Double Creek Everything you said about crossbows can be said of compounds. " Be a Two Season Hunter " - remember that ? Who coined it and why ?
There was a time when bowhunting was recurves and longbows. If you wanted to hunt that season, learn how to use one. Somehow, compounds were allowed in, and now its their season, and they're fighting to not have the same thing happen to them as they did to trad archery.
Ironic, isn't it ?
I guess the old saying, "you have to pick your battles" applies in the situation regarding compounds.... That is a battle you absolutely can not win, so why bother? We can and have stopped xbows.... We can win that battle.. Sure, maybe there isn't much difference between a tricked out compound and an xbow, but I still percieve the xbow as an easier weapon to use and we HAVE to draw the line somewhere..
I personally think the mechanical release is what launches compounds into a category all its own..... The compound itself isnt really the problem, its all that goes with it that makes shooting it so easy.... A compound shooting 230 fps with a finger release isnt all that much different than a recurve... Its when you bump it up to 300fps with a mechanical release that changes the game drastically.....
As I've discussed with you, I myself may be going back to the compound this season due to some shoulder problems... I have no issues with that.... I realize its an easier weapon to master than my recurve... I can live with that.... But you can still keep the challenge alive while shooting a compound....