G. Fred Asbell

I began shooting a bow and arrow and bowhunting in about 1961 in central Indiana.

There weren't very many bow shooters or bowhunters back then, and even fewer deer, and what information you could find on shooting or hunting with the bow was extremely limited and was, for the most part, adapted from whatever was known about hunting with firearms. I wanted to know more, but it was hard to come up with information. Most articles were written by outdoor gun writers who saw the opportunity to make a few bucks writing about a new sport. I sold my first article to a bowhunting magazine in 1971, and have been at it ever since. I started writing articles because there were things that I thought some of the bowhunters I'd met needed to know; things like how to sharpen broadheads and knives, successful whitetail tactics, and the importance of physical conditioning, and accurate shooting…which are, ironically, still important topics today.

Since then I've written about bowhunting most North American animals and have been fortunate enough to see most of the United States, Canada and parts of Africa, and some of Europe in the process. I've written three books, INSTINCTIVE SHOOTING; INSTINCTIVE SHOOTING II; and STALKING AND STILL-HUNTING; THE GROUND HUNTER'S BIBLE; and an instructional shooting video, also named INSTINCTIVE SHOOTING.

I've always been involved in bowhunting organizations at all levels, from local and state, to national, serving as president of the Pope and Young Club for 18 years, and currently serving as president of Compton Traditional Bowhunters. From 1977 to 1991 I built custom traditional bows as Bighorn Bowhunting Company in Colorado. For several years Bighorn was the only traditional bow company advertising in the national media. I've never owned or hunted with a compound bow. .

Articles by G. Fred Asbell
Issue	Article
Oct/Nov 01	World Records
Dec/Jan 02	Shooting
Feb/Mar 02	Shooting Your Bow Accurately
Apr/May 02	Bowhunting Practice
Jun/Jul 02	Bowhunting Mule Deer is a Special Privilege
Aug/Sep 02	You Can't Beat a Good Nap for Bringing in Deer
Oct/Nov 02	Instinctive Aiming
Dec/Jan 03	The Magical Bow Arm
Feb/Mar 03	The Tipi
Apr/May 03	Let Each Day of Bowhunting be a Learning Experience
Jun/Jul 03	Tom Parsons--Kim Sha Archery and the TP Bow
Aug/Sep 03	The Elusive Instinctive Anchor
Oct/Nov 03	It Had To Be The Hat
Dec/Jan 04	Alternative Quivers
Feb/Mar 04	More On Alternative Quivers
Apr/May 04	Snap Shooting
Jun/Jul 04	Strong Like The Bull!
Aug/Sep 04	Putting An End to Snap Shooting
Oct/Nov 04	Western Whitetails Ain't The Same
Oct/Nov 04	Game Profile--Mule Deer
Dec/Jan 05	Bow Weight and the "Guy Thing"
Feb/Mar 05	Hybrid Longbows--An Evolution
Apr/May 05	Common Scents
Jun/Jul 05	Common Scents II--Odor Elimination
Aug/Sep 05	And God Created Caribou
Oct/Nov 05	Why We Miss
Dec/Jan 06	The Dominant Eye and The Instinctive Shooter
Feb/Mar 06	Ground Blinds--New Wave Bowhunting
Apr/May 06	Saskatchewan Bear Hunt 2005
Jun/Jul 06	Practice: Making Measurable Improvement
Aug/Sep 06	Stop Tinkering and Changing Things!
Oct/Nov 06	The Swing Draw
Dec/Jan 07	The "I Wish I Knew" Elk Hunt
Feb/Mar 07	A Quiet Shooting Bow
Apr/May 07	Learning to Shoot With The Back
Jun/Jul 07	The Drawing Hand
Aug/Sep 07	Early Season Whitetails in Missourai are Good!
Oct/Nov 07	Shooting off the Shelf vs The Elevated Rest
Dec/Jan 08	Wool
Feb/Mar 08	The Case for the Short Bow
Apr/May 08	Penetration and Arrow Weight
Jun/Jul 08	The Old Ways Ain't That Bad
Aug/Sep 08	Roger Rothhaar--Whitetail Authority
Oct/Nov 08	On Your Feet in the Woods
Dec/Jan 09	The Stance
Feb/Mar 09	The Case for Slow and Slower
Apr/May 09	It Was a Different Year
Jun/Jul 09	Quest for a Rocky Mountain Goat
Aug/Sep 09	Keeping A Journal
Oct/Nov 09	The Neck Knife
Dec/Jan 10	Planning & Dreaming
Feb/Mar 10	Binoculars…Are You Missing The Boat?
Apr/May 10	The Case for the Longer Bow
Jun/Jul 10	Right Brain--Left Brain and the Bowhunter
Aug/Sep 10	What Did I Learn?
Oct/Nov 10	Avoiding Easier
Dec/Jan 11	Acquiring Accuracy
Feb/Mar 11	Long Practice
Apr/May 11	Just a Reminder…Annual Lessons Learned