Turkey Hunting Day 6: Happiness is a New Bow!
Well today was a little detour away from hunting. I ended up heading back to the archery shop I’d found earlier this week and I spent about three hours there talking with Neil (the owner). He’s a great teacher and taught me the very basics of shooting a bow today. He has a little area in the store where you can shoot at a target. It’s a great way of letting you shoot different bows and get your feet wet with using one.
When I first tried it, it was with a 60 pound bow and I wrenched my right shoulder as I had no idea of the technique involved with pulling a bow back. I know it sounds wimpy but the first time or two you do it, you really don’t know how smoothly it should be done. Fortunately Neil was very patient and let me move down to a 30-40 pound bow to get used to the pull. Once I’d done that I was able to use the heavier bow without much of a problem.
I bought the bow (a Parker Legend XP), a bunch of peripherals and a nice target to use. I took the bow and target over to the sand pit today. When I was coming up the hill I saw a deer or two over near the woods. Nice to see them but, alas, today I was not hunting them. They split soon after I arrived.
The photos and video are of me shooting the target in the sand pit. I didn’t do too bad at all. Trust me, if you want to have some fun…get yourself a bow and have at it. Rifles and shotguns are great fun but a bow is even better. It’s amazing how far archery has come.
Oh yeah…no birds today either but I did get a hot tip from a guy who came into Neil’s store. So I’m headed over there at sundown to scout for birds. This guy killed one earlier today. No, I won’t be using the bow if I can find a turkey as I don’t feel proficient enough with it to hunt. Gotta be humane to the animal…a clean, quick death should always be the goal of any hunter.
Note: The sound fades a bit toward the end of the video as the wind was blowing hard up in the sand pit. Sorry about that.
BTW, if you are interested in getting into archery, be sure to contact Neil at NH Archery & Outdoor Sports. No, he didn’t give me a discount to mention him here or anything like that. But I like the way he took the time to help me find the right bow for me (they are NOT all the same, contrary to what you might think) and also that he patiently showed me how to use it. I’m glad I decided to buy my bow there.
Here’s the contact information:
NH Archery & Outdoor Sports
Jct. Rt. 45 & Rt. 101
Temple, NH
603-924-9092
Neil doesn’t seem to have a web site but that should be enough to hook you up with him. His shop is right off route 101 so you can’t miss it if you head west down 101 from Milford, etc.
Related posts:
- Turkey Hunting Day 2: Right Gun, No Birds
- Turkey Hunting Day 3: One Bird and a New Spot
- Turkey Hunting Day 5: No Birds and Open Carry
- Turkey Hunting Day 1: The Dumbass Brings the Wrong Gun!
- Turkey Hunting Day 4: Nothing Interesting to Report
Jim,
Glad to see you with a new bow. Your form looks pretty good for a first timer. The distance you have covered in the last year is amazing. Your excitement comes through very clear. You are a Bloodbrother for sure.
Thanks, Tim! I’m having a blast with it. :)
Yeah, it has been a fun last year for sure. Now I’m going to step outside and go fishing or maybe take the bow and see if I can snag a red squirrel. Too bad the greys aren’t in season. :(
Im working on an instuctional video for you.
Hi Jim
I enjoy visiting your blog. I used to shoot archery about two decades ago with some friends, just targets, etc. We used recurve bows and liked it just fine. I’ve been away from it for so long now and what you say is so true, “things have changed so much”.
I am now trying to educate myself before buying a compound bow, there’s so much to learn. I damn near bought a used one on Ebay but thought better of it. There’s a new Pro-Bass Sports in Massachusetts, where I live, that I might drop into and get the basics down before a purchase.
If you can find the time could you fill me in on what bow you bought and what was added to it and why? About what price range is your new bow? I’m thinking of trying to get a decent one in the $300, $375 range with most all of the goodies…sight, stabilizer, quiver, release etc.
I’ve checked some videos on You Tube and didn’t see yours till I found your blog, perhaps I’ll go back and see if I can get a few more pointer videos.
I’ll be checking back to see how things are going and if you got that ol’ Tom Turkey. LOL!!
Ron