This is a question which comes out of a discussion on Maine. Maine requires you, as a crossbow hunter, to attend an archery hunters safety course in order to obtain a license to hunt with a crossbow; therefore, which course would you attend if both were available.

Maybe a crossbow hunters safety course should be developed and published.

Cross Bow!

Hope this don't confuse ya guys but I think both classes would be good, but I voted for the CB class because you/I would feel more a home. I think the CB class would be good cause alot of new CB users think their CB is a deadly 50-60 gun and that is not the case. But I still think you should have in these classes a Deer ethics class on proper shot placement and proficency with your bow/gun.

The crossbow has several things that need to be covered in detail that a regular archery instructor may not think to cover. Keeping the thumb down, proper loading, cocking the crossbow on the ground and how to hoist it up, not cocking the bow by hand in the tree, etc.
This is where the crossbow specific class would be very benefical.
Randy

Self taught lessons on keeping the thumb down is very painfull!! You only do it once!!

I voted xbow. I'm not sure I understand all of this. Voluntary or Mandatory? I got a lttle problem w/ the word mandatory, as applied to most anything. How would there be a course that covers the huge area of xbow users? I personally only learned two things about xbows that weren't already ingrained safety issues from years of firearm use. #1 was on Excal Video, not to get your finger/thumb above the rail, may not have occured to me, and #2 I'm nowhere near man enough to uncock a 225 lb Emax by hand. LOL. The instructions that come w/ Excal and Barnett [only two I've read] seem pretty simple to me. I'm sure the rest of the mfgs are as well. Why don't one of you puter guru's make a test up we can all take on-line? You know, these forums are loaded w/ both new folks, and lots of info. I think alot of xbowers are holding some classes daily. Just my rambling .02 cents worth.

One would think that this is true. However, we had a guy call us flaming mad. He blew the stiches out of his thumb. Yes, that is right. He had his thumb too high and tore it up enough to need stiches. A few days later (stiches still in the thumb) he was shooting and did the same thing. This is not the kind of guy you want in the woods. "Here's your sign".
Randy

I think, if anyone cares (LOL, I'm at home right now), that if you are going to hold classes then anyone hunting should be taking a course that instructs and informs on all tools of the trade all firearms, xbow, compound and recurve/stick.
Our hunter safety course includes all firearms but no archery. I think we should be teaching all forms of archery in those classes because a firearm hunter can just pick up anything with a string and start flaying away.
I would assume that given a normal functioning brain, then maybe a few misconceptions would be clarified not just about xbows. I could only imagine that hunting would also be a safer sport as well.

Just goes to show you that Darwin was not 100% correct.
10pt, how does one not atleast snicker while listening to that stuff on the phone? Was the phone call recorded????????????????? Would be very entertaining! Was his name Wilie Coyote?

The phone call was not recorded, and the guy did not find it at all funny, but yes, you do have to laugh at some of the things we hear from people. We listen to what te consumers are saying and try very hard to address needed changes. However, when you get this type of call (or the people that shoot the claw off the Acudraw) you have to wonder???
Randy