WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU MISS WITH JOHN E. PHILLIPS
When The Bucks Come Running And When You Hit But Miss
 Editor’s
Note: You'll immediately feel violently ill when you
release an arrow and watch the broadhead cut nothing
but air. Unfortunately, I've had this happen to me more
than once. At times, like you, I've heard off in the
distance my hunting buddies screaming and hollering
when they've missed shots. I've also seen bows have
rude encounters with tree trunks after they've failed
to perform properly. However, I've learned often the
best part of your bow hunt occurs after you've missed
a shot. Many times, you'll get a second shot at the
same deer or a bigger deer.
 You
only may have one opportunity to shoot when you see
a buck running toward you. Avid bow hunter Dr. Bob Sheppard
of Carrollton, Alabama, recommends that as soon as you
see the buck start running, draw your bow, and turn
toward the direction in which the deer's running. You'll
have to make the shot quickly and won't have time to
see the shot, draw and shoot. As the buck approaches
the place where you want to take him, yell at the deer
something like, "'Hey, you!' to stop the buck,"
Sheppard advised. "You only will have an instant
to get off the shot. Aim for the lower quarter of the
buck because he's already alerted. More than likely
he'll drop down and attempt to jump when he
sees or hears your bow fire. When you release the arrow,
you'll either hit or miss the deer. You won't have an
opportunity for a second shot. But you won't get the
first shot if you don't draw as soon as you see the
buck coming towards you on run."
When You Hit But Miss:
Often you can hit the deer but miss your target. When
this happens, you'll find shooting a second arrow critical
to your bagging a buck. One season when I hunted on
the Ford Ranch near Melvin, Texas, I had a nice 8 point
at 20 yards from my tree stand. The buck had his head
down feeding when I drew my bow. I took my time, anchored
the shot and aimed for his lungs. When I released the
arrow, I saw it hit the spot where I'd aimed.  But
instead of bolting and running, the buck dropped in
his tracks. A portion of the arrow still showed on the
outside of the buck. I instantly nocked a second arrow
and took another shot before the deer could get back
up. A double-lung hit buck should have run off and left
a blood trail. He shouldn't have fallen where he stood.
When we cleaned that buck that night, we saw that the
broadhead had gone in right behind the shoulder and
either hit a bone or the buck had turned. The broadhead
had gone straight up, spinning the deer from the bottom
side up. I never had hit a deer like that before. But
the second arrow helped me to put the deer down quickly
and efficiently.
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