# Longest Shot of My Life



## jsoulier (Feb 7, 2010)

This afternoon I went out with my dad to a familiar place that we have pulled a lot of coyotes from in the past. We were driving to the end of the dead end road to where we could set up and call. About a mile from the end of the road, we saw a big mature pair of yotes angling away from us. I hopped out and deemed the shot possible. I dropped the one closest with a shot that we rangefound to be about 220 yards. This one was a big male, one of the bigger I have ever taken. I was proud of the running shot. When I went to retrieve him, his mate was reluctant to leave the area. She would run a few hundred yards, stop, look back and keep going. I tried for a shot but her movements were too jerky and the sun was in my eyes. After tossing the male in the back of the truck, we kept going to the end of the road...the way the female had gone. We parked and started walking an old cattle trail to our calling spot. A mixed herd of Whitetail and Mule deer came into sight as we crested a knoll in the sagebrush. While my old man glassed the young bucks and does, I noticed a lone animal about three hundred yards beyond the deer. It was a coyote! I figured it had to be the mate of the big male that I had let get away about ten minutes prior. We set up and started some ki-yi distress hoping to pique her curiosity. At first she started charging our direction, then she stopped and ran back to where she was. I had never seen that kind of thing before. I kept calling and all she did was look and then bed down on her hillside. We ranged her at 1083.5 yards. I decided to take matters to my own hands and stalk to a closer range and try calling again. I took all the calls and range finder and left my sixty one year old father behind - he was not interested in belly crawling in the rocks and thorns. Maybe in forty years neither will I. Anyway, got to 679 yards before I ran out of cover to move in on her. I tried the coyote distress again and she stood right up, then lay back down. Grrrr! I figured since I already had one I might as well take a wild shot. I tried my best to recall the ballistic figures for my .22-250 shooting a 55 grain lead tip. Aiming about a foot over her head and a few inches to the left to make up for spin drift (the long, long range effect of rifling that I learned about on a sniper tv show







I rested the barrel on fallen fence post and clamped it down with my hand. Then I buried the stock below my should so it would not move a bit when it fired. I took my shot. I waited for what seemed like two seconds. She flopped her head back and started kicking! A few minutes later I discovered a large hole in her forehead from a fully mushroomed round. If any of you took the time to read this, thank you. It was the best shot I have ever made. I am still high on it.


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## youngdon (Mar 10, 2010)

Nice shooting!


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## wvcoyote (Mar 14, 2010)

great shot


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## El Gato Loco (Jan 15, 2010)

Wowsers - very nice shot! And a heat shot at that!


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## ebbs (Feb 7, 2010)

Dude I got pumped for you when I read that.


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## On a call (Mar 3, 2010)

You took the time to know your gun and understood ballistics, and used a gun that can make that shot. Congratulations !!! I too was pumped as I read. I love long range shooting, it is more than just good shooting it is triganometry on the run


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## headhunter25 (Feb 21, 2010)

jsoulier - *THAT IS JUST [Excuse my language.... I have a limited vocabulary]!!! *Great job dude and nice story. It read like I was watching it on TV. Kick *[Excuse my language.... I have a limited vocabulary]* my man.

Chris C.


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## bar-d (Feb 3, 2010)

That is a shot and experience you will remember clearly when you are your Dad's age. Kudos.


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## FLTrapper (Feb 24, 2010)

Amazing shot! Great story, thanks for sharing!


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## autumnrider (Feb 2, 2010)

"FREAKING AWSOME" -- if that didn't get your rush going, what will? if we had shots like that here, i would certainly practice more. 200 and 300 is about all --- most of the time though, we just carry the shotgun. I really enjoyed the story -- good going.


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## Centex (Feb 4, 2010)

Congratulations on your patience and persistence. Great story telling (I have a feeling your Father or Grandfather have something to do with that talent!). Goes to show us all that those ballistic numbers can have some real world application.
Thanks for sharing, I would be proud as well!!

Centex


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## jsoulier (Feb 7, 2010)

Thanks guys, it was definitely a neat experience for us both. I still think about it all the time. I wish that I always had that much time to set up and calm down before any shot. I get so riled up when a pair comes boiling over a nearby hill. Good luck with your spring hunting. Fawn distress is about to be a "Golden Ticket" around here.


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## Dust (Mar 16, 2010)

Good story


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## ReidRH (Feb 1, 2010)

Sounds Like an Awesome Shot Man!! I probably will never get that kind of shot here where I live but I would Love to give it a Shot! (No Pun Intended) LOL The country I Live in is Not Open Enough for That kind of Shooting. Your Story got me Cranked Up about taking a trip out to some Open Country!!!


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