After this weekend's fiasco with Crazy Rack laying down on me, I was looking forward to making the next move. When I got out of bed yesterday, all I could think about was: "I need to be in the woods this afternoon." Around lunch time, I made a few calls and found out my afternoon looked a lot more clear than the skies did at the time, so I was woods bound! 
After getting to the farm where Crazy Rack spends his days, I smoked up and loaded the old Honda up and headed for the front bean field. I decided to push forward from my current set-up about 100 yards and close the distance on CR and where I thought he was bedding. With the wind and wet leaves, I made a stealthy approach to my tree which was located on the bank of a steep ravine in an inside corner of the beans. Basically, as classic a staging area as you can find in the deer woods.
I decided to hang my stand face due east with the expectation that he would come from behind the tree and I could use the tree as cover. After getting situated, I read an article in North American Whitetail and then set about watching the woods. Around 5:45, I was getting a tad bit chilly, so I decided to go ahead and put my jacket on. If only I had known!!!
As soon as I got my jacket on, I turned to face my 12 o'clock for the first time in several minutes. (Remember, I'm thinking he is coming from behind my tree.) Instantly I catch movement and realize there is a deer at 50 yards directly downwind of me. Within seconds, I realize it was Crazy Rack and immediately I began thinking: "Where in the hell did he come from?" I still don't have the answer to that. My best guess is he was bedded in a false ravine where they did not plant beans, which meant I was moved in and set up less than 75 yards from him without alerting him to my presence. A quick check of the wind reminded me that I love the smoker and a peak through the Bushnells confirmed it was indeed CR.
As he milled around in the brush, I began to grow concerned he would not come past my set-up, so I reached in and grabbed the grunt call and softly grunted twice. Within 30 seconds, I could tell I had his attention and set back to await his arrival. As he edged out of the thicket, I quickly ranged the most likely shot opportunities realizing it would once again be a sub-30 yard game. As he neared the top of the ravine I was sitting next to, he turned and headed right towards my tree. One last range of the best lane I had read "21 yards" and I locked the Stan on the d-loop and readied myself for action...
The next thing I now, my bow goes off and my arrow is stuck 20' in a tree not 15 yards in front of me! "What the fuck?!? Shit!!! Get another arrow..." At the sound of the arrow hitting the tree, he took 3-4 steps and stopped in the brush. I quickly nocked another arrow as he slowly worked away from me in the brush. In an act of desperation, I grunted twice, but that only seemed to add a little pep to his step. Once again, I watched as Crazy Rack waved his white flag at me while he disappeared into oblivion.
So what happened? I shoot a super light release (a mouse fart will trigger this thing) and the combination of that and me making a rookie mistake cost me this deer. As I came to full draw and went to anchor, I caught the collar of my jacket with my thumb/release and it caused me to shoot before I was even close to being ready. It was a rookie mistake and one that will haunt me until I close the chapter on this season, particularly with Crazy Rack. I’ve had a relatively flawless bowhunting career and it was only a matter of time until I was reminded that bowhunting is ruled by Murphy’s Law. Again, I wanted to scream, throw shit, and cry, but all I could do was laugh and shake my head.
Somewhere along the line, I have built up some serious negative karma that I am now paying for in my quest for Crazy Rack and early season success. It’s only Day 5 of a long ass bow season, but it has already been the best and worst season of my career. I have never had a shooter in bow range before the last week of October and I’ve managed to do it in 2 of my first 3 hunts on this farm. I’ve always had a lot of self-doubt as a bowhunter because I don’t have the results to match the “wisdom” I have absorbed over the years. There are the haters on OS that consider me an armchair hunter and there is probably some validity to that perception of me. I have the book smarts so to speak, but not the success to match the knowledge I have gained over the years. Making that move last night was one that gives me some confidence that I am learning and I do have what it takes to makes smart decisions in the woods. The messed up part about it is, I lost a little confidence in the one thing I have never doubted and that was my performance in the moment of truth. It hurts to make a mistake that should not have happened. But what can you do? Climb back on the horse and bite the snake that bit you I guess…
So the next move was to pack up and get the hell out of there as soon as I could to avoid another spooking at last light. I moved the camera to the pinch point he walked through on his way to my stand as I left the woods. I’ll leave him be for a week or more and play the weather from here to the end of October. I’m going to let the camera tell me what to expect and let the weather dictate my intrusions into his territory. I know he did not see or smell me last night as amazing as that may be. He was not overly spooked and given his injury, I don’t anticipate him making any major changes to his routine. There will be a third meeting of the minds and I hope like hell it goes better than the last two! He fucked me once and I fucked myself once. Next time, I’m letting the Slick Tricks do the fucking!!!
After getting to the farm where Crazy Rack spends his days, I smoked up and loaded the old Honda up and headed for the front bean field. I decided to push forward from my current set-up about 100 yards and close the distance on CR and where I thought he was bedding. With the wind and wet leaves, I made a stealthy approach to my tree which was located on the bank of a steep ravine in an inside corner of the beans. Basically, as classic a staging area as you can find in the deer woods.
I decided to hang my stand face due east with the expectation that he would come from behind the tree and I could use the tree as cover. After getting situated, I read an article in North American Whitetail and then set about watching the woods. Around 5:45, I was getting a tad bit chilly, so I decided to go ahead and put my jacket on. If only I had known!!!
As soon as I got my jacket on, I turned to face my 12 o'clock for the first time in several minutes. (Remember, I'm thinking he is coming from behind my tree.) Instantly I catch movement and realize there is a deer at 50 yards directly downwind of me. Within seconds, I realize it was Crazy Rack and immediately I began thinking: "Where in the hell did he come from?" I still don't have the answer to that. My best guess is he was bedded in a false ravine where they did not plant beans, which meant I was moved in and set up less than 75 yards from him without alerting him to my presence. A quick check of the wind reminded me that I love the smoker and a peak through the Bushnells confirmed it was indeed CR.
As he milled around in the brush, I began to grow concerned he would not come past my set-up, so I reached in and grabbed the grunt call and softly grunted twice. Within 30 seconds, I could tell I had his attention and set back to await his arrival. As he edged out of the thicket, I quickly ranged the most likely shot opportunities realizing it would once again be a sub-30 yard game. As he neared the top of the ravine I was sitting next to, he turned and headed right towards my tree. One last range of the best lane I had read "21 yards" and I locked the Stan on the d-loop and readied myself for action...
The next thing I now, my bow goes off and my arrow is stuck 20' in a tree not 15 yards in front of me! "What the fuck?!? Shit!!! Get another arrow..." At the sound of the arrow hitting the tree, he took 3-4 steps and stopped in the brush. I quickly nocked another arrow as he slowly worked away from me in the brush. In an act of desperation, I grunted twice, but that only seemed to add a little pep to his step. Once again, I watched as Crazy Rack waved his white flag at me while he disappeared into oblivion.
So what happened? I shoot a super light release (a mouse fart will trigger this thing) and the combination of that and me making a rookie mistake cost me this deer. As I came to full draw and went to anchor, I caught the collar of my jacket with my thumb/release and it caused me to shoot before I was even close to being ready. It was a rookie mistake and one that will haunt me until I close the chapter on this season, particularly with Crazy Rack. I’ve had a relatively flawless bowhunting career and it was only a matter of time until I was reminded that bowhunting is ruled by Murphy’s Law. Again, I wanted to scream, throw shit, and cry, but all I could do was laugh and shake my head.
Somewhere along the line, I have built up some serious negative karma that I am now paying for in my quest for Crazy Rack and early season success. It’s only Day 5 of a long ass bow season, but it has already been the best and worst season of my career. I have never had a shooter in bow range before the last week of October and I’ve managed to do it in 2 of my first 3 hunts on this farm. I’ve always had a lot of self-doubt as a bowhunter because I don’t have the results to match the “wisdom” I have absorbed over the years. There are the haters on OS that consider me an armchair hunter and there is probably some validity to that perception of me. I have the book smarts so to speak, but not the success to match the knowledge I have gained over the years. Making that move last night was one that gives me some confidence that I am learning and I do have what it takes to makes smart decisions in the woods. The messed up part about it is, I lost a little confidence in the one thing I have never doubted and that was my performance in the moment of truth. It hurts to make a mistake that should not have happened. But what can you do? Climb back on the horse and bite the snake that bit you I guess…
So the next move was to pack up and get the hell out of there as soon as I could to avoid another spooking at last light. I moved the camera to the pinch point he walked through on his way to my stand as I left the woods. I’ll leave him be for a week or more and play the weather from here to the end of October. I’m going to let the camera tell me what to expect and let the weather dictate my intrusions into his territory. I know he did not see or smell me last night as amazing as that may be. He was not overly spooked and given his injury, I don’t anticipate him making any major changes to his routine. There will be a third meeting of the minds and I hope like hell it goes better than the last two! He fucked me once and I fucked myself once. Next time, I’m letting the Slick Tricks do the fucking!!!
