Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
12-05-2002, 08:02 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Illinois
Posts: 1,862
Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
Do you believe that the number of deer a bowhunter has killed, or a kill or an occasional killing of a quality buck, indisputably attests that the person is thoroughly skilled in all aspects of archery and bowhunting deer?
Post your answer and opinions.
Edited by - c903 on 12/05/2002 09:19:35
Post your answer and opinions.
Edited by - c903 on 12/05/2002 09:19:35
12-05-2002, 08:12 AM
#3
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Afton IA USA
Posts: 444
RE: Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
To a certain degree, yes. If a hunter has success year in and year out. Then he's obviously a better hunter than someone like.......me who hasn't taken a deer with a bow yet. But if he's a guy who's killed one or two does in the last four seasons and all of a sudden he comes up with a 150 class buck, no I don't think so. I mean even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then. LOL
KEEP IT LEGAL. KEEP IT SAFE. OR WE MAY NOT GET TO KEEP IT AT ALL.
KEEP IT LEGAL. KEEP IT SAFE. OR WE MAY NOT GET TO KEEP IT AT ALL.
12-05-2002, 08:25 AM
#5
Dominant Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blossvale, New York
Posts: 21,199
RE: Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
Well, your idea and my idea of "Thoroughly Skilled" may differ. In fact, I'll guarantee when you got right down to the nitty gritty of it I'll guarantee we all have a different benchmark. That said.... we learn and perfect our skills from reading, doing and observing.... and maybe picking brains. I will say that someone who's only hunted a very short time has NO way of being as skilled as someone who's hunted a lifetime. That doesn't mean the guy who's hunted a lifetime is skilled. I've met some real loosy hunters my age. I think the number of kills will definitely tell you something about a persons skills. I've bowhunted 32 years, have shot at least one deer every year except one.(that year I moved the week before bow season to a new state who's bow season was past or only had like a week left) A lot of those years the herds were small, the limit was one. In the past few years I've been making up for that with multiple kills. Todate I have 71 and most are bucks. Would you really question that I might know something about bowhunting. Sure, I don't know it all.... but darn I'm good.<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>
As far as the occasional quality animal.... My quality animal and yours may be different. No way do some of us have the size and undesturbed herd others do. If the QUALITY animal theory were restricted to your woods or vicinity then we could use it as a benchmark.... a little. NO, I don't shoot every buck I see, but I shoot enough of them. I started with recurves and wooden arrows, then aluminum and finally compounds. I've done it all, killed with all and have some numbers. If you run across some guy like me and you say "Yeh but,.... I shoot the big ones". He'll probably snicker, give you an ATT-A-BOY and go back to his thing. He doesn't shoot numbers for praise. He does it because he likes to hunt and he's developed some skills.
Saying I passed a lot of small bucks to wait on the big one doesn't put the blood on the ground. I don't count "Could-a Would-a" kills. There are to many things that can go wrong... like me yesterday.
SO, does a guy who has the numbers have anymore or less skills than the guys who shoots a "Quality Animal" every 3 or 4 years. Probably not... but what does it matter. Does the guy who shoots a "Quality Animal" every 3 or 4 years have more or less skills than the guy who whacks a couple deer a year... what does it matter. I don't care what skills the next guy has. Is he a bowhunter, does he have fun?...... GOOD for HIM. Is the guy who gets deer every year over a lot of years lucky? NOPE....he's an experienced bowhunter. Sure he has skills.... enough to achieve HIS goals, not the trophy hunters goals.
As far as the occasional quality animal.... My quality animal and yours may be different. No way do some of us have the size and undesturbed herd others do. If the QUALITY animal theory were restricted to your woods or vicinity then we could use it as a benchmark.... a little. NO, I don't shoot every buck I see, but I shoot enough of them. I started with recurves and wooden arrows, then aluminum and finally compounds. I've done it all, killed with all and have some numbers. If you run across some guy like me and you say "Yeh but,.... I shoot the big ones". He'll probably snicker, give you an ATT-A-BOY and go back to his thing. He doesn't shoot numbers for praise. He does it because he likes to hunt and he's developed some skills.
Saying I passed a lot of small bucks to wait on the big one doesn't put the blood on the ground. I don't count "Could-a Would-a" kills. There are to many things that can go wrong... like me yesterday.
SO, does a guy who has the numbers have anymore or less skills than the guys who shoots a "Quality Animal" every 3 or 4 years. Probably not... but what does it matter. Does the guy who shoots a "Quality Animal" every 3 or 4 years have more or less skills than the guy who whacks a couple deer a year... what does it matter. I don't care what skills the next guy has. Is he a bowhunter, does he have fun?...... GOOD for HIM. Is the guy who gets deer every year over a lot of years lucky? NOPE....he's an experienced bowhunter. Sure he has skills.... enough to achieve HIS goals, not the trophy hunters goals.
12-05-2002, 08:35 AM
#6
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 7,571
RE: Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
I would have to say sometimes, and not all thime.
If a hunter is killing (not wounding) large number of deer on a consistant basis, then he must be doing something right.
However, there are hunters out there who will only shoot trophies, and let a lot walk.
I'm kind of in the middle, I will shoot deer to put them in the freezer, but only as much as I can eat. Those are mostly does though. I ussually won't shoot a buck under eight points. This year, I didn't get a buck, but did get three does.
If a hunter is killing (not wounding) large number of deer on a consistant basis, then he must be doing something right.
However, there are hunters out there who will only shoot trophies, and let a lot walk.
I'm kind of in the middle, I will shoot deer to put them in the freezer, but only as much as I can eat. Those are mostly does though. I ussually won't shoot a buck under eight points. This year, I didn't get a buck, but did get three does.
12-05-2002, 08:39 AM
#7
Super Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Deepwoods Treestand WI
Posts: 902
RE: Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
Ditto......NO.
I have a rich friend in NY that hunts non-fair chase farms (my term) and has several dozen harvests. But I wouldn't take him with me.
I have a rich friend in NY that hunts non-fair chase farms (my term) and has several dozen harvests. But I wouldn't take him with me.
12-05-2002, 08:54 AM
#8
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Fredericksburg Virginia USA
Posts: 13,672
RE: Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
Numbers are just that, numbers, they do not indicate skill. Look at some of the folks who pay big bucks for guided hunts every year, the only skill they have is how to be still and shoot, they do not have a lick of skill when it comes to hunting.
Skill on the other hand can be indicated by either number of deer harvested as with David or it can be the wall hanger every few seasons as with wolfen and some others here.
Skill is doing all the work yourself and being successful in achieving your goal, either being a very full freezer with an occasional wall hanger or a wall full of big mounts.
The Tazman aka Martin Price
Founder and President of
Virginia Disabled Outdoorsmen Club
Skill on the other hand can be indicated by either number of deer harvested as with David or it can be the wall hanger every few seasons as with wolfen and some others here.
Skill is doing all the work yourself and being successful in achieving your goal, either being a very full freezer with an occasional wall hanger or a wall full of big mounts.
The Tazman aka Martin Price
Founder and President of
Virginia Disabled Outdoorsmen Club
12-05-2002, 09:47 AM
#10
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Sheboygan WI USA
Posts: 255
RE: Do number of deer kills confirm thorough skills?
Lots of deer killed does NOT mean you have great skills. If you have the opportunity to hunt several states, and spend LOTS of time in the woods, your gonna get more deer.
While most of the professional hunters (Adams, Keller etc) have damn good skills....learned from spending MONTHS of the year hunting (vs. a week for me this year)...the number of animals killed does not mean you have skill...doesn't mean you don't....all it means is that you killed a lot of deer.
While most of the professional hunters (Adams, Keller etc) have damn good skills....learned from spending MONTHS of the year hunting (vs. a week for me this year)...the number of animals killed does not mean you have skill...doesn't mean you don't....all it means is that you killed a lot of deer.
