46 years young and I too have noticed more "variety" in ages at shoots.
I'm sure most of us have seen or heard about the "stages of a hunter" and I wonder if this has anything to do with it: (As written elsewhere)
The Five Stages of Evolution of a Sport Hunter
As with all things in life, a hunter's perspective of his sport changes as time goes by. According to the Hunter's Education manual used by the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, the five stages of a hunter's life are (a) the Shooter Stage, (b) the Limiting-Out stage, (c) the Trophy stage, (d) the Method stage, and (e) the Sportsman stage.
As the sport of hunting itself changes through the years, so do the factors that determine what "successful hunting" is. Add to this the changes that take place in each hunter's life, and things can get a bit confusing. Some of the factors that can determine or influence what kinds of hunters we become are (a) the hunter's age, (b) his hunting companions, (c) his role models, (d) his personal ethics, and (e) his and years of hunting experience. All of these affect our ideas of "success." Where a hunter fits into one of the five groups may change as he progresses in his hunting career. What stage are you in now? What stage would you like to be in?
The Shooter Stage
A hunter who is in the Shooter Stage talks about satisfaction with hunting being closely tied to being able to "get-in some shooting." The beginning duck hunter says that he had an excellent day if he got-in a lot of shooting. The beginning deer hunter talks about the number of shooting opportunities. Missing game means little to hunters in this phase. A beginning hunter wants to pull the trigger and test the capability of his firearm. A hunter in this stage may be a dangerous hunting partner.
The Limiting-Out Stage
A hunter who is in the Limiting-Out Stage still talks about the satisfaction of shooting. But what seems more important to him is measuring success through the killing of game and the number of birds or animals that he has shot. Limiting-out or filling a tag is his absolute measure of success. Do not let your desire to limit-out be stronger than your concern for safe behavior at all times.
The Trophy Stage
The satisfaction of a hunter in the Trophy stage is determined by the selectivity of game. A duck hunter might take only greenheads. A deer hunter looks for one special deer. A hunter might travel far to find a real trophy animal. Shooting opportunity and skills become less important than finding and shooting the coveted trophy.
The Method Stage
When a hunter has reached the Method Stage, he has accumulated all the special equipment that he could conceivably need. Hunting has become one of the most important things in his life. His satisfaction comes from the method that enables him to take game. Taking game is important but secondary to how he takes it. This hunter studies long and hard how best to pick a blind site, how to lay-out decoys, and how to call-in waterfowl. A deer hunter goes one-on- one with a white-tail deer — studying sign, tracking, and the life habits of the deer. This hunter often handicaps himself intentionally by hunting only with black-powder firearms or bow and arrow. Bagging game, or limiting, still is a necessary part of the hunt during this phase.
The Sportsman Stage
Finally, as a hunter ages and after many years of hunting, he tends to "mellow out." He now finds satisfaction in the total hunting experience. Being in the field, enjoying the company of friends and family, and seeing nature outweigh the need for taking game.
Not all sport hunters go through all these stages, or go through them in this particular order. It is also possible for hunters who pursue several species of game to be in a different stage with regard to each species that he hunts. Some hunters feel that role models of good sportsmen, training, or reading books or magazines helped them pass more quickly through some of these stages.
There you have it, two studies with two very different ways of looking at hunters and how we approach our sport. Does one of these categories describe you? Where are you in your hunting career now? Where would you like to be? Each of us has to decide for himself what kind of hunter he wants to be, and to be the best hunter that he can be.
Topic: Average Age of Trad Bowhunters (Read 2850 times)
