Practice Session Routines

[Rhino]

What's everyones practice session routine once you know your bow's sighted in to prepare for hunting?

At home I can shoot out to 40 yards max. I warm up with 6 shots from 30. Then I shoot every 5 yards starting at 40 moving in to 20. If I pull off a bad shot, I'll shoot a 2nd arrow & move on. I stick with shooting bags at first & then mix in broadhead practice a month or so before the season opens. So far never have had a problem with my Montecs shooting the same as my field points.

At our camp I can easily shoot from an elevated position but I can't at home so all practice is done from an elevated position. I'll warm up at 20 there since I'm just shooting deer targets instead of a bag. I'll shoot from 35 to 20 yards at our deer targets set 5 yards apart.

[dbHunterNY]

shoot at a block early on. shoot 3 arrows at 80, 70, 60, and then 50 yards. take a break and get something done. then do the same at 40, 30, 20, and sometimes then around 5. as the season draws near i shoot from different positions like sitting in ground blind chair, elevated heights, and shoot at 3D deer targets. i don't usually shoot with all hunting gear on, but i've got any issues worked out to where i'm not worried about my usual hunting attire. also as the season draws near i only shoot out to 60 yards (max distance my pins have been setup for).

...aside from that it's going to 3D shoots throughout the summer. that is some the best practice, aside from shooting while sitting and in different positions.

...oh yea i practice with field points mainly. i shoot Rage broadheads out of a tuned bow so there's not too much worrying about point of impact. i do use the practice heads when starting to shoot at the 3D targets.

Edited July 27, 2011 by dbHunterNY

[toddyboman]

I generally shoot alot at 40, 50, and 60 yards. Just because then when I move into 30, 25, 20 and less it seems like a chip shot.

I don't have a set routine that I do every time....

But I often will shoot ONE arrow at 20, 25 yards. Cause that is my one shot at the monster I hope to shoot at during the season.......

Then I'll shoot a few at 30 yards to get warmed up. Then I move out to 50 and shoot a lot at that distance. Then sporadically shoot a few at 30 and less.

I also will shoot from my knees or sitting and finally I will draw and hold the bow back for as long as I can and just hold it then shoot. We all know we have often drew and had to hold a long time.....so I try to practice that....within reason

[MUDRUNNER]

At home I shoot 5 arrows at 20, 30, and 40 yards, then finish with 5 more at 20. Not sure why I do it that way. I keep it short at home, but when i'm at the bow shop I'll shoot quite a few more arrows.

[Ravin R10 man]

I might shoot a dozen arrows at 30 yards from an elevated stand in the yard..couple times a week.

then Slash & I go out to our actual hunting stands and shoot from them, and move the glendell around and retrieve arrows for each other

[Dawg]

I start out at 20 and move back 5 yards until I reach 40. Shooting around half a dozen times at each interval. I also like to shoot from different angles and from the climber.

[elkoholic]

I try to keep it "real" at this time of year, with the archery opener less than six weeks away. By that I mean that there is no warmup, the first shot is the only one that counts and as most of my archery hunting is for elk, the shot probably happens after a steep climb and the heart is pumping hard and my lungs are trying to suck in air. So, I grab the bow and walk to the far end of the property and then make a mad 200 yard dash through the trees before kneeling to make my first shot of the day. No set yardage for that first shot, my target just needs to be in the clear, or mostly in the clear. I need to be able to make that shot. If I'm thinking about sitting in a tree stand for deer I will sit or stand on the roof of the house for the first shot. It would not be a bad idea to get up there before first light and sit for an hour or so to let the body stiffen up a bit before taking that first shot while acting as if there is a limb to try to shoot around. I sometimes try to hold at full draw for extended periods of time before releasing that first arrow (or any arrow). You just have to make it real once the bow is sighted in and your form is perfected. I just wish I had more opportunities to actually put that practice to the "real" test.

[Michiganbowhunter_SQ2]

I don't really have a set routine. Sometimes I'll start at 20 sometimes at 40 or 50, and then move back or forward at 10 yard increments, or even shoot a whole session at one of the yardages. I don't have a specific amount of arrows to shoot at each distance either. I could shoot anywhere from 3 to 30 arrows at one spot. I just like to mix it up, if I were to set a routine I would probably get bored with it and feel like it is taking the fun out of shooting since I am forcing myself to do the same thing over and over.

[BearClaw]

Don't have a regular routine. I have an elevated stand behind the house and shoot at 20 yards. I mostly always use the 3-D target when I know everything is lined up. Only use the block or bag if I think I am shooting left or right on the 3-D. The bulls eye lets me know that it's not the bow, usually. I may shoot 6 arrows or I might shoot 12. The first shot is what counts so I really don't like to 'warm-up' per se. If my first arrow is spot on, I might quit for the evening. I do shoot more sometimes just to develop my bow muscles.