Archery

Only 45 days left! Better makes the most of them…

With only 45 days remaining before October 1st is here, it is really important to make the most of every day.  I am finally caught up on all of the “To-Do’s”, so I am going to start tuning my bow and hitting the weekend 3d shoots.

Detroit Sportsmen’s Congress (Utica) – Every weekend before 2 PM

It is also time to start thinking about the pre-season prep and scouting.  This time of year is REALLY NASTY in the woods, there are a thousand different types of bugs that want to eat you, and if that’s not enough, POISON IVY is very ripe this time of year.  So remember when you do your scouting and prep work to dress appropriately.

The Elusive “300 – Perfect Score”

I have yet to shoot a perfect 3D round.

I have come very close with a score of 296 (2 near misses) and a 295 (one body miss).  This weeks 3d round threw me a curve as I started very strong, but the 3rd target I encountered some technical difficulties…  My D-Loop came untied after about a thousand arrows – that was the last thing I expected to fail.  So i tied it back together a few times but was unable to locate anyone on the course with a cigarette lighter to get the proper knot.  So I lost at least 20 points as I had to make shot with a loose D-Loop or no D-Loop.  I t was kind of a bummer.  To offset my badluck… my partner was on a roll!  At the 13th target someone said  ”…wow, you have a perfect round going!”.  As luck or jinx has it…  Mike missed his 28th 10 mark by about an inch and buried X’s on number 29 and 30.  One shot from a perfect – GREAT shooting Mike!

Let us know if you have ever shot a perfect round…

Crossbows are legal in Michigan!

Well, it’s legal to shoot a deer with a cross-bow in Michigan now.  When I first heard this, I was really pissed!  I thought for sure that I would see all sorts of extra (wanna be) bow hunters in the woods.  Quite frankly, I haven’t seen one cross bow hunter this year – Maybe I am just lucky.  I hope that the cross-bow doesn’t have a big impact to our already over-hunted deer season.  The only people Iknow that said they want to buy a crossbow, are already bow hunters, so they won’t increase the number of bow hunter.  I’m sure that there are a lot of yahoos that think they can go get a crossbow and be a bow-hunter.  They will soon realize that the effective range of the cross bow isn’t much more than that of a regular bow.  A cross bow hunter is still going to have to understand all of the challenges of regular bowhunting.

I read up on the Michigan DNR site to see what the rules say…

Crossbows

Crossbows are legal to use:

- during any season in which a firearm may be used, for both big

and small game statewide.

- by anyone 50 years of age or older during the Oct. 1-Nov. 14

bow hunting deer season statewide.

- by any hunter age 12 and older during the bow hunting season

in Zone 3.

Hunters must be at least 12 years of age to use a crossbow.

Youth, 10 and 11, may not use a crossbow. Crossbows used for

hunting are restricted to a velocity of no more than 350 feet per

second.

A free crossbow stamp, available from all license agents or

online at www.michigan.gov/dnr, is required in addition to a

valid hunting license for those using a crossbow to hunt.

Crossbow hunters are required to wear hunter orange while

hunting deer during the early antlerless, youth firearm, and the

November firearm deer seasons.

So if you’re 50 years old or hunting in Zone 3 (south of the shotgun only line), you can use a cross bow.

I have started a forum thread to discuss cross bows and what you think about the new rules.  Please register and post to the forum – I want to know if you have seen any “new” bowhunters that are yielding crossbows or if you have decided to start shooting a crossbow.

Tree Stand Tactics for Early October

Today it was a lot colder than I was expecting.  The morning hunt was short, so I didn’t get too cold, but the afternoon is what I wasn’t prepared for.  I found myself almost shivering.  I quickly broke out my hand warmers right away.  I do this to preserve heat, I also cinch up my hood and and settle in.  If you get cold you lose the ability to sit still and your hunt is easily spoiled.  If you have extra hand warmers, it is a good idea to put them inside your jacket.  Some hand warmers are too hot to put directly against your skin, so put the warmer between your tee shirt and your outer shirt.  John Eberhart recommends using the adhesive warmers and stick them to your kidneys to warm your body’s blood.

Once I became comfortable today I was able to be much more attentive.  For early October, there isn’t much value in the morning hunt (I go out, because you might have a lucky break).  The only thing that I have found to work this time of year, is to use a rattle bag.  I rattle very lightly! …3 to 5 clicks – NO MORE than that.  I have had a ten point and an 8 point come in out of curiosity.

Tree Stand safety

I picked up a cool safety device last year… It is called the Fall Guy, basically it is a seat belt retracter that is 20 ft. long. you hook it to your body harness and you are protected whether you are sitting or in or out of your tree stand. A little pricey at $59, but it is better than what happened to my buddies dad. He fell from his stand while climbing up. He survived the fall after 8 hours in the cold he almost died of Hypothermia, but lived to tell the story from his wheel chair – he is now a paraplegic.

I think we all owe it to ourselves and our families to be cautious and practice good Tree Hunting safety. Remember to always have 3 points of contact while climbing (i.e. a combination of two good hand-holds and a solid foot step or two solid steps and one strong hand hold). Always use a full body harness, a safety loop is not a good alternative – people have become stranded and died from suffocation or hypothermia after slipping off their tree stand seat wearing a safety loop.

Here is a good set of guidelines to follow!

Time to Tune the Broadheads

I shoot my bow all year round, so I am VERY confident that it is ready for opening day (which is only 18 days away). It seems that a lot of my friends still haven’t even taken their bow out of the case yet this year. For me it isn’t the question of practice, it is the question of tuning. My field points fly great, but I know that broadheads MIGHT fly different. That is why I pull out the block this ime of year and make sure that they are still “ON”. Whether you shoot mechanicals or fixed it is VERY IMPORTANT that you understand how your arrows will react when you change to your broadheads.

For years I shot Thunderheads or Muzzy’s , and every September I would be in the back yard getting mad at the arrow flight. I didn’t understand paper tuning and usually didn’t take the time to do it. A friend of mine hooked me up with the Eston Tuning Guide and it helped me understand the importance of true arrow flight. Since then I have tried several different broadheads and have come to a couple of conclusion.
- First conclusion is that I am either lazy or a poor planner, and I wind up trying to tune for broadheads on September 30th at 5:00 PM every year. So I prefer MECHANICALS
- Second conclusion is – The broadheads that I am using now leave a hole big enough to drive a truck through! The deer that I shot last year happened to be a bad shot (no excuse – but there is a good story behind it). The arrow went low and back on the deer. When I saw it, I knew it was a gut shot. The RAGE 2-BLADE left the most awesome blood trail and lead me right to him.

The main point I am trying to make here is that you should be out shooting EVERY DAY now. Because after October there is no time for practice.

Let me know what kind of broadheads you use….

Archery equipment

What kind of equipment are you using?  … and what you like or dislike about it?

I shoot a 2005 Mathews Switchback, HHA 5000 slide site, Muzzy Zero Effect Drop away rest, Colorado Archery Stabilizer, PSE quiver, Gold Tip Extreme Hunter arrows with Rage 2 blade mechanical broadheads.  I love the my setup because it shoots smooth and I am very consistent with it.  I usually shoot a couple thousand arrows a year and the setup has been FLAWLESS.  I have replaced the string once (might need another one in the spring – a little wax goes a long way).   I also have a Mathews Bow-Kini that I use while traipsing through the brush, I know it limits my ability to take a shot if I walk up on a deer, but remember this is Michigan!  Not much stalk hunting here!

3D League

We shoot at DSC – Detroit Sportsman’s Congress in Utica MI.  The course is pretty nice and fairly easy to shoot.  The freekin’ mosquitoes have been horrible.  The summer/fall league is a 15 arrow round, and I have been having a hard time shooting more than 140.

Only 30 days to the OPENER….  Just watch out for the cross bows!  I wonder how many new October hunters will be out there with their new Cross-Bows???

Let me know what you think about cross bows…

3D League shoot September 2008

My only Robin Hood - took 5 years to get it!