RE: TOP TEN CROSSBOW RULES
DoeGirl - Once you have climbed into your treestand or blind, the you put your arrow into your crossbow, making sure it is firmly seated to avoid "dry-fire" results.
Technically, if you are stalking or still hunting, you crossbow can be cocked, but your arrow should be in the bow or hip quiver and not placed in the crossbow until you are ready to shoot. At that point in time, it "should be firmly seated to prevent dry-fire results".
Everyone - A lot of folks disagree with this rule and claim that when stalking or still hunting you should have an arrow in your bow. Any time you are walking with an exposed broadhead in a cocked bow, your are playing with fire. You can stand in the front of an on-coming semi too, but the results could be kind of ugly. Not for the one standing, of course because they would have automatically moved on the next level at the point of impact.
These are safety rules. If you want to be absolutely safe, you would do well to follow them. Not do so, is to put you and the others you hunt with at risk. And as with anything else in life, the final choice is yours. If you believe, for whatever reason, that you don't have to do so, then you place those you hunt with and yourself in danger. Bottom line is the choice is yours. Do what you gotta do, but at least you have been informed of what the safe and correct procedure is.