Ever Lost an Arrow... in the NEIGHBOR'S yard?

[Ssamac]

Beginners are amazed at how much force and travel an arrow has.
I put one into the rear quarter panel of my wife's Taurus some years back. Uphill shot, missed the target, cleared the bank, hit the driveway and skipped up and into the panel at about 60 yds distance. 40# bow. She still wonders how she got the hole in the car.

Another hit the top of the target frame, veered up and through the line of trees between my house and my neighbors, trees are about 30' wide so amazing that it didn't hit anything and got through although I thought an arrow could never do that, and landed upright in my neighbors lawn. Over 75 yards away. 50# bow.
Could not make that shot again if I tried.

I don't miss the target anymore, but I place them in a way that they cannot leave the yard and usually with a bank or a shed behind them.
Be careful. Accidents happen. And the bow has more force than people give them credit for. Someone commented recently that you can take any animal in NA with a 25# bow. Believe it.


sam

[RocketDog]

Go out to an open field and shoot your arrow for distance.  Step it off and that is how far your arrows are deadly.

One lapse in form, one missed shot, one skipped arrow -- one small kid you don't see or don't think is there -- several ruined lives.

Your arrows will go a lot farther with deadly force than you think.

[Mike Most]

my ex boss had a new neighbor across the street. He saw him looking for something in the grass, not knowing at the time it was an arrow. Next he was in my ex bosses yard looking in the grass. My ex boss being the inquisitive type came out side to meet his new neighbor and inquire what he was looking for.

the explanation was he was shooting his compound bow and had lost an arrow. The search ended when the arrow was found stuck in my ex bosses front door about 3 feet up.    

"Priceless response" " I guess I ought to shoot the other way.."  

[Jerry Jeffer]

Erik, Not starting any thing with you. I would like to be the one deciding if I can shoot on my own property too. How ever, I think local law enforcement might not be so agreeable.

[Sam McMichael]

There was a fox preying on my pets, and I caught him in daylight in the back corner of where my neighbor's yard and my yard come together. (No houses behind us at all). I took 2 shots with broadheads and missed them both. The arrows slid under the grass, and I could not locate them, which is bad since her grandchildren sometimes play back there. It all ended well, because it gave me the perfect excuse to buy a new metal detector. I finally got the fox with a load of buckshot.

[dnovo]

That is one of the reasons I don't have neighbors. I can shoot where and when I want.

[firsted]

Yep, was living in a "zero lot-line" house and had an aroow go into the neighbor's back yard.  Saw the arrow lying there next to their Pit Bull's dog house.  I knew the neighbor would be REALLY hacked off if he saw it so I had my wife go around the block and make noise in the front of their house.  The Pit Bull tore off to the front & I jumped the fence to the back.  Dog heard me & came running like nobody's business.  I made it make over the fence with a whole 2 inches between my feet & the dog's teeth.  Never shot that way again.

[Bear]

What arrow?

[MikeM]

I had an arrow skip off the back of a 3D target and fly over 70 yards into the neighbors yard.

[mrpenguin]

Originally posted by Jerry Jeffer:
Erik, Not starting any thing with you. I would like to be the one deciding if I can shoot on my own property too. How ever, I think local law enforcement might not be so agreeable.

Fair enough.  In my town in CT, there is no ordinance about archery and shooting distances etc... In fact, if in season, I can shoot deer and turkey on my 2/3 acre property with a bow.  I hunted a friends backyard to attempt to remove some does that were eating his plants.  That was a 2 acre piece.  I could see the neighbors preparing dinner in the tree (not a fun hunting situation really).  I agree that accidents can happen and arrows can go all over the place... but, I still like being able to shoot in my backyard.  I do take every precaution possible as most of us do.

From this discussion today I actually change my targets around a bit so that IF I missed, it would hit hay, and IF that did not stop the arrow it would hit plywood, and IF I missed that it would go into that pass through wooded area.  Previous I was shooting more in the direction of the neighbor's yards but had 1 or 2 barriers in place.  I do not like losing arrows and I do not want to cause problems nor draw negative attention, but I still love to shoot my bow and am not always able to go to my gun club to do it.      

[bofish-IL]

I was teaching my wife to shoot in the back yard and she over shot the target so far it stuck in the neighbor’s barn across the street. I decided then I better train at the range from then on.

[KSdan]

I had a scary one many years ago. . . I lived in  a major city and shot into my garage.  One day I was just ready to release the string on a shot when my, then 2 yr. old son wandered underneath me in line with the lower limb.  I did not shoot but slowly pointed the bow towards the sky. . . and my fingers slipped. ..  Oh Crap.        :eek:        

The aluminum arrow took off.  I was freaking out as there was a sub power station just a block away, let alone house after house- city living!  I was sure something was going to blow up or I was going to get in trouble.  Well- the next day I happened to look at my neighbors house behind mine and there just above his back door on the roof lay the arrow tucked up under a shingle!  Apparently when the arrow took off it hit some of the limbs of the big elms in my back yard deflecting the arrow down on the roof.  I quietly jumped the fence and knocked on the door. . . no one home- I reached up over the edge of the roof and retrieved the arrow.  Whew!!!    

[Zradix]

These misses into neighbor's yards are giving me the hebejebee's.

[BigArcher]

30 some years ago my friend and I were practicing in his backyard and one of us sent an arrow into the neighbors house.  The neighbor and my friends dad started giving us a good talking to and ended up shooting the bows.  The neighbor even hit his own house.  
He then told us we could use his cabin up north in Michigan for the archery deer season.
That miss turned out to be a perfect shot.

BigArcher

[val]

I hit the broad side of a barn once.....

[BWD]

Almost bagged the neighbor's porsche when I slipped one thru one of the cracks in the wooden fence that seperates our yards. A 4'x 8' sheet of marine plywood is now attached to that fence.

[mrpenguin]

I confess, I think there is one of my nice pine arrows buried in the grass next door under the woodpile at the end of their yard... I scoured that yard with my binos looking for that thing... couldn't find it... but neither did the landscapers in the Spring so it's gone.  We get along with those folks so I might as to look for it one day...

[John Scifres]

I now shoot at a target leaning against my minibarn.  But a long time ago, shooting compound against an unbacked foam target, I skipped a broadheaded arrow straight up off the top and listened with horror as it landed in my neighbor's roof.  It was a very embarrassing but fortunately not injurious lesson.

BTW, someone showed me a way to look up if shooting is legal in your municipality.    Municode.com   Most places it's not so be careful.  The law is probably not on your side if you live in a municipality.

[mrpenguin]

Thanks John,

I could not find Manchester, but I do remember asking a certified DEP Instructor if its legal, and it is.  Not firearms, but there is no land restrictions pertaining to archery.

[mrpenguin]

But, reading all these stories is making me wanna start using the range again to practice...