Trad Gang
Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: LimbLover on June 16, 2011, 08:41:00 AM
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I'm a diehard Traditional Bowhunter subscriber but I've recently purchased two issues of Bowhunter Magazine - the St. Charles issue, and the most recent issue featuring an article by South Cox, the resurrection of Bear Archery, and shooting heavy wood arrows. Not to mention, Fred Eichler now has a column about trad in the mag.
I was pleasantly surprised.
It appears as if the magazine is making an effort to write to appeal to our audience..or is this a freak occurrence that has something to do with their Anniversary?
If it continues, I may pick up a subscription, as I enjoy the hunting articles in this mag.
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Ive noticed this as well, and i sure hope it continues.
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It's nice to see more trad articles in Bowhunter magazine, but why use Fred Eichler. He's hunted with nothing but his compound for the last 2 seasons of his show. I still think he's awesome, I just wish he'd use the old recurve on his show every so often. TRW
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Been a subscriber for years......It's about time! Now if they could get rid of the useless ads [like male enhancement and such] I "may" continue, but I'm thinking that is not going to happen!! :dunno:
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South gave me the heads up on his article so I could show it to my classroom but it didn't print soon enough. I am saving it for this coming year. That trad section this time was a good one for Bowhunter!
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At the same time that most of the popular bowhunting magazines are giving a little nod to traditional, they are going whole hog with the crossbow stuff. I guess they are trying to broaden their audience, but you can't be all things to all people, or so they say.
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Originally posted by LimBender:
At the same time that most of the popular bowhunting magazines are giving a little nod to traditional, they are going whole hog with the crossbow stuff. I guess they are trying to broaden their audience, but you can't be all things to all people, or so they say.
I've noticed this as well. I didn't mind reading the compound stories as long as the story is good and not tech heavy. Crossbows seem to be dominating the industry (if wheelie bow magazines are any indication). At least lately.
In all fairness to Eichler, he's got a lot of traditional videos out there and claims that he hunts with the recurve far more than the compound. Honestly, I haven't watched his most recent stuff. I feel he is a good recruitment tool for the compound folks that have been interested in but haven't tried traditional bowhunting. If anything, he is that.
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I will bet that I havent picked up a copy to even leaf through in ten years. The last one was nothing but adds and gadgets and the stories were just longer adds for gadgets. One or two trad articles isnt enough for me to fork out the 4 bucks and buy an issue when 99% of it just isnt for me.
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I can tell you why you're seeing more mentions about trad gear and trad hunting.
It isn't because of the goodness in the hearts of magazine editors. It's about business.
I'd predicted noticeable future growth in traditional archery because more of the masses of compound hunters who've been shooting compounds for years are getting bored with it.
Two of my hunting buddies just switched, as did I a while back. And all for the same reason. The compound offered little challenge.
Over the next decade, expect more compound hunters to make the switch.
That's why I also predicted that the growth in traditional archery isn't going to come from "the kids of present traditional hunters". The big growth in traditional archery is going to come from adults who were lifelong compound hunters, and probably very successful compound hunters who then grew bored with all the gadgets and are looking for something else.
Compound shooters make up the vast majority of archery hunters. That's the pool where the growth in traditional archery is going to come from. They already hunt, they already bowhunt. Making the switch is quite easy for some, especially those who are most successful with a compound.
The reason the magazines are pounding the xbow drumbeat is somewhat the same, there's great interest in xbows. It's business and ad generated. Be it from older guys or firearms only guys or guys looking for wonder weapons.
Magazines are there for a profit, afterall.
Archery hunting is actually becoming more popular, in a time when most hunting trends show a decrease in participation.
This is also why I suggest bow hunters, all bow hunters, press DNR's for LONGER archery seasons. We don't necessarily need more tags, just more dates.
Check out this info. This is from Mark Duda, perhaps the most renowned researcher of "hunter attitudes".
http://www.responsivemanagement.com/download/reports/Bowhuntingpaper-uga.pdf
While overall hunting participation in the United States has declined since the early 1980s, bowhunting has enjoyed a significant increase.
This affords industry, wildlife agencies, and organizations involved with bowhunting a unique opportunity. Social and demographic analysis of bowhunting can facilitate focused marketing plans and specific marketing strategies aimed toward this healthy niche.
The trends in hunting in the United States are part of a broad social and cultural picture. While hunting in general is declining, some areas-bowhunting in particular-are increasing.
Industry and agency planners must not adopt simplistic explanations for the decline in overall hunting, or for the increase in bowhunting. Both are part of a larger, and very complex, pattern of the changes in American society.
Because inactive bowhunters report that time constraints are the major factor in decreased activity, any effort to make bowhunting more accessible, more convenient, and easier will probably meet with some success.
For example, archery seasons typically occur at the same time across broad regions. There may be opportunity for more spring, late winter, or special archery seasons.
Other options, such as making areas that are closed to gun hunting for safety reasons open to archery, may be possible.
Marketing for bowhunting should concentrate on the individual hunter. Marketing should be directed at active and inactive bowhunters, as well as active and inactive gun hunters. There is little potential for non-hunters to become directly involved in archery hunting, although there may be some potential for non-hunting archery.
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I know this is a traditional site and the poster gave props to Bowhunter mag. for the trad. section, but I just hate how all these mags. have no problem putting ads in their rags from the xbow companies. Now it seems they have no problem with articles about them either. It seems that all they really care about is $$$$. I remember when their staff used all the little known clothes and gear such as day one etc. Now you can't find an article where a staff member isn't wearing head to toe sponsor clothing and using all the sponsor's gear. Thank goodness for Traditional Bowhunter, Trad Archer World and all the other mags. that care more about integrity then $$$$. Hope I didn't go off on too much of a rant, now I gotta go to work.
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I know that Bowhunter has two special trad sections a year. Maybe you've hit the special months....Maybe they are coming around....
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I recently read the Trail's End column by Jim Dougherty (who is great) on his renewed love affair with the recurve. He hit on a lot of familiar themes. Not surprisingly, he said something about how he had to switch to compound early in his career due to sponsor demands.
I also think Mojo is right that converts from compound will represent the bulk of traditional growth, if you didn't start with traditional it makes good sense.
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I've been getting the subscription for free for about 2 years.
Never renewed with em because it was all the same ole stuff each issue & I know they have not charged me but hey.
I'll have to look in the magazine at home to see what y'all are talking about.
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I also hope that Bowhunter Magazine continues to highlight the traditional way of hunting. As someone who has every issue of Bowhunter since it's inception in 1971, I hope they continue down this path. I also think we're about to see a big growth in trad archery due to a lot of seasoned compound hunters looking for an added challenge.
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
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I used to subscribe to Bowhunter Magazine , I loved the hunt write ups and loved the Trad section more , although it wasn't that big , it was one of the factors that decided me to go Trad only . Think its about time I resubscribed , unless you can suggest another mag thats better ????
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I haven't read bowhunter mag in a while.I do like some their contributors.At least they aknowlege trad bowhunters.
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Originally posted by toppredator:
It's nice to see more trad articles in Bowhunter magazine, but why use Fred Eichler. He's hunted with nothing but his compound for the last 2 seasons of his show. I still think he's awesome, I just wish he'd use the old recurve on his show every so often. TRW
I feel the same way. I was very surprised when I saw he has his own line with 3Rivers. I, like you, think he's still awesome and would love to hunt with him. Just disappointed he doesn't hunt with his recurve on his shows as much.
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Toppredator,
Eichler has been hunting more with his recurves the past two seasons on his show more than ever. I believe this past season of Easton Bowhunting featured only two compound episodes out of the 10 or 12 shows. All the rest was with his Palmer but mostly with his Buffalo. Which was still in the R&D phases during the show. By the time the shows were airing, the Buffalo had been on the market for a month or so.
It was cool to watch that bow develop throughout the series, with him hunting with Bondo applied to the riser to build the shelf out. By the end of the season, he was hunting with the production ready prototype, which then hit the market a month after filming.
You must have missed this past season of shows. He is a champion of our sport, glad we have one of our own in a main stream mag like Bowhunter. Good promotion for Traditional in my opinion.
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I agree cpnhgnlngct, the shows i have seen have been mostly Fred shooting traditional bows. Now on the shows website www.hunttv.com (http://www.hunttv.com) you can request that he shoot even more episodes with traditonal gear.
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I don't know the dates of the shows we get up here and I do miss some episodes, but I have almost always seen Fred Eichler using a recurve.
And Bowhunter was always one of the better magazines... I can't remember ever seeing a crossbow advertisement in it either. I don't know if the policy has changed under new ownership but years ago Don Clark and Fred Wallace were at the bear camp I worked at and they told me that Bowhunter would not publish crossbow ads (back then).
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A couple things. We've got to be careful NOT to paint with a broad brush when we address the magazine industry as it pertains to bowhunting. (I've got to admit I'm guilty of this when it comes to TV, but that's a different story).
First, as of now, Bowhunter Magazine continues to hold the line against crossbows in their magazine. Some of the above posts made it sound like BHM has followed the others in that direction. They have not. That alone is reason enough I think we all should support them. Some of you have stated that they are pushing crossbows. That's factually inaccurate.
Second, Bowhunter Magazine has had the two special Stickbow sections for a number of years now. So this isn't just something new. And they've frequently published articles from some of us trad writers in issues/locations other than the stickbow sections.
Third, I DO think that part of BHM's policy is very much due to a respect toward trad bowhunters and writers from past editors M.R. James and Dwight Schuh. You may remember that when Dwight had major shoulder issues, he shot with his teeth. I suspect new Editor, Curt Wells, will have the same respect.
Fourth, I just grabbed two handy Bowhunter Magazine issues and found ZERO advertisments for male enhancement or Dr. Wynifred Cutler's pheromones or anything else like that. I don't recall ever seeing them in BHM. I could be wrong. We see them everywhere else--especially F&S, OL, SA, etc. I see them in NRA all the time, and most of the other magazines which is why (that and the crossbow explosion) I've not re-upped my subscriptions to any of the others besides BHM, TBM, PBS. When the others run out, they're done.
I am privy to some knowledge that under management changes over the years, BHM was somewhat forced to take ads for ATVs, etc. These magazines still have to pay the bills, but I know that this wasn't what the editors wanted at the time. The most non-bowhunting ad I saw in the BHM I looked at was for a brush-hog type tiller which I suppose goes toward the food plot crowd.
In sum, I really like BHM. I think they are the one mainstream bowhunting magazine in this day and age that deserves my support. Don't confuse BHM with the half-dozen others that are peddling crossbows and the like.
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If what Bryce says is true I retract my comments about the xbows. I tried to look for BHM at my local store but they had none. I just can't stand magazines that 2 years ago were anti xbow and now that the manufacturers are throwing their money at them it is ok. In NJ they legalized xbows during the archery season and I can't tell you how many lazy slob hunters now "Bowhunt" because of it.
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I subscribe to Bowhunter and don't recall ever seeing anything about Xbows.
The Stickbow Hunting section appears a couple times per year and there is usually something I can relate to in every issue. Fred Eichler's articles are good no matter what he hunts with.
There is quite a bit that I skim over or don't read at all. This issue has an article about using computers to help you find deer, and yet another story from Chucky bragging about himself. Couldn't force myself to read either one.
Overall it is a fine magazine that really helped me get started in bowhunting over 25 years ago.
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Hey guys I was at a range in Oklahoma City the other day and talked to the archery guy. They have a brand new archery section with indoor range, video shooting booth, and a tuning lane with draw weight scales-chrono-paper tune rack--etc. They were doing just mainly wheel stuff. I told the guy trad is the coming thing and to my supprise he said we reconize that and we have a big shipment of trad stuff coming to accommodate them. Like it was stated earier these people have to make a living and they watch. I sure think we need to support the guys who support our passion because thats who they are not just the come and go with the money folks. Trad Gang and some others kind of like it(there isn't any like it) are making a big impression on the country and world too I guess not just the market. It is just what everyone is looking for whether they know it or not. Its the people who make this site so outstanding from the admins on down. Look at the numbers. I joined in june of 2010 and am #24141 the newest member is #34568 I think it is. Over ten thousand growth in one year. On this site you get more than bow info. It is the camaraderie (etc) as much as anything that makes this site special. The class of people are outstanding and silently demand the best from everyone else and verbally too if need be. I say support those who supported us when the pickins were thin. We have the power to return the favor or the spirit now. That's really what it is we have isn't it--the spirit that ties us all together and makes us want to be what we were meant to be.
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Wary Buck took the words right outta my mouth...
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I also enjoy their Stickbow section.
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Primitive Archer magazine is my go to magazine even over TBM. Can't recall even going thru a Bowhunter magazine.
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I'm a big fan of BHM. I don't always subscribe so I miss some issues. However, it seems as if the Trad Section in the back has been a regular part of the magazine for a few years now. It is one of the reason I buy the magazine, years before I returned from compounds.
The archery pie is getting bigger and this will continue. According to the Sporting Goods Manufacturing Association, archery grew 7% in 2009 -- this is 28 times more growth in a single year than the previous 7 years combined (2% combined in the prior 7 years). This is no accident.
I have been an F.Eichler fan as well. However, I have to admit he dropped a huge notch in my book when the "WWFD' campaign started.
The bowhunting magazines I can't stand are those annual (semi-annual?) equipment issues. If I wanted a catalogue I can go on-line to any company I want and view it there for free.
I used to read the OLife, FStream , and SAfield magazines every month. However, I won't even pick up one of these magazines when I see them in the stands, no matter if my favorite beast (Bighorn Sheep) is on the cover or if they had pictures of Felix's Bear Takedowns on every page. Their articles seem to cater to either the rich dude who doesn't even pick out his own hunting clothes or the 60-minute newbie that hasn't even taken the price tags off his. I also happen to know that some of the information they print, especially about conservation subjects is error-ridden.
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I have been a subscriber to a lot of magazines over the years, "Bowhunter" among them. I recently decided, after looking through their "gear 2011" issue, to let my subscription lapse. While I am glad to see the little bit of pretty basic traditional information they are now including, I am sickened by the technology the magazine is constantly touting. Same for their TV show. Most of their revenues come from ads for this stuff (get ready for the $200 plastic bowquiver, the clothes that make you "invisible to game", the ozone storage tanks and all the God-awful crossbow junk) and they have an audience that wants to see it, for sure. Just not me. I will stick with TBM and TAW for the duration.
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I have traded emails with Bowhunter Magazine editor Curt Wells quite a bit, as he lives just down the road from me in ND, and know for a fact you will never see a crossbow ad in Bowhunter Magazine. You need to realize that magazine sales right now are very difficult, and ads pay bills. He said right now it is 45% content and 55% ads, and he would like to get it back to 50/50. I will not buy a magazine with any crossbow ads in it, and Bowhunter won't have any in it anytime soon.
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I have been writing for Bowhunter Magazine since the early 80s, and to be honest, I don't like it when they put my articles in the traditional section.
I much prefer to have my articles in the meat of the magazine, where they get read by all the compound shooters, not just the people inclined to read the traditional section. I don't consider myself a traditional bowhunter, I am just a bowhunter, pure and simple. No labels, just a bow, some arrows, and adventures in wild, game-rich country.
Preaching to the choir is not my style. It's much better to be an example to the wider audience. If I can get just one compound shooter per article to say "Well heck, if HE can do that with a longbow, I'll bet I can too" then I have done well.
I cannot do that by writing for the traditional magazines.
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I have been a subscriber for a few years. They do a stick bow section every couple of months.On cross bows, Dwight Shue wrote an editorial a few months back and he said that Bowhunter Mag is staying away from cross bow hunting articles.