The margin for error when shooting a bow is extremely small. For example, if you torque the bow even a small amount, the glitch may translate into a miss of more than 6 inches at 40 yards. Even a small twist of the handle at the moment of release can result in a missed shot and a blown opportunity. That’s why I focus on forgiveness when I choose my hunting bows.

Rarely will shots at game permit you the luxury of using the perfect form that you practiced all summer. I’ve had some pretty awkward shots through the years. An elk I shot a few seasons back quickly comes to mind. He was fighting with another bull and I knew the action wouldn’t last long. The run I had to make to get close was just long enough to have me breathing hard when I came to a stop very near the pair. They had just separated and the bull I wanted was heading toward an opening 30 yards in front of me. I got into position and drew the bow. Just before he stepped clear the other bull bugled and my bull turned and headed back to reconfirm that he was the king. I was pinned down.

When their encounter ended some three minutes later I was still at full draw, now shaking badly from the excitement and the strain, and still fighting to control my ragged breathing. This time my bull left by a different route, nearly 180 degrees behind me. I didn’t dare move my feet for fear of being seen as I slowly swiveled my body as far to the left as possible and put the 30 yard pin on his chest. I was more than a little relieved and elated when the arrow blew through, just behind his shoulder. As with so many similar episodes, I couldn’t have cared less how fast my arrow was traveling as long as it had the energy to do its job. When the season comes down to one arrow, what I really want above all else is a bow that’s forgiving.

I’ve spent years thinking about the elements that make one bow more accurate than another. That’s why my current bow, a Hoyt UltraTec, as well as all my recent hunting bows, share four common characteristics.

BRACE HEIGHT

Bows with long brace heights are the most forgiving. The arrow gets off the string quickly offering less time for a rough release to spoil the shot. But, more importantly, the riser geometry itself is simply more stable. Here’s what I mean. As the push point (back of the grip) moves away from the string the riser design itself becomes more stable. Any torque applied by the bow hand tends to be opposed by a greater stabilizing force that acts through the drawn string.

There are always tradeoffs. As a bow’s brace height goes up, its ability to store energy goes down and so does its arrow speed. My goal every time I choose a hunting bow is to find one that strikes what I feel is the proper balance between speed and forgiveness. Consequently, I prefer bows with brace heights in the 7 ½ inch range, but anything over 7 inches is acceptable.

CAM DESIGN

Few bowhunters realize how cam design affects a bow’s accuracy. Highly aggressive cams accelerate an arrow more violently than the soft cams and round wheel bows of the past. When an arrow receives that much energy in such a short burst, any interference or bauble at the moment of release will tend to destabilize the arrow. That’s one variable I don’t want to mess with. I still shoot moderate cams, what many would call a soft cam.

Letoff also affects a bows level of forgiveness. When it comes to splitting hairs, low letoff bows are more accurate than high letoff bows. The increased holding weight of a low letoff bow results in solid, positive body positions while aiming and a release that is crisp. I prefer 60 to 65% letoff.

AXLE-TO-AXLE LENGTH

Short bows have their place in the field, but unless you’re faced with cramped quarters, I recommend a longer bow for hunting. I’ve found that I shoot best with a bow that measures 39 to 40 inches between the axles. Anything shorter becomes slightly more critical, while anything longer is generally too slow and usually requires long limbs that are more prone to twist adding an extra, unwanted variable.

MASS WEIGHT

To a degree, the more a bow weighs, the more stable and forgiving it is. However, being primarily a western hunter, I’m willing to trade a little forgiveness for reduced weight. Last season I hunted for 25 days in the mountains of the Nevada for a desert bighorn ram. Shaving a couple of pounds off the bow I got it down to 5 pounds which proved to be a definite advantage on stalks that were measured in hours and thousands of vertical feet. However, if I only hunted from tree stands I’d carry a bow weighing six to seven pounds. And I’d use a 10 to 12 inch stabilizer to further improve forgiveness.

When preparing for the hunting season I spend most of my time shooting at 50 and 60 yards, but when the shot comes it is almost always much closer. In fact, I rarely encounter shots over 35 yards. I’m prepared for longer shots, mind you, but they just don’t happen very often. I like to be very confident of a one shot kill, so I try to get as close as possible before shooting. Given the fact that most of my shots are close, and I have a laser rangefinder to handle the longer ones, I see little need for an extremely high-speed arrow. However, the need for a forgiving and accurate bow is never diminished.

When you set up your next bow, focus on forgiveness first and your success in the field will improve.