Any of you consider quitting trad?? Tough year. .

[KSdan]

Just curious.  Been shooting trad for almost 20 years.  Even won or near won a few local shoots.  To be honest, I have had the blessing of hunting some great areas the last ten years.  I have harvested a few great mature deer. However, for every one I have harvested I have missed a "chip" shot at deer that may be hard to come by one day soon.  I missed 155+ deer the last two years in a row, and made a couple of marginal hits that harvested but were less than my typical ability.  It is purely the mental thing I know, but I am very frustrated.  

I deeply enjoy shooting and the romantic part of trad archery but I am finding that I just can not over come the issue with live critters.  Frankly, I am a hunter and began trad archery because I thought it fit my hunting style better. . .perhaps even a superior "hunting" weapon.  But I am seriously second guessing the entire process right now.  I am seeing guys regularly harvest deer with their compounds with far less effort. . .and yes, I know the effort argument. . .but if it does not result in clean kills should I stay at it?

Anyone else went through any tough years and resolve it?

Thanks- I will sit back and observe.

Dan

[Benha]

Go back to a compound? Nope not me. But you need to do what feels right to you. Good luck.

[gobbler10ga]

well I missed 5 this year my first season trad I aint lookin back

[Orion]

Dan:  I've been there, but I long ago decided that how is more important than how big or how many, so I have stuck with it, for about 45 years now.  When I miss or don't make a good shot, it's usually because I made a poor decision to shoot.  My fix is to become more and more selective, and that usually means opting for closer shots as well.  Only you can decide what's best for you.  Good luck.

[kennym]

Orion nailed it the way I see it!! Heck,I had bad years when I used ta gun hunt. Good luck whichever way ya go!  

[katman]

I also lost my confidence in being able to make a clean harvest with trad bow about 10 years ago, forced myself to not hunt with my longbow and picked up the compound (for the first time) for 9 years, went back to the longbow this year and have harvested 5 animals and one miss. I feel your pain, for me until I knew I could cleanly harvest the animal I could not hunt with the longbow. Yes it is between the ears and do not know of a simple solution. I would shoot the longbow OK in the back yard but lacked the needed confidence, tried many different approaches to practice, but a total layoff worked for me.

[joe skipp]

I'm 54 and been shooting Trad since I was 16. Plenty of misses and thankfully only 4 lost animals over the years. I never once thought of shooting a compound because it was supposed to be easier. The older I get, I'm really enjoying the up close and personal shots I take and spending the days stillhunting over Mtns and valleys. Think of it as a "slump", just like a ballplayer you will work out of it and your confidence and enthusiasm will return. If your serious about going to the compound, then take your rifle out and fill the freezer. Same thing...both weapons are geared to make your hunting easier.

[carterT]

Dan, Hang in there man! When I started I had no one to help me and made many mistakes.I got a few deer and missed alot.I went back to compound but I still shot instinctive.Killed the biggest deer of my life at about 8yds.Even though I am proud of my buck which scored in the upper 150s I always regret not taking my recurve.I found the compound so easy to shoot instinctive and missing game very little.But I beleive that if shooting trad gear is in your blood you will never be satisfied with those wheels.I have come full circle and have found my home.It doesn't matter what you shoot you will never get them all.But when you do it the hard way the reward is much sweeter.If someone chooses to shoot with wheels that is fine but for some they will never understand why we do what we do.but hey,THEY JUST DON'T GET IT!!   good luck and GOD BLESS  Tony

[George D. Stout]

You don't need anyone's permission, or sanction, to do what you need to do.  That's up to you.  I wouldn't even consider a compound...I would put sights on the recurve first.

[dougers]

i would venture to say that more people put bad shots on animals with compounds than we think. i know of many.  sure the gadgets of compounds will eliminate some error, but with that comes the option for more marginal shots to be taken, i.e. longer shots.  i am pretty new to this and have never used a compound and i would hate to see someone with your experience quit.  maybe you could devide your time with the two.  maybe you could use the compound for serious horn hunting and use your trad bow to make clean, close, and "easy" shots to still enjoy the sport. wait til you feel that you have accomplished what you wanted for the season and then break out the trad bow to keep it alive.

[SubDoc]

I have made the choice not to hunt the past few years because my job does not allow me to shoot on a consistant basis. I have just transfered to a new duty station and should have ample time to shoot.
I have thought about picking up my compound but haven't. It's not the same feeling.

[dudley152]

I went back to traditional archery two years ago after hunting with a compound for 20+ years. Shortly after that, I came down with a neurological disease that forced me to take well over a year off from shooting. The docs speculate it could be MS or possibly the effects of exposure to Agent Orange.

So far, I've missed the last two years of hunting (bow and rifle) because of it. Am I going to quit and return to a compound - heck no! I thank the Lord each day that I am able to shoot my bow. Sometimes it's only a couple of arrows; other days I can fling a couple of dozen. There is something about traditional archery that has a calming influence on my soul. It's hard to describe the feeling but I know a lot of you guys and gals know what I'm talking about.

[Shape Shifter]

When I switched to Traditional I anticipated it to be more challenging. This is one of the reasons I love it so much. We all miss and sometimes miss often but that is also part of it. If it was really easy I probably would hate it. When I do connect with an arrow...it means more to me than one could imagine.Hang in there...Keep practicing and when your arrow connects you will understand why you didn't give up.....

[Seeking Trad Deer]

I don't see why you should feel any remorse if you do pick up a compound...you have to do what works for you.  I spent the day out hunting today with a flintlock muzzleloader.  However, I picked up a rifle when my friend wanted me to shoot him a doe on his land for his freezer (never did see any).  Now crossbows...that is a different story.

[Dalebow]

I shot 6 deer with a bow this year, missed many more, still have not taken a bow buck in 9 years of trying.  Last year I shot my first bow doe in 6 years, this year they ran me over, lost a 7 point I hit opening day for several reason and Iam still sick about it, not a big deer, not even 100" but a trophy to me.  All the deer that Ive seen, some bucks P&Y that were 25 or more yards, I just know they won!! If I shot a bow with sights it would not mean as much when I take a 80# doe.  No I bought a compound and sold it before I even shot it, Not for me, I have a muzzleloader for that season if I need the meat but I will never give up trad, beef is too cheap at Kroger's to give up part of who I am.

[macbow]

Dan, If I had 155 inch bucks running close to me I think I'd get a little mental too.

Only you can decide what you really feel. You can get advice from others but you have to make the decision on what is best.

Good luck with the New Year.
Ron

[PaSnuffer]

Your situatation is not unlike mine, only I'm just getting started, Ive been a trad bowhunter for 2 years now and this year I killed my first deer with a bow of any kind. I tried a shot outside of my comfortable range and made a lucky hit on the femoral artery. The deer only went 40 yds before it collapsed. The kill brought suprising little excitement. I suppose I felt somewhat guilty. But the incident has really motivated me to shoot more and next year I plan to use more restraint.

[myshootinstinks]

Yep, I quit but came back. For different reasons though.  Deaths and serious injuries in the family made me adjust priorities in a big way. Nothing seemed to be enjoyable and nothing mattered.  When I did try to shoot there was no concentration, my shooting was a waste of time. I sold all my high quality bows, only keeping the bows I have owned since I was a youngster. I do enjoy shooting a bow a great deal and in the past few months I'm getting back to my old self, checking the ads for bow deals, shooting two-three times a week and having a good time.
   Mine is another example of the mental thing and the affect it can have. Whenever real issues confront us in life we realize how meaningless our pastimes are. If a compound or a rifle is best for you, so be it. Trad is a nice hobby, not a way of life.

[Two Arrows]

Interesting thread. What I find really interesting, not only in this thread but in others on different sites of the same topic, where some people say they will shoot a rifle or muzzle loader for deer hunting, but yet downgrade or condemn those who shoot a compound.???? I'm a little confused with this type of thinking.

Person "A" is a guy who hunts with a recurve or longbow during bow season, and also hunts during the firearms season with a rifle or blackpowder weapon and he is deemed ok. Person "B" hunts with a longbow or recurve and will also hunt with a compound and he is looked down upon???

I will not hunt with a firearm because I get no enjoyment out of it. I will hunt with a longbow or recurve and also a compound when I want to. How am I inferior, because I hunt with a compound, to those that choose to hunt with a firearm?

[dougers]

i dont want to get too far from the thread topic, but i dont think anyone on here thinks somone is inferior because of a compound bow.  its just a traditional archery site, so most are in favor of using a trad bow.  we are fortunate enough to live in a wonderful country where we are free to make these types of choices, both in schools of thought and in practice.  good point though, we can be extreme on our ideas sometimes.