Why are Trad Guys so hostile to other bows?

[Buxndiverdux]

I was drawn to the longbow by a thirst for more of a challenge, only to find that I have felt like more of a true hunter than ever while carrying it. There is so much more of a spiritual side of things while hunting with Trad Gear. I feel more connected with God and nature in general. I completely realize that I'm still hunting with "technology" far superioir to what the Inidians carried, but it's still a stick and a string.
I took the challenge head on knowingly giving up at least 50% of my effective range to hunt with the long bow. It was my personal choice to do so. Noone forced me to choose the longbow.
So what I have a hard time understanding is all the hate for the other hunting tools? We have chosen a higher level of challenge but berate others for their accomplishments with "easier" equipment. How can that be construed as anything other than jealousy?
Hopefully this post can start a healthy debate without the elitist bashing and finger pointing.

[FerretWYO]

Originally posted by Buxndiverdux:

Hopefully this post can start a healthy debate without the elitist bashing and finger pointing.

I hope so too

[Mudd]

 

Since I don't fit into the category of looking down on other ways of hunting, I'll just sit back and see which or how many rabbit trails this one leads me.

God bless,Mudd  

[Barry Rowland]

Speaking for myself, I took up the recurve after trying one of the newer cam bows and finding that the blamed thing was so fast that I couldn't hit anything with it.  My son uses a cam bow and hits with it like a rifleman.  I just feel more comfortable shooting my KMag.  I'm also the kind of guy that feels more comfortable with a peep sight on my rifle instead of a scope, namely because that's how I learned to do it.  In my mind, to each his/her own, but I'm glad for ALL the archers out there, because when push comes to shove, we're all in the same boat when it comes to support.  Just my 2 cents.

[LV2HUNT]

The only place I have noticed that animosity is online or with pretenders. I admit animosity to certain "devices" now used in archery seasons by non handicapped users but have no animosity towards other methods if used in the appropriate seasons. "It is not what is in a hunters hand but rather what is in their heart". I know real hunters and real turkeys in both camps.

[Jaypo]

I felt that same way when I bought my compound bow.  I gave up 10 times my range to pursue game with a greater degree of difficulty, and I found myself scoffing at rifle hunters.  However, I still take the rifle out from time to time (when I can't seem to get the little boogers in range!!).  I just got into trad hunting like 2 weeks ago!  I haven't yet put my bow in the woods, as I'm still waiting for the stain to dry as we speak (put final coat on it at 6:30 this AM).  But I agree 100% with the spiritual part. I'm kind of barbaric, so each time I accomplish something, I have to go for the next degree of difficulty.  After I accomplish my goals with trad gear, I may try the spear!  Then the hands!  Well, that may be a little overboard.  But I do feel a certain connection with nature and God when I go primitive.  You get a better sense of appreciation for everything around you when you have to rely on your senses and skill to be perfect rather than sitting in a box and waiting for an animal to walk out far enough from you that he can't see, hear, or smell you! Plus, I have a huge obsession with history, and the closer I can get myself to that period of existence, the better it makes me feel!

[Bishop]

My first bowhunting was with a Bear Alaskan. My granddad used recurves and I was influenced by him. I tried the compound and found out I had more fun and enjoyed the recurve more. I have found stickbows to work better for me in hunting situations.

I don't care what another guy uses and I have had no problem hunting with guys who use compounds. The compounds just aren't for me.

[Joeabowhunter]

I find quite the opposite.  I believe trad hunters are typically more accepting and appreciate the hunting choice of others.  Trad hunters just choose a more difficult means.  I watched a Jim Shockey show and what he said really rings true to me....bottom line he ended up saying the  more difficult tool chosen to hunt with the greater the reward and feeling of accomplishment.  At the end of the day it is a personal choice and I'll congratulate a successful hunter no matter what weapon is used.  My hunting has changed from rifle to shotgun and crossbow to compound and finally to trad.  I've always admired the skill and dedication trad hunting took but wasn't ready to commit to it the time it requires until now.

[bow_man_66]

I too choose to hunt with a long bow or recurve. But I also hunt with a rifle, shotgun and muzzle loader. Not all of us look down on others who choose not to hunt with traditional equipment. I have many friends that hunt with compounds and some that even use cross bows now. We all need to stick together no matter what type of hunting we do. As long as someone is hunting ethically, I am fine with it. I do find that there seems to be a tighter bond with traditional shooters, a trust that you just don't seem to find with other groups. I can't say that I have found many traditional shooters that would not help out a total stranger be it questions or even equipment that they may need. I am proud to be a part of this group.

[JParanee]

I have always shot a recurve just never took to compounds

I  hunt with rifle ,shotgun and even the dreaded recurve crossbow    

I don't care what anyone uses as long as they can use it adequately

[30coupe]

I don't think most of us here are hostile to any other weapons, whether they have wheels or chambers. Most are like Barry Rowland and me. The wheels are just not for us. What anyone else shoots is their business. I have shot a few arrows through compound bows, but just didn't care for the experience.

If I had to shoot one to eat, I'd probably do it, but I shoot for the joy of watching the graceful arc of a wooden arrow, released by my fingers from a whisper quiet bow. My motion is fluid and surprisingly fast. Getting a compound into action takes too long for my taste.

Both my sons have traditional bows, but have switched over to compounds because their jobs and families have limited their practice time. That is their choice. When they get a bit older, they may also discover the joy of shooting a traditional bow. If not I am just glad I at least passed on my love of hunting and being in the outdoors to both of them.

Again, I have no hostility toward compounds, nor those who choose to use them. They are just not for me.

[Steve B.]

Other equipment is not easier, its difficult in different ways, whether a spear or crossbow.  Nothing in and of itself is easier, it just happens to be more effecient at certain times.
If we include all the other weapons on this website it would get aweful busy.  
All weapons have their limits, and all weapons sometimes wound instead of kill.  So any hate just comes from ignorance and insecurity.

[rastaman]

i think you guys need to just go hunting. Lol!   :rolleyes:  
You can always tell when hunting season starts winding down in different areas by the different threads that start popping up.  i don't care what weapon of choice someone else uses. i don't think crossbows should be allowed during bow season, but i have no problem with it as a weapon.
My opinion (and everybody has one) and experience is that most of the older guys/gals that have been trad since before that was a word, don't show an elitism toward other weapons.

[Zradix]

First off, it it were me making this post I would have worded the title "Why are SOME Trad Guys so hostile to other bows?"

Because not all of us are.

To answer your question, I believe that some people are hardwired to make themselves feel superior compared to other people....and to cut others down.

Just the same as some people are bullies and some are not.

I compare some of the lower class trad community to some of lower class Harley people...(I say people since some of these nincompoops aren't owners or riders anyway) they just have a uneducated elitist attitude.

In all honesty, when ALL else is equal I have a little more respect for those using trad equipment than those using a compound.

For instance I KNOW I'd be happier to have taken a doe with my longbow than taking a buck with my compound.

BUT!, there are a lot of great people ( and great hunters ) using either set of equipment.

I know of quite a few better hunters/woodsmen than me that are using compounds or even crossbows for that matter.

my 2¢

[Mudd]

This thread got me to thinking even more.(talk about dangerous!)...lol

Here is my analogy to what might be at the heart of my problem, if I have one.

I once was an avid black powder long rifle hunter. I started as a percussion shooter but over time I made the switch to flintlocks. Flintlocks held more romance for me and I loved the fact that the great state of Missouri seemed to understand the need for having a separate season for those of us shooting black powder.

My problem arose with the advent of the new "modern" muzzleloaders that totally lacked the romance of the old guns and shot more like a modern rifle. Scopes were allowed then powder pellets replaced powder horns.

The "spirit" of why blackpowder hunting was so romantic for me lost so much when I was no longer wandering the woods with just those folks that with the same kindred spirit. It was no longer anything special, it was just another hunting season.

The change in my environment with the new additions changed the feeling for me.
It is that loss of romantic spirit/feeling that I grieve.

On the plus side it did draw more folks into hunting and I see that as a good thing.

I hope my analogy is acceptable.

God bless,Mudd

[ron w]

I'm not an elitist. I started with a recurve, went to a compound because I listened to all the hype and marketing. Still use firearms and have fallen back in love with traditional archery. As long as the hunter has the right mindset and ethics I don't care what he or she uses. I just prefer the the traditional bow. I do think that something is lost with the more modern equipment, maybe woodsman ship skills or the hunting skills that's needed to get close......not sure what it is! Like Rastaman said I was traditional when it was just archery/bowhunting.....lol!

[Ric O'Shay]

Originally posted by Buxndiverdux:

 How can that be construed as anything other than jealousy?
Hopefully this post can start a healthy debate without the elitist bashing and finger pointing.

How did you come to the jealously conclusion?

Why would anyone that shoots a longbow or recurve be jealous of someone that shoots a compound bow? Like you (I think), we all have chosen the way we desire to hunt and shoot. We have chosen to do things the old school way. For myself, at age 68, this was the way I learned to hunt and shoot. I see no reason at this point in my life to put down a wood bow and pick up a compound. To me, a longbow was once a living breathing creature. One of my bows is made from a 300 year old English yew tree felled during a storm in Staffordshire, England. I know where it lived. I know the history of the world that it saw while living and growing breathing. Now, I have the privilege of holding it in my hands and feeling the personality that bow has.

I was told by a compound shooter, "The archery skill with a compound is when you can shoot an arrow through a deer at 65+ yards and it never knows you were there." I disagreed and told him the skill is when you can stalk close enough to a deer that you can reach out and touch him with your bow, before he knows you are there. I have done just that. I harbor no jealously for a compound shooter. Why would I?

I don't fingerpoint or bash. I don't consider myself an elitist, only a woodsman with traditional skills.

Danny

[Buxndiverdux]

Originally posted by Zradix:
First off, it it were me making this post I would have worded the title "Why are SOME Trad Guys so hostile to other bows?"

Because not all of us are.

To answer your question, I believe that some people are hardwired to make themselves feel superior compared to other people....and to cut others down.

Just the same as some people are bullies and some are not.

I compare some of the lower class trad community to some of lower class Harley people...(I say people since some of these nincompoops aren't owners or riders anyway) they just have a uneducated elitist attitude.

In all honesty, when ALL else is equal I have a little more respect for those using trad equipment than those using a compound.

For instance I KNOW I'd be happier to have taken a doe with my longbow than taking a buck with my compound.

BUT!, there are a lot of great people ( and great hunters ) using either set of equipment.

I know of quite a few better hunters/woodsmen than me that are using compounds or even crossbows for that matter.

my 2¢

In hindsight... I probably should have posted "some". I'm glad that the responses have been civil. It makes me feel more comfortable here. Maybe it's the "attitudes" I've seen on other forums that gave me that impression. Thanks for all the replies.

[Buxndiverdux]

Originally posted by Ric O'Shay:
 

Originally posted by Buxndiverdux:

 How can that be construed as anything other than jealousy?
Hopefully this post can start a healthy debate without the elitist bashing and finger pointing.

How did you come to the jealously conclusion?

Why would anyone that shoots a longbow or recurve be jealous of someone that shoots a compound bow? Like you (I think), we all have chosen the way we desire to hunt and shoot. We have chosen to do things the old school way. For myself, at age 68, this was the way I learned to hunt and shoot. I see no reason at this point in my life to put down a wood bow and pick up a compound. To me, a longbow was once a living breathing creature. One of my bows is made from a 300 year old English yew tree felled during a storm in Staffordshire, England. I know where it lived. I know the history of the world that it saw while living and growing breathing. Now, I have the privilege of holding it in my hands and feeling the personality that bow has.

I was told by a compound shooter, "The archery skill with a compound is when you can shoot an arrow through a deer at 65+ yards and it never knows you were there." I disagreed and told him the skill is when you can stalk close enough to a deer that you can reach out and touch him with your bow, before he knows you are there. I have done just that. I harbor no jealously for a compound shooter. Why would I?

I don't fingerpoint or bash. I don't consider myself an elitist, only a woodsman with traditional skills.

Danny [/b]

My jealousy comment was directed at people that look down at other hunters because they use a compound or gun. Your post doesn't display jealousy to me. It simply explains what I was trying to explain about my experience, but with far greater detail and thought.

[Jeff Strubberg]

Depends on what you mean by  "easier equipment".  I've never chewed on someone else over their choice of equipment, but there is a lot of equipment I won't support the use of!  The draw-loc, pod and crossbow come to mind.

Modern equipment versus traditional equipment is a choice and that's all it is.  That doesn't mean that anything goes, or that  the killing of an animal means you are hunting.