cares. I have a group of trees right behind the target and a vacant lot full of trees and brush behind that. Used to be an ordinance here that you could not discharge any weapon in the city limits but the local bow club has its range within the city limits so they got bows excludedfrom that ban.

RE: Practice shooting
 

Go by the police station and ask to see a copy of the ordinance so that you know exactly what it prohibits before you go off half cocked. I did in a similar situation and nobody seemed to be able to find one, it never really existed.

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thats why I commute 45 minutes to work... I'd feel caged living in town...

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I shoot in the basement in the winter and in the back yard in the warmer weather . I have enough land i own and around me that it is not a problem






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RE: Practice shooting
 

Where I live it is considered discharging a firearm in the city limits.

That is the one thing I hate about me moving into a trailer park. I used to live in the country and could shoot my bow anytime I wanted. Just walk out the door and fling some arrows. Now I am going to have to find a club to join or something.

I couldn't handle it this weekend. I set up a target in my bedroom and shot the length of my trailer. I can get about 15 yards from my living room to my bedroom.

Paul

RE: Practice shooting
 

I live in town and have neighbors all around me and their backyards are open to my backyard where I've practiced for several years now. I put up a 6ft privacy fence around part of it last year and the rest has a 4 foot wood fence. I can take a 48 yard shot from one end to the other. I don't practice when the neighborsare out at 40 yards but I will shorten it up to 20 yards. They don't like it but don't complain either. I purposedly draw my bow so it faces downward in case of a misfire or failed release which has happened.
I hope you can find away for the lawto exclude archery equipment since the schools are now introducing it as a legit program. :eek:

RE: Practice shooting
 

I live in a sub division where they certian ordinance's and I've been shooting in my backyard for a long time.
Never had a problem with any nighbor until one summer , some crazy yahoo saw me on top of the roof of my garage shooting my bow.
He called the cops on me and when they came out , they told about the ordinance and left it with that.
When the forth of july came around and he was shooting his shot gun off , I returned the favor on called the cops on him. :)

RE: Practice shooting
 

I also had the cops come by and talk to me because my neighbor didn't like it, even though there was no law against it. To make a long story short the cop, who was also a devoted bowhunter, said that I can shoot in the backyard. The caveat to that is that if I missed and hit a house or a person, I would be going to jail for a felony. It was basically a catch 22 for me. So I joined the local archery club and I hate this neighbor and wish him the worst every single day.


I might add that joining a club was the best thing I have done to become a better shooter. There is an abundance of targets at all practical distances.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I have 3 acres so there is plenty of room for me to fling arrows. Most of my neighbors are fine with it because I kill the deer that eat their gardens and flowers.

RE: Practice shooting
 

The majority of responses here seem to be restricted in their shooting because of neighbors/nearby houses. That can surely be a problem and one would have to be really careful to keep pointed in a safe direction at all times. Probably all of us have had an arrow launch unexpectedly and go the wrong way at one time or another. I guess I'm in the fortunate minority, living rurally and having a few acres.

In fact, the neighbors on either side are quite happy to let me set up a 3D coursewhich traverses our3 properties and I have a couple shoots here every spring. On my own place, I range out to 80 yards, which is handy for practicing 1200-round distances.

Here is one of the local residents strolling by. Fawn do?;)

RE: Practice shooting
 

I shoot from my driveway into my garage. Sometimes I'm in the street or even across the street. I have several people stop and watch for awhile & all seem to be amazed that a bow is that accurate. Its not me because I am not a great shot. Kids like to stop by and talk for awhile & it seems to be good as they do seem to be interested and maybe someday they will pick it up. I do live in a relatively small town plus I am 59 so people probably assume I am more responsible than you young bucks. It does come with the grey hair wether justified or not.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I'm lucky. We have 3 acres on a hill.....and we can't see another house from ours. our house also sits directly between two 24 acre tracts that aren't inhabited. 17 acres behind me.........with one house on it (my closest neighbor :)at +/- 1000').

We can shoot in just about every direction.

RE: Practice shooting
 

When the officer pulled up he showed me the ordinence on his laptop so I know that it real. Since I live in the in a busy subdivision I can live with the law for now. The real problem that I have is that my 7 year old daughter shooting her recurve can't shoot anymore. Her bow is no more a weapon then a father throwing a baseball at his son who can't catch.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I know I said that I didn't think the front yard was the best place to be shooting and still do but I assure you I would find some place in the back yard (that can't be seen by the neighborley Commies) for my daughter to shoot. No options, no backyard fence?? Good luck.

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I now live on fourty acres in the "country" so i no longer have that problem. when i lived in town I would set the target outside in the yard and stand in my garage out of sight and shoot.

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While I live about 10 mins from the big city, I happen to live on a golf course so i'll just wait till golfers go by and i'll shoot in between their rounds. Even on busy days it works out pretty good, usually very little down time if any.

RE: Practice shooting
 

I live down the street from my police station (I cold hit it with my .22 from my attic) and I shoot in my backyard all the time. I've never had a problem with the cops or the neighboors or even just people walking by. I think this just really depends on the type of town you live in. Where I am from the only store that survived in the downtown area when Walmart moved in was the hunting and fishing shop.