Here's my take on required preliminary testing...at first it sounds good,but think about it for a minute.Just imagine for a second what we are talking about here.Do you realize how expensive and mired with problems such a program would be!!Who is going to do the testing?Our wildlife and fisheries department is struggling with it's available personnel to try to enforce the laws that ALREADY exist.If not them,then who?Some other state agency?What guidelines are you to establish?When and where will the testing take place?How about out of state hunters?Which states law will take precedence?I agree with Cougar Mag on this one.You can test a bowhunter,or a gun hunter(shot-gun,rifle,bp),but this is not going to say that hunter,who may have performed flawlessly on the testing grid,is going to be able to cut it when he is under real hunting conditions,is it?Hunters,and I mean all of us have to police ourselves.You are the only one who knows your abilities and we have to be big enough to admit it when we are not up to the task at hand.Respect for the animals that you hunt is what it all boils down to.If you have it,then you will hunt ethically,with ethical hunters,and not try to do something that is above your ability.If you don't have it,then you don't belong in the woods in the first place.Don't yall agree?That's where I stand..........
Good huntin'.........whackman