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Most bowhunting enthusiasts know that longer range shooting opportunities will be affected by higher arrow drop. High-tech compound bows provide fast arrow speed, and there are usually very small degrees of drop associated with shots within 20 yards.
The effect of gravity results in a greater number of victims on an arrow as the distance approaches 30 and 40 yards. The fall of the arrow will result in a bad shot if the archer does not approach the distance correctly and does not adjust it. If the range estimate is in error by plus or minus 5 yards on an actual 40-yard shot, a bowhunter can shoot over or under the deer. This could possibly result in a total loss or injured game that may never be located. For this reason, reproducible arrow positioning correlates closely with accurate range approximation.
Every hunter should be knowledgeable about his bow and know the amount of arrow drop at various distances. Some hunters use an adjustable single-pin sight, but multi-pin sights are the most common. These sights will have pins placed at various ranges in 10 yard increments.
Perform this simple test after adjusting the bowsights for various distances. It will be easy to see how you can fail if you don’t accurately estimate your range. Place a paper plate on the target. This is roughly the dimensions of the average whitetail deer kill zone. Then back off 40 yards and place your 30 yard sight pin in the center of that target. Now, make a note of where the 40-yard sight pin stops on the target, and you’ll probably visualize that you’d have a clean miss. A small error in distance at longer ranges will result in a bad shot or wounded deer.
I’ve always found good results attempting game shots from within 25 yards. Missed shots or misplaced arrows that resulted in a missed attempt occurred on shots of 30 yards or more. Shooting opportunities with play in the 30-40 yard range were not attempted without some reservations, and I had no confidence beyond 40 yards. Although I practiced that distance with confidence on the shooting range, that confidence just wasn’t with me in the stands. This was the difference between shooting from marked ranges and guessing distances. Small miscalculations in range from the stands produced missed shots and shattered confidence.
Much of that lack of confidence disappeared when I got my first archery laser rangefinder. By the time I was able to get a distance reading on the deer, max out my Matthews Switchback, and release my arrow, the deer would often have moved and changed position.