Summer is perfect for getting your bow tuned in!

I know the archery season is not open until September, but it is never to early to begin practicing for the upcoming season. Whether you are a seasoned archer or a new comer to this great sport, it is never to soon to begin practicing your shooting.  Archery is truly a sport of  “inches”.  Inches are really the between an ethical harvest and a taking a poor shot.  It is critical that you are prepared for that shot.  The following paragraphs include some tips on practice techniques that will improve your shooting.  I don’t offer a money back guarantee, but these practice techniques are proven effective for me!

In my opinion, the most important practice tip I can give, is to shoot your bow at different yardages and at different targets.  The block targets on the market today will allow you to not worry so much about your arrow flying off into the grass, but rather make you feel more comfortable taking a shot.  However, with these targets can come a false sense of accuracy.  The target is quite large, so picking out “your spot” on the target becomes crucial to good practice.  Just like when taking that shot at a nice buck, you do not want to pick a large area, you want to zone in on something smaller.  What I have found works great is to take a #2 pencil and stick it sideways in between the layers of the block style targets.  This gives you a nice yellow target to aim at, and yet it is very small to give you something to zone in on.  Not to mention, the first time you break the pencil the feeling is amazing!

1) Shooting at different yardages is a must!  Once you have gained that comfort level at a certain yardage move back some.  Don’t always shoot at 10 yard increments though.  Many times in the woods I have had shots at odd yardages.  So it is important that you be able to take that shot at 27 yards comfortably.  The best way that I have found to do this is to take the core out of a 3-d target.  Next have someone throw it, while you are looking a different direction.  Then turn around, try to guess the yardage and make the shot.  This will make you aim at a smaller target, building your confidence, and give you great practice in guessing the yardage of your target.  One thing to keep in mind,  is not to shoot out of your comfort zone in the field.  Taking practice shots at 60-70 yards is fun, and can even make shooting 40 yards feel close, but if you can not consistently place that arrow in the “kill zone” that is not a shot that you should take in the field.  I personally have never taken a shot at over 35 yards because I do not feel that I could ethically harvest that animal at that range.  Target shooting though, I will shoot out to 50 plus yards.

2)   Shooting in all kinds of weather conditions will also make you a better archer.  I know nobody wants to practice on a day when the wind is blowing 20 mph and the temperature is 37 degrees, but some day almost all of us will be out hunting in those exact conditions.  Don’t get me wrong, practicing on any day is great, but shooting in the kind of weather you will be hunting in will only build your confidence and make you that much better of a shooter.  Your equipment will perform differently at cooler temperatures, and the flight of your arrow may be affected by the wind.  When practicing in a windy situation try to shoot with the wind coming at you from all different directions.  A head wind may make you shoot a little low, and cross winds may push your arrow to the side.  Kind of obvious I know, but some bows these days are so fast that they may not even be affected by the wind to know this for sure, you need to practice in these conditions.

3)  Practicing in the gear you are planning on hunting in is a must.  Most of us only shoot in the summer time, in short sleeve shirts:  We never try out our hunting gear until we get into the stand for the first time that year.  My first time out bow hunting, I put my scent blocker face mask on and was not able to feel my anchor points when I drew back.  Had I practiced this shot prior to my hunting trip I may have had a shot I felt comfortable with.  The point here is to make sure that no matter what you are hunting in, you need to shoot with it on before entering the field.  Before washing all of your clothes with the scent free soap, try your setup out.  You may get some looks from the neighbors when they see you sneaking up on  3d targets, but this will improve your shooting in the field.

<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--><!--[endif]-->4) I have mentioned shooting 3d in almost all of the above points.  3-D targets are great at making a situation feel more life like when you are practicing.   With the targets available today, you can see the vitals or “kill zone” clearly, with many of the new targets even showing the “vitals” to shoot at.  These style of targets are great for the beginning big game hunter wanting to know exactly where to put that arrow, instead of the old saying “behind the front shoulder.

When shooting these 3d targets, concentrate on where the arrow is exiting the target.  You can tell very easily on these targets the line of the arrow and where it will come out, as well as what organs it will encounter on its path through the animal.  Most importantly I try to stress to others, the exit is what you want to be concerned with when figuring out shot placement.

Another thing to remember when shooting 3d is to shoot them from the ground as well as from the height you plan to be shooting out of.  Many of us have trees in the areas that we practice shooting. I great thing to do is to  simply hang your stand in the tree and take some shots out of it . Not only will this build your confidence when shooting in your stand, it will also give you practice taking your stand in and out of the tree.  This can help make the preparation for the hunt go more smoothly.  Another great way to practice is to check with locals in the area.  Many  cities have archery clubs that have 3d ranges open to the public, sometimes for only a couple of bucks, you can use these public ranges.  These are a great place to meet people who love the sport and also perfect your skills on many different targets without buying each of them for yourself.

5)  The last tip I have is to practice without your release.  Most archers today use some sort of mechanical release and they are a great tool. However, if you hunt long enough there will come a time where you will lose, or forget that release.  Instead of ruining a trip, because of a minor brain lapse, you will know how to adjust and you will feel confident if you have a shot that is presented to you. 

Take these five tips with you this summer, they are the 5  that I came up with, and each have helped me become a better archer.

Archery is one sport where practice may not make perfect, but it will make you a better shot.  These tips will help to build your confidence in the stand, as well as possibly put more steaks on the table.