The crossbow is now responsible for more trophy whitetail buck entries into the Boone and Crockett record books than the .30-06 Springfield. In fact, although there aren’t many shortcuts to killing a giant whitetail, picking up a crossbow could be one of the best ones. The reason for that is simple: In most of the country, a crossbow is the most effective tool available that can be used for the longest portion of the hunting season. But this is a relatively new development.