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By DARRELL CRUTCHER
Several years back I had found a nice little oak ridge on the game lands near my house. I really don't remember if it was a funnel area or a feeding area -- it just looked like a good spot.
Getting there required walking down the main path for about a mile, hanging a left, and then walking another 10 minutes to the tree that I had picked out. This was a lot of work, considering that I had to pack my climbing stand in and out along with all my other stuff.
The first afternoon in this spot was nearly perfect. The temperature was comfortable and there was just enough of a breeze to help evaporate the sweat I had worked up getting there. About 30 minutes before dark, I caught sight of a deer to my left.
It appeared to be a small buck with a spindly little 4- or 6-point rack, but I was a fairly young hunter at the time and was excited. Plus, when hunting on pressured public land, any buck is a good one.
After a minute or so, it was obvious that this deer was going to browse right into an opening about 15 yards away, and that's when it hit me! As I eased up into a standing position, my knees began to twitch and bounce. I could barely hook my release to the bow because of the shaking.
I eventually pulled things together and came to full draw just as the buck reached the opening. As the buck nosed around in the leaves less than 15 yards away, I found my pin through the peep and began to lower it slowly onto the deer when BAMM! The bow went off.
The buck bounded off about 40 yards, stopped for just a second, then hopped off for good, not quite knowing what had happened. That made two of us.
The last thing I remembered seeing was my pin hovering over the deer's back and then my fletching sailing over him. I couldn't believe that I had worked so hard and waited so patiently only to blow the shot. Everything I had read and all the videos that I had watched insisted that I pick a small spot on the animal and aim for that.
I even had a small sticker on the inside of my upper limb that read "STAY CALM, PICK A SPOT." But when it came time to make the shot, I couldn't even get the sight on the animal. It wasn't too long after that I was visiting a bow shop and heard the infamous phrase, "target panic."
Ironically, this was the same shop where I got my "STAY CALM, PICK A SPOT" sticker. Target panic, or target freezing, or lock-up are all terms for this common mental aiming affliction. It can affect the experienced shooter as well as the novice, and has caused many people to leave the sport for good. Ideally, when aiming at a given target, the sight picture steadies, the pin is centered on the target, and the shooter adds pressure to the trigger until the bow fires. Or a finger shooter gradually relaxes the hand until the string is gone.
Target panic, though, causes a shooter to freeze just before getting to where he wants to aim. At this point the frustrated archer either punches the trigger or simultaneously jerks the bow hand down toward the target and punches the shot off. Both are very bad habits, and once repeated enough times, can totally ruin any hopes of accuracy.
This condition commonly intensifies when an archer is under pressure. A tough tournament shot or a shot at a big buck can trigger the "jerk and snatch" reaction. The best cure for getting through target panic is to stop shooting and learn how to aim again.
Go out to your practice target and set up about 10 yards away. The first step is to draw your bow and aim at the target with your finger behind the trigger. Try to relax as you let the sight pin float on the bullseye for 10 or 12 seconds, and then let down. Do this several times.
Once you've done this several times, you are ready for the next step. Draw, aim, rest your finger on the trigger and aim again without shooting. You wouldn't believe how many people will involuntarily shoot at this point. If this happens, go back to step one.
Continue this "don't' shoot" therapy until you feel like you can move to step three, which actually allows you to shoot while intently aiming. As long as you continue to aim hard and squeeze, keep shooting. But if you punch or freeze up just one time, go back through the steps.
My own battle with target panic seemed to peak a couple of years ago while competing in a big money shoot. It was all I could do to get my sight anywhere near the target and snatch the trigger. Shooting the last target was a big relief for me and I was just ready to go home and quit shooting.
That's when Dave Tetrick, a Hoyt pro staffer at the time who had shot in my group that day, suggested that I try practicing with an Answer. An Answer is a release made by Golden Key that cannot be punched. It only responds to a slow sustained squeeze.
Knowing that Dave isn't the type of guy to blow sunshine up my skirt, I had one of those releases the next day. The days following that purchase were frustrating. I could barely get off more than one or two shots in a 30-minute practice session. After about a week, though, I was shooting well once again.
I now have an arsenal of releases and may shoot a different one on any given day, but my Answer gets used every so often to keep me focused.
Another good training tool is the Stanislawski back tension release. This one has you aiming and pulling without knowing when it's going off. The trick is to just relax and wait for it.
Good shooting requires good practice, and good practice should keep ailments like target panic from setting in. If you have never suffered from this condition, consider yourself lucky. If you think you might have a little jerk in your shot, address it quickly.
As for me, if I ever go back to that spot on the game lands, I plan on bringing out more than just my stand.
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