Doc

One point that maybe needs a bit of clarification is that just because one does not worship at the altar of the "speed" gods does not mean that they don't understand the principles involved in archery equipment selection. In fact some of those that try to apply some perspective and understanding as to what the give-and-take aspects of trying to squeeze out that last FPS may actually have a better handle on what is really getting the bigger and more meaningful bang for your buck. Oh, and by the way, the philosophy of "Well it works" is not necessarily a bad thing. But an even better one would be "Well it works everytime".

A more stable and accurate bow kills deer the most reliably. That is a far more useful criteria that speed. I have never been concerned with how fast I can miss a deer. If you have a bow that is first robust and accurate and forgiving and secondarily has the speed too, that is great. But a long time ago, I found out what works adequately for me, and stopped the game of chasing after the latest and the greatest. And speed isn't even on the radar for me. However I will admit that I like my bowhunting up close and personal and am not involved in a lot of the trajectory issues that plague the long-distance shooters. I also have an equally controversial attitude about energy. I think a lot of hot air is expended arguing about a foot pound or two without any evidence that miniscule advantages of energy make any difference whatsoever. Just like speed, nobody ever asks what is adequate, but spend thousands of dollars with the philosophy that more has to be better at any cost. The fact is that insignificantly more is not always better. We love to nit-pick the minutia, but never ask whether what we are arguing about really makes any difference. Just plain old years of experience have told me when enough is enough, and I have found out that for years I was mindlessly applying over-kill when selecting equipment and it has cost me a lot of dollars that could have been spent on more useful things. As far as being on-topic, I am indeed explaining why I don't think that within reason, arrow speed and arrow weight "matters to a hunter". This hunter that is.

Ha-ha .... all I've got to say is that with some of these great deer that are showing up for the cameras, a lot of you guys have no good reasons for not coming up with some real nice trophy harvest pictures for us this year .... lol. Just kidding. I know that once the season starts, all the rules change. And those deer seem to know exactly when the season starts.

My focus is on accuracy. I am not interested in how fast my arrow is going when it kills the deer. Yes I do understand the importance of trajectory vs. yardage estimation, but my rangefinder pretty much handles that situation. I am not interested in spending a lot of money on a setup that produces the fastest and squirreliest arrow flight. I want my bow to be the most forgiving of inadvertent form flaws that can (and often do) occur in the heat of the battle, not arrangements that accentuate errors. The equipment that I am shooting is definitely not the fastest, but it does definitely kill deer. That slow, heavy arrow seems to find its way to the vitals even when form is stressed a bit because of hunting conditions.

Defensive driving has taken on a new meaning since people decided that they have to be constantly wired up for communications. How important do people really think they are that they feel like they must be constantly available. No, you don't have to have amazing powers of observation to spot these idiots coming. The only question is whether they are texting or drunk. Why the cops can't seem to spot these guys is beyond me. Anytime I am on the road for 15 to 20 minutes, I can see at least 3 and maybe 4 people blatantly using a cellphone while they are driving along. And that is without even trying. The enforcement has become such a joke that people don't even try to fake it or hide it anymore. Regarding the law that they pull over to the side of the road to answer their phone is another source of aggravation for me. This sudden braking and whipping almost off the side of the road is another disruption in traffic that often becomes life-threatening. I have the perfect solution to all this nonsense ...... when you get behind the wheel, turn the damn phone off! let your voice-mail take the call if you really believe it is so important.

OK, there is a huge point! The almost religious worship of technology in this electronic age has changed the way we as a society relate to each other. All these toys help remove us from society. Instead of fostering communications, I believe it warps communication. As we all crawl off into our own little electronic hide-a-way, we begin to lose sight of the fact that there are other real people around us as we begin to see them as text displayed on a screen. We all create our own little version of reality as our world focuses into the little screen of whatever electronic contraption we happen to have our fat little fingers wrapped around. Humanity is being washed away into a series of ones and zeros to the point where many begin to relate in weird ways to others through the keypad. Sure enough, can it really be surprising when some individuals all of a sudden completely lose sight of the fact that there are real living people involved in their world and lose the appreciation for the fact that those lives have value. Oh sure, there are mental health problems behind each of these horrific headlines, but one has to wonder just how much all this impersonal techno-relation to those around us facilitates that mental disorder and the way it is all played out. Another outfall of techno- amusement is the fact that just like any other addiction, the needed high is always escalating. It keeps taking more and more to fill up our lives. If some of that need happens to come out as a need for violence, I guess that shouldn't surprise anyone. How many of these killings happen simply because the perpetrator wanted to just experience what it was like? We are becoming conditioned to receiving more and more stimulation in our daily lives .... The need to reach that next high. As mentioned, kick-the-can, hide and seek, baseball on the vacant lot, and simple face-to-face conversation just simply doesn't cut it anymore. Does this all mean we are each going to go off into a killing rampage? ..... probably not, but you have to wonder how many additional people are being pushed over the edge by the impersonalization of our world and the constant expectation and need for stimulation.

How much prime beef could I buy for $4000?

We generally see them running around everywhere in the spring and early summer. But by the time bunny season rolls around they get mighty scarce. Yes the foxes and coyotes probably are responsible for a lot of the carnage, but I think the jillions of hawks that seem to be everywhere do a heck of a job on them.

Particularly with the bow, I am not in favor of any low-percentage shots regardless of how good a shot you are on nice stationary targets on the range.

I don't care for the opinions of those that claim that guns create violence and lawlessness, and likewise, I refuse to blame TVs for anything. It is the kind of crap that people want to watch that adds to the violence and other social ills. The shock-TV that leads the ratings, fosters even more of the same. Also, the programming is not exactly free of pinko ideals that make violence acceptable and excusable, the worst of which is the nightly news. But really, the entire social structure of our society is rotting right from the inside out. Every principle that our country was founded on and which served as the glue that kept everything together as a compassionate but self-reliant population have been perverted, belittled and discarded by every corner of society. We as a people deserve this chaotic breakdown. Those that could have spoken against these deviations from civil behavior didn't and those forces of evil that revel in anarchy and social breakdown have been allowed to run rampant and define our system in a the way that we now find it. Liberal or conservative, we have gotten what our pursuits in the wrong directions, or our apathetic lack of political activity naturally provide. We defeated communism only to firmly entrench in our own country. Congratulations to us all.

I know a guy that gave up motorcycle riding after he hit 3 in one year.

For that price, it should come with a few deer, a rifle and a scope.

I am confused as to why he is wasting his time here in NYS. He already knows that the Democratic party has a lock on this commie state.

We've got these signs all up and down the valley, and so far I haven't seen any of them disappear except mine. The one big difference is that You can't see the house from the road (1000' of woods between me and the highway), so everyone knows that there pretty much is no way to get caught taking it. My guess is that it was just kids driving by looking for someone to mess with. Wife warned me .... lol.

Well, I have heard of people stealing treestands, trail cams, and all kinds of things, but today I encountered a sign thief. I put one of those "Repeal The Safe Act" signs out by the road. It lasted 3 days, and then I guess somebody felt that they needed it more than I do. It's gone. Living completely cut off from the highway has a lot of advantages, but security for items placed along the roadside isn't one o them.

Interesting choice of words. I looked the word "promiscuous" up in the dictionary, and was surprised by the non-sexual meanings of the word. Indiscriminant Casual irregular without particular plan or reason What I take from all that is that they don't want someone just randomly shooting through the woods. I don't really think it has anything to do with target shooting or sighting in guns. Since they chose to use that particular word to describe prohibited shooting, I guess I wouldn't hesitate to set up targets in a well-backstopped area and do all the shooting I wanted to do.

That's where I draw the line. When they ask for money, I start getting all nervous and jerky and start demanding credentials, references, and public acceptance. In other words, he had better be a bonafide financial advisor that wants to put that money into a commonly recognized legitimate investment. And even then I will be putting him through the wringer in terms of intense interrogation and watching him like a hawk.

With all the surveillance mechanisms and practices out there, there is very little of the state that is not being observed annually. Trail cams are just one of the means of detecting critters. Every year we have an army of hunters out there parading around in the woods. Right now there are all kinds of people scouting for bow season. There are mountain bikers in areas where years ago there weren't even people. Hikers blanket the state. Highways slice and dice all of the state with thousands of potential "cougar viewers". More and more vacation cabins are popping up in the NYS badlands. Campers ... everywhere. There are livestock farmers in every corner of the state which would act as a magnet for a hungry mountain lion. Even bird-watchers have invaded the deepest darkest regions of the state. And then too, consider that mountain lions do not find a single spot in the woods and simply stay there. They are wandering animals that have a huge range. Considering all that, I think the odds of somebody, somewhere, getting some pretty solid pictorial evidence is really quite high. That is, assuming there actually is something out there to provide leave that evidence.

Actually it's not really all that unusual for some trees to start color change in August. Generally it is those trees that are stressed a bit that change first. With this wacko cool and sloppy weather that we had this year, nothing would surprise me. Not only do we have some color change, but there are also some that are dropping. I think those that are saying that they have noticed color change are not saying that all trees are changing. Just as I have noticed, there is enough leaf-color change so that it catches your attention ..... if you are paying attention.

Try typing in "rod and gun clubs in Rochester New York area" into your browser address area and hit return. Most of the clubs local to the Rochester area have web sites.

I hear it all the time on state land. There's lots of "promiscuous" shooting going on ..... lol. It may be just one of those unenforced regulations. I'm sure what they are trying to avoid is messy areas with disposed targets and shot up cans laying all over the place. I would guess that no one would bother you if you were to keep your shooting area picked up and returned to a natural state. Also, choosing a well back-stopped area would give fewer reasons to be harassed. Having said that, I personally prefer regulated, and specially designed shooting facilities that are designed for safety, and where shooting is regulated and "expected". Nothing could be worse than being out squirrel hunting and innocently walking into the back side of a target shooting session. That could get real exciting real quick. Membership in a Rod & Gun club might be your best bet.

If that is it's tail (and it looks like it is), that cannot be a bobcat. Their tail would not hang down that far. One thing that might help with the ID is some indication as to what state your friend lives in.

Unfortunately, none of these sightings or claims come with any sort of tangible evidence. Is it even likely that with all the game cameras out there monitoring the woods these days that no one comes up with verifiable pictures? No bones, track photos or casts, road-kill, confirmed cat-style livestock losses, deer season sightings by hunters ..... nothing. The one documented wandering lion in NYS did eventually turn up as road-kill. So if people are skeptical, who can blame them. At some point, if a population of any significance ever shows up, there won't be any argument. Confirmation will be common knowledge. On the other hand never say never. Anything is possible. There were never any coyotes back when I was a kid ..... none. It sure didn't take long for them to become more than just common here now. Bear sightings were almost unheard of. A couple years ago I spent two consecutive days cleaning up garbage strewn up through the woods with the garbage can 100 yards into the woods. Not to mention the iron pole that was bent to the ground that used to hold the bird feeder. So nothing is impossible.

Sounds like a Ponzi scheme ...... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme Remember the old saying, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is".

Yeah, we all eventually reach the age where the ATV helps avoid cardiac arrest climbing those killer hills and dragging deer a lot farther than our doctors would really like to see us do. During bow season, I often drive up to a spot that is just about 50 yards under the rim of the hill and go the rest of the way on foot. During gun season I like to still-hunt up the hill, and always seem to get my deer when I don't have the ATV and have to drag it off the hill by hand. At some point if I live long enough, there will come a time when all my hunting is accessed by ATV. It's either that or stop going out completely. ATVs do have their place.