It's important to shoot your broadheads before the season to ensure they fly true when that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity presents itself. Photo by Neil B. McGahee.

Despite the red and golden hints of autumn yet-to-come, the ghost of summer past has saved one last attack of Indian Summer -- sweltering heat, ravenous insects and tortuous humidity -- for opening day of bowhunting season. Fortunately, you packed spare towels, insect repellent and water, lots of water, to make it through the day.

Sitting in your stand high above the deer woods, you watch as a huge buck comes into view, nose to the ground, winding his way through the shimmering morning heat waves to the creek for one last drink before bedding down. Instinctively, you hunch forward on your seat, waiting for the big whitetail to enter the shooting lane.

At 50 yards, you bring your bow to full draw and wait. At 35 yards, your hands are trembling in anticipation, but you resist releasing your arrow, holding until the perfect moment before letting it fly. Twisting, wobbling slightly, the arrow flies -- right over the buck's backstraps -- loudly impaling a tree trunk. The buck skids to a stop, then bolts for the safety of the woods as you sit there, mouth agape, wondering what just happened. Perhaps you should have prepared your equipment as well as you prepared for your personal comfort.

Preparation for the bowhunting season involves much more than drawing your bow back several times the day before the opener and deciding if everything feels right. Before you hit the woods, you should be confident your equipment is going to perform at its best before you ever release that first arrow.

Actually, preparation should begin at the close of the previous season. Before putting your bow away for the off-season, reduce the draw weight to avoid bending the cam axles, a very costly repair.

In the waning days of summer, compound bows should be unpacked and thoroughly examined for loose attachments, loose strands in the string and cables, warped or cracked limbs and bent cam axles. Using a bow press -- if you don't have access to one, visit your local archery shop -- inspect the cams and shafts for dings and excess wear and replace the offending pieces. Also, inspect the cams for excess lateral movement on the shaft.

A cut or worn cam may damage your string and even cause personal injury if the string breaks. Using a small file or extra-fine sandpaper -- your significant other's emery board is a great choice -- remove the excess wax that has built up in the string grooves, then dab a small amount of graphite-based lubricant on the axle before you reassemble your bow. Whatever you do, don't use oil as a lubricant. Oil attracts and holds all the crud that builds up with use.

TUNING YOUR BOW
Single-cam and hybrid-cam bows are much less likely to get out of tune than two-cam bows, but it is always wise to check all cams for signs of wear on the string and cables. A two-cam bow shoots accurately only if both cams roll over at the same time. If the cams rotate out of sequence even slightly, your bow won't shoot tight groups.

Lay the bow across your lap and mark an identical spot on each cam, then draw the string and compare the rotation of each cam. If the marks on the cams aren't lined up in the same position, your bow is out of tune. You can also check cam timing at full draw, but you'll need a helper to determine if the cams are reaching their positions at the same time. Slowly draw the bow as the observer watches to make sure the cams roll over simultaneously. Often the lower cam is the first to cause problems because it takes more abuse due to improper handling -- most hunters lower their bows from the deer stand to the ground with a string -- damaging the lower cam much more often than the top one.