Innehållsförteckning för November/December/Whitetail Annual 2020 från Petersen's Bowhunting

FINALLY! As I write this column, it’s early September, and I am organizing my whitetail gear and preparing to drive from Pennsylvania to western Kentucky for the deer-season opener. To say I am a bit anxious for the trip would be an understatement. In fact, I’m downright giddy. I don’t have to tell any of you what a horror show 2020 has been. After six looooong months of lockdowns, shutdowns, quarantines, protests, riots and nonstop political posturing amidst the most bizarre Presidential campaign in U.S. history, it is — at long last — time to climb into a treestand and hunt. Sure, I’d love to take a big, velvet Bluegrass buck. But then again, I find it hard to believe even a slow week in the whitetail woods wouldn’t beat…

IN THE LAST column, we began the discussion on shooting well in the wind. We covered estimating and compensating for wind drift. Now, we will discuss the other components of shooting well in the wind: choosing and setting up your equipment to better handle the wind and developing “wind-resistant” shooting form and timing. Wind-Friendly Gear To shoot well in the wind, you must reduce the surface area of your bow to minimize wind drag. Reducing wind drag will minimize the distance your bow moves when buffeted by the wind. I prefer to use a relatively short axle-to-axle bow with a removable quiver and a small sight, set close to the bow. If I use a stabilizer, I use a very low-profile model such as the AAE Hot Rodz series. If…

Manufacturer: TenPoint Crossbow Technologies, 330-628-9245; tenpointcrossbows.com Model: Vengent S440 Safety Features: Dry Fire Inhibitor, auto trigger safety, safety wings Riser: Compact, machined aluminum, black anodized Cam System: RX-6, Dual, Spiral Groove String: BCY X99, 31.5625 inches Cables (x4): BCY X99, 12.75 inches Limbs: Dual Flex, Split, Gordon Composites Draw Weight: 250 pounds Power Stroke: 14 inches Grip: Pistol style Stock/Forearm: TEC-X Stock, glass-filled polypropylene Finish: Veil Alpine Camo or Graphite Gray Advertised Speed: Up to 440 fps with a 370-grain bolt Minimum Advertised Price: $1,999.99 (camo); $1,899.99 (Graphite) Comments: Balanced, fast, easy to control and safe.…

DREAM ON Montana Decoy’s Dream Team ($119.99; montanadecoy.com) gives bowhunters a versatile, photo-realistic tandem to deploy throughout the season. Featuring the company’s Whitetail Buck and Dreamy Whitetail Doe decoys, the Dream Team lets you use either or both options to create a variety of scenarios. The doe decoy measures 37x40 inches but folds down to a compact 13x16 inches for transport, while the buck decoy measures 37x48 inches and folds down to 20x18 inches. Decoy weights, including the mounting poles, are 30 ounces for the doe and 32 ounces for the buck. Both decoys are compatible with the optional Quickstand and Teaser Tail for added motion and realism. TWO IN ONE The Whitetail Deer Buck Stalker Decoy from Ultimate Predator Gear ($98.95; ultimatepredatorgear.com) gives you the ability to pose as…

There’s no doubt the rut is the most sought-after time to hunt whitetails. Regardless of where you hunt in whitetail country, the majority of bowhunters love to put all their chips on the table and roll the dice on rut action bringing the buck of their dreams past their stands. I totally get it. I mean, what whitetail nut doesn’t love the anticipation and endless possibilities the rut brings? I sure do, but many times, hunting the rut can leave us scratching our heads and clenching our fists due to its utter unpredictability and chaos. That said, I believe there is a time period within the rut that allows for thinking bowhunters to apply some logic and reason, rather than just relying on luck. So, what time is that, you…

BUILT FOR WHITETAILS, the Hangtime was obviously designed by dedicated deer-hunting fanatics. The first thing I noticed about my new Tenzing Hangtime Day Pack when I pulled it out of the shipping box was a giant tag affixed to the front that proclaims, in all capital letters: “THE BEST DEER HUNTING PACK EVER MADE.” Yeah, OK, I thought, half annoyed by the marketing schtick and half curious to see whether there might be some truth to such a bold claim. (Hint: There is.) As the name implies, the Hangtime was designed as a dedicated whitetail pack especially suited for hanging out with you 20 feet up your favorite tree. The Hangtime isn’t the first “treestand” pack to hit the market, but as I began exploring its features, I quickly realized…

NOVEMBER IS A very special time for passionate deer hunters, as it opens a long-awaited window of opportunity to tag big, old bucks that are normally just about impossible to kill. I have a friend named Bentley. Once, when we were kids, I told Bentley about another student who was bullying me at school. This fella was much bigger than I was, and he was sour at the world. It seemed he was intent on bringing other people down with him. When I told Bentley he had been pushing me around, Bentley said something I’ll never forget. “Cody, God didn’t make all men equal, but he made equalizers,” Bentley said. “You need to figure that out for yourself.” I think I got the gist of it. Bentley was, and is,…

AS STATES CONTINUE to liberalize crossbow regulations, more folks are picking them up and taking them afield during deer season. This year will be no exception as several states, including Maine, are offering new crossbow-hunting opportunities. The majority of folks taking advantage of them are firearms hunters looking to increase their time afield or just to try something new, but they’re not the only ones. There are other motivations for picking up a crossbow this fall, ranging from the obvious to some you may not have considered. Recruit & Retain Let’s pick the low-hanging fruit first: recruitment and retention. Crossbows are a great way to introduce youngsters to archery hunting. With so many distractions such as smart-phones and social media, it’s increasingly difficult to attract young hunters, and it’s important…

OL’ MAN, NEW DESIGN The AlumaLite CTS climber from Ol‘ Man Outdoors ($293.99; olmanoutdoors.com) incorporates many of the features that made the original Ol‘ Man stands legendary while adding a host of new, modern features such as oval aluminum tubing and a new cable system that makes getting the stand on and off the tree a breeze. This stand also features Ol‘ Man’s patented, 21-inch-wide ComforTech seat and pivoting spreader arms to accommodate trees of varying sizes. Weighing 21 pounds, the AlumaLite CTS will accommodate loads up to 300 pounds. The redesigned, 18x32-inch foot platform has improved, tube-style foot straps that makes them easier to get your boots into and provides better grip while climbing. An adjustable, removable shooting rest also makes the AlumaLite CTS a versatile option for both…

IF YOU ARE serious about working on your own bow, a quality vice is a must-have item that will save trips to the pro shop and make you a more confident bowhunter. One of the coolest things about bow-hunting — at least to me — is that as you grow as a bowhunter, you also grow in your understanding of archery and archery equipment. The vast majority of new bowhunters, along with many veterans, rely on the services of local pro shops to keep their bows tuned and in good working order. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that, and I’d be lying if I said I don’t seek the expertise of pro-shop technicians from time to time. However, I do take pride in doing the vast majority of my bow…

DOMESTIC DOGS have enriched human lives in many ways for thousands of years. Researchers at Emory University employed MRI technology to scan the “reward center” of dogs' brains while presenting various odors. It wasn’t the smell of other dogs or even food that made their reward centers do backflips; it was human odor! It turns out, this “man’s best friend” deal is a two-way street. The scientists concluded that domestic dogs prioritize their relationship with humans more than anything else. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could leverage this to our advantage as bowhunters? Let’s face it; there’s nothing worse than shooting a deer (or other game) and not being able to find it. Things don’t always go according to plan, and whether it is a marginal shot or a…

TENPOINT IS A pioneer in the crossbow world, known for the quality, durability and excellent performance of its products. TenPoint upholds that reputation year after year, and the new-for-2020 Vengent S440 builds on the success of the company’s popular Vector Quad cable system, Dual-Flex split limbs and spiral groove RX-6 cams to produce blazing fast speeds in a compact, maneuverable package. The S1 two-stage trigger sends the bolt on its way with a crisp, 3.5-pound (advertised) pull, while the ACUslide cocking/ de-cocking system, housed in the Tec-X stock, allows full control at all stages of the process. Safety is enhanced with an auto-engaging trigger safety, Dry Fire Inhibitor and safety wings. Controlled Slide TenPoint’s ACUslide cocking and de-cocking system promotes total control, ensures safety and does so in complete silence,…

Most trail cameras have a time-lapse or field-scan mode. This is a highly useful tool when you set your camera on the edge of a small plot or place it in the secluded corner of a larger field. The camera takes a photo at set intervals (I like 30 seconds) during the hours you prescribe. The deer don’t have to be close enough to trigger the camera to get their photo taken. You can learn how deer approach the field and where they feed and even how they leave it. You can learn if the buck you are after is using it in daylight. All that information is very useful when deciding when and how to hunt him.…

DOMINATE THE BIG WOODS Big bucks love the big woods, and when those big woods feature heavy undergrowth, swamps and rocky ridges littered with hiding spots, all the better. The problem many big-woods hunters face every year is simply seeing a shooter during daylight. Enter Foggy Mountain’s HotDoe Doe-In-Heat urine ($18-$54; foggymountainlife.com). Brought to the market by the late, legendary Maine Master Guide Wayne A. Bosowicz, this scent comes in 2-, 4- and 8-ounce bottles and is sure to put your big-woods target buck on the search. A NEW BREW Made from a secret recipe locked in Wildlife Research Center’s vault for 30 years, Trapper John’s Ultimate Buck Lure ($30/4-ouncebottle; wildlife.com) is a tribute to WRC Founder John Burgeson. This complex lure combines old, forgotten secrets from trappers of long…

IF YOU READ my last column, Wide-Open Spaces, you probably know I abhor social interaction. As I write these lines in June, it seems the liberal philosophy of “let’s all get together and hug each other to death” may be falling by the wayside. It seems disease and social anarchy have thrown a wrench into this supreme plan for man. And so now, “they” have come up with a brand-new idea; social distancing . This new, complex approach to life revolves around the notion that people might actually be better off staying away from each other . What a revelation! As I’ve matured as a person and as a bowhunter, most of the folks who have known me gave up on me long ago. They said that I was “stuck…