Ethical ? (long shot)

[demontang]

Even with the new bows out there you still have to be skilled to shot at longer ranges, and I dont think that many archery hunters shot as much as some of the guys on here I try and shot 2-3days a week during lunch break and I shot atleast 5 days a week starting 4 months before season.

[Hoytstaffshooter83]

certainly with the new bows anyone can shoot decent to good groups relativly fast, but to say anyone can shoot good enough with a new bow to kill at 60 + yrds is not the case, that kind of consistency can only be obatined with perfect form and shot execution time and time again, and that is TAUGHT, I have had hours upon hours of shooting lesssons to get to the level I am today and I still get more every month... not to mention 99% of bowhunters dont shoot the shot correctly, most "punch" the trigger and aniticapate the shot, very few exercise back tension into the equation and that is the ONLY way to shoot consistently accurate enough to be effective at ranges of that distance......

[rougheye]

If 99% of bowhunters dont shoot right than whats the diff between 60 & 50 or 40 or even 30 .  :dunno:what if i have buck fever , than i guess 5 yds is to much . to many variables to tell people how far they can shoot

[NoBark]

Actually, I believe it is important that we express ourselves on the issue. That is how
we as a society formulate some of our ethical decission making capabilities.  Peer pressure if you will, keeps us from doing things we probably shouldn't.

Happens in all of life, not just hunting. 

Here's where the real jist lays, those who are new to the sport need to know what the rest of us expect of them.  They represent me and I represnt them to those outside of the hunting community.  I want them to know that. 

In this discussion, I want them to be sure they make a quick, clean kill on the animal and not try some hail-mary "maybe if I can stick it I can get a second arrow into it"
shot. 

[Ray]

Environment dictates everything. If it's windy, brushy or the animal is moving, facing a strange direction or partially hidden. Taking shots out past 60 yards is certainly legal and everyone wants to be an expert but they know the shots they should not be making and their equipment. I suppose if you need a range finder you probably shouldn't be taking the shot. That's how I operate and I don't expect everyone else to operate that way.

[Hoytstaffshooter83]

thats a good idea, but that still depends on alot, my expectations for my brother and his first year were far more then I would expect from someone else, we shot all summer and I taught him proper form and shot execution and we decided on his max distance before the season started.... but for the normal beginner id say 40yrds and under....

[Ray]

I think a lot of first timers would be able to shoot 40 yards in perfect conditions their first year using modern equipment.

[rougheye]

Im not bitchin or complaining here but i am curious . How can you put a number on how far you can shoot before the season or even before the day ? If say you travel 300 miles to your hot spot and you find that when you get there it is blowing 15 miles per hour , do you just pack up and go home? you cant tell me you have practiced at 15 miles an hour , every angle and every range .   I think 40 is a good number to build on but i still dont get how its ethical or not . There are to many factors in every individual hunt to make a blanket statement like that . But it is a good topic     

[Hoytstaffshooter83]

His range was decided on his ability to hit accurately at certain distances, that was on a perfect scenario..... if the wind was blowing 15 I would pack up and call it a day, first off thats not good shooting conditons to say the least, 2nd animals could smell you from a mile away and if you were calling they could not hear you at all, I might try and hunt and stalk in on something really close.. but thats a maybe... at best

[rougheye]

So if the wind is blowing its not ethical to hunt?     Just trying to figure out what your talking about

[Hoytstaffshooter83]

with a bow and 15 mph winds? not really, and those conditions are really bad to hunt in either way.....

[Ray]

It is possible to stalk animals closer than 10 yards but sometimes it requires luck and some skill. For the most part that much wind is usually bad but sometimes you can get right inside the 10 yard range and it could be the ticket...

[Hoytstaffshooter83]

agreed and that is why I said I might try and stalk closer, but that is a vauge scenario, if the wind was right for where I wanted to hunt then yes it might help me get that close, and in tha wind I wouldnt want a shot father then 15yrds tops, but if it was swirling etc then its a certain no go....

[rougheye]

I guess im an unethical hunter by your standards . Have you guys ever missed an animal ? If so i guess the conditions were either wrong or you couldnt kill it even though you Knew for sure you could get it . Every miss is an unethical shot ?  really ?

[Ray]

Not at all rougheye. I have missed several times and lost one animal so far. I'm not telling you a list of rules to live your life by  I'm just talking what I like to try and adhere to. My part of the discussion is not meant to label you unethical. Some of the greatest archers I know have missed and lost game or even taken less than optimal shots.