Ever mess up a ten yard shot?

[Erussell01]

I missed a buck this year. Hit a branch at 16 yards on its way to a 35 yard buck that should have been dead. I have only missed 1 other buck in my life and I saw the branch between me and the buck. I thought I'd clear it, executed a shot thinking I'd clear it and then absolutely whacked the branch and sent my arrow sailing into the wide blue yonder. That was on the 3rd day of a 3 day speciality hunt and 2.5 full all day sits in.

To be honest, I wad devastated.
But I'm glad it happened. I learned a lesson, an I was able to hunt even harder through the entire month of November and I learned a ton last month. I'm hunting new stuff so every rep I get is valuable to me.

It happens. I'm gonna keep going until I either kill a good one, or I run out of days.

That one miss doesn't define me. I'm not even worried that next time I'll clear the branch

 

[cjaviator]

Yep, Water buffalo at 9 yards. Snuck in and he was sleeping in tall grass. Thought I had him dead before I even drew back. Turns out he was sleeping on his side and not with this feet underneath him, Hit 10 inches high and Im pretty sure he's still running around northern Australia!

 

[Coopsdaddy]

More than longer shots!
Never fails when you say to yourself this is a chip shot.

 

[Bigborealaska]

It's always the shots where you say this is easy I've got this in the bag that get you.

 

[N8H]

Won a bow earlier this spring, so it was my first time archery hunting this year. One day I snuck up on a bedded cow over the course of an afternoon and decided it was now or never. She stood up slightly obstructed, walked forward into (as I remember it) a wide open shooting lane with not a single thing between me and her at 12yds. I had been standing there for an hour at that point and felt like everything was perfect; I was less that 1/4 mile from the road, another 1/4 mile to the cabin, and was feeling cool as a cucumber. Somehow, as I released the arrow, a tree appeared directly between me and the elk, almost as if all 30ft of it had just sprouted out of the ground.

So, the elk got away, I lost a broadhead, and I'm trying to decide if I want to sell the bow or not.
Still kicking myself about it.

 

[JWZIMMER]

I missed my first ever opportunity pope and young sized whitetail at 8 yards. I was shooting a recurve bow and had practiced extensively at typical ranges 10-25yds. For some reason it never occurred to me to practice 10 and in. Since that day i always make sure i practice at point blank all the way out beyond my maximum effective range. I bet i’ve shot more deer with a single string bow less than 10 than over.

 

[DBHAWTHORNE]

I'd rather them 20 or 30 than 10. I haven't missed on at 10 but hit them higher than I wanted which leads to one heck of a track job.

 

[bpurtz]

A few years back at first light, I had just entered some dark timber and walked in on some cows. I bugled and a big bull responded and started walking toward me from about 40 yards away. At 25 yards I went full draw, but held the string about 8" to the side of my face so I could see which side of the tree line he would walk. At 10 yards he angled to my left - I shifted the top pin to his vitals and at 8 yards released. Instantly I hear "whack" and the bull turns and bolts.

I quickly bugle and the bull stops at about 60 yards away. At this point I'm freaking pumped and under my breath saying "fall over". I bugle again but instead of falling, the bull walks about 10 yards to the side and starts raking a tree. I was pretty certain that the shot I took was a lethal hit but with him raking figured I should try to get another arrow in him.

I moved about 8 yards forward and then saw the heartbreaking sight of my arrow stuck in a tree that would have been 10 feet to the right of where the bull was at when I first shot. The whack sound was not from the arrow hitting the bull, but from hitting the tree. I had completely freaking missed!!!

For the next 15 minutes the bull continued to rake the tree and exchange bugles with me until he finally decides to move off in the direction toward his cows . As luck would have it though, as he was walking away I sounded off with an appropriately timed grunt that stopped him perfectly broadside between two trees. My second shot made a similar "whack" sound, but this time it was from the arrow passing through his lungs and a rib...he went about 70 yards.

I didn't really figure it out until later, that on my first shot when I moved the pin to his vitals, I was still holding the string 8" to the side of my face - I was so fixated on watching which side of the trees the bull would go that I never anchored the string/peep. Pretty rookie move for 40 years of archery hunting experience. Lol.

 

[chindits]

Never 10 yards but 12 meters. I was slightly below the bull kneeling with only a frontal. Even after the shot he kept looking past me a few seconds for the source of them less than perfect cow calls. He then trotted right by me. I was more than amazed and never tried to knock another arrow.

Lesson learned, if you ever fall on your bow in a scree field don’t keep hunting till you take a stump shot. It could have been ugly but I was lucky and so was the bull.