I know the neighbors probably think I am a basket case, and I guess if the truth was known, I am! The Indiana Deer Hunting season is still a ways off, but it is never too early to start planning and practicing!

I have already placed my trail cameras.  That will assist me and help me gain confidence knowing there is still deer activity going on in my area, and I will be able to get a pretty reliable indication of bucks, does, and fawns.

Since last deer season, I have made a few changes in my equipment and a couple new ladder stands. I want to be prepared and confident that changes are going to benefit me. The only way to know that is to practice and practice often. I do not want to risk heading to the woods not knowing how my crossbow, compound bow, recurve bow, muzzleloader, shotgun, or rifle will shoot. I want to be assured that when the moment of truth arrives, I will have an excellent chance for success.

I have already shot all of my selected weapons, and I know exactly where my arrows, my bullets, and sabots will shoot at different distances. The last thing I want to risk is inflicting a bad hit on a deer and possibly crippling the animal or causing it to endure a painful, suffering demise.

I have had my archery target in the backyard for some time. My storage shed is close to my property, and there is an open field behind me, so I have no worries about houses or people wandering within shooting range.

I might shoot for 10 minutes, or if the conditions are comfortable, I might shoot for an hour. But when I get tired, I quit. I have my portable archery target stored in the shed just a few yards away. I have shot long enough to realize if I get tired, I will start making mistakes, and only perfect practice makes perfect execution.

I have personally observed people shooting in groups, which can be fun, but many of them neglect proper fundamentals. And when they get exhausted, they continue to shoot. The next thing you know, they lose sight of proper shot execution and fundamentals. Their concentration stops, and their muscles tighten up. Before long, they start losing concentration, and frustration sets in. You DO NOT want that to happen.

It is always fun to conduct shooting competitions, but what you want to do is concentrate on a deer because when deer season arrives, the deer is your only competition. That is your focus point: executing one perfect shot. That is what you hope to get. One shot, and it has to be perfect.

If you have practiced diligently like you should have been doing well before hunting season, you will soon discover that confidence is fantastic. You have shot enough, and you should know exactly how your equipment will perform. Things can and will go wrong unexpectedly.

Equipment can malfunction. Bowstrings and cable can break. Scopes can be knocked out of adjustment. Scope rings can crack. Primers and caps can misfire, but normally you should know enough about maintenance you should be able to prevent a lot of these from happening.

I used to be a gadgeteer, and anytime a new product came on the scene that promised to increase my odds for success, I would run right out and buy it. Some of these items worked pretty well, but a lot of them were designed to catch the hunter.

As I matured, I slowed down from falling victim to these items, and once I found something that worked well, I pretty well remained loyal to those products. But even now, I see these products, and I still have the temptation to experiment. But if I do fall victim to trying something different, I practice with it and give it a tough workout well before deer season. If I need to switch back to my old setup, I can do it and regain the confidence again.

A word of advice, I highly recommend you practice wearing the same hunting clothing you will be using during the season. Shooting your weapon or climbing a tree in blue jeans and T shirt might be fine, but once you layer up and try to climb, it will feel much different. Shouldering your rifle or drawing your bow will feel completely different as well, so be prepared, and you will enjoy your time spent in the woods.