ORIGINAL: Hard Luck
Why do these guys make turkey hunting sound like a black at ? I went to a seminar and when I left I don't know how I ever killed one. Maybe I don'T hunt enough. I've killed 1-2 turkeys every Spring for 45 yrs all I use is a single call,my single shot 12,full choke and a cammo shirt and hat.
If I took all the stuff they had for sale I would need a burro to carry it. No wonder a guy starting out is so confused. Heck I even caught a turkey once with my bare hands, he was stuck in a woven wire fence after I scared him and he took off running. Still got the scars to prove it.
Thats an easy one.
You gotta keep in mind that a Pro Staffer is little short of a field experienced salesman. I'm living proof that you don't have to be a super expert hunter to be a pro staffer. You do need to know what you are talking about of course, but mostly you need to be friendly, approachable, tactful, and somewhat business minded.
As a customer, or a member of the audience at a turkey seminar (I'm on stage more than in the audience these days), I'd say just keep an open mind. You can't really expect a semiar to be like a church sermon... full of lessons and answers. What you should look for is just a little tip, or small trick that may work here or there.
I'll tell you Hard Luck... there are LOTS of ways to kill turkeys. Most seminars cover topics and products that are most likely to appeal to the hunters in the target market. Right now, that is relatively young hunters (20-35 years old) with a bit of disposable income that are just getting into turkey hunting, or have been turkey hunting 5 springs or fewer. Most of these newer hunters are looking for ways to get ahead. They don't have a lot of patience. They like to "run and gun". They think they have to find a hot bird in order to be successful. They look at folks on TV and how they start out in the morning with a bird roaring from the roost, they set up some $100 decoys... and here they all come. Most of us know... it doesn't work that way.
You, like myself, probably learned turkey hunting from actually turkey hunting. And we will probably agree that you can kill the snot out of turkeys if you know the property, and understand turkeys...and you can do it with suprisingly little besides camoflauge, a comfortable seat, a simple call, and a pocketful of patience. Most people now would rather learn it on TV, on the net, or at a seminar. There is nothing wrong with seminars, they can be full of great advice and useful tips... you just have to take them for what they are... opinionated, experience based knowledge, with an underlying sales pitch.