The future of our industry?

300WSM · Mar 19, 2013

I wanted to share with you some things that are happening from this state of Pennsylvania.

I'm sure its similar in other states. When I was nearing my 12 year old birthday the excitement level was off the charts. I couldn't wait until I could legally go hunting. It was a huge. My friends all were the same way.
Once we turned 12 it was like a birthright to go hunting. Not only did you want to hunt but there was a sensation that you MUST do it. It was a way of life for any 12 year old boy (and some girls) to go hunting.
Of my friends in those ages 8 of 10 kids were hunters. Turn up the clock many years and my kids have all hit that age...a few years ago.

My kid's friends in that age range it is almost reverse. I would say that 3 out of 10 are hunters.

Why is that? A lot of contributing factors are going on here..especially in PA. Video games are the number one. Single parents is not uncommon now and they have no introduction to hunting. In this state the lack of deer in certain areas is another one. At one time there were two weeks of buck only season and one day of a doe season. The moment they made the season two weeks of brown is down, the deer herd vanished. I don't want to get off track here as that can be for a bigger longer discussion...but those are all reasons. The PGC here has made a mentor youth hunting program to allow any child to shoot a deer provided his guardian is carrying the weapon. Essentially doing everything but the actual shooting. How honest those people are being seems to be debatable.

Back to the hunter non hunter ratio...one thing that has maintained and I do give the video games credit on this is the kids may not hunt but they are truly fascinated with the "bad guns."

They can rattle off 10 model numbers of assault weapons but have no idea the difference between a model 700 and a model 70.

I don't think this is a bad thing whatsoever as they are at the very least staying somewhat interested in something that shoots.
Again though the impact new laws could have on our industry could be great. It doesn't even have to be with guns but regulating video games could actually impact our industry.

I'm anxious to see some opinions on this

FOTIS · Mar 19, 2013

The kids have learned to "have fun" without any physical exertion or getting cold or being bored etc..

wisconsinteacher · Mar 19, 2013

I will add my .02. I teach in a middle school and teacher hunter's safety. I live in a small town in northern WI so our numbers are high. I think one of the biggest issues is the TV. By this I mean hunting shows. If you can't kill a 130+ every 15 minutes you are a poor hunter. Our youth see this and after a day of hunting and not seeing a "shooter" they quit. I also think that there are too many kids deer hunting at a young age. They start with deer and get bored shooting deer with a rifle in October off a corn field during youth season. No one small game hunts and then graduate to big game like we did. I maybe wrong but that is one of the issues I see with hunting.

ridgewalker · Mar 22, 2013

Of course I have to put in my $.02. Growing up in Texas I got a .22 single shot in 1953 when I turned 6. I could only use it while my dad was there to control things and teach me how. It seemed to work for me. Things were much more rural. I learned to use it on my grandparent's farm on squirrels and cotton tails and in west Texas on jackrabbits.

Fast forward to today...few places to target shoot or hunt anymore in the more urban states with no public lands available. Many of the public lands are even being closed to shooting. Currently I have to drive 65 miles to the outdoor shooting range I am a member of...1 hr 20 minutes. I go for the entire day with a bunch of protective gear, ammo, test loads, chronograph, rests (bench, bipods, pack), etc. Luckily I have a truck with a cap on it.

Even though I live only minutes away from National Forest, they have restricted it with no shooting except in hunting season.

As stated earlier, kids don't want to move and when they do move it is only their fingers on video games where they want/get instant gratification. The hunt itself doesn't mean anything, only the kill. Attention spans are absolutely zip...none!

So many I have taken hunting believe they don't need to practice shooting to go hunting. If they do they just sit at a bench and shoot. They believe that is good enough. They don't want to go prone in the, oh my! dirt!, sit in the dirt!, use a post to hold on, use a bipod, pile up a coat, pack, hat, etc. Shoot off-hand! "I can't do that"...of course not because you don't!

Alas what can we do except just keep trying.

Laker_Taker · Mar 22, 2013

Gotta have money. What used to be the timber industry land and you could hunt it is now all leased out in MN. I used to hunt a area with my grandfather and never saw a human now its all sectioned off and up for lease. Ever since MN made the timber companies pay property tax they said no more free hunting. Gotta pay to have fun these days.

spires5d · Mar 22, 2013

Well here goes my 2 cents worth! I grew up in Ohio and I started out hunting with a bow when I was 14. Always liked shooting a bow as a kid and I do now with a compound bow. When I was 16,I bought myself a single shot Springfield .22 rifle to hunt squirrels and cotton tails along with my school mates. I hunted and fished with my friends and I enjoyed it. I raised 4 boys and I taught them how to hunt and fish Starting at the age of 12. Out of 4 boys,3 of them hunt and the other one is an avid bass fisherman. Right now I have 3 Grandsons that like to hunt and I have one that likes to bass fish like his dad. I have a couple of grand daughters that like to hunt. I also have 2 grandsons that aren't old enough to enjoy the sport of hunting. I've been reloading since I was around 25 years old and so far I haven't had anyone in the family wanting to learn the art of reloading. I found out that if you take your time with your children and teach the right way to hunt and fish,then it will pay off in the end.
7mm's Forever and a 30 cal. will "Slam Dunk Um"

jimbo88mm · Mar 22, 2013

Keep in mind, not all shooters are hunters and not all hunters are shooters. This is an important point.. especially given the politics of the times. Great effort is being made by the anti-gun crowd to peel off the "hunters" from the "bad gun shooter crowd" in order to push through legislation.

I am not a hunter. I grew up in central NJ. My father grew up in NYC. There was no hunting tradition in my family. My only experience with firearms during my childhood was with 22 shorts at scout camp. After high school a joined the Army. Now I'm in Texas and I shoot for recreation. My main interest is long range. My intention is to get involved with local Fclass matches.. and later on maybe some 3gun stuff.

I think the key to ensuring the health of the 2nd amendment is making sure we raise responsible children who can safely use firearms, be it on the hunt or at the range.

PJGunner · Mar 23, 2013

ASs one has already said, it's all about the money. I lived in a small Nevada town for ten years and was welcome one several ranches to shoot pocket gophers in the alfalfa fields and coyotes at any time. Come deer season I was welcome to come get my "winter's meat". A few years back while visiting friends thee, I stopped by a couple of the ranches to say hello. I asked if I could draw a tag could I come hunt on their place? Sure, $2,500 for a three day hunt. :shock: One rancher had leased his place out to a bunch of wealthy California lawyers.. I later learned that they bought the place. No no hunting allowed. Funny thing about those ranches. There never were any really big deer on them. Just young bucks and does, mostly does which were legal in that area. With 4 kids to feed and my paycheck not all that big, those deer came in mighty handy as my wife and two oldest kids hunted along with me. THose days are long gone AFAIK.

Paul B.

DrMike · Mar 23, 2013

PJGunner":10ghwkfw said:
ASs one has already said, it's all about the money. I lived in a small Nevada town for ten years and was welcome one several ranches to shoot pocket gophers in the alfalfa fields and coyotes at any time. Come deer season I was welcome to come get my "winter's meat". A few years back while visiting friends thee, I stopped by a couple of the ranches to say hello. I asked if I could draw a tag could I come hunt on their place? Sure, $2,500 for a three day hunt. :shock: One rancher had leased his place out to a bunch of wealthy California lawyers.. I later learned that they bought the place. No no hunting allowed. Funny thing about those ranches. There never were any really big deer on them. Just young bucks and does, mostly does which were legal in that area. With 4 kids to feed and my paycheck not all that big, those deer came in mighty handy as my wife and two oldest kids hunted along with me. THose days are long gone AFAIK.
Paul B.

Ouch! That would hurt--big time!