Can You Accurately Judge A Distance of 100 Yards?

…Or how about 40 yards?   If you’re like most sportsmen you probably think you’re pretty gifted when it comes to estimating distance over field.   Well, I’ve got news for you, buddy…many sportsmen are quite pathetic when it comes to accurately determining distance even on flat ground.   Now add a few hills or a mountain into the equation and the likelihood for error increases considerably.

I’ve always prided myself on being pretty good when it comes to judging distance.   In fact, until recently I even thought that perhaps I had a trained eye when it comes to determining those sort of things.   The problem is most often when we as sportsmen judge distances we have no evidence to dispute those guesses.   If we judge a shot at 200 yards and miss…well, it must have been the wind blowing that we did not consider correctly into the mix.

Yesterday I stood on the front porch of my house talking to a friend and he commented that I have a 100 yard range shooting from the my stoop into the adjacent hillside.   No way, I told him…that’s not 100 yards…but it’s probably close to 90 yards, I guessed.   So he guessed 100…I guessed 90…and when I went back into my office to retrieve my digital rangefinder only to discovered we were both terribly wrong.   The true distance was 64.5 yards.   We both stood there in amazement figuring something must be wrong (and not thinking it could be us).

So we stepped off of the porch and picked a new target.   The neighbors house across the road…I guessed 225 yards and my co-hort estimated about 240 yards.   I held the rangefinder up and the distance to their front door was 152.5 yards.   Huh?   Something must be wrong here!   Maybe this rangefinder needs new batteries or calibration which I didn’t do (because I never read owner’s manuals).

Nope.   Time after time we guessed various objects up to 300 feet away and we were embarrassingly wrong.   I started to wonder just how wrong I could be even at shorter distances when knowing a gun’s pattern limitation is critical.   The little exercise proved to me that sometimes we’re not as good with our skills as we think we are.   For sure that little range finder will be packed in my pocket more often this spring and next fall, rather than leaving stowed in the gun safe.

The next time you are “killing time” and not killing any critters in your deer stand or turkey blind…spend a few moments scanning around the area to determine distances with a rangefinder.   In your mind draw a mental map of what zone around your stand is your weapon of choice’s optimal kill zone.   I’m serious…when you are hunting and a deer is inching closer to you…THAT is not the time to wonder and decide if the animal is close enough for a clean shot.   Those answers should be predetermined as part of doing your homework when you set-up in a new stand or hunting area.

There’s several good quality range finders out on the market today and many can be purchased in the $200 to $250 price range or even less.   Personally, I use the Nikon Laser 600 but I’ve also heard some good things about the Bushnell series.   Do your homework and check it out.   Find a model that not only meets your individual needs (maximum distances) but also one with ease of operation.

Some sportsmen might think that a laser rangefinder is just another unnecessary gadget to drag along into the woods.   That’s fine if you want to embrace that type of thinking.   Yet, when it comes to deciding to make a killing shot I don’t want to unnecessarily wound or cripple an animal because I miscalculated a critical piece of information in my shooting judgment.   For me, I’ve now determined that using a rangefinder is a practical aid that allows me to be a responsible hunter while afield.   You still have to understand how your gun or bow shoots and what that distance means to any shooting opportunities that might present themselves.

I’m not sure that judging distance is a skill that can be honed or if some sportsmen are just naturally better than others when it comes to guessing.   I do know, however, that when most sportsmen are provided with accurate information they generally know how to make that knowledge pay off in the field.   That’s why in the future it’s been now proven to me I better start relying on the accuracy of my trusty rangefinder.

© 2006 Jim Braaten.  All Rights Reserved.   No Reproduction without Prior Permission.