Those playing the video archery game shoot blunt arrows to protect the kevlar screen that the wildlife videos are projected on.
Scott Reents of Janesville takes aim at the video target at Hunt 'N' Gear of Milton, where archers can sharpen their skills by shooting at wildlife videos projected on a kevlar screen.
An archer takes aim at his quarry projected on a kevlar screen at Hun 'N' Gear of Milton.
Archers collect their arrows that fall around the base of a large video screen.
Hunt-N-Gear, 8776 N. Bowers Lake Road, Milton, offers video archery leagues from January to April. Video archery sessions are offered year round. The cost per person is $8 a session or $96 for the league.
Call (608) 868-3913 for more information.
MILTON — Drawing back the string of his bow, John Bailey closed one eye and lined up an antelope in his sight.
He waited patiently for the animal to get step from the trees and brush, then fired his arrow directly into the animal’s heart.
“Nice shot, John,” his friend said.
Bailey, 39, of Janesville, didn’t actually kill the antelope, but he was participating in a game many die-hard bow hunters enjoy during the off-season: video archery.
He and three others on his team participate in a 12-week video archery league at Hunt-N-Gear, 8776 N. Bowers Lake Road, Milton. Between 18 and 25 teams participate in the league annually from January to April.
Bow hunters haven’t been able to hunt since the holiday deer season. And turkey season is a few weeks away. Video archery is one way they can get their fix.
“It’s the closest thing to hunting this time of year,” Bailey said. “Otherwise, you go stir crazy waiting for the next hunting season.”
Carrie and Russ Hookstead, owners of Hunt-N-Gear, began offering video archery at their store five years ago. It’s the only place offering video archery in the Janesville area.
Bow hunters stand 20 yards from the 10-foot screen while playing video archery.
They have 3,000 hunting scenes to view with animals in mountainsides, forests and rivers. They can shoot bear and deer, snakes and mountain lions.
Players use their own equipment. A metal ball is threaded at the end of their arrows, and a touch sensor on the screen records whether the shot was a bull’s-eye, vital shot, body shot or miss.
A computer tracks each player’s score and ranks each team. Prizes are awarded to the winners.
“It’s like the (Nintendo) Wii of archery,” Carrie said.
Terry Miller, 39, Milton, plays video archery in the middle of winter to get out of the house. He said it’s friendly competition with his buddies. And the guys all grab a beer afterward.
“Usually, everybody lies about what their score was,” Miller said.
Robb Sisson, 34, Milton, said the players often heckle one another while shooting. Sure enough, they laughed at their bad shots. But they also praised one another for bull’s-eyes.
Dan “Rambo” Chrislaw, 47, Janesville, was having one of the toughest nights of his life. His marksmanship was off.
When a bighorn sheep crossed the screen, Chrislaw nailed the animal in the heart. It appeared to be a bull’s-eye or vital shot, but the game wasn’t kind to him.
“It gave you a body on that?” Miller said, scratching his head.
“Showing you no love at all,” Sisson added.
After firing 30 arrows, the men got printouts of their scores. A good score is 240 out of 300. It is the equivalent of all vital shots.
Miller had the best night with 239, followed by Sisson, 225, Bailey, 219, and Chrislaw, 143.
“My lowest score ever,” Chrislaw said while getting ribbed by the others. “I was off a little bit tonight.”