Preseason Preparation

Deer season in Georgia is rapidly approaching, and I've been getting ready ever since last season ended...washing and putting away clothing and gear, reevaluating what worked for me and what didn't, and thinking about what I'm going to do differently this time around. Last season was the first year that I didn't even take a gun into the woods with me. I was a 100% bowhunter last year, and even though not having a gun cost me a shot at a nice 8-pointer, I loved every second of it. I'm planning on doing the same this year. Hopefully "The Big 8" above will make it by my stand during legal hunting hours this season. He's definitely on the hitlist!

I've been shooting my bows periodically all summer long, but in the last month or so I've really been trying to shoot every day. I bought a new (to me) Hoyt Alphamax 32 about two weeks ago, so I've been doing most of my shooting with it. It's definitely going to be my go-to bow this year, and Ol' Reliable - the Mathews Switchback - is going to be pulling back-up duty. I just absolutely love the Alphamax, and it's slinging darts (this group was from 50 yards).

One of the things I like to do with my bows as I prepare for the season is a little test to see how quiet they are. I take my video camera and set it up directly downrange between me and the target. Then I shoot the arrows directly over the camera. This, in theory, gives me an idea of how the bow sounds to a deer. In this video I'm shooting my Alphamax at a target 50 yards away, with the camera 20 yards from me. I think this was not the best setup because I think the sound of the bow is amplified by the house behind me. It's still pretty quiet, though. Notice how the sound of the arrow hitting the target (30 yards BEHIND the camera) is louder than the sound of the bow (20 yards in FRONT of the camera). Heck, even the sound of the arrow in flight is louder than the bow itself. Nice...

Once I've got my bow tuned and dialed-in, I do most of my practice at long range, which for me is 50 yards or more. No, I don't plan on taking a shot at a whitetail at that range, but practicing at long range does a couple of things. #1: It makes those shorter shots seem really easy...the target looks HUGE at 25 yards. #2: It really makes you pay attention to your form.

Even the most minor torquing of the bow or inconsistency in your form will be readily apparent on the target. I'm wearing my facemask and gloves to make my practice even more realistic. Those things can cause you to change your anchor point or otherwise affect your form, so you have to practice with them to make sure nothing changes.

My office has a back entrance that is elevated, so I took my old Block target to work. At lunch I'll go outside and take a few shots with my bow. My treestand is a little bit higher than the back porch, and the deer is probably going to be a little farther away, but it's still good practice for shooting from an elevated position rather than shooting from the ground.

Only 10 days left! We're checking our trail camera and hanging our stands this weekend, and then next Saturday we'll be getting into the woods at oh-dark-thirty to start another Georgia deer season!