Practice Makes Progress Not Perfection

by Kelly Blogs, Hunting 101, Videos

A Successful Archery Season Requires More Than Just A Pretty Bow

To have a successful bowhunting season you’ve got to put in the time to practice shooting your bow from comfortable yardages but also from the distances that are not so comfortable.

With the close of last year’s archery season and the warmer days coming in like a hard rain, literally, I am finding myself thinking about NEXT archery season.   In our household, not only do we hunt as a family but we also practice as a family.    Generally, we get really excited thinking about preparing for the next “round” of hunting and we start practicing and putting in countless hours of flinging arrows. 

Hunting for us is serious business.

Bow Tournaments Are A Great Way To Get In Some Extra Practice

One way we get in some practice, and my favorite way, is shooting bow tournaments.   As a rule, it’s my job to get online and seek out shoots that are close in proximity to our house.  For us, the 3D target shoots are best because you are actually using targets that look like the animals and the vitals are clearly marked to really help you know where on the animal you need to fire that arrow. 

The best place I have found to find a shoot near you at the website 3DShoots.   The website is easy to navigate through, making finding a tournament for your family a piece of cake.

Bow tournaments are actually a lot of fun and if you get a group together, it makes it even more enjoyable.  If you’ve never been, you definitely need to try it out. 

There are several of us in our family that shoot bows and getting up early on a Saturday morning to shoot a tournament is usually the ONLY way I can get three boys up without struggle…unless they’re getting up to go hunting of course.   Once we’ve up, though, we’re ready to put the hammer down on each other. 

It’s competitive in our family and I mean competitive.    But once we shoot at the first target all bets are off and we’re all on our own.  

 There are usually 30 to 40 3D targets at the bow shoots.  Normally you go through half of them and then come back for the second half.   There is absolutely ZERO stress during the competition.  It’s a laid back atmosphere and you meet a ton of new people.  Really the only stress you encounter is with your own family. 

Practice Doesn’t Make Perfect. It Makes Progress.

I am very competitive in bowhunting but mostly with myself.  And let me tell you that the day is ruined, and everyone else’s, if I lose an arrow.  It’s not uncommon for me to lose one per tournament.  I might mention that I have gotten better about hurling an arrow into the abyss of no man’s land…never to be found again.   Over the years I’ve stock piled up and now have quite an arsenal of arrows so if I lose one (or two) it’s okay.  

All in all, tournaments give you a lot of quality practice and after several hours of walking around and laughing,  you don’t even realize you’ve shot forty times.  It’s a ton of fun.

Working Out Is Another Way To Prepare For Bow Season

Another way I get ready for bow season is running and working out.  I used to run anywhere from 3 to 5 miles a day getting my heart rate ready for those long treks through the woods.  But this year I’ve changed it up by lifting weights to increase my strength. My goal is to increase the poundage on my bow.

I also, occasionally, use an AccuBow Bow Trainer.  I love my Bow Trainer.  It’s a rubber band system that allows you to strengthen the muscles needed to pull back your bow easily and without injury.  In the past, this method has actually allowed me to increased my poundage so I would definitely consider it to be an important tool. 

Backyard Targets Work Perfectly For Getting In That Extra Shooting Time

This poor old deer target had seen better days but let me tell you that not only was it my FIRST target but it was where I got my most practice in the very beginning of my bowhunting journey. I can’t stress enough how important muscle memory is and how crucial it is for proper arrow placement when that deer comes in range.

Put up targets in your back yard and you will have 24/7 access to them.  We’ve actually done that and normally at least one of us daily will go back there and take anywhere from 20 to 30 shots just to keep loosened up.  We’ve even been known to have competitions amongst ourselves just for the fun of it.   There are some good climbing trees not too far from the targets and we’ve also put our climbers up and shot out of them for even more practice. 

The possibilities are endless of what you can do to get in some good old fashioned practice. Whatever you do, don’t get discouraged and give up. It’s a constant work in progress. But you’ve got to put the work in. But when you’re out there practicing and having fun it doesn’t seem like work at all. That’s just the way I like it.