• The SH Membership has gone live. Only SH Members have access to post in the classifieds. All members can view the classifieds. Starting in 2020 only SH Members will be admitted to the annual hunting contest. Current members will need to follow these steps to upgrade: 1. Click on your username 2. Click on Account upgrades 3. Choose SH Member and purchase.
  • We've been working hard the past few weeks to come up with some big changes to our vendor policies to meet the changing needs of our community. Please see the new vendor rules here: Vendor Access Area Rules

Observations from the weekend.

Loopwing

Well-Known Member
SH Member
Joined
Mar 10, 2020
Messages
1,467
Location
Virginia
I was able to double up last Saturday on a couple doe. One at sunrise and one about 1740. You have to love those cold fronts and oak trees. The first doe came to 25 yards walking broad side the whole time. Heard her crash.
NOW FOR THE OBSERVATION.
At about 4:40 a big spike and doe came walking into the oak tree about 60 yards. I watched did not even reach for the crossbow. Then about 5:30 they start walking back. This time 40 yards right on the button. I grab the crossbow and the deer have no idea I am around. She stops at 40 yards completely broadside and I aim for a heart shot and send it. She hears the crossbow go off and drops, I mean her belly almost hits the ground and my arrow goes right over her back. Eye opening how quick flinch their reflexes are. I will not be taking anymore 40 yard shots. She did get curious and come back to check out the sound. That was her fatal mistake. She could not flinch and drop enough that time. I think my bow is moving at 340fps
 
I was able to double up last Saturday on a couple doe. One at sunrise and one about 1740. You have to love those cold fronts and oak trees. The first doe came to 25 yards walking broad side the whole time. Heard her crash.
NOW FOR THE OBSERVATION.
At about 4:40 a big spike and doe came walking into the oak tree about 60 yards. I watched did not even reach for the crossbow. Then about 5:30 they start walking back. This time 40 yards right on the button. I grab the crossbow and the deer have no idea I am around. She stops at 40 yards completely broadside and I aim for a heart shot and send it. She hears the crossbow go off and drops, I mean her belly almost hits the ground and my arrow goes right over her back. Eye opening how quick flinch their reflexes are. I will not be taking anymore 40 yard shots. She did get curious and come back to check out the sound. That was her fatal mistake. She could not flinch and drop enough that time. I think my bow is moving at 340fps
PREACH! unbelievable reaction time for whitetails man. Any idea if her head was down? i know sometimes it all happens to quick to remember but theres some interesting footage of this being a major factor to how quick/far they are able to drop. i think growing deer.tv on youTube had an episode on it a few years ago. past 30 is so tempting but even with a fast movin arrow its a lot to go wrong. Can you imagine being able to duck a xbow bolt at 40 yds??? i guess thats what makes hunting deer so awesome to me. amazing animals
 
I haven't watched the tactacam footage yet. I will watch it soon, but I think I remember her head being up and looking the way she was heading 90 degrees away from me.
Yep, no more shots past 30 on deer.

NOW, the 50 yard shot I took on that turkey 2 weeks ago is a different story. He was looking right at me (didn't see me), and never saw the arrow flying directly into the middle of his chest.
 
Damn thats awesome! I cant even do that with a scattergun.
 
Thats what i meant. Clean shaven just in time for the rut. Ow owwwww hubba hubba
 
I was able to double up last Saturday on a couple doe. One at sunrise and one about 1740. You have to love those cold fronts and oak trees. The first doe came to 25 yards walking broad side the whole time. Heard her crash.
NOW FOR THE OBSERVATION.
At about 4:40 a big spike and doe came walking into the oak tree about 60 yards. I watched did not even reach for the crossbow. Then about 5:30 they start walking back. This time 40 yards right on the button. I grab the crossbow and the deer have no idea I am around. She stops at 40 yards completely broadside and I aim for a heart shot and send it. She hears the crossbow go off and drops, I mean her belly almost hits the ground and my arrow goes right over her back. Eye opening how quick flinch their reflexes are. I will not be taking anymore 40 yard shots. She did get curious and come back to check out the sound. That was her fatal mistake. She could not flinch and drop enough that time. I think my bow is moving at 340fps
To travel 40 yds at 340 ft/sec takes .35 seconds. Now I know that .35 seconds sounds like a really short time but consider even a really slow walking pace of 1 yd/sec (if you don't think that's slow try walking 1 stride every 1 Mississippi) . In .35 seconds a deer moving at that extremely leisurely pace will move more than a foot.

In more human terms, a pitched ball at 90mph takes about .45 seconds to get from the pitchers hand to the catcher's glove. In that time a person can make a decision not only as to whether or not the ball is on target but also determine the balls trajectory and initiate a swing to make contact with the ball. If we "slow" humans can do that imagine the capabilities of a "quick" whitetail.
 
Boyne that is a great breakdown. When I shot that turkey I had time to actually watch the lighted nock fly, hit the target, and think to myself, GOOD SHOT.
 
Last edited:
the first deer I ever shot with the bow, was a broadside shot at a doe, 15 yards, shooting a recurve that was pushing 160fps
from the ground
the deer ducked, spun around, and stood up in the time it took the arrow to reach the point I aimed at
the arrow entered the deer and spined it from the opposite side that I originally shot at.
amazing speed
 
I have one that if I had not seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it let alone thought even possible and ha e never seen let alone heard of its equivalent
Was over 20 years ago and I was shooting a PSE Fireflight bow set at 82lb draw weight and using a Nap 100grn 1-3/16" T-Head CD FBBH and a 29.5" aluminum arrow with a DL of 29"
Deer was a very good sized 2.5 year old 10 point
Shot was 21 yards broadside but the shot was at an angle as the buck stopped short of even with me with his head facing to my left
Broadhead entered through his chest just missing his scapula by less than 2" and I saw the buck at the impact spin 180* ran back the way he came so fast it was literally a blear of motion I distinctly heard what sounded like the arrow coming BACK towards my direction as it rattled through the underbrush and sure enough found my arrow laying on the ground around 11-12 yards from my tree with Broadhead pointed back in the direction of my treestand at least 10 yards closer than the buck when I shot him as confirmed by haircand blood I found where the buck was standing when I shot him
Which lead me to the inescapable conclusion the buck spun 180* so fast the arrow had not yet finished passing through him before he completely spun 180* and had completed the 180* turn and began running back the way he came as my arrow was STILL in motion and the process of passing through his chest cavity and BEFORE it exited his body and flew back in my direction also a 180* change in direction of flight.
Without doubt the most amazing example of high-speed movement of a living creature I have ever personally seen or heard of.
IIRC my bow was shooting at around 265fps then as confirmed by a Chronograph
 
I have one that if I had not seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it let alone thought even possible and ha e never seen let alone heard of its equivalent
Was over 20 years ago and I was shooting a PSE Fireflight bow set at 82lb draw weight and using a Nap 100grn 1-3/16" T-Head CD FBBH and a 29.5" aluminum arrow with a DL of 29"
Deer was a very good sized 2.5 year old 10 point
Shot was 21 yards broadside but the shot was at an angle as the buck stopped short of even with me with his head facing to my left
Broadhead entered through his chest just missing his scapula by less than 2" and I saw the buck at the impact spin 180* ran back the way he came so fast it was literally a blear of motion I distinctly heard what sounded like the arrow coming BACK towards my direction as it rattled through the underbrush and sure enough found my arrow laying on the ground around 11-12 yards from my tree with Broadhead pointed back in the direction of my treestand at least 10 yards closer than the buck when I shot him as confirmed by haircand blood I found where the buck was standing when I shot him
Which lead me to the inescapable conclusion the buck spun 180* so fast the arrow had not yet finished passing through him before he completely spun 180* and had completed the 180* turn and began running back the way he came as my arrow was STILL in motion and the process of passing through his chest cavity and BEFORE it exited his body and flew back in my direction also a 180* change in direction of flight.
Without doubt the most amazing example of high-speed movement of a living creature I have ever personally seen or heard of.
IIRC my bow was shooting at around 265fps then as confirmed by a Chronograph
I've shot a buck before that rodeo'd like that but it wasn't faster than penetration. The arrow was almost through, about 6" left in the chest I would say, and during his spin his offside shoulder launched the arrow the rest of the way through and about 10 yards back towards my tree at a 45 degree angle. My buck last year also threw an arrow about 10 yards. It happens so fast that we don't even get a chance to break it down and register it!
 
Back
Top