With practice and a modern compound loaded with all the goodies, a great release and a rangefinder, 60 yards is not unethical.
The last deer I shot with a compound was at 47 yards, a very nice 8pt for my area. And that was before the drop away rests became common. It was that exact event that made me finally jump into traditional archery with both feet. I'd kicked going traditional around for a couple years prior, but after the ease of killing deer at 40-50 yards with compounds became a reality, I sold off or gave away everything compound I owned. Killing antlerless deer at 20-30 yards became to feel like more of a chore than a fun hunt.
For my own personal reasons, I didn't stop using compounds for what anybody thought of me as a hunter. I don't hunt for other people. Hell, I don't respect what half the people say about serious political issues. I sure don't care what they think about what bow or rifle I hunt with. I made the switch for myself. I became bored with compounds and killing deer with them. I decided that it'd be a lot more fun to see how close I could get, rather than how far I could shoot.
I think it's for this reason that we're seeing the growth in popularity of hunting with traditional bows. As we age as a national group, (hunter demographics are getting grayer by the year) we have literally 1,000,000's of bowhunters who've "been there-done that" with compounds over the last 30 years and they're simply looking for something to make bowhunting more fun and more of a challenge again. The growth in traditional archery is going to come from existing bowhunters, some of whom decide to switch as they decide that using compounds isn't much fun anymore. Why mock future traditional bowhunters?
If you notice, you don't see many experienced traditional archers who switch to compounds, however you see lots of experienced compound shooters who switch to traditional archery. As far as crossbows, I think anyone who has any health issue who will benefit by using a crossbow so it keeps him/her in the woods with family and friends is a great thing. After my shoulder surgery, I'd use a crossbow if I could never draw a conventional bow again. If I couldn't bow hunt, I'd probably sell off my land and 10 hunters would "lose their spot". As far as crossbows for healthy, able bodied men, I view them as more a kin to steroids in sports. I've sold crossbows, I know people who use crossbows and I'm not saying ban crossbows because that horse has been walking out of the barn for a decade and it wants to walk out, but I don't care for crossbows for my personal use, unless it was the lone option. Not my cup of tea, however I think they should be legal, much like I don't like AR rifles, but I don't think they should be banned from use.
It's for the same reason that more compound shooters are switching to traditional archery that more and more hunters are looking to antler point restrictions to up the challenge of a deer hunt. Antler restrictions aren't about getting a trophy to brag about, it's about the quality of the hunt itself and the fun, like with traditional bows. It's the same as with what bow I shoot, I do that for my own soul, I don't care what others think. The same is true with hunting in a more naturally age diverse deer herd. It's social mis-management that has caused some places like Michigan to have an unnaturally young deer herd, to suit decades of social demands from 750,000 deer hunters. But unlike what bow someone uses, what deer and how many of what deer neighbors kill does impact your hunt. Like a smoker in a restaurant or someone dumping a chemical in a lake, the actions of one landowner can have a big impact on others. If a camp kills 10 yearling bucks every year and fills every antlerless tag it can get, well then it does matter to other neighbors, what deer, and how many, someone shoots.
It used to be, before we knew so much about deer and deer hunting, and before deer herds got bigger, that killing a deer with a recurve or longbow was quite the accomplishment and rarity. But now, with our wealth of knowledge of all things deer, and relatively plentiful deer numbers (compared to decades back-in many area's) killing a yearling buck with a traditional bow isn't that difficult for more and more hunters. We know so much about deer now, compared to what we knew in the 1970's that it's like comparing the old 13" black and white TV we had at camp back then to todays smart phone. Our knowledge of scent control, thermals, deer calls, photo-period, human pressure, home ranges, etc, etc is light years ahead of what we knew when we left the cabin door in 1978.
And for those who hunt with a compound or crossbow, killing a yearling buck is only a matter of a few sits over a bait pile or feeder and it's like shooting squirrels off a bird feeder with a scoped .22 rifle. It's for this reason that we'll see more bag limit changes in the future vs. weapons choice restrictions, since DNR's want butts in the woods. And believe it or not, we as fellow sportsmen want butts in the woods too, otherwise the anti's will crush us with money raised and spent, and in future elections involving long established, conventional hunting seasons.
Below is some highlights of a well known study done by U of W. From my years of working with sportsmen on the retail end, my opinion is that the findings are spot on, with hunters floating around in the later stages...
From 1975 to 1980, groups of over 1,000 hunters in Wisconsin were studied, surveyed, and written about by Professors Robert Jackson and Robert Norton, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. The results of their studies form a widely accepted theory of hunter behavior and development. Where are you now? Where would you like to be?
Six Stages of Hunter Development
The longer you hunt; you will probably find that your attitude and behavior will evolve. There are six distinct stages of hunter development. You may not pass through each of these stages and you may not progress through them in this exact order.
Stage 1. Shooting Stage
The impulse here is to get off a shot quickly, usually at the first animal that appears. This eagerness can lead to bad decisions that could result in the wrong animal being chosen, a poor shot being taken that wounds the animal or even a shot that endangers others. Target practice, good mentoring and more experience will lead most hunters out of this stage quickly.
Stage 2. Limiting Out Stage
This hunter wants to always bag the limit. This may cause a hunter to take unsafe shots or misidentify targets in the zeal to limit out. More experience and hunting with mature hunters will lead hunters out of this stage.
Stage 3. Trophy Stage
Success is judged by quality, not quantity. The hunter is very selective and will pass on many opportunities that do not match the desired trophy characteristics. Many trophy hunters focus on big game. The hunter’s patience and commitment must be highly evolved.
Stage 4. Method Stage
Here, the process and challenge of hunting becomes the primary focus of the hunter. A more challenging method, such as using a (traditional) bow, muzzleloader, or handgun may be chosen. The hunter may choose to stalk or still hunt, rather than sit in a stand next to a feeder.
Stage 5. Sportsman Stage
The total experience of the hunt is what is important to the sportsman. What animal is being hunted, how it is being hunted, the immersion into nature and the companionship of who you are hunting with, all combine into creating a more sophisticated appreciation of the hunt.
Stage 6. “Give-Back” Stage
At this point the hunter is motivated by the desire to pass on the proper hunting values, safety skills and responsible attitudes to others. They want to preserve our hunting heritage by introducing new hunters to the sport in the most rewarding manner. The hunter may choose to join a conservation organization that improves habitat through wildlife management and promotes hunting.
Topic: VIEWPOINT-Elitist Attitude (Read 1686 times)
