Take a target, cover it in balloons, line the kids up and let them fire away. There should be an adult per kid to start with until skills can be evaluated.  You want to make sure that everyone stays safe and that it is an enjoyable experience for both kid and parent alike.  Carrying a 6 year old to the ER after being shot in foot would not be a good thing.

Again, there are many variations to this game.  One of easiest variations I have found is to assign a color of balloon to a particular shooter and see how many they can hit.  Another fun idea is to fill the balloons up with water and watch the excitement as the balloons pop and water goes everywhere.

Make sure that no kid goes away with a BFZ (Big Fat Zero).  Have several targets ready with balloons spaced closely together for the younger shots. Try this with your younger shooters at your next archery shoot and watch a whole new generation become enamored with archery.

The balloon game is also a good way to distribute prizes at archery events for shooters of all ages.  Just make sure you keep the distances applicable to the ranges the targets are placed at.

One of my all time favorites is a game called Archery Poker.  Played with the right incentive, its a good way to have a little fun, practice your shooting skills, and gain mucho bragging rights.

Take a standard size target bag, deck of cards, and some double sided sticky tape, place cards across the target bag until the full deck is used.  Now depending on if you want to shoot skill or luck, place cards face up or face down.   Now remember spacing is critical, the wider the spacing, the better chance of the “BIG FAT ZERO”, forevermore known as BFZ.

Agree on the incentive, pace off a decent distance, 40 to 50 yards is good, depending on the skill of the archers involved.  Decide which game of poker you are playing and number of arrows each participant is allowed to shoot downrange.  Choose if you are going to shoot one archer at a time or multiple archers with the ability to steal cards.   Line up and fire away.

Let the trash talking begin.

Now there are many variations to this game and its only limited the the game you choose and your imagination.  Instead of using a deck of cards, paper poker targets are available.  The idea is to add variety to shooting the same old spots day after day.  Try it and enjoy.

In my opinion there is no “ONE” broad head that works on everything, yes they all cut holes, yes they are all sharp, and yes 99.9% of them will get the job done, or will they? One of the key selling points to broad heads has always been then look, if it looks deadly then it is bound to get the job done.

Lets take a second and put in the true variables that need to be considered prior to selection of a broad head. I use these daily when assisting a customer with their selection.

Draw weight/ Arrow weight/ Shaft spine/Arrow speed/ Type fletching/ Shaft diameter/Total kinetic energy/ and most important what type of game.

Arrow flight and accuracy can be greatly effected by the the physical size and profile of a broad head and should also be considered.

Fixed blade broad heads that are true cut on impact are always my starting point. They expend less kinetic energy when entering a carcass, no mater if its a broad side shot or quartering. The one thing to note with these type broad heads is the angle and length of blade. Short compact broad heads will expend more stored energy than longer tapered blades.

+ The fixed blade head is a big plus in short draw length lite poundage bows.

+ They provide a number of options from light to heavy carcass animals.

- Arrow flight issues and bow tuning may be a problem with larger fixed blade broad heads known as planning but I feel the little extra work to clean up the flight pays of big in success of the hunt.

(examples of various blades sizes and tapers)

Mechanical broad heads have made a large leap over the past few years in durability and effectiveness. These heads normally fly as well as your field points and require minimal to no additional tuning requirements. They however expend more stored energy to operate than a fixed blade and consideration of type animal to be hunted should way heavy in choosing this type broad head especially when hunting large animals  such as Elk, Bison or Wild boar.

+ These heads have larger cutting widths when opened.

+ Minimal tuning issues.

- Even larger energy loss when entering a carcass which is multiplied when attempting a quartering shot.

- Arrow speeds above 260 fps, in my opinion are a must.

Mechanical broad heads can be devastating, but I highly recommend the archer understand the limits and apply them to his or her specific application.

(examples of mechanical broad heads)

This article was written not to settle which 0ne is better than the other, but to make a few points to ponder as to your next selection for a broad head.  Good hunting and may GOD Bless.

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