Why do they miss so much? 30 YDS and under!!!

[WSU]

Glad I'm not the only one that screws up once in a while!

[HUNTINCOUPLE]

Personally have missed a lot of animals at 30yd and under. The list is long of reasons. Last year was a bull elk our 6yr old daughter called in right into our laps at 20yds. Arrow deflected off of unseen branch. That one still hurts today........... But it keeps us going back for more!!!!!!!

[pope]

Dang Bearpaw! Those are some crazy stories!

 

[Becky]

I miss every year I don't go out there.

[cbond3318]

I missed a good buck in 2010 at 35 with my 30/30, broadside, calm deer , excited shooter
I missed 3 different times on the same buck last year with my muzzleloader, all under 30. still don't know what happened there 
I missed a broadside sabor spike elk last year archery, eyeballed the range at 40, shot right over him. He was across a steep creek cut and was actually 25. Oh and my knees were knocking.

I think I get so danged excited is my issue, heck my knees get knocking something fierce when I got a big salmon on the hook. Makes me know why I do what I do. If it ever goes away I'll stop hunting and fishing. Controlling it is steep learning curve every year.

[Pathfinder101]

I clean-missed a buck last year out of my ground blind at 18 yards.  I shot, saw him jump and take off.  I watched him run up the hill and spent 5 minutes fully expecting him to tip over.  When he went back to feeding in full view about 800 yards away I went to go look for blood.  Nothing.  It was such a clean miss that I couldn't even find the arrow (and i still look around for it every time I am back near that waterhole).  I saw the buck several more times during the season and he was definitely not hit.  In fact, I saw him while scouting last week again (yes, he's bigger, but has the same funky rack).
To this day, the only thing that I can think of is that I must have skipped the arrow off the bottom of the window of my blind and sailed it over his back.  He must have jumped at the sound.

Like has been said several times...stuff happens...

[ribka]

Maybe I'm not as good as everyone else. I missed an elk a couple years ago for no reason other than operator error. Stuff happens.

Most logical post in this thread. Stuff happens.

Once you hunt archery for many years ( over 20 years) after flinging 1000's of arrows in practice , you would be surprised at missed "easy shots" while archery hunting.  . I have missed shots ( twice)  over animals at 15 yds before. Make that same shot a 1000 times in practice but you'll see once you archery hunt for years stuff happens. Having an animal close to you at under 20 yds can be be nerve wracking and make you forget to pick a spot, string hit your sleeve, hit a twig etc..

But making a 400 yd shot on a deer with a rifle aint that exciting

[flyguide]

Target Panic.  Its always there but shows up during high stress events.

[Thefisherman83]

I missed a nice 5x5 bull, in a field, at 12yds.  It all happened so fast I don't recall even looking through my peep, watched the arrow sail clear over his back.  I had the bull fever pretty bad.  It was opening morning on my first year archery elk hunting so I was pretty excited.

[huntindoc]

Great to hear all the misses.  We've all had them...

Couple years back, I was shooting little white tail bucks for the freezer in Oregon.  Little bitty spike comes in.  I flat missed him at 15 yards!  Shot right over him.  Next week, I'm in a ground blind, and I missed him again at 12 yards!  I still have no idea how....  Told the kids he was a spirit deer and could not be killed.  Never did get him.

[DIYARCHERYJUNKIE]

missed a bull at 7 yards...  Skipped a branch and the arrow went waaaaaayyy left.    Still haven't killed a bull...