Schultzy then its a very simple step to say "use the crossbow" using the same reasons you just gave - easier to master, more accurate, intro youngsters to archery at younger ages, less wounded deer .....
Its the best thing I ever did, I love hunting with my recurve. I know its made me a much better bow hunter then I previously was shooting compound.
expand on that, because I think
Lanse couche coucheand others are missing what we're saying
I shot compounds for 12-13 years or so. I, like you, hunted all my life. Taking a recurve into the woods and hunting with it and shooting deer with it ? VAST difference, like I was a newbie in the woods again.
And its not just the hunting that changes, its all encompassing when you shoot trad it seems. Compounds don't have "it" and crossbows don't have "it" - maybe some traditional archers don't have it, but because of the difficulty in the weapons its weeds out a lot of wanna be, taking the easy route to extra weeks afield kinda of guys that crossbows and compounds lure in.
again I'm at a crossroads. I wish archery was only traditional bows, what it originally was. doing that would weaken bowhunting, and hutning in general, and because there are no negative impacts to having compounds and crossbows in legal archery season, it almost outweighs the conflict of equipment