While anytime outside of hunting season is what I’d consider pre-season, sitting here now in the month of April we are just 4 months away from the start of Fall. There is much to do with scouting, training, and dialing in gear to get ready for the main event come August. All that to say, bowhunting prep is very clear in my mind right now, so I wanted to share a few exercises I’ve been doing behind the bow to hone my accuracy for the season.
One thing I’ve been doing quite a bit of is an exercise I call “Keep in in the Lines.” On my target, I’ll run a piece of tape from top to bottom making a vertical line. The objective here is to fine-tune and work on left/right hits. Whether that means a sight adjustment, working on a technique that impacts left/right, or both, this is a super handy drill I feel is beneficial for getting dialed. The more precise you can be with your equipment, the better because things are rarely perfect during the heat of the moment in the field.
Simply shoot a few arrows and try to keep them in the vertical line. You don’t have to aim for the same spot, so you can avoid damaging arrows with this exercise. Just keep them in the line. If they are in the line, but slightly all left, you can make a fine-tuning adjustment to your sight to remedy that. These slight inconsistencies are easier to see with the line.
This can be done with a horizontal line as well to fine-tune elevation and even to fine-tune different yardages.
This next exercise is mostly going to be for those who shoot a surprise shot, regardless of the release type. Shooting a surprise shot is all about waiting for that shot to break and staying in your aim without fail. This is easy to say and do when practicing on a target. When it comes to actually hunting, there are times when you don’t have a year and a day to let the shot break. This is where many will resort to “punching the trigger.” I’m here to tell you, it doesn’t have to be that way.
If you’re anything like me, you are not willing to compromise the quality of your shot. In order to prepare more for those potential small windows during hunting season, I like to play with the speed of my execution. I’m executing my release with the same technique as normal, just with a bit more gas. It’s still a surprise shot, just sooner. When doing this, pay attention to your accuracy as well. You need to be able to execute, not just sooner, but accurately.
I’ve witnessed a common practice at the archery range: folks who draw their bow back in a big exaggerated movement. They’ll start with the bow very high and come down into their draw to anchor. This is fine at the archery range, and if you just naturally draw like this, that’s fine too…I guess. If you feel like you have to draw like this, then I’d suggest taking a look at lowering the poundage of your draw weight. You might be overbowed. That aside, animals spot movement. If you’re in the red zone drawing your bow back like you’re raising a glass, and an animal is looking your way, this could bust you. The solution to this is a practice I call “The Slow Draw.”
Start with your bow up with sight pointing at what you want to hit. Slowly pull your string straight back into your anchor. Animals spot up, down, left, and right movements easier than they do movement in a line toward or away from them. Drawing your bow back straight and away from them slowly will lower the chances of you being spotted. Don’t believe me? If you haven’t experienced it yourself, think back to how many times you’ve seen someone busted in a hunting video drawing their bow back…
I also want to point out that you can apply this logic for movement to stalking game animals. Moving directly toward an animal stands out far less than moving laterally.
Gosh, I can’t believe we’re already talking about another pre-season, but here we are. Time seems to move scary fast the more the years tick by. Which is a prime reason to take your pre-season prep seriously. Going the extra mile will cater towards earning that extra reward during hunting season. These are just a few things that have helped me through the years. I hope they help you too. Thanks and good luck out there.
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