HOW FAR IS TO FAR??

Show_Me_Your_Rack · Post by **Show_Me_Your_Rack** » Fri Jul 13, 2007 12:45 pm

from that picture they do look flat but i will promise you that they were shot from 130 yards and they are angled alot more than that looks like i will shoot some more and then i will take a side shot!!!!

bowhuntercop · Post by **bowhuntercop** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 9:04 pm

TO ALL THEIR OWN! I USUALLY PRACTICE OUT TO 90 YARDS BUT RARELY HAVE THE OPPOTUNITY TO SHOOT AT AN ANIMAL AT THAT DISTANCE. DONT DOG ON PEOPLE CAUSE THEY DO SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULDN'T! REMEMBER THOUGH, YOU PLAY HOW YOU PRACTICE. GOOD LUCK TO ALL THIS UP COMING SEASON.

Post by **killerbee** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 9:23 pm

i would gladly sit in a contest of long distance shooting, i would lose some as also i would win a few. that said it is not even on the same page as hunting and i would hope that in cop training your tought that practice can never truly prepare you for real life situations!

Mark · Post by **Mark** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 9:38 pm

bowhuntercop wrote:TO ALL THEIR OWN! I USUALLY PRACTICE OUT TO 90 YARDS BUT RARELY HAVE THE OPPOTUNITY TO SHOOT AT AN ANIMAL AT THAT DISTANCE. DONT DOG ON PEOPLE CAUSE THEY DO SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULDN'T! REMEMBER THOUGH, YOU PLAY HOW YOU PRACTICE. GOOD LUCK TO ALL THIS UP COMING SEASON.

You're right. And I wasn't dogging on the kid. He asked the question, I answered it. In my humble opinion, the shots that he takes are TOO FAR. Should I have sugar coated it? Should I have suggested that he maybe try 175 yards?

I will say that looooonnnnngggggg shots with an arrow are very irresponsible. You can't deny that.

And with that said, I don't care how far "hunters" shoot with their bow. It's not my problem. But I might suggest that people don't post it on a public forum and then get all wadded up when they get called on it.

JBird · Post by **JBird** » Sun Jul 15, 2007 10:01 pm

50 or 60 depending on the situation.

creamernator · Post by **creamernator** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 12:28 pm

While I understand that it is a different ball game out west, it seems absolutely ridiculous to me to shoot at a deer-sized animal with a bow at 130 yards. I live near a bow shop, and the owner is a buddy of mine who travels all over the midwest and south as a competetive shooter. He can blaze any target inside 60 yards as good as anyone I have ever seen, and as good a shooter as he is, I guarantee he would never even contemplate shooting at a live animal at distances in the triple digits.

For me, if you are shooting deer at 80+ yards, your groupings at 30 yards had better be 3 arrows touching each other! As I said, bowhunting the midwest is not the same game, and I understand that. I practice to 50 yards all the time. But that being said, I have arrowed close to 20 whitetails and never had to take a shot past 25 yards. I pride myself on getting close so that there is ZERO DOUBT when I draw that the animal is going to die quickly and ethically. I don't think archery tackle is the right gear for such extreme ranges, but that's my $.02 worth.

Mark · Post by **Mark** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 6:08 pm

creamernator wrote:While I understand that it is a different ball game out west, it seems absolutely ridiculous to me to shoot at a deer-sized animal with a bow at 130 yards. I live near a bow shop, and the owner is a buddy of mine who travels all over the midwest and south as a competetive shooter. He can blaze any target inside 60 yards as good as anyone I have ever seen, and as good a shooter as he is, I guarantee he would never even contemplate shooting at a live animal at distances in the triple digits.

For me, if you are shooting deer at 80+ yards, your groupings at 30 yards had better be 3 arrows touching each other! As I said, bowhunting the midwest is not the same game, and I understand that. I practice to 50 yards all the time. But that being said, I have arrowed close to 20 whitetails and never had to take a shot past 25 yards. I pride myself on getting close so that there is ZERO DOUBT when I draw that the animal is going to die quickly and ethically. I don't think archery tackle is the right gear for such extreme ranges, but that's my $.02 worth.

And your opinion is worth a lot more than $.02 in this case!

Archery hunting out west isn't any different than hunting any other area. Really the only difference is the terrain. Some people use the excuse that you just can't get close out here. That's simply not true. I've never had to take a shot over 50 yards. And to some, 50 yards is a long shot.

There's no excuse to take a shot at 100+ yards. If you can't get closer than 60 yards, buy a gun...

Heads or Tails · Post by **Heads or Tails** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 9:45 pm

Jones and Creamernator, You both have spoken wise words (words worthy of an invitation into ones hunting camp).
I am starting to get the feeling this post was meant to turn into a "spittin' contest" to say "look what I can do" or a glorified "show and tell". That is cool that a man can shoot far, as a few of us have mentioned we do "practicing". However, when we step in the realm of hunting situations even the best shooter is never sworn to an ethical or clean shot at a long range.
I have grown up in the west all of my life and been envolved in my share of mulies being harvested. IMO if you can't break that 50-60 yard barrier-try harder, get closer or don't shoot.
As mentioned previously, if the yellow jacket target would have been a deer-there is a good chance it would have been a far back liver or possibly a "green arrow" hit. Both have low retrieval rates.

Kerwin · Post by **Kerwin** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 10:08 am

This is the classic debate. Do you want to be a shooter or a hunter.

Yes hunting out west is a lot dif than here in MO. And Yes I do use equipment that limits my shot range. But for my $0.02 20 yards is a long shot. My avg shot is about 12 yards. The Mule deer and Elk I have takin out west were at about 15 yards.

Long yardage scares me, that animal can react a lot in the time the arrow takes to get there. Perfect shot turns into a bad shot with one step of the animal.

This is one of those arguments that will some day come back to bite us in the b---.

All I ask is that before you drop that string be 100% sure you can make a clean kill, no matter what the yardage is. Everyone needs to know their limitations. Mine is 20 yards I love 10 yards. And yes I don't kill as many animals as others but...

stick slinger · Post by **stick slinger** » Fri Jul 20, 2007 8:59 pm

topics like this are exacly what the anti-hunters use to try to take our right to hunt away. everyone has their own opinions on certian topics like this one, thats fine. I personally feel that people who boast on taking shots at game with a bow up to and exeeding 100 yards need to take a hunter saftey program again. the wrong people hear those comments and we as hunters are refered to as slobs. Im not saying these shots are not out of the question. just watch what you are saying around the crowd. we dont need to give the wrong people more ammo against us. Im not knocking ya. keep on shooting