Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2019 i Petersen's Bowhunting

Like many archers, I find shooting in front of a crowd a bit unnerving. So, there was certainly a butterfly or two in my gut this June when I stepped up to the first target of the MTN OPS course at the Total Archery Challenge tour stop in Pennsylvania. With a packed practice range just a stone’s throw to my right and a busy vendor area behind me, there was nowhere to hide. And waaaay up the hill in front of me — 77 yards away, according to my rangefinder — a stone sheep 3-D target stood broadside. Geez, nothing like starting us off with a chip shot, I thought sarcastically as I adjusted the yardage dial on my sight. Taking a deep breath, I came to full draw, anchored,…

I have received many good tips during the 40 years I have been shooting a bow. This issue, I’ll share my three favorites in hopes they help you as much as they’ve helped me. Eliminate Variables One of the most memorable shooting tips I ever got came from fellow Field Editor (and world-champion target shooter) Randy Ulmer back in the late ’90s. His simple advice put everything into proper perspective. Randy said, “Any method is good form if you can repeat it exactly the same way every time you shoot.” Unfortunately, being perfectly repetitive is hard to do without focusing on eliminating the source of the variable. Randy’s tip was simple: Look for anything that can change from one shot to the next and then find ways to eliminate the…

Many years ago, one of our staffers was getting into competitive shooting and improving enough that, at the end of a tournament, he found himself tied for first place. All of his hard work had finally paid off! When the shoot-off began and everyone was watching, though, his nerves kicked into high gear and he could barely hold his pin on the target, let alone on the X. His heart rate had reached a point that when he looked down at his binoculars, he could literally see them bouncing off his chest with every beat. Needless to say, he lost that shoot-off. After the defeat, he decided he needed to do something. He’d experienced that level of stress and excitement before during a very embarrassing hunting experience in which his…

I was at the top of my whitetail bowhunting game. Over the past couple of months, I’d bow-killed three book bucks — two in Illinois and one in Kansas, but now, as the cold winds of winter blew my Midwestern whitetail season away, I longed for more. Christmas was knocking at the door, and I knew it would be slim pickings from here on out. Dreaming of a way to extend my bow season, I turned to thoughts of faraway places. I’d heard of Coues whitetails for some time. The few guys I knew who had bowhunted them all said the same thing: they were a supreme challenge. Feeling rather cocky, I decided it was finally time to find out for myself. Stuffing some gear, food and myself in my…

As a professional archer for the last 13 years, I’ve experienced almost every up and down this sport has to offer. As a result, I’m constantly going back to the basics, relearning techniques that I’ve proven countless times over. However, there are some things that aren’t so basic, that most people are never taught and that, quite honestly, don’t work for everyone. For some, though, they can be game-changing. For example, something that works well for me is remembering to relax my bow arm while aiming. Some days, my pin never moves and I think I’ve figured this game out; the next, I wake up and aim like I just drank a triple shot of espresso. I normally would just write this off as a bad day and hope for…

If you’re planning to hunt out West, it isn’t realistic to think you’ll get within 20 yards of a muley buck, let alone a bighorn sheep or antelope. You’ll rarely ease that close to anything in open country, so you need to be able to shoot accurately well beyond that distance. What we older nimrods considered a “long shot” 40 years ago is now a chip shot for skillful Western bowhunters. Veteran mountain hunters, for instance, know they have to be accurate to at least 40 or 50 yards if they want a reasonable chance of success. And in order to shoot that far with consistency, you need a quality bowsight! 10 Needed Features When I started bowhunting the Rockies in the ’70s, sights were fairly rudimentary. The first sights…

Mathews is a powerhouse in the archery industry. The company has top-of-the-line design tools, manufacturing equipment, test equipment and, most importantly, a talented and dedicated staff led by founder Matt McPherson. In short, Mathews’ bows have what it takes to bring something great to the table — your table. Mathews’ 2019 flagship bow, the Vertix, certainly does. It’s outfitted with an integrated, patent-pending arrow-rest mounting system, the new Engage grip and Mathews’ Crosscentric Cams upgraded with the new SwitchWeight Technology (modular draw-weight change). The Reverse Assist Roller Guard, 3D Damping, Dead-End String Stop and Monkey Tails are back, too. Switching Things Up Mathews’ Crosscentric Cams use the company’s Advanced Vectoring System (AVS) Technology, which employs two small discs on each cam that are mounted offset to the axle. Anchored to…

G5 STRIKER V2 G5 did what all successful companies do — move forward and improve. They took a look at their popular Striker broadhead and identified a few areas that could be upgraded. The new Striker V2 features a fully machined, stainless-steel ferrule. The 3 super-sharp Lutz blades are also somewhat different, with a longer tail, contoured belly for a deeper seat and more defined tip structure. The improved Anix Blade Locking System employs a stronger collar at the base and more defined ledge under the chisel tip. On top of all these new features, the Striker V2 features an increased cutting diameter of 1.25 inches and improved aerodynamics. $39.99 per 3 | g5outdoors.com INNERLOC FALCON Innerloc’s Falcon is an all-stainless, 3-blade head with several new…

During my 17 years as a consulting wildlife biologist working with whitetail deer, I have never been more excited about a new management tool than I am right now. Those who read my column regularly know I am a huge proponent of developing and managing high-quality, year-round food sources for deer, a process I refer to as “regenerative wildlife agriculture.” This habitat-enhancement effort has had the greatest positive impact, by far, on the quality of the deer-management programs I’ve been a part of. These programs are scattered across the whitetail’s range and represent properties from just a few acres to several thousand. If you get at least five inches of rain a year and the sun shines, food plots will change your game. And if I only had time to…

Last issue, we heard from pro shop owners about trends in the crossbow industry. One they mentioned is that new hunters tend to buy package crossbows, but as they gain experience and knowledge, they come back to upgrade their accessories. With that being said, let’s take a look at a few of the latest crossbow accessories. Several years ago, the compound bow went on a diet, tapering down to small-diameter arrows. The crossbow industry has been slow to follow suit, partly because most crossbows only accept standard-diameter shafts (shooting anything smaller risks damaging the crossbow). Barnett has addressed this dilemma with its new HyperFlite bolts ($54.99 per three; barnettcrossbows.com ), designed specifically for use with Barnett’s Hyper series of crossbows. Hyper-Flite bolts have a .204-inch diameter, are 22 inches long…

Manufacturer: Mathews Archery, 608-269-2728; mathewsinc.com Model: Vertix Riser: Dual bridged, reflex Grip: Engage, one piece Limbs: Wide base, split, Gordon Composites Draw Weights: 60-, 65-, 70- and 75-pounds peak; modular Cam System: Crosscentric Cam with SwitchWeight Technology Letoff: 80 or 85 percent (81.2 percent as tested); modular Draw Lengths: 26-30 1/2 inches, in half-inch increments; modular String: Zebra Trophy, 452X, 61 5/8 inches Cables (x2): Zebra Trophy, 452X, 29 1/8 inches Brace Height: 6 inches Axle-to-Axle Length: 30 inches Mass Weight: 4.67 (as advertised); 4.65 pounds (as tested) Finish: Stone, Black, Realtree Edge, Optifade Elevated II, Optifade Subalpine, Ridge Reaper Forest, Ridge Reaper Barren Advertised IBO Speed: 343 fps Suggested Retail Price: $1,099 Comments: Fast, well balanced, customizable and quiet.…

Perched 16 feet up a beech tree firmly rooted into the rocky hillside, I sat enveloped in darkness. I breathed a sigh of relief after having cautiously maneuvered into position without alarming any of the deer that were presumably feeding only a couple hundred yards away. I felt like I was navigating the ravines with two left feet at times during my slow trek to the base of the beech. Nevertheless, my winding route through the rolling Kentucky topography and into the bachelor group’s lair had worked perfectly. A bobwhite’s gentle assembly call served as nature’s declaration that a new day was beginning. The pure black of night was ever so slowly replaced by an ashy-blue light. I was confident I’d at least lay eyes on the bucks whose bedroom…

A Variable Vector The Vector is a 4-blade, micro-adjustable mechanical broadhead allowing bowhunters to change its cutting diameter and blade angle from 1 inch to 1¾ inches. This enables hunters to tune the broadhead to the kinetic-energy requirements of a given game animal. Just dial the collar and choose a setting — it’s that easy. The Vector’s ferrule is made of 7075-T6 aluminum; its blades are made of 420 stainless steel. Crossbow-approved, the broadhead is tipped by 440C stainless-steel X-OUT blades for a sharp cut at any speed. MSRP: $44.95 per 3 Contact: SWAT Broadheads; swatbroadheads.com Best Case Scenario The 3615 and 3915 Deluxe Compound/Recurve Roller Bow Cases from Easton pair the 360-degree protection of a hard case with the flexibility of a soft case, providing plenty of room for…