Is there any way to prepare for it?

[WapitiTalk1]

The old timers call it buck fever. Perhaps you've shot a few big game animals with a rifle and you felt the twinge of the anxiety right before you squeezed the trigger. Maybe, you've sat in a tree stand for several hours until that 125+ whitetail's antler tips started to show as he came up the trail, over the small rise, and walked up the game trail, nose down, right before dark as you drew your bow in anticipation of a buck of a lifetime. What can you practice or rehearse, to ready your self for that moment when a bull elk responds to your calling and appears in the ever so small opening 28 1/2 yards in front of you. It's your time to draw the bow, drop the pin in that sweet sideways V spot, and touch off an arrow to successfully culminate the CO, WY, MT, NV, WA, ID, NM, hunt you've been anticipating for so many years. I will tell you friends, there is nothing as exciting and ultimately unnerving as having a bull come into your calls either vocally or unannounced. It's been known to render folks virtually unable to draw their bow and honestly, leave some in a quasi frozen state and a bundle of nerves. I consistently tell friends that my time jumping out of a perfectly good airplane in the 82d Airborne was child's play next to a bull coming in and calming one's self adequately to shoot it. So, the stage is set, what do you do between now and the time you step in the elk woods to prepare yourself for "the shot" when it's on the line? RJ

Edit: CO, WY, MT, NV, WA, ID, NM, UT, AZ or the great state of Oregon .. Sorry Swede, I opologize for ommiting your fine state in original post

[Swede]

I am not sure I should answer your question RJ, as Oregon elk apparently don't qualify. . I did hunt with a rifle long before I got anything with a bow. That may have helped. Still, as soon as I decide an elk is shooter, I focus. I don't look at antlers. I focus on the exact place where I want the arrow to land. I normally don't feel nervous at the time, but often when the shot is made, I am ready to sit down and take a break. Last year I had a 5x5 bull in front of me for 15 minutes as I stood on my stand. I noticed I was a little nervous once, but I did not have any shakes. The feeling of nervousness lasted a few seconds then subsided. I was ready. I knew all I needed was for him to cooperate. Finally he stepped forward.

[Da White Shoe]

Visualization can help.
Spend as much time as you can mentally playing out different scenarios in which you pick the shooting lane, range it, draw and shoot.
It's important to always picture yourself performing perfectly and having it end with the perfect outcome.
Know what you're going to do before the situation presents itself.

Controlled breathing can help.
I know it sounds goofy, but trust me on this one.
The minute you know that the moment is close at hand, begin inhaling slowly through your nose and exhaling slowly from your mouth.
Do this deeply and slowly or you may hyperventilate.

We all know to not stare at his rack.
I would go a step further and recommend that you don't even look directly at the target animal... as little as
is humanly possible, anyway. Be watching for where the shooting lane will be... or how far it will be... or when to draw... anything.

Kill some stuff.
There isn't any replacement for experience. You need to gain it... and the quicker the better.
If you are going elk hunting for the first time and you don't live in an elk state, but the whitetails are thick where you're from... get every tag you can buy and do your best to fill all of them.
Wild pigs would work well, too... any kind of big game, regardless of whether it is bald or has antlers. Confidence in yourself at the moment of truth can overcome some of the inexperience.

[easeup]

good post lead off guy!

first of all this old guy is qualified to comment here on this ( it is one of my favorite subjects by the way) because I missed my first fire breathing dragon disguised as a Colorado raghorn at 15 yds. thats right, it happened. To this day I still do not know how.

As dawhiteshoe said do not look at the antlers once you have determined he is legal. Turn on your mental range finder. Pick the distance and be sure of it. SLOW down your mind....most of the time there really is plenty of time to execute the shot just like you have always practiced.

Oh baby when that pin lowers into place ( how sweet that moment is) relax.......dont hurry at this point.. did I mention relax?. Focus on a single point. you guys know the rest about releasing an arrow correctly.

I highly recommend shooting 3D with people you do not know for this reason. I expect others who have done this will reply their observations too.
I have plenty more on this subject....but I will share the board with my friends.

[elkmtngear]

As dawhiteshoe said do not look at the antlers once you have determined he is legal. Turn on your mental range finder. Pick the distance and be sure of it. SLOW down your mind....most of the time there really is plenty of time to execute the shot just like you have always practiced.

Oh baby when that pin lowers into place ( how sweet that moment is) relax.......dont hurry at this point.. did I mention relax?. Focus on a single point. you guys know the rest about releasing an arrow correctly.

X2.....you found my recipe!

[BrentLaBere]

Da White Shoe has one I agree with and think it is the most important. "Kill some stuff" basically get the experience needed. Stay focused and be able to judge those moments that seem to happen so quick. I have missed my fare share of P&Y white tails and it was because of the lack of experience. Getting caught up in the moment and almost enjoying it too much? Seeing that animal I have waited all year and practiced for to walk by and here he is......with me trying to pick my jaw up and stop drooling and by this point I realize I have to try and pull this off. I start to panic watching his rack right before he crosses the fence and gives me a broadside shot. Counting the fence posts, ok he is at 35 yards, wind is in my face so I am good there. Maybe I can move closer? as I stand up to move the buck crosses.....I draw back and put my 35 pin on and squeeze the release. Arrow flew perfect! right under the brisket ......missed 2 fence posts. Should of been my 45 pin. haha all the time in the world to count and I was to busy deciding if he was a 5x5 or 5x6.
EXPERIENCE. There is no substitute for it in my opinion. I walk around now always checking trails and shooting lanes. How far is that? Little details that have helped in my recent past. There are plenty others but getting out there and learning is the best way to keep those nerves at bay.

[RockChucker30]

Experience breeds confidence, confidence kills.

I do think you can train for the adrenaline rush though, by practicing shooting under pressure. I like to set up at 50 yards and nock an arrow, then sprint to the target, touch it, sprint back to my bow, and shoot as quickly as possible. Do this several times in a row and you combine a good workout with really good practice controlling yourself during the critical 5-7 seconds it takes to shoot.

[Lefty]

Well I had the feaver last year as a bull charged in,.. I couldnt keep my arrow nocked
I can relate this to my goose hunting. all the paractice, all the ducks did help some, but for some reason when geese were backwinging as a new goose hunter I messed up plenty. Geese still excite me but not to the point of choking on the shot

For some reason my mechanics in shooting are very good,.. but I mess up on other things, mostly not ranging distance, It also takes about 30 minutes for me to settle down around the elk and become the preditor

[Harmy]

I spent much of my teees hunting jack rabbits with my .243. I think this helped more than anything else in my abilty to focus and squeeze off the shot.

[Trophyhill]

For a lot of people "controlling" emotion at the moment of truth is a tough thing to overcome. You all have heard that hunting is 90% mental. That should read "killing" is 90% mental. Control the emotion until after the kill

[Swede]

Now RJ you know I would not let a thing like that pass. You are just too much fun to pick on. I am now waiting to see if Indian Summer reminds you that Pennsylvania has huntable elk, then there will be those from Kentucky, etc. etc. etc. The Canadians will follow, but you will know you have seen it all when some fellow from Mongolia takes exception to your oversight.

[bnsafe]

i tell myself as soon as i see it that if if get it i will have pics horns etc for a lifetime, if i blow it due to my fault i will just have bad memories. after that is all business till after the shot. after the shot i completely fall apart like a school boy. sounds stupid but works for me.

[WapitiTalk1]

I am now waiting to see if Indian Summer reminds you that Pennsylvania has huntable elk, then there will be those from Kentucky, etc. etc. etc.

Elk east of the mighty mississippi? That's like salsa from "New York City" Sorry for the small thread detour.. Remember these old Pace commercials?

[mtnmutt]

Da White Shoe's list is the best list I have seen on this subject.
Visualization can help.
Controlled breathing can help.
We all know to not stare at his rack.
Kill some stuff.

As a new hunter, who has not killed any mammal on purpose yet (car does not count). I did everything wrong for my first season as an elk hunter. I know choosing to hunt elk as my first mammal is not the wisest. I got hooked while elk calling for 3 yrs for another person. Never got one for that person within bow range, but it hooked me on elk.

First season, opening day, 8 am. I got a 4x4 to stand perfectly broadside at 16 yards for minutes while I shook and my heart pounded like never before. He stared at me while I sat in my little hole with little cover and no decoy. I could not pull my bow back due to shaking. Never practiced on 3D, Never studied elk anatomy in depth (those cutouts). Did everything wrong before that day. Since I could not pull my bow back, I resolved not to try to shoot him. Magically, I stopped shaking. He had turned 180degrees to face the other way, but it was still 16 yards and broadside. Once I realized I stopped shaking, I gently moved my bow around a tree, pulled back, aimed too high on vitals, released arrow, elk ducked, arrow barely made it over bull's shoulder.

Fast forward to 2nd season. 6x6 walks by at 30-35 yards, I shook lightly for only 5 seconds. I tried a gentle mew to stop him since I did not know about the nervous grunt. He spotted me and kept going. But I only shook for 5 seconds for a 6x6.

1st and 2nd season was night and day simply because of what I did between those seasons. Every time I went to practice shooting, I did Visualization and Breathing exercises while shooting either paper or 3D targets. It made a world of difference for me. It is now in my subconscious.

I also went to Estes Park, CO and Rocky Mtn National Park and hung around the elk in early Oct within 50 yards and would simply stare at the V. I do the same for the mulies that come to my yard, I stare at the V for minutes. It helps train my eyes on a live animal. I have even done it for a big fat annoying squirrel in my backyard which I wish was legal to shoot in my yard.

[tdiesel]

obviouly some are better at performing under pressure than others and I think alot hit it on the head with the confidence. By practicing and having the mindset of "yeah I can make that shot" is the mental aspect I think others were referring to. By being confident in your set-up and ability to shoot then it doesn't become this un-obtainable thing. as others stated after that moment then you can let your emotion run wild and shake afterwards. Dawhiteshoe summed it up awfully good don't know if I could say it any better.
Kinda goes back to the "are you a hunter or a killer" thread a while back

[easeup]

Experience is a good friend to have. the absolute only way you get it is to do it.
I know it does not fit in well with todays PC world, but if you havent got much killing experience, there is some skill building learned by killing.
It is very hard to learn that skill archery elk hunting.

it is OK to start somewhere, rabbits, armadillos, birds squirrels... whatever.

[wideangle]

If you shoot traditional equipment the lore is: pick a spot and stay calm.
The instinctive traditional method of shooting means intense focus on one spot on a game animal.
This can really help reduce the "fever".
Which also means if you look at the antlers you'll shoot the antlers!