practice

[darwin]

currently i live in a apartment i have a fairly large porch (for an apartment) which serves as my workshop/man cave however it isn't nearly big enough to practice in, so when i have time i go over to my fathers house he has a big back yard and has a nice target area set up behind the garage at best i make it over there once a week and shoot for at most 2 hrs i know that's not the best way to practice but its all i have right now. i was hoping  to try for a deer this year but at my current skill level i wouldn't feel comfortable unless the deer was within 5 yards at 15 yards i would probably just wound it (which would be horrible) at 20 yards or more i might just plain miss.

i could really use some pointers to help make the most of the time i have?

[gstoneberg]

A couple things.  First, on the days you can't practice go ahead and draw your bow, anchor and let down.  Build up your bow muscles which will really help your accuracy.  Be careful to anchor consistently though or it'll mess up your form.  Then, on the days you practice shoot slowly.  One of the big dangers in trying to pack a lot of practice into a single session is making getting a lot of arrows shot your goal.  I think the most effective practice is tossing a bunch of golf practice balls around and shooting judo or blunt arrows at them.  You will find your accuracy improve dramatically shooting at small targets.  Don't pop a target up and shoot several arrows from the same spot.  Move around and keep your distances changing.  Keep them close, but avoid staying in one spot.  Once you get some confidence you'll be able to shoot further than you think and switch to more normal targets.  Always envision the smallest aiming point you can on every shot.

Good luck,
George

[TRACY]

Good advice George. I would like to add that the majority of my shots and harvests are under 15 yards with a good bulk less than 10 yards. Point- practice shooting close in and then move out as your comfort level and accuracy improve. Most importantly, make sure that it is fun and enjoyable!

Tracy

[darwin]

thank you i hadn't ever though of practicing my form and building muscle at home, also i might try the golf balls i have been plugging away at a target.

It gets hard to go slow cause it is fun, and one of my brothers shoots a wheelie bow, so he is always trying to get me to shoot faster and farther it can get frustrating watching him shoot that thing so easily,  does make me feel good knowing he isn't much better than me without his sights, cams, releases and who knows what else is on that thing

[johnnyH]

Hi everyone. I am new to the sport, about 6 months new. The last time I shot a bow was 30 years ago when I was in college. They were re curves if I am not mistaken. Loving the simple aesthetic of just wood, I purchased a 55# English Longbow and some arrows to match. I shoot off the hand. With no instructor (doh!), I had been shooting it like a re curve- feet at 90 degree to the target, Bow straight up and down, etc.. Recently I purchased a 45# American flatbow with pistol grip and center cut, and arrows spined for it. Now I have a few questions since my first lesson with an instructor. First of all, he said  I should learn on a re curve not a longbow but since I had only a longbow my stance was incorrect for it. (note: I am a right handed shooter). He said my right foot (the one away from the target) should be at 90 degrees to the target but my left foot (the one facing the target) should be comfortably apart and back  slightly so that I am at a slight angle to the target. When I shoot, I should lean forward a bit and cant my bow. (doing so I noticed my upper body needed to twist a bit to face the target straight on). There were other things about shoulder height, elbow out not down, gripping correctly, etc. After the lesson was over and he left (it was at my house) I went back to shooting and instinctively put my left foot (one facing the target) at 90 degrees to it, and my right foot back slightly so I was at an angle to the target (the opposite as he had showed me earlier). When I leaned slightly into the shot  my left leg seem to take the weight of my body better than the other way. There wasn't a lot of difference in where my arrows were hitting, though some. Just wondering if anyone has any thoughts on this?   I hope it is clear what I am getting at. Thanks all.

[crooketarrow]

  Go stump shooting the best practice you can, do far better than shooting across the yard at known distances. After you get the basic's down forget the yard.
  My granddad had a old saying and it's very true.
  IF YOU DON'T SHOOT AT THEM YOU CAN'T KILL THEM. I see it on hunting shows all the time. If he'd turn just a little more I'd taken the shot. Or if he'd put that leg forward I had the shot I wanted and had took the shot. If you wait on that so-so perfact shot you won't eat much deer meat.
  Learn to track,and where deer go when hunt. If theres blood theres a 98% chance I'll find my buck. I do'nt take sincess shots but I don't let operturnly pass by waying on that perfect shot either.
 Theres a WHOLE WHOLE LOT MORE TO HUNTING THAN JUST KILLING A DEER. And alot more to enjoy while out there. To seeing whats out there to doing something not many people will ever do. to the satifaction of building your own equiment. Also something not many do.
 So go stumping where your going to deer hunt. The more scouting and knowing the area your going to hunt is the #1 and 2 things in hunting. KNOW FOR PREY.
  My #1 tratic is just go. No matter if your doing it wrong or not at lease your out there doing it. Far better than setting in front of the TV. So go forget what anyone else says or thinks. I go and go and go never giveing up I guess it how bad you want that buck. You have to want to do it. I have 2 rooms full of mounts 11 mounts of mature bucks 4 of those are with a self bow. 23 Skulls OVER HALF OF THESE AND SELF BOW KILLS. and 3 storage totes of antlers. 2 Rifle ,ML 1 BOW.  So just go and before long you enjoy going and you'll get better  at shooting nad hunting you just have to go do it..