With every new bow setup there is a process. One of the most important parts of that process is getting the new bow sighted in. I recently snagged the new EVO XF 33 from PSE and have been going through the motions of getting it all ready for the 2022 hunting season. In light of that, here is yet another step in my personal process. I’m going to walk you through how I sight in a bow. This is going to be applicable to multi-pin sights. There are many ways to skin a cat, this way has always worked for me though.
New year, new bow! I just recently picked up the brand new for 2022 PSE EVO XF 33 and man, it’s a shooter. Each year that goes by, I am always curious how companies progress and how they can make what’s better even more better. Last year I shot the PSE Xpedite NXT and said more than once that it was my favorite bow. After spending the last few weeks with the new XF though, that statement might change to “one of my favorite bows.”
I’m a big fan of the euro mount, especially for deer/elk. They’ve got a rustic look and I just love the color contrast between skull and antler. Early on, I would go through the whole process of creating these on my own. Boil, pressure washer, boil, pressure washer, etc. I enjoyed the process, but man it always took me forever to finish. With the time crunch that is now my reality going through that process is something I haven’t been able to revisit. Well, not entirely at least. After getting a hot tip from a buddy, the lazy man’s euro mount sounded like it was a perfect alternative. Now, a few years later, I’m happy to say it was.
Year in and year out life is filled with lessons. If you’re like me and always striving to be better than yesterday, you pay attention to those lessons. This past 2021 hunting season provided me with more than its fair share of takeaways, just like it should be. Here, I’m going to lay out my biggest lessons learned from the 2021 hunting season. I walked away from it with new perspective, and with any hope, you’ll walk away from this article with the same.
Another year has flown by. It’s crazy how fast the months end up in the rearview mirror sooner than later. You know what they say though. Time flies when you’re having fun, and I’ve had a boat load of it this year. From chasing Arizona coues in January to Idaho elk in September, this year has been jam packed with adventure. Throughout that time, I’ve been fortunate to bring along some remarkable gear. Stuff that has made life easier and some that I just flat out am psyched about. So, in light of that I’m going to run through my top 12 favorite gear items I’ve used throughout 2021. I figure, it’s December, so why not 12 items to reflect the month? Keep in mind most of these did not come out in 2021, but I did in fact use them in 2021. This is going to be a 2 PART series, so stay tuned!
We were young. For the entirety of our friendship, my buddy John and I have shared the wild hills and waters of Arizona together. In our early 20’s John was suddenly captivated by bowhunting and soon after I caught the bug as well. When we first started trying our hands at archery hunting during our OTC deer hunts here, we swore off hunting coues whitetail deer. They were too hard, too jumpy, and way out of our reach given our limited bowhunting skills. Fast forward to present day and I have become obsessed with them. From their cagey nature to their beautiful coats, unique antlers, and second to none tasting meat. Hunting coues deer with a bow and arrow is the ultimate test for a bowhunter. While they are arguably the hardest animal to spot and stalk with a bow in North America, they are not impossible. Here’s a few proven tidbits of info I’ve gathered bowhunting the gray ghost through the years.
What an exciting time of year! Fall is finally upon us. Hopefully, you’ve got some sweet tags in your pocket and are hitting the hills sooner than later. I’m currently packing for a backcountry archery elk hunt. I cannot wait! September is a special month to be in the mountains. Aside from that, I just wanted to reach out and let you all know that Season 2 of Dialed in Diaries is in FULL SWING over on my Youtube Channel.
A few years back, I started experiencing some pretty bad bouts of target panic in my archery game. It was so bad that I’d flinch and completely miss my target. The dents on my brick wall in the backyard are proof. Target panic has a few different forms, but for me it chaotically rested in my anticipation of the shot. I’d anticipate when the shot was going to go off and react to that before it would actually go off. A very similar situation to when one is behind a rifle and either forgets to take the safety off or forgets to rack another round in the chamber and pulls the trigger. Nothing happens with the gun, but the shooter, in many cases, tends to flinch in anticipation of the explosion that didn’t actually happen. After coaching and countless hours behind the bow, the only solution I could come up with was to change the process entirely. This is what lead me to bowhunting with a thumb button release aid in the first place.
The internet is a wild thing. A few years back, I was connected to a fella named Brad Brooks, owner of the hunting company Argali. Brad wanted to come down for an archery coues deer hunt during the month of January. What was once just a conversation on tactics turned into us planning to hunt together that year and the start of a friendship. We had an absolute blast during the 2020 archery coues deer season, so naturally, we made plans to link back up the following year for the 2021 season.
The previous season, Brad had quite a few opportunities at coues bucks, but in the end, came up empty handed after his arrow rest malfunctioned. This caused him to actually miss a really great buck not once, but twice. That was a hard pill to swallow after grinding 9 days out in coues country. You can actually watch that hunt unfold via a Vortex Select Series.
This year, we returned to our 2020 stomping grounds for the 2021 season. We saw countless numbers of deer, had a lot of great laughs, and even loosed an arrow.
As you can see, we had a great hunt. Yes, it was a bummer that we couldn’t find Brad’s hard earned buck, but that’s just how the cookie crumbles sometimes. Hunt long enough with a bow and these things are bound to happen. It’s all about having a positive attitude during these unfortunate times, and Brad hit the nail on the head with that, which is something I admire. He’ll be back down here in Arizona coues country I’m sure. And I’m sure we’ll again have a fantastic hunt together.
I cannot believe it! Season 1 of Dialed in Diaries is officially over. It has been a dream of mine for many years to put something like this together, so to see it all come to fruition is pretty special for me. Thank you all so much for the kind words and support through the season. I had some pretty low moments, as well as some pretty high ones. It was a great hunting season to say the least, and I can’t wait to get Season 2 started! First up is going to be backcountry spring bear here in Arizona. After that, I’ll travel to Idaho for, not one, but two spring bear tags! Many adventures lie ahead and I’m truly looking forward to sharing it all with you along the way.
Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to the Youtube and blog to stay up to date with all future posts and videos. And until next time, stay safe out there, and good luck in the draws! 2021 has officially started!
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