Doc

Just to be clear in case it's gone un-noticed, I didn't make any negative comments about crossbows or about those that are pushing them. I simply questioned the training requirements. So if there's anybody that needs to lighten up, I think there are a couple crossbow pushers that should actually at least try to pretend that there is some reason for personal attacks before they just jump in there with the attitude. Wouldn't ya think??? I'm trying to discuss things in some sort of reasonable and civil fashion per the other thread that dealt with civility and that sort of thing, but there are a couple of individuals that are purposely making that pretty hard.

I still don't get it, but I suppose it was supposed to be some kind of random personal slam ....... about what I haven't a clue. Is that what it was Bubba, just a random personal attack? ..... lol Doc

Bubba- I'm going to have to have that explained to me. I don't know what a "mini me" is. Doc

wait a minute there Doc'y, LOL, i'm pretty sure it was you who made claims of how dangerous it would be to allow crossbows into archery season, LOL, and how crossbow hunters would be shooting unsuspecting bow hunters by accident at over 100 yds, right, LOL. i would think that you would be the first to wanna see another "Gov Run" program for crossbow hunters.LOL, LOL ;D That's a wonderful imagination you have there, but there simply is not a word of truth in anything you just said in that reply. Not a word. In fact, I don't recall anyone ever saying those things. So, I don't have a clue what the heck you are talking about. Doc

OP???

Has anybody heard about what the "crossbow safety training" will consist of and who will administer it? You know with all these safety training courses that sportsmen are required to take, there ought to be some sort of official degree that goes along with the completion of all of them.....lol. Kind of like a bachelor of science degree in outdoor safety. Let's see there is bow training, gun training, trapping training and now crossbow training. Did I leave any out? With the number of hours required for each, this is getting to be quite an investment in time.

That's funny. We were just had a topic posted about comments like that. right on que......lol.

Well, they're all still maintained, occasionally shot, and perfectly serviceable, and capable of being used for hunting, but it's still the Mathews that comes off the wall, simply because I just like it. ....... And I still can't remember how old it is....lol. But it's not too new anymore. Doc

I get the distinct impression that the DEC would really like to see just about any weapon in the bowhunting timeslot except bows. Little comments that you pick up on from biologists and other DEC attending personel during side conversations at their public meetings and some of the quotes in the New York Outdoor News and other sources indicate that they really don't feel that bowhunting is the most efficient use of that part of the hunting year from the standpoint of harvesting deer and does in particular. I don't find that last paragraph shocking or surprising at all. Doc

That night-time question may relate to coon hunting or predator calling. It sounds like x-bows are not allowed for those activities after dark. Nope it wasn't referring to that either since x-bows are not allowed for small game. LOL ..... it must be questions from poachers after all ;D Doc

Would you believe that I don't even know what year my current bow is? Whenever the Mathews MQ32 came out, that would be the year. I'm real bad when it comes to remembering that sort of thing. It's not really all that old, but by some guys standards it may be ancient. (early 2000s's or late 1990's????). My release is the same age. My quiver goes back way before that. Arm guard is nearly prehistoric. I have aluminum arrows still in use that date back to the 70's (more arrows than 10 guys could go through in a lifetime) and bows 9recurves and compounds) that run from the years 1965 up until I bought the Mathews (seems as though the bow count was 11 last time I checked. I just all of a sudden stopped buying stuff and became an official cheapskate. As soon as I slowed up on the buying and realized that all that old stuff killed deer just as dead as my newer stuff, I had a real serious heart to heart talk with my wallet and we agreed that the only expenditures would be to replace broken equipment from that point on. Since I have the equipment and where-with-all to do a lot of my own repairs on bows and arrows, I seem to be able to keep it all serviceable almost indefinitely. Doc

As they say, when it rains it pours. I believe your equipment is out to get ya.

Alright, let's get this out there. WARNING!!! hunting season is soon upon us. Take special care to safeguard fingers, arms, shoulders, elbows, back muscles, legs, feet, eyes, etc. It you have to start wearing boxing gloves ........ do it!!! If you have to stay in an empty locked room ....... do it!!! Whatever it takes.

It may not be a real bad idea to come up with some list of general concerns regarding conduct of debate. As long as they are not so restrictive that they inhibit debate. It also might serve as a general assist to moderators as well as a guideline for determining when action is appropriate. The above list is not a bad start. The only problem that I can see is that an awful lot of it is terribly subjective. I'll bet we all have different and wide-ranging limits on all of those terms mentioned above ("appropriateness, aggressiveness, redundancy, etc?"). How do you get around that? Doc

I'm still a bit confused as to just how anyone would know exactly what topics are to go into this "special" forum. Obviously there would have to be some rules or criteria established. And then, what would the purpose be? Would that be to shield people's sensitivities from confrontational subject matter? I always figured that topic titles gave members an opportunity to not access certain topics that they had some kind of problem with. Isn't that true? I guess I still am not following what is being suggested here and why.

Actually, it's true. The herd does seem to be as healthy or healthier than ever, and I haven't heard of any real problems with reproductive rates or results. We still seem to encounter frequent years when the herd has to be thinned. All this without the benefit of AR. Maybe we just have a unique area here and the actual herd statewide really is in a condition of decline because of inappropriate age and gender structure, but I must say that I haven't really heard about that actually happening. Doc

That article should serve to erase any feelings of comfort that anyone might get just from the fact that we haven't heard of any new incidents of CWD in NY. Once it is here, I wonder if there ever is any situations where you can declare absolute success in erradicating it. So if someone (DEC) seems to think that feeding and baiting has the potential for the spread of CWD, I guess I'll accept that as a good reason for outlawing those practices. The fact that I still have adequate hunting skills and don't really have to do either of these things to be successful at hunting makes that a very easy and painless law to abide by. Doc

You must be hanging out with a better crowd than I am....That amount of disposable income is pretty hard to come by the last few years for most Yeah, for all the talk about the recession, and the hard times (which I'm not denying), there's still a whole bunch of money around. Anytime you want to check that out just take a stroll through any casino and watch the mobs of people filling those machines. Take special note of the guys that sit there all day cranking in $1 or even $5 or more per spin. That's just one example, but there sure is no shortage of disposable cash these days (emphasis on disposable ..... lol). Another thing that I have noted is the general quality of the cars (plural) that people drive today compared to the junkers that populated the road years ago. I still remember the days when a significant percentage of cars that you would see on the road had the flapping fenders and the duct tape holding a headlight in .... lol. Another eye-opener is the huge palatial estates that are owned by upper middle class people. They use to rent to 3 or four families any houses that size. Also head down to the Canandaigua pier (or any city pier) and note the fancy power boats that seem to just sit there all year more as a status symbol tha something that actually gets used. There's signs of significant wealth all around us, and a lot of those people who on a whim, feel like having the hunting experience, have no problem blowing the bucks to do it. It's true there are a lot of us who will never be able to afford it, but there is no shortage of those that can. Doc

I think that's true for just about anybody that gets involved in food plotting. Attract and hold is the name of the game. You never see non-hunters putting plots in. Doc

Did they get ya?? Don't you just love the way those thorns are shaped so that they just dig in deeper as you pull back? Just the perfect "man-trap". ;D Doc

One of the interesting things is that it appears that hunters may actually be getting more efficient at harvesting deer even as their numbers decrease. I think today's hunter is better informed and equipped to do the population control activity much better than in the past. And also, the DEC has the freedom to revise season lengths and equipment content to make a smaller force more effective. So there has been, and could be, a lot of things to make the decrease in hunters transparent to the harvest.......for a while. So it all depends on how far and how fast the decrease in hunters continues as to just when they might have to resort to increasing bag limits. My thought is that increased bag limits will only be marginally effective. Of course it needs to be proven, but I have the feeling that hunters already have limits on how many deer they can actually consume. Frankly, I am down to one deer per year and then I have to give away any additional animals. We just do not eat any more than that anymore. I'm sure others have some limit that they have set. So perhaps allowing each hunter to take a half dozen or so deer might not have the impact that one might think. Doc

There is one good thing about using the mail. When you receive permission, it is already in writing which helps in situations where other members of the family or friends might be questioning your presence there when you are there hunting. Doc

There's only one thing to do when that happens, buck-a-roo. You've just got to plug it back in and climb right back on or you'll be afraid to ride again for the rest of your life. Doc

I have re-read my reply to Bubba, and decided that I went over the line in responding to some of his remarks. Because of that I deleted that reply and wish to apologize for getting caught up in the escalating animosity. Things went a lot farther than they should have and I will try to use a bit more restraint in the future when dealing with certain types of personalities. Doc

What's the problem? Most of the subjects have some pretty definitive titles. If you don't like the subject, don't click on the topic. If you want sterile, non-confrontational topics, anyone that wants to can start one can. You want topics that have no opposing opinions, I doubt there is a forum around that can supply that (or wants to). Do you want censorship? Doc