Sorry it has been so long since I posted. A lot has happened since I last posted. I didn’t get to hunt much this winter. Back in October I had a surgery, which took me a little while to recuperate from, but it was worth it! Because of this surgery I was able to have my trach removed in November! The hole from the trach did not want to close on it’s own, so I had to have another surgery in January to close the hole. I am now trach and hole free. This will make a huge difference in when I hunt this next fall. Another great thing with this surgery is that I have lost about 50 lbs!
In other news I am about to become a grandma. In some ways it is hard for me to accept that I am going to be a grandma at 43, but yet I am excited about it. My daughter has 4 more weeks to go, and it has been touch and go for so long with all kinds of complications. We know that it is going to be a girl. My daughter has decided to name her Annabelle Grace and call her Ella. I can’t wait to spoil my first grandchild.
I am going to start trying to post more often.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Has it been 2 months?
I'm sorry for the lack of updates. We had a safe and enjoyable deer season, but came up empty handed. Between the holidays, business travel, and some other hobbies, I just haven't been out hunting much since then. I'll be back home on saturday and we're looking forward to hunting sunday morning with a friend and his son. I'll be sure to post some pics afterwards.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Crack Shot
Sorry, no pics of me working on the plumbing. I'm talking about a different type of crack shot. My Dad always claimed I was a natural with a shotgun. At one time I was a hell of a shot with a .22 rifle. Never in all my days could I compare to Julie's skill with a rifle. This girl is a crack shot.
We went out hunting yesterday. Julie isn't cleared for a shotgun yet, so she carried my grandfather's old Winchester bolt action .22 long rifle. I sighted it in last fall with Remington YellowJackets. It is topped with a variable power Weaver scope. Out of all of the .22 rifles I have, it is by far the most consistent across all ammunition. But the rifle is just the start.
Trying to hit a squirrel in the head is one heck of a challenge. You must be able to hold sub-MOA accuracy while shooting in field conditions. You have to be able to acquire a target in seconds. You also have to wait until you have a good backdrop. A .22 bullet can sail two miles on an errant shot. The undergrowth has a lot of beech trees, which obscure the views. While they were a beautiful golden color, they were also in the way.
We hunted the 25-acre woods on sunday. We have occasionally taken fox squirrels there. The norm is grays, by a factor of about 20 to 1. Gray squirrels are far more "squirrely" than fox squirrels. Gray squirrels move very quickly through the trees, seldom if ever pausing. They don't like to spend a lot of time on the ground. Fox squirrels move fairly slowly by comparison.
I tell you all of this, in case you haven't tried hunting squirrels with a rifle before. I have. It is not easy and I am not good at it. I sat us down in the middle of a tree rat superhighway. We each saw at least 4 squirrels within the first half hour, while facing in different directions. Had I had a shotgun, I could have taken each one of them. With a rifle, I went home empty handed.
She fired twice and took home two squirrels. Both were head shots. The first was on a squirrel that was probably a September baby. It was a couple inches shorter overall than a typical gray. Her target couldn't have been larger than a nickel. The other was, I swear, 75 yards away. Shot placement was just under the ear - a perfect placement. Shooting sticks? No. Holding against a tree? No. She was sitting on the ground, bracing her elbows on her knees.
I don't know how she does it. I think she should change her middle name to Annie.
We went out hunting yesterday. Julie isn't cleared for a shotgun yet, so she carried my grandfather's old Winchester bolt action .22 long rifle. I sighted it in last fall with Remington YellowJackets. It is topped with a variable power Weaver scope. Out of all of the .22 rifles I have, it is by far the most consistent across all ammunition. But the rifle is just the start.
Trying to hit a squirrel in the head is one heck of a challenge. You must be able to hold sub-MOA accuracy while shooting in field conditions. You have to be able to acquire a target in seconds. You also have to wait until you have a good backdrop. A .22 bullet can sail two miles on an errant shot. The undergrowth has a lot of beech trees, which obscure the views. While they were a beautiful golden color, they were also in the way.
We hunted the 25-acre woods on sunday. We have occasionally taken fox squirrels there. The norm is grays, by a factor of about 20 to 1. Gray squirrels are far more "squirrely" than fox squirrels. Gray squirrels move very quickly through the trees, seldom if ever pausing. They don't like to spend a lot of time on the ground. Fox squirrels move fairly slowly by comparison.
I tell you all of this, in case you haven't tried hunting squirrels with a rifle before. I have. It is not easy and I am not good at it. I sat us down in the middle of a tree rat superhighway. We each saw at least 4 squirrels within the first half hour, while facing in different directions. Had I had a shotgun, I could have taken each one of them. With a rifle, I went home empty handed.
She fired twice and took home two squirrels. Both were head shots. The first was on a squirrel that was probably a September baby. It was a couple inches shorter overall than a typical gray. Her target couldn't have been larger than a nickel. The other was, I swear, 75 yards away. Shot placement was just under the ear - a perfect placement. Shooting sticks? No. Holding against a tree? No. She was sitting on the ground, bracing her elbows on her knees.
I don't know how she does it. I think she should change her middle name to Annie.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
You know you're in for a bumpy flight when...
... the plane you are flying on is held together by duct tape and bailin' wire. The kid next to me reassured me that it was NASCAR duct tape. Unfortunately, that didn't make me feel much better.Somehow I made it home in one piece. I'm sorry for the lack of updates lately. Travelling 3 weeks out of 4 will do that to a guy. I'm home for a couple weeks and looking forward to getting outdoors very soon.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Tradeoffs
I am starting to shorten the list of choices for my bow. I have decided upon a few attributes to help narrow the field. With this, I realise there are some tradeoffs. Since I haven't found a place to shoot yet, I think I would benefit by hearing what others look for in a bow.
The last piece that I need to narrow down is the draw weight, then I will be ready to buy. Letoffs are pretty generous in current bow models. I think that opens up some leeway in draw weight. There are a lot of different cam designs. Some ramp up quickly and load heavily across the power stroke. Others ramp up gradually, feeling smoother while losing some of the potential energy. Still others are more efficient at transferring that potential energy to the arrow.
These are some of the bows on my list, included here because they illustrate my thinking process.
The BowTech Guardian loads aggressively through the power stroke, but it loses some of that power to a lower efficiency. On the other hand, with the more aggressive cams it may be possible to pull a little less draw weight for similar performance.
The Bear Truth is aggressive, but not so much so as the Guardian. It stores less energy overall but makes better use of the effort you put into it. It is slightly slower, but not enough to sway me one way or the other.
The Matthews Drenalin is near peak draw for a shorter period than the Truth, but stores slightly more energy overall. I believe this one will actually be the smoothest of the three. Due to its higher efficiency, it achieves better speeds than the other two bows.
I have narrowed the field down to where the deciding factors will really be driven by feel and draw weight. Of course, that is why I keep going on about needing to shoot a few bows before I decide. As the example shows, it is possible to find a combination such that the bow is easier to draw but still maintains the same level of performance.
Tradeoffs come in the price and the relative noise level of the bows. The Drenalin should be fairly smooth and I could probably step down the draw weight and achieve the same speeds, but I pay for it in noise and greenbacks. The Guardian is much quieter and slightly less expensive, but you work for it. This would likely force me to drop draw weight in order to shoot well, and may end up shooting slower as a result. The Truth is more attractive pricewise. It trades off a little performance and relative ease of draw for a notable difference in price.
This is just looking from one angle. I'm sure there are many more. So, how do tradeoffs factor into your bow selection?
The last piece that I need to narrow down is the draw weight, then I will be ready to buy. Letoffs are pretty generous in current bow models. I think that opens up some leeway in draw weight. There are a lot of different cam designs. Some ramp up quickly and load heavily across the power stroke. Others ramp up gradually, feeling smoother while losing some of the potential energy. Still others are more efficient at transferring that potential energy to the arrow.
These are some of the bows on my list, included here because they illustrate my thinking process.
The BowTech Guardian loads aggressively through the power stroke, but it loses some of that power to a lower efficiency. On the other hand, with the more aggressive cams it may be possible to pull a little less draw weight for similar performance.
The Bear Truth is aggressive, but not so much so as the Guardian. It stores less energy overall but makes better use of the effort you put into it. It is slightly slower, but not enough to sway me one way or the other.
The Matthews Drenalin is near peak draw for a shorter period than the Truth, but stores slightly more energy overall. I believe this one will actually be the smoothest of the three. Due to its higher efficiency, it achieves better speeds than the other two bows.
I have narrowed the field down to where the deciding factors will really be driven by feel and draw weight. Of course, that is why I keep going on about needing to shoot a few bows before I decide. As the example shows, it is possible to find a combination such that the bow is easier to draw but still maintains the same level of performance.
Tradeoffs come in the price and the relative noise level of the bows. The Drenalin should be fairly smooth and I could probably step down the draw weight and achieve the same speeds, but I pay for it in noise and greenbacks. The Guardian is much quieter and slightly less expensive, but you work for it. This would likely force me to drop draw weight in order to shoot well, and may end up shooting slower as a result. The Truth is more attractive pricewise. It trades off a little performance and relative ease of draw for a notable difference in price.
This is just looking from one angle. I'm sure there are many more. So, how do tradeoffs factor into your bow selection?
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Wanted
Wanted: An archery store.
- Willing to help me determine the proper draw weight, by actually drawing a bow.
- Willing to help me select a bow based on its merits, rather than its brand name.
- Capable of fitting me to the right bow.
I tried two stores today. Neither came close. One was busy watching the OSU game. The other had a total of 4 different bows.
- Willing to help me determine the proper draw weight, by actually drawing a bow.
- Willing to help me select a bow based on its merits, rather than its brand name.
- Capable of fitting me to the right bow.
I tried two stores today. Neither came close. One was busy watching the OSU game. The other had a total of 4 different bows.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Learning to Bowhunt
I mentioned before that my interest is growing in the whole bowhunting scene. I really want to get into bowhunting in time for the '08 season, but it has to be done my way. I'm sure I am biased from my work background, but I sure place a high value on formal training. I also like to read and study about something before I dive in.
The more I look into it, the more I envy some of the options available to women. I am all for supporting my fellow hunter, especially the huntress. I think the blogging community and now the outdoors channels are doing a better job of promoting women in the wild. However when it comes to learning bowhunting, I think there is a great example of an area where women actually have more resources available.
Julie had a comprehensive archery program in her school. In our school, archery was only for the girls. We had plenty of other valuable life skills to practice. You know, like dodgeball. As a result, I can throw a mean volleyball but I sure can't shoot a bow.
Women also have the opportunity to attend Becoming an Outdoors Woman (B.O.W.) sessions where they can learn about bowhunting ( and many other interesting topics). The more I think about it, the more I think that women actually have an advantage in the area.
Certainly there must be a program out there available to me. How did you get started into bowhunting? What have you done to get better with your bow? What would you recommend for an upstart like me?
The more I look into it, the more I envy some of the options available to women. I am all for supporting my fellow hunter, especially the huntress. I think the blogging community and now the outdoors channels are doing a better job of promoting women in the wild. However when it comes to learning bowhunting, I think there is a great example of an area where women actually have more resources available.
Julie had a comprehensive archery program in her school. In our school, archery was only for the girls. We had plenty of other valuable life skills to practice. You know, like dodgeball. As a result, I can throw a mean volleyball but I sure can't shoot a bow.
Women also have the opportunity to attend Becoming an Outdoors Woman (B.O.W.) sessions where they can learn about bowhunting ( and many other interesting topics). The more I think about it, the more I think that women actually have an advantage in the area.
Certainly there must be a program out there available to me. How did you get started into bowhunting? What have you done to get better with your bow? What would you recommend for an upstart like me?
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