Normally this is the last round of shooting on tournament day and is a great way to relax and have fun at the end of a hectic competitive day. Here is the jist.  Take a group of your favorite shooting friends( 5 to 10 archers), your bow, one arrow, and a 3d course.  The idea is to make it through the course still being able to shoot.

The rules are this.  Everyone in the group who is able shoots at a the target. The sequence of shooters changes at every target to keep it somewhat fair. Scoring is the same as a target round.  Nock and vane shooting is not only in the rules, but encouraged.   If your arrow is damaged and will not shoot or fly then you are disqualified for the round.

At the end of the round, whoever remains shooting totals up their score and is declared the winner.

The footage of the first two kills was recorded with a product called i-kam extreme one of the sponsors of the contest put on by Blue Collar Bow  Hunters.

We wish Team JCL Outdoors the best of luck and will continue to post there shots here as they make footage available.

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.

Let me first begin by saying that this is a visual appealing gun.  Opening the blue plastic case,  it was like being a 5 year old at Christmas opening the latest GI Joe.

The gun comes with various chokes, recoil pad, and gun oil.  I have the personal opinion that it would be nice to have it come in something other than a blue plastic case.  Call me crazy, but if you spend $1400  to $2000 for a gun you would hope that it would come in something a little better than a molded plastic case.

However, the gun itself is beautiful.  Excellent wood stock and fore-grip with the silver receiver finish makes a perfect presentation.  Nice scroll work and accents on the receiver set off the coloring of the stock and the barrels.

Once the gun is assembled, you first notice how light and agile the gun feels in your hand.  It feels like a sprinter getting ready to jump out of the block. The Beretta has an integrated safety and barrel selector on the back of the receiver that is in my opinion in the perfect spot.  The gun shoots like a dream, quick to the shoulder and accurate.  I was shooting the 12 ga version and after a full day of shooting and a case of shells, I was still a happy camper.  I will say that I had some black and blue spots the following day and a grin on my face.

I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

A number of prizes were given out by both TPW, and NWTF ranging from new fishing rod combinations to soccer balls.

A special thanks needs to be passed to the following additional sponsors:

• Sulphur Springs Kiwanas
• Chilies Resteraunt
• Pizza Hut
• Farmers Electric Company
• Piggly Wiggly
• Classic Lanes
• Coke

I would also like to extend a special personal thanks to Dale Thompson for all his hard work  in the cold weather to support a great youth program.

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.

I have just completed my review of the Mission Voyager and all I can say is WOW! what an excellent hunting bow. I have been very impressed with the Mission line of bows from Mathews since there inception. They have proven themselves as an exceptional no frills hunting bow time and time again.

Features:

• Axle to Axle – 34″
• Brace height – 7″
• Let-Off – 80%
• Riser – Fully Machined
• Draw Weight – 40 – 70 lbs.
• Draw Lengths – 26 – 31.5 “
• Silencers – String Suppressors & String Grubb
• Cam – Single/Perimeter Weighted
• Gable Guard – Carbon Rod
• Bow Strings – Zebra Hybrid
• Grip – Walnut

SET UP

Initial set up and tune went like clock work with very little time spent paper tuning past the initial knock settings.  As with all of the bows I review they are set up as if I were going to take them hunting.

BOW SETTINGS

• Draw weight: 70lbs
• Draw length: 29″
• Let off:             80%
• Axle to Axle: 34″
• Brace height:  7″

EQUIPMENT

• Arrow rest:  Bodoodle
• Sights: SME
• Stabilizer: Sims modular with a 7″ Alpine proflex
• Quiver: Mathews T-7

ARROW

• Beman ICS Hunter Camo
• 3″ feather fletching
• Length 28″
• Tip 100 grain
• Weight total 405 grain

The Voyager tuned very quickly with minimum variation from the standard Mathews 16th of an inch high knock and an 8th of an inch inside center to shoot clean with this arrow

DRAW CYCLE

This is a smooth speed cam with a very solid wall and a true pleasure to shoot. The 80% let off and with a true valley allowed for a great feel at anchor.  This is a cam you do not have to fight.

SHOT GROUPS

• 20 yards : less than 1/4″
• 30 yards: 1/2 to 1″
• 40 yards: 2″
• 50 yards:  3″ and less

This is a very forgiving bow I had no problems holding kill zone shots with broad heads out to 70 yards. I had no problems with the bow setting still on the spot, and a solid no torque feel.

In my opinion Mission has set the standard for the rest of the industry in the entry level bow market, both in price and quality. Arrow speeds for my test set up varied about 3 FPS with a high of 303 and a low of 300. This bow is fast with a good hunting set up.

SUMMARY

This is an easy bow to shoot with great performance and warrants the flagship position in the Mission line for 2010.

There are some issues with the balance of the bow when you first pick it up with nothing on it,  it is top heavy. I added a little extra weight below the handle and that greatly improved the feel. Overall when the bow is completely setup it balances fairly well.

This bow shoots extremely well and is very forgiving, I can honestly say I rank this bow a true 10 in overall performance.

Take your 3 to 5 pound roast and cut slits compleatly though. DO NOT SLICE!! Basically, your making stab type slits that go from top to bottom.Insert little slivers of garlic and onion into the slits. Put in bowl and pour 1 cup of vinegar over the roast, making sure it gets in the slits. Cover and place in refridgerator for 24 to 48 hours.

When ready to cook, discard vinegar solution and place meat in heavy pot and brown in oil until NEARLY burned on both sides. Pour 2 cups of very strong, black coffee (the only kind Grandma ever made!) over the roast. Add 2 cups of water to pot and cover. Cook this SLOWLY at a simmer for 6 hours on top of stove.

DO NOT season with anything else until 20 minutes before serving. Then add salt and pepper ONLY! That’s all. Very good!