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 Ashby Bowhunting Foundation Newsletter

December 2024

President’s Message

President’s Message:

Now that South Australia has banned bowhunting effective December 1, 2024, this is a simple reminder to choose the appropriate tool for the task at hand and use good judgment when hunting in the field, much less posting videos online for the world to see. Think of the emotional society we live in and remember we do have a non-hunting community that votes, making bowhunting an easy target. If you don’t think it can happen to you, ask any bowhunter in South Australia. If you have questions, we are here to help all bowhunters.

I want to thank all our donors for their support. There are many worthwhile organizations out there and ​we greatly appreciate you choosing ABF​. It keeps us motivated and doing this for the betterment of bowhunting around the globe. Safe travels, excellent hunting and Merry Christmas to everyone!

Good hunting and as always, have a nice day.

Rob Neilson

Donations​

The Ashby Bowhunting Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) education and research organization. 100% of your donation will go to the Missions of Ashby Bowhunting Foundation. No salaries are paid by the Foundation. We realize there are many worthwhile organizations out there, and greatly appreciate your consideration and support.

Newsletter Tip

Think. Don’t become the poster child of the next bowhunting ban.

Events

→ Testing Season. Testing on cull animals done on select heads (select each image for a full size view)

o Vortex Tribute failed to make the cut and no further testing will be conducted until improvements are made.

o Beast Mechanical performed well enough to warrant further testing and will be moved to the next phase.

→    Focal Point Study on heavy bone impacts:

o  Tuffhead Dangerous Game performed very well and is overall the best head we have tested.

o  GrizzlyStik 350 K340 steel failed structurally and no further testing will be conducted until improvements are made.

→    Mr. Steve Hall was the recipient of the Dr. Ed Ashby Bowhunting Award at the Longoria-Hosmer Foundation Banquet in November. Congratulations to Steve!

→    Mr. Steve Hall has joined the ABF Board and will brings a career of Hunter Education to assist ABF in these efforts. We are excited to have Steve join the Board.

→    Mr. Jeremy Johnson has joined the ABF Board to assist on multiple fronts. Mr. Johnson is a noted author and undoubtedly one of the finest elk hunters in the world. We are excited to have Jeremy join the Board.

→    Dr. Ashby and Troy Fowler have started podcasting…see Doc’s ramblings below for more information. We greatly appreciate Troy bringing this to the archery world.

From the Field - Ecology and Shot Distance

“The bowhunter’s challenge is not only in the hunt, but in the time spent alone in the woods preparing for the hunt.” Fred Bear

ABF President Rob Neilson reminded us in the last newsletter about the negative impact from a single bowhunter, in this case Chris Bee:

A simple reminder to study your quarry before hunting and use an appropriate arrow system capable of quick, clean kills. The bowhunting community received a black eye from a youtuber/promotional hunter named Chris Bee for publishing a clown show video that put on full display his ineptness in preparing for a hunt, and his guide for allowing it.

The Ashby Bowhunting Foundation is focused on the appropriate arrow system capable of quick, clean kills. And based on the support for this foundation, bowhunters around the world appreciate the effort of Dr. Ed Ashby, Rob Neilson and the entire team. And there is more we can do to have a successful hunt that results in quick, clean kills.

• Species Ecology

• Shot Distance

Species Ecology

As Rob Neilson mentioned above, study your quarry before hunting. For this article I’ll focus on Rocky Mountain Elk (Cervus canadensis nelsoni), a subspecies of elk found in the Rocky Mountains and adjacent ranges of Western North America. I’ve spent more time over the last several decades studying and bowhunting this species than any other game animal.

I live in Northern Colorado, one of the best places in the United States to observe, study and bowhunt Rocky Mountain elk. What I enjoy most is observing these animals exhibiting completely wild behavior with no impact from my human scent or presence. Since 1992, in the primary area I hunt elk between 9,000 and 11,500 feet above sea level, I’ve logged 8,700 hours learning about this animal. Scouting consumed about 80% of those hours. Bowhunting occupied the remainder. The more time I spent scouting, the more elk I saw during the bowhunting season and the closer I was able to call those animals in or approach them. Since 1992 I’ve had over 300 elk within 20 yards and never had a reason to take a shot over 16 yards.

Slipping in and out of elk country, undetected, was the first hurdle to overcome. Fortunately, I chose an area where I would rarely see another human being. Choosing alpine basins, above and below timberline without any trail and definitely no road access was critical. Over time I found some gems where elk weren’t being pushed around. Outfitters and their clients need trails for horses and mules. I avoided those places.

What this afforded me was unrushed time to observe elk, for hours. I learned many things about elk behavior that change throughout the year, from bachelor herds in the summer to prerut sparring while the antlers were still in velvet. Bull elk would be inches away from each other in a stare down, heads twisted to avoid locking velvet antlers, and they’d suck air in through their teeth as a show of dominance. I watched cow elk wallow and bugle. And bull elk make cow sounds. Male elk yearling used something on the landscape to control and show their dominance, moving their heads as if they had a set of imaginary antlers. I learned what elk rubs looked like in June and July from the previous fall rut activity.

And I slowed down, following the advice of Fred Asbell, taking a single step, looking slowly from left to right, standing still for at least ten seconds, and then taking another step. I watched and listened to how birds reacted to elk, sometimes offering me a clue before I could see elk in dense timber. I learned where they bedded, where they fed and the travel routes they would take. Over time I began to have expectations on seeing elk in certain places, knowing the factors that would stack the odds in my favor.

Finally, I learned when to back out of an area to avoid allowing my human scent to pollute the area and spook elk. Once the elk were on edge, everything became unpredictable and bowhunting under those circumstances was a complete waste of time.

Most of the great memories I have of elk country are from scouting activities. Don’t get me wrong, I love to bowhunt for elk, but that turned out to be a much smaller portion of time spent.

Shot Distance

As a bowhunter, my goal is to wait to take the shot until several factors have lined up:

• the elk must be standing still, broadside or slightly quartering away

• the elk must be calm

• the elk must be less than 20 yards from me

• I’m within the boundary of all six senses of the animal, giving it every chance to escape

• I’m able to draw my recurve or longbow without being detected

These factors have only lined up eleven times since 1992. And sometimes the hunt didn’t seem fair and I chose not to release an arrow. I spent one season sitting in a tree stand for ten days straight over an elk wallow. I read all 27,000 pages of the Lewis and Clark journals. And one morning I had an average 6x6 bull come in, wallow and then laid down in the grass right under my treestand and fell asleep. I could have shot it multiple times but chose to let that one walk. It wasn’t a hunting memory I was interested in. Some of my most exciting hunts have been when I was calling for a friend and being able to watch him draw his bow, achieve a complete pass through and watch the animal drop from the place I was calling from.

A friend who I helped get an elk during the muzzlerloader season offered to call for me near the end of the bowhunting season. We went back to the basin where he shot his elk and there were three bulls bugling just as the sun lit up the fall foliage. We chose one bull based on the lower tone to his bugle and made our way into an avalanche chute where subalpine fir had grown to be twelve to fifteen feet tall. I stepped into a cluster of these trees and he moved below me and back into the darker timber to call, only 25 yards away. As soon as he gave a calf call a bull came running toward us, snapping off branches with his antlers. We couldn’t see him but knew he was on his way. He arrived and skidded to a stop right on the other side of the tree I was standing behind. I looked to my right and could have easily reached over with my right hand and slapped that bull on the butt. A cow elk called from the timber from whence the bull came and he took off. I looked down the hill at my friend and he shook his head, walked up to me and said, “Damnit Neils, I can’t call them in any closer than that!” Long shots aren’t necessary if you’ve studied your quarry and the country well.

Celebrating the WILD in wildlife!

David Neils

Doc’s Ramblings

First and foremost, I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Steve Hall and Jeremy Johnson for their new roles as members of ABF's Board of Directors. Steve, a seasoned bowhunter, brings a wealth of experience from his tenure as the Director of Texas Parks and Wildlife's Hunter Education Program. His unique qualifications will undoubtedly enhance ABF's outreach to the bowhunter education community. 

 Jeremy is a long-time supporter of ABF and formerly served as an ABF Advisor. I consider Jeremy the finest elk hunter in North America. He is also the author of Can't Lose Bowhunting, which I believe to be the best 'how-to' book on bowhunting ever written. His book should be in every bowhunter's library. Jeremy brings a unique perspective on hunting North American big game to ABF.  

 Next, I am absolutely thrilled to unveil a new project and am brimming with excitement about its endless possibilities. 

ABF is working with Troy Fowler, AKA The Ranch Fairy, to produce an ongoing video podcast series. Troy and I, both passionate about bowhunting research, have previously collaborated on several videos and have now agreed to make this an ongoing effort. 

This collaboration is a natural fit. In addition to being an ABF Advisor, Troy is a leading figure in the YouTube community, focusing on arrow lethality and terminal arrow performance on real animals. Troy and ABF are the only entities testing these items of real animals. Even though it results in demonetizing those videos, Troy often performs detailed necropsies demonstrating arrow terminal performance. 

The Ranch Fairy YouTube Channel has over 70,000 followers. This collaborative project will help ABF reach many bowhunters who need to follow our website and will significantly enlarge the audience for ABF’s bowhunter outreach. ABF will also post these programs on our YouTube channel and promote them on social media. Here is a link to The Ranch Fairy YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@RanchFairy. 

I am reaching out to you, our newsletter recipients, for (1) suggestions on topics they would like to see covered and (2) suggestions for possible guests for upcoming programs. Among our newsletter's readership, I am sure there are many interesting guests, so if you have a personal story about a bowhunting-related topic, and specifically the personal journey that brought you to ABF and the use of ‘adult arrows’ for your hunting, I urge you to step forward if you would like to participate.  

Your ideas and suggestions are invaluable to us. Please share them through the 'Contact Us' page on ABF's website, located at the bottom of our home page. To ensure Troy and I receive your input, please start your comment with the title 'Video Suggestion.'  

Good hunting, my friends … and fight the good fight.

Dr. Ed Ashby