How do you handle archery defeat? The miss!

[pointysticks]

I don't beat myself up. My brother just sent an arrow at a turkey. It found the closest fence post and blew up on contact. We just created a very smart turkey. I suspect it will die of old age.

My brother is beating himself up. Tomorrow is shotgun Wednesday for him. Haha.

I have still not fired since I want him to go first.

How do you deal? Does it crush your spirit? Me? I'm just thankful for any shot opp.

Way better than working.

[G Posik]

I do not let it get to me. I shoot a trad bow and flight a lot of arrows. That is what I call a miss. When you hit you are shooting! Serious everyone misses with a bow so move on to the next shot.

Glenn

[ElkNut1]

Glenn is certainly right but I found it much tougher to soothe my soul with that thinking! (grin) Yes it sounds great but my makeup just didn't allow for that "everything will be OK" (grin) I seem to be a bit like your brother Cliff especially on elk misses! Turkeys wouldn't bother me nearly as much but geez I hated missing elk! Believe me I've missed my share too but I keep on ticking! It seems the older I get the less a miss bothers me but I do try to keep them to a minimum! Tell your brother to suck it up & get even with the shotgun! (grin)

ElkNut1

[Swede]

I agree with Elknut here. I don't like to miss. I try hard and want every shot to hit its intended mark. I relive every missed shot at an animal. Even though I try to move on, they leave a hurt that lasts. As soon as it starts to dry up around here I will start practicing my shooting for another elk season. I practice a long time because hitting the target is not an option. It is everything when I squeeze the trigger.

[Elkonthebrain]

I just blame it on my equipment. It's a lot easier to take when it's not your fault. Then when I get back to camp I drink my sorrows away. On a serious note I hate missing it eats me up. When I work all year for that one opportunity and it presents its self I blow it. I guess that's why I'm here to learn how to have more then one chance a year.

[Lefty]

I hope to learn on the misses. Unfortunately my misses make me sick ,.. I relive and have rethought every one of them , I don't want any of them to happen a 2nd time
Other than my first miss, each one of the shot What I did think I " this is bigger than any of my father in laws rifle bulls"

But there are plenty of other archery defeats that don't have to do with releasing an arrow,., I try to learn on those too

[navet]

How about a thread on this dreaded issue. Your most memorable miss? I have not shot at an elk with my bow. I have missed with a gun. It stinks either way. I cant forget it. Hope to learn from it....Tomorrow is another chance to succeed.

[Ridgernr]

I used to feel my misses were failures, But I have come to realize they are just what they are a mis-judged distance, a limb I did'nt see, the animal moved, or I punched the
release, etc. I will take a miss over a lost animal hit everytime. Learn from our miss and we are better for it. focus on them and they will get in your head, believe me I know.

[elkaholic]

I used to feel my misses were failures, But I have come to realize they are just what they are a mis-judged distance, a limb I did'nt see, the animal moved, or I punched the
release, etc. I will take a miss over a lost animal hit everytime. Learn from our miss and we are better for it. focus on them and they will get in your head, believe me I know.

I have similar feelings. My coughcough.. three misses. . coughcough from last year(deer and elk) each taught me something different. I am practicing harder and have adjusted my technique so hopefully I will not be making the same mistakes twice. I will admit I wanted to punch myself after each one of them as it takes a lot of time, patience, and effort to get within range. I HATED blowing my hard earned opportunities with something as simple as miscalculating the distance and rushing the shot.

This year will be different.

[LckyTylr]

I've been fortunate. Of all the deer that I've killed with bow/rifle/shotgun, I have only missed one deer and one bear. I missed an archery mulie buck three years ago at 35 yards. He was at a VERY steep angle and in the heat of the moment, I didn't compensate for the angle and shot over his back. The Bear miss was with an open-sighted Ithaca Deerslayer. I was pushing through a standing corn field when I looked down one of the rows and there was a big black butt running away from me. I raised my gun and waited for any shot opportunity. At about 90 yards (paced), I hollered "Hey" and the bear stopped, turned around and stood on his hind legs to look at me. I couldn't have asked for a better shot. I missed him twice. I'll never know how, because I have killed a few deer with that Ithaca and she's deadly out to 100 easy.

I beat myself up pretty bad about the misses, the archery miss more so than the shotgun as I have spent a LOT of time practicing with my bow throughout the years.

Oh well, I learned from my archery miss, the shotgun miss just bugs be because I don't know where I missed or what I did wrong.

[Fridaythe13th]

Last year the mind was in bad shape after a 3 miss week. 1st was a bear at 40 yrds just a little low thought I had him. 2nd was a bull at 37 yds with a softball size hole hit a limb. 3rd 20 min later bull perfect broad side shot 45 yrds sailed over the top. mind game started real bad, put me in the back I don't want to see another bull. This year practice at 50 yrds till I'm Robin Hood himself. That way 40 well seem like a chip shot.

[Wyo67]

Drew back on a beautiful muley buck at 35 yards last year while archery elk hunting. Let it fly, everything felt good, heard an odd noise with the arrow in flight and the buck took off no worse for wear.

Found the arrow had gone 30 yards, hit an old, rusted, invisible barb wire fence line and nose dived to the dirt. For a while, couldn't help but wonder what if I had aimed 1" higher or why that strand was there, but the one above and below it had rusted away and were laying on the ground... That's why it's huntin'...

[zpd307]

Last year the mind was in bad shape after a 3 miss week. 1st was a bear at 40 yrds just a little low thought I had him. 2nd was a bull at 37 yds with a softball size hole hit a limb. 3rd 20 min later bull perfect broad side shot 45 yrds sailed over the top. mind game started real bad, put me in the back I don't want to see another bull. This year practice at 50 yrds till I'm Robin Hood himself. That way 40 well seem like a chip shot.

eric, I am jealous. you get to let 3 arrows fly.... I haven't been able to in two years. hopefully Idaho will bring me good luck also!

[Fridaythe13th]

Idaho has been good to our group.
That is not going to happen this year: 1 shot 1 kill. Then the work begins.

ZPD 307 It's your year for the 300" plus bull. New area new luck.

[pointysticks]

Idaho is great. I've been once. It is too far for me to do any real scouting so we scouted as we went. We didn't have high hopes. But we got one in the last 8 minutes of the season. It was the only bull or elk we saw. It took so long to get into a good elk sign area. Next time we start there. Should be way better.

If I never ever see blow down areas and have to climb over acres of the stuff. I'll be just fine. It was brutal.

[Broken arrow]

I don't call them misses. I call them shoot and release. Works for me

[Indian Summer]

I don't call them misses. I call them shoot and release. Works for me

How would you know Broken? You've killed every elk you ever shot at brother!

[Broken arrow]

Nope you forgot about the first cow I missed