What does it take to be clutch?

[hereinaz]

Ability to focus on the task and execute confidently is what clutch means to me. It’s a mind set that I didn’t find until late in life. Lots of things packed into that. Read the With Winning in Mind, might help.

It’s like Jordan and Kobe practicing the game winner, being ready and wanting to take it, full of confidence. I was successful and had a great life but anxiety and crap really held me back. A sense or maturity and self confidence helped me.

You definitely have to have the skill, but good enough is good enough. You have to have the reps, actual reps and mental reps to be prepared to execute. Visualize yourself doing what you need to do.

Many things came together, and I was fortunate enough to kill a bull my first year in archery. 90% of the success I think came from my mental preparation, effort, and focus.

Visualization before the hunt helped me focus in the moment and not “think”. Every arrow was into an elk vitals, though it was a paper plate of piece of duct tape. I watched videos and listened to podcasts.

I also had good friends come and help me get confident chasing elk, but it sounds like you are there.

 

[peaches]

Practice, breathe, be realistic, don't stare at antlers, once you decide your are going to shoot...focus on the impact
point only and pick your time. Breathe....

 

[el_jefe_pescado]

All good points mentioned above. One of the biggest things I think new folks bugger up when it comes to elk (and all game) is failing to recognize a shot opportunity before its too late.

Experienced "killers" seem to capitalize on opportunities that might have blown right past the beginner. This could be as simple as being able to more quickly assess range (without a rangefinder) or capitalizing on that quartering away shot between two lodge poles because experience says that was as good as it was going to get or, as others have mentioned, knowing when to get really aggressive.

I can remember screwing up many turkey hunts as a kid simply because didn't have a good enough grasp on assessing range/lacked comfortability in my equipment or I simply failed to identify a shot opportunities while waiting for "perfection". The same can be said for many species, especially elk.

 

[hereinaz]

All good points mentioned above. One of the biggest things I think new folks bugger up when it comes to elk (and all game) is failing to recognize a shot opportunity before its too late.

Experienced "killers" seem to capitalize on opportunities that might have blown right past the beginner. This could be as simple as being able to more quickly assess range (without a rangefinder) or capitalizing on that quartering away shot between two lodge poles because experience says that was as good as it was going to get or, as others have mentioned, knowing when to get really aggressive.

I can remember screwing up many turkey hunts as a kid simply because didn't have a good enough grasp on assessing range/lacked comfortability in my equipment or I simply failed to identify a shot opportunities while waiting for "perfection". The same can be said for many species, especially elk.

I had to learn to take opportunities that came, not wait. That’s the “aggression” I learned. Gotta be willing to take calculated chances.

Less than ideal shots arise far more than ideal ones. If you practice for less than ideal shots, hard shot angles, weird foot placements, etc. you are prepared to get after it.

 

[FLS]

Find an animal you can practice killing. Groundhogs and whitetail does have really helped me, same with 3d shoots

This. So few opportunities to shoot an elk, especially now on public, it would take a lifetime to become really proficient at killing. In a few seasons I can kill more whitetails than you can kill elk in a lifetime of hunting. The only way to get good at killing, is killing. I learned to hunt as a kid shooting squirrels and rabbits with a bow and 22. That experience can’t be bought or practiced. It has to be done.

 

[blackveltbowhunter]

Getting to and recognizing the "checkmate" moment is an art. Some have a gift and it come rather naturally, and some need to acquire the skill. Practicing on small game, predators, or any lower intensity targets will help hone the skills needed to recognize and capitalize on those rare encounters with the high intensity targets.

 

[Btaylor]

For me it really helped to separate the encounter from the killing. To be efficient at killing for me required a shot process or mantra as @Beendare and others have mentioned. Having that process keeps your brain focused on the task at hand and will keep you calm until the arrow is gone. The real key though is understanding that until that animal is within your effective range, you are still just hunting. There is no reason to get all geeked out before the animal is within range cause you cant kill him yet anyway, so just relax and enjoy the encounter. Once they are in range though, now its killing time and time to engage the shot process so there is no time or space wigging out. You can practice that on all kinds of critters. Pick some you are only going to get in range and draw on but not shoot. Others, kill the crap out of them.

 

[mad_angler]

I would suggest an outdoor archery league. I shot a broadhead league every Wednesday. We walked through a woods course and shot various cardboard silhouettes at unknown distances. When I do that, my bow shooting becomes second nature.

 

[mad_angler]

Also, use visualization exercises when practicing with your bow...

Think of a scenario that you had in the past... now reenact that in your mind.... something like "here he comes... stay still, his head just went behind a bush so draw, stay calm, wait for him to take two more steps, focus on the crease behind his leg, stay focused on that spot and squeeze the trigger on your bow, watch the arrow bury to the fletching, focus on the bull as he runs away..."

That is how great athletes perform...

Everyone keeps saying "reps". They are all correct. These practice sessions are one form of reps...

 

[longtail]

I'll tell ya what I do that leads to the path to success, the first thing I do is grow a mustache, then i find the dorkiest looking flatbill cap and strap that baby on, then i go for a hike in the woods and find the freshest pile of elk poop and i use that as face paint/cover scent and the last thing I do is reach down and my ol backpack and find that fresh bottle of cow/calf piss i just bought at walmart and take a big swig and gargle a little of it. "that outta do it"
LOL
On a serious note..... Its not rocket science. Put all the odds in your favor and put your time in. Have fun and enjoy it.

 

[LCguy]

As someone mentioned earlier, I think it's about being present in the moment and focusing on the process and not the outcome. The last few years, I've finally felt like I was so locked in to the process of the stalk; spotting the animal, putting a plan together, executing the plan, being flexible when variables changed, getting to a spot for a good shot and executing the shot. This has led to much better success for me and I feel much more zen in the process of hunting than I did in the past when I'd get insane buck fever the second I'd spot an animal. Now, the adrenaline spike comes after the shot has been made.

Like others have said, it takes reps. I love quail hunting and it's something you can do multiple times a year, every year. I feel like this has also helped out a lot.

 

[35WhelenAI]

Something that is more obvious than what everybody is delving into with the analysis of this, is have you gotten a deer or elk? If you have you probably were clutch enough.

 

[Moosehunter]

Something that is more obvious than what everybody is delving into with the analysis of this, is have you gotten a deer or elk? If you have you probably were clutch enough.

He's archery hunted for a long time. Has killed some awesome animals.

 

[Elkhuntinfool78]

I'll tell ya what I do that leads to the path to success, the first thing I do is grow a mustache, then i find the dorkiest looking flatbill cap and strap that baby on, then i go for a hike in the woods and find the freshest pile of elk poop and i use that as face paint/cover scent and the last thing I do is reach down and my ol backpack and find that fresh bottle of cow/calf piss i just bought at walmart and take a big swig and gargle a little of it. "that outta do it"
LOL
On a serious note..... Its not rocket science. Put all the odds in your favor and put your time in. Have fun and enjoy it.

Damn, I knew that I forgot something. It was the damn gargling I forgot and no doubt the reason I let the new world record get away last year.....lol

Enjoyed your post made me laugh

 

[Pilsner]

Kill enough and eventually it comes second nature.

Well if this isnt the most obvious and at the same time useless piece of advice ever written.
How do you learn? By doing!
Ok, so how do I learn to do? By Doing!
But I cant learn until I do?! Sorry go F yourself until you can do!
F-it I might as well quit hunting!

 

[Pilsner]

Great insight guys. I feel like reps is really the only way to learn some of those things. But it's a painful way watching a bull run out of your life knowing u should have had him.
Also beingz I don't get the whole season to hunt like some of u (I'm jealous) and I hunt kind of a low density elk population I don't get a ton of reps per year so got to make everyone count

If you can't hunt your target critter then figure out which competition is available locally that places you under pressure and do that.
Ok, this might well turn into a long rant. I have had the (mis)fortune to be a combat medic in Army infantry units during the mad cap years of the GWOT. I was both trained and was a trainer during a time when we, as an institution, were learning via bad outcomes at a furious rate. Two things that I learned that have carried over to my current life as a medic, big game guide, and (half assed) shooting instructor is that the 7 P's of mental prep are real, and that saturation training is a real value.

By which I mean: the 7 P's are Prior Perfect Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance.
Here is a fact I learned about some of the world best soldiers - they dont practice until they get it right but instead they practice under every available circumstance UNTIL THEY CANT GET IT WRONG!
Most every one practices until they get good at a skill - masters keep practicing it until they literally are incapable of getting it wrong!

A side note of the above and my other point was about what we referred to as saturation training. Instead of an explanation I will offer an example. I ran off of our truck to treat my first causalities and was so amped up by stress and fear that I was a solid 15 seconds into checking my first downed American before I realized that my brain was off line and that I was operating on muscle memory alone. What I learned was that we had done so much training that it didnt matter if my front brain was offline because my hands knew what they needed to do. This is the same thing as your brain shutting down when you see big antlers - IF you have trained enough then you can trust your hands to do what needs done while you brain is off line.

 

[LaFever]

Sometimes it's just luck and a blessing or good hunting Karma
I have a saying
"Don't believe you can't be snake bit "
If one can be snake bit then the opposite can be true, sometimes you gotta pay up your Karma so you get a couple of good breaks
"Don't believe you can't be snake bit" applies to all walks of life
It's better to be lucky than good but it's good to be ready when your luck breaks

 

[insanelupus]

I spent 20 years hunting elk in a low density population, rifle and bow, before killing my first bull.

Many close calls, many shoulda, woulda, coulda moments. All range of emotions from elation to anger.

I killed one cow with a rifle on a B tag. Passed up several cows and deer with my bow, I wanted a bull. Then two bulls with a bow two years in a row. What changed? Me and finding the bull that wanted to die that day. Last year, I'd have killed a cow. I want elk kills with my bow for reps. Bulls? Awesome! Cows? Sweet, I'll take it. And not every close call is winnable. Two cows inside of 16 yards. No ethical shot. And the horns from the second bull? Still in the garage.

I love elk hunting. It used to define me. I'm still passionate, look forward to it, plan around it, and train for it every year. Truth is, it's exciting and fun to kill a bull. But it didn't "feel" the way I thought it would after a 20 year chase on the first bull It was awesome. But not the euphoria I thought it would be. They aren't magic, the are tough and hunting them is hard. Let the chase be enough and keep calm with a plan.

Looking back over 22 years, I put way too much emphasis on the success rate than the learning elk rate.

If you are in elk and having regular encounters, eventuality you will see patterns emerge. Analyze the patterns of failure, make small adjustments, and find what works for you. Then execute your plan with allowances for the occasional audible.

And always hunt elk where they are, not where you want them to be. Even if it seems "easy".

I spent a lot of time looking for a needle in a haystack. Way easier to find needless in a needle factory where you have to only occasionally move a bale of hay to find them.

 

[PredatoronthePrairie]

Well if this isnt the most obvious and at the same time useless piece of advice ever written.
How do you learn? By doing!
Ok, so how do I learn to do? By Doing!
But I cant learn until I do?! Sorry go F yourself until you can do!
F-it I might as well quit hunting!

Settle down Karen.

 

[blackveltbowhunter]

It helps me to break it into two separate tasks. Putting oneself into the checkmate position, and executing the shot after getting there. The first is a much more difficult task IMO. Practicing shooting, getting high quality reps under pressure and visualization of shot execution can all be practiced without animals present. Making all the right moves in the red zone and recognizing the "moment" are very difficult to replicate outside of just doing it.