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They ran a test at the POYNETTE BOWHUNTERS clubhouse in Wisconsin this spring comparing a crossbow and a 65 pound compound. The arrows from the crossbow penetrated the same or less than the compound on every shot. Members who had never pulled a trigger on a crossbow before were given an opportunity to shoot the one. They were perplexed to discover that it was difficult to hold steady for a shot, as they had been told how easy it is to shoot. It was an eye-opening experience for those members and they discovered first hand that the crossbow is not the can-of-corn that it is being taunted as. Shooting consistent shots into a two inch circle is quite possible from a bench rest, but shooting one free handed makes me glad that the kill zone on a whitetail deer is the size of a pie pan. Add to the scenario, the magical effects of adrenaline and now you have an interesting situation.

The main draw back of the crossbow is its short power stroke (the amount of distance that the string is pushing the arrow). The longer the distance the string pushes the arrow, the more energy that is stored in the shaft. If you pop a guy with a 6-inch punch, you will snap his head back. If you come up from the floor, he is going down and quite possibly out. That same simple philosophy applies to storing kinetic energy in an arrow.

If I sight in a 150 pound crossbow at 20 yards and do the same with my Renegade compound, then move back to forty yards and use my twenty yard pin, the arrow from the compound will drop approximately seven inches. The arrow from the crossbow will drop twenty-one inches. If you think I exaggerate, try it. You will discover, I speak the truth. The big drawback of the crossbow arrow is that it drops faster than a compound because of less kinetic energy stored in the shorter and often heavier shaft.

In the ACF Crossbow Hunter Safety Video, it is stated that forty yards is the maximum ethical shot for crossbow hunting. Not because a crossbow cannot be shot accurately beyond that range, but because of the shafts waning energy. You may not have enough penetration to make a killing shot on your quarry, especially if you hit bone. Factor in the adrenaline rush at that distance and now you run a much greater risk of wounding your animal, instead of harvesting it. True, some hunters will take longer shots with a crossbow, but then again so will some vertical hunters. My friends in the Southwest practice one hundred yard shots with their compounds (light arrows, overdraws and telescopic sights) They are very accurate and consistent at that distance. They have to be to hunt the deserts, where cover is at a minimum or non-existent. A crossbow would be useless at that range because of arrows that just plain do not have the punch to be effective. Personally, I would be useless at that range with a rifle.

This is the reality of the crossbow and, slowly but surely, folks are learning that it is not what it has been presented as for decades by those who have a cousin, whose uncle has a friend, that knows a guy that had one, once. It is a short range weapon and is to be used with the utmost caution and respect. Those who buy into the thinking that it is going to out perform vertical equipment are soon disappointed and if they say otherwise, they lie.

At twenty yards or less, however, it is devastating. It is at the peak of its power and it will go right through the scapula of a whitetail, providing you have a good broadhead. Remember the Hunting Education Video where the lady shoots a 30-30 into the coffee can full of sand with the mirror behind it? The mirror remains intact. Then she uses a forty pound bow and completely pierces the can shattering the mirror. That is why I shoot cut-on-contact, titanium broadheads. They really mess up a big game animal at short range. Also, at short range, the adrenaline wobble is far less of a factor.
The bottom line for all bowhunters is not the marksmanship that one has at long ranges, but their ability to get close to their quarry. That same objective is true for crossbow hunters, perhaps even more so. That is why in Ohio, Arkansas, Georgia and other states where the crossbow is legal, the percentage of successful hunters is the same regardless of whether one uses vertical or horizontal equipment. Its not the ease or effectiveness of the gear that is important, but the skill of the hunter. Poor hunters booger the deer before they are close enough for a successful shot. Skilled hunters are very adept at getting to within a good kill range. That is the secret of bowhunting!

Remember, vegetarian is an old Indian word for poor hunter. Those who believe that by picking up a crossbow, they are suddenly going to be a more successful hunter are heading for a big disappointment. Skilled bowhunting has nothing to do with the equipment, but instead your ability to best a very wary and unique animal. The really good hunters have spent years perfecting their 'good luck' and that will not change regardless of what you hunt with.