Thunder Ridge Outfitters
 

This has turned sour.

It would seem that if you are going to post a negative, do not recommend comment about an Outfitter that you should either indicate why or not post at all---just sayin!

I respect this posters opinion to not air out the dirty laundry on a public forum and I thank the OP for the warning.
Top you might want to try a PM to the OP for a little more info on the specifics of their situation. :happy0001: Have a good eve and try to stay warm....It's CcCCCCOOOOOLLLDDD ! Tonight

It's old school and kind of smart. He got his point across and is willing to share more details in private.

With 3 posts and 63 views, I'd say he's well on his way to achieving his goal as well.

CalHunter---Maybe I read too much into the rules that Christine posted along with your addendum about giving specific examples of what the OP is talking about if they post a negative review about an outfitter. Sorry, if I read too much into the rules!

kswild---I have no need to send a PM as I'm not interested in a hunt, but I can agree that it's cold here. In fact it was -5 actual with a -30 wind chill here a couple hours ago the last time I looked. YUCK!!!

LOL. It's one of those flexibility things. Christine had asked me to come up with some suggested language since I asked her about creating the sub-forum to begin with and that's a reasonable request on her part. I wrote something to give some kind of guidelines for members on posting but didn't intend for it to be set in stone. I like to give people some flexibility to post at the level they're comfortable with so they enjoy the experience and HNI gets more posts and traffic.

In general, if a member wants to post something specific about an outfitter that is bad, they should provide some information, documentation, evidence, etc. Such as, outfitter xyz violates game laws. If so, the member posting such should provide some information so other members can verify it, like what game laws, how and when, etc. Requiring that information can also help HNI admin and mods decide if the post is appropriate or not (i.e. libelous or something).

If a member posts that they weren't happy with an outfitter, that is "their" personal opinion which can be subjective sometimes. In this particular topic, I had the impression that the member didn't want to get into some possible flame war or risk some other repercussion by posting details publicly but is willing to PM details. I can understand that.

From a business standpoint, allowing that flexibility enables HNI to get more topics created, more views and generate more business. From a legal standpoint, it's a pretty easy topic to defend against any complaints. From a mod standpoint, it just might mean less work. ;):D

"From a mod standpoint, it just might mean less work."


***I definitely agree with that assessment, LOL!!!

A few other things to mention. I've PM'd a bit with the OP and happen to agree with his decisions about original content and his assessment that this topic has "soured." I realize many members think a member should practice a lot of due diligence and are wary of somebody posting something against an outfitter as some kind of grudge but that is what details are about. Such details do not have to be listed in the topic or a post as long as the OP is willing to share them in a PM (kind of like when you phone a reference).

Although nobody has raised the issue, the OP had perhaps the best kind of reference you could get--a friend that he knew and presumably trusted. Much better than some outfitter supplied reference over a long distance phone call. IMHO, I believe the OP practiced good due diligence.

FWIW, I recently had a similar issue with a friend recommending another friend who outfitted a bear hunt. I trust my buddy completely and he's proven himself over 25 years of friendship. We're still friends and he's surprised at what happened. I'm not trying to shift the topic but just providing a personal example to illustrate that it does happen.

This topic also brings up something that often doesn't get discussed. Good outfitters sometimes get lazy, busy with day jobs or cut back on their level of service for whatever reason. A hunt or outfitter could be awesome one year and simply not worth it the next year. This makes due diligence even more important and captures in a nutshell why this forum can be extremely helpful to members.

If anybody else PM's with the OP and disagrees with his experience, politely disagree and leave it at that. It's his experience and I happen to trust him on it but that's also why each of you does your OWN due diligence on any hunt or outfitter. If you have any more questions, please PM me.

CalHunter
Moderator

Are you looking at the same topic I am??? Nothing was discussed here..... ESPECIALLY about an outfitter getting lazy. OP made a non recommend post which has disappeared. Conclusion is this thread is useless to anyone accept maybe 1 super moderator being your the only one who has had any good advice here.:biggrin:
No one has a clue about what your last post was about because it was discussed in PM's with the OP.

I agree that the topic "lost" some of its' usefulness when the OP self-moderated his original post and replaced it with the comment that the topic has turned sour. That's his choice and his right to do so.

His original comment (as best I can recall--I didn't save a copy) was something along the lines of he wouldn't recommend the listed outfitter and to PM him for details if you were interested in them.

The OP PM'd me about the souring of the topic and included his info on that outfitter. I was impressed as it's exactly the kind of information I would want to know about an outfitter. It's the kind of knowledge one only gains by hunting with the outfitter/guide on a particular hunt and thus even more valuable when somebody else shares it with you from their personal experience.

I respect the OP's decision to essentially pull this topic and even understand his reasoning and why he made such a decision. I think it would have been workable but it's his decision to make, not mine. I made the above post to offer some kind of resolution (not the best word) for this topic. If you're curious about the particulars, you can still PM the OP. His choice to respond but he seems like a good guy and it looks to me like he served in the Rangers which is a tough outfit and that's coming from a former Marine. :biggrin:

Well I look at the OP in this way.

Mom always said, "If you ain't got nothing good to say better to keep it to yourself!" and I think the OP and my mom where cut from the same mold.

I also think what he did was smart. No slander, no libel, just a statement he was not happy.

And there are quite a few posts that would be better suited using the Private Messaging system, because that is exactly what they are!

Dave.....JW

Every now and then I Google myself. We had no disgruntled clients last year and definitely none that brought any matters to our attention. In 2014-2015 we went 60% killing 2,565 inches of antler from 16 clients. Not everyone can kill a deer when they come. But lazy or carefree is one thing we are not.