Oh how I enjoy the success stories posted on here, but with most there seems to be a common thread.......RESPECT for the game taken.
Maybe its just me, but do we as traditional hunters hold the game we hunt in a higher esteem because of the equipment and limitations that we choose to place upon ourselves in order to more closely even up the odds while on the hunt?
:campfire:
The way things are working out for me, I'd say the odds are squarely in the game's favor the way I'm doing it.
Tom
I think it matters little what equipment is used. Respect and reverence for the game we hunt and each other is a choice we have made. Life is about choices after all.
No fist pumping or victory dancing for me. I'm not in a war with the animals where there is a winner and a loser. I am only thankful for the animal's sacrifice which will sustain me and my family.
Using Traditional equipment is just the icing on the cake so to spaek.
Very well said Duncan that's what its all about!!
Duncan said it far better than I could have!
Duncan X2.
I hunted for 20 years in Germany with a gun because archery is not allowed for hunting. I can not recall EVER seeing a hunter do the fist pump, YESSSSS, victory stuff.
I think a lot of that is a result of the "buy a big rack" animal snuff shows on TV.
Gladepeek
That's mostly what has turned me off the "hunting shows" I detest the high fiveing, dancing, & whooping & hollering that most of the shows have. That & 2 minutes of hunting followed by 10 minutes of commercials!
Frank
Duncan X3 well said.
Carl
yup.
Kingsnake
QuoteOriginally posted by Duncan:
I'm not in a war with the animals
I just laughed when I read that. I was watching a hunting show the other day with a friend of mine.After about the third commercial he said "Geez,it's like they're in a war against the deer" Trail cams,Ozonics,laser rangefinders,etc. Commercials where the arrow hits the target and they explode,"range 'em and eliminate 'em","Blood paving machines".
Yeah they all think they got to get fired up to put on a good show.
Hey sometimes I get a bit excited but most of the time it just harvesting meat.
As far as the shows go I cannot stand the commercials. Like was said earlier 15 min of sponsor time, 5 min of B.S. and they play the 2min of footage over and over to fill the rest of the time.
I used to like the shows but now after watching them over the years I fell like I fail if I go hunt and do not shoot a 150 class buck. I mean heck they make it look so easy. Honestly a 150 buck is not big enough for most of the show now. I mean WTF I probably have not seen three 150 class bucks on the hoof in 40 years of hunting.
I think Fred summed it up nicely..
(http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn42/bearkeeper/shop8.jpg)
Agree totally with Duncan's post.
Also for me hunting with Trad. equipment makes it a much more personal experience. I will never kill as many deer with my longbow as I could with a firearm, but I enjoy the hunt itself much more and find more satisfaction in hunting doing it this way. And in the end that's what it's all about.
Nope...I don't think the respect for the game has anything to do with the equipment I use or you use. Some of my best hunting buddies don't use the same equipment that I do, but their ethics and respect for the game they kill is beyond reproach. That's why I hunt with them. The flip side of that is I've seen some "traditional" folks that I would never share a camp with. :wavey:
lot of good sense made here and I believe your post title "traditional mentality" can be taken more ways than one, it's not just about traditional archery equipment it's also about good old fashioned values. I'm into trad because it's challenging and because in some ways it's not challenging, I've missed some easy shots with training wheels that I probably would of slam dunked with a trad bow and vice versa, hell I missed a Bull elk at 7yds last year when I got all out of form and didn't realize it. It seems trad guys are just more fun too shoot with though, have witnessed that at multiple 3d shoots in a couple of states, they are hooping and hollering and giving each other grief and the compound guys are all serious and get mad if you breathe too loud:) Read on somebody's signature line, A compound never promised what a recurve couldn't deliver or something like that. Ethics are equipment blind in my oppinion! I don't get all wrapped up in whether somebody hoops and hollers when they get an animal or fist pump, if they eat the meat and love the animal they could be just as good of person as the guy that says a prayer and is stoic. Everybody displays emotions differently, now if they are doing it strictly as an act, well then they are fooling themselves! I just worry about myself for the most part, hell I hurt my face smiling for an hour and a half straight after I took my first deer with a bow yesterday. Walk the walk and not just talk the walk and set the example is all the more you can do in life!
Most of you have already touched on it, but the 'commercialization of hunting' has hurt (and helped) our sport some.
The good is that it gets it out there and makes it 'cool' for people to do. The bad is that everyone expects to shoot a major trophy and some become dejected and quit hunting.
I know the numbers say that we have less and less hunters every year, but the public land during bow season just doesnt show that where I hunt.
That said, respect for the game is universal. We are all excited to bring home our harvest.
I hunt traditional (stick bow or flintlock rifle and fowler) because game is heavy hit and scarce hereabouts and I want the occasional opportunities to ALL be trophys. They are.
I have a great deal of respect for game. I practice with my bow every day so I am confident when I get close enough I will be an effective killer.
I think that we do seem to have a higher standard, and higher values toward game than those who use more "modern" hunting impliments. I dont know why, we just do.
I think respect for the game that is hunted comes from knowledge. I have only been seriously shooting traditional for a year and have yet to draw blood. However, I have seen some beautiful animals and my attempts to get set up on one has taught me a lot about them. I have done a lot of research which is enjoyable but getting out in the field aquaints you with the game in a way that could never be achieved through just study and books. When you hunt it seems all of your senses are turned up a couple of notches and you notice more. Not only about the animals but the entire environment. Hunting with a traditional bow makes the hunting experience even more intense because you have to be better and know more about your quary to get within bow range.
I think hunting in general fosters respect for both the animals hunted and their environment. Trad hunting does it in spades.
I consider the celebration of a kill the same as praying.
Everyone does it in their own way.
For some it is a silent respect for a fallen animal.
For others it a rejoice of a differnt kind.
To each their own.
I honestly think traditionalists have more respect for the critters they harvest because of the amount of skill, patience and perseverance it takes is far above "just shooting something".
A good comparison is eating a prime cut of steak vs a McDonalds cheeseburger. Your going to take time to enjoy every bit of that steak vs. chowing through that cheeseburger. :bigsmyl:
I don't consider myself traditional, I just like to hunt with recurves and flintlocks. Don't claim to have anymore respect for the animals I hunt than anybody else. I just try to do the right thing when in the woods. Hunting is not a sport for me it's a way of life and these days being in my old weakened, physical condition, just about deaf, can't see nearly as good as I once did, I figure I give the game I hunt all the chances they need to get away.
What few don't make it, I give thanks, take em home and fry em up..all with a clean conscious.
I like the way Hoyt just said it.
I've stopped examining others and comparing my way against theirs. That's probably a result of my age more than anything. I spend almost no time thinking about what's in the other person's mind. They're free and welcome to enjoy hunting as they want, without input from me. I've known a number of 'modern' hunters who exhibit every bit as much commitment and respect for the game they pursue as more 'traditional' hunters. As my time passes, I've progressed toward being less about segregation.
Like most here I'm in the camp that equipment doesn't define the hunter or his respect for the hunt and hunted. The equipment I use is 1st chosen because I enjoy the preparation and process of developing competence with recurve. Secondly, I want to milk the most of the hunting experience I can. In most situations the recurve is the ticket to that feeling for me.
My Dad, who I respected and loved dearly would sometimes ask me when I returned home empty-handed if I wish I had taken a gun instead of the bow (this was many decades ago). He thought it odd that the thought never crossed my mind.
From time to time I have hunted with almost all forms of legal equipment. I think my ethic has been the same since at least when I was 16 years old on my first big game bowhunt in 1970.
For those of you who haven't heard, the news is very good for hunter numbers. For the first time in almot 25 years the decline in hunter numbers has turned around and is up 9% the past 5 years! And that's WITHOUT counting those who are under 16 years old. I think (and have some evidence) the number of youngsters is growing even faster.
So fellows, we ain't done yet!
I think on Tradgang the mentality, in regards to respect for the animal and other hunters, is ALMOST self governing at this point. If people put threads or posts up that are way out of line, they get reported quickly. Terry, Rob and the other mods don't allow trash on here. Some of the guys are fist pumping and high fiving while others are quiet about it. As long as the animal is respected, it is allowed.
Tradgang has been built around respect and it is now somewhat self perpetuating. I believe that is why we see so many "hero" posts done with class. Terry and the other moderators work hard to keep it that way. Even if this was a gun site, Terry would keep it classy. :thumbsup:
So, I'm not sure if it is the traditional archery tackle or really a mind-set that has been developed and nutured here on Tradgang. I do know there is no other site where I feel more at home.
:campfire:
Just my thought and God bless,
-Charlie
After reading all the reply's I had to go back and read the original post. About trad hunter having more respect and holding ourselves in higher esteem.
I do agree I am sick of the commercialism of all the hunting shows. And the latest best bow and cam system ever (until next year).They seem to want to recruit more people to the sport to sell more equipment . pro hunters who always seem to be hunting some at some prime outfitter who have the stands all set up and bring the hunter to where the deer are.. Instead of the hunter actually hunting...O.K now I'm of topic
I too am new to this forum and I look at all the pics and stories and I am so inspired . I been shooting trad equipment since 08 a have taken deer with it but have been back and forth between it and my compound This fall my trad shooting just was not where I wanted it so I decides out of respect for the deer and making an ethical shot I chose my compound and had a great season. Hopefully next yr. it will be all trad.
Tim.
I believe we hold hunting and being outdoors and the environment with higher esteem and the rest follows.
QuoteOriginally posted by moleman:
Maybe its just me, but do we as traditional hunters hold the game we hunt in a higher esteem because of the equipment and limitations that we choose to place upon ourselves in order to more closely even up the odds while on the hunt?
:campfire:
No
We sound like elitists when we say stuff like that. There are plenty of wheelie and gun hunters that have plenty of respect for game and the outdoors.
If you are comparing yourself to the hunting commercialism that exist today you might have a point. Hunting shows spend way too much time talking about gear and fawning over the size of the horns of the dead critter. They should spend more time on the "hunt", i.e. reading the woods to get close enough to the game to make a shot.
I would surely high five and hug a hunting buddy if they were next to me when approaching a downed animal I worked hard for or even just got lucky and killed.
To me it only shows emotion and appreciation of what you have done. On the other hand, to hide emotions because of what you have read of others etiquette is politically correct and political correctness is just another term for deception and unoriginality.
The strange fellow that I am, I kiss all of my game on the nose, even hogs :scared: . Is that disrespectful? Not to me. To each his own, especially my own. :campfire:
I believe respect for the game we hunt starts when we are brought into the sport. It doesn't matter what hunting implement you choose but rather the ethics learned from past and personal experiences. As traditional bowhunters we savor the sweetness of success through hours of hard preperation. Other hunting implements result in a faster success rate but lack the personal, hands on approach to the hunt.Unfortunately, there is good and bad in both camps.
Perhaps there are some who do.
Amen, Duncan!
I feel that to be a true sportsman, you must have a true love of the game, and understand that you are upholding your responsibility to Creation. The mandate of right stewardship and respect to all beings from Genesis 9, is what should drive us as hunters. Trophies are nice, but when you take to the field with trad gear and tactics, anything you take is a trophy.
Izzy, you are right about three pc thing. Further, I think all of us express our emotions in our own way. No one is saying you can't be happy of your good fortune on a hunt, just that trad archers seem to be more humble in our successes.
Oh, and you're not the only one to kiss your take :saywhat:
I've been kissing caught fish and killed game for decades.
The gear a person chooses to use does not determine their respect for the game in my opinion. We all use some degree of technology we are comfortable with.
If it was all about the gear, I could make the argument that the the most efficient killing instrument has the highest respect for the game.
To me if is all about the decisiones we are faced with, the choices we make and the consequences of those decisions.
Well I'll weigh in on something that's been bothering me only in the trad community do I see a celebration of success in taking a yearling doe some of the pics I've seen on this site are more like a 5 month old deer and the congrats that follow have me feeling a little twisted "should be a good eater" come on guys you can do better look at the wensel brothers taking 5+ year old bucks I'm not saying to take 5 year old doe just mature does pass up the chip shot on a yearling that's respect
This could be a new thread, "the things I don't care to hear". He's down He's down, track em wack em and stack em, if it's brown it's down, if it flies it dies,YES YES ha ha ha....etc. Just go hunting, do your best,enjoy yourself and be a decent person.
The TV shows have really dramaticized our sport.
I see no issue with taking a yearly doe if that's the animals in your area. Most of us hunt public land and just dont have 5+ year old bucks in our area. I've been hunting public land in IA for 15 years and only ever seen 2 bucks I thought would be 5+ years old and 150" or better.