Syracuse.com - Lack of CNY hunting safety courses results in crowds at sign-ups

[HuntingNY-News]

Monday evening, an in-person registration was scheduled at the Pompey Rod and Gun Club for a course taught this week there. A total of 60 students ended up taking he class, but 100 others were turned away.

The lack of hunting safety courses this time of year in Central New York, coupled with the ire of folks wanting to enroll in what few are offered, continues to be a sore spot on the local sportsmen scene.

Monday evening, an in-person registration was scheduled at the Pompey Rod and Gun Club for a course taught this week there. The signup time was 6 to 8:30 p.m.

A total of 60 students ended up taking he class, but 100 others were turned away.

Don Gerry, arrived at 5:30 p.m. with his two daughters, Madi, 10, and Ali, 12. Gerry said he was greeted in the parking lot by a gentleman who told him the class was already full.

“He told me it was no different than a rock concert. First come, first serve. He told me people had been waiting to sign up since 10 a.m. that morning and that they started taking names,” Gerry said.

Gerry said he realizes the instructors are volunteers, “but it seems that somebody should be able to think of a way to get this registration process smoothed out, and to have more instructors — even if you have to pay them. It’s just amazing that we have people who want to get out and hunt and they can’t be accommodated.”

Mike Arnold, of Camillus, who coordinates the county’s bow and firearms safety instructors, said within the past three weeks anywhere from 50 to 100 students have been turned away at the Skaneateles, Fayetteville-Manlius, Camillus and Pompey rod and gun clubs.

Mike McPeck, a master hunting safety instructor , was that guy in the parking lot at Pompey. He heard complaints that no sign-ups should have should have been accepted until 6 p.m.

“If we had done that, we would have had a couple of hundred people lined up outside ... and fist fights,” he said. McPeck added as a precaution he called the DEC and arranged to have a DEC environmental conservation officer present.

McPeck said many had taken off work to get there early to sign up, noting they had been turned away at other courses. Their names were taken on an Excel spread sheet and they stayed the whole time. By 5 p.m., it was obvious there were more people than spaces in the course and the course roster was filled.

“I know some of these people were upset. One guy drove here from Utica,” he said.

On Friday, Arnold reiterated what he had told me last month when I wrote about this issue. They noted the county’s volunteer instructors had offered 25 hunter safety courses throughout the year, and that many had gone a third or half unfilled. They noted there’s a trend each year of folks waiting until the last minute to get into a course.

He said many of the instructors hunt themselves and don’t want to teach courses during the season. Finally, he noted that ethically, it’s not safe for someone who has never handled a gun to take the course, and to be out hunting soon after without practicing or becoming comfortable with their firearm.

This is not the first time I’ve heard of this problem with “in-person” registrations. Several individuals stopped by my table at the recent Sportsman’s Days at Carpenter’s Brook, to air complaints similar to Gerry’s.

Nevertheless, Arnold said the “in person” registrations seem to work the best. Signing up by telephone or email often results in individuals putting their names in for multiple courses with different instructors – and only showing for one (if at all).

Arnold said Department of Environmental Conservation officials told instructors the past couple of years that work was underway for an new online sign-up process, where an individual could only sign up for one hunter safety course at a time.

DEC spokeswoman Lori Severino confirmed that, saying that there may be a “possible pilot (program) for next year. It’s something we are working on,” she said.

Late Friday afternoon, the DEC’s website showed no upcoming hunting safety courses in Onondaga, Cayuga, Cortland or Oswego counties this month. One is set in Madison County for Oct. 16, 18 and and 20 at Bicknell Hall, on the SUNY Morrisville campus. In-person registration is scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. this Tuesday at Bicknell Hall.

“I’ll be there,” Gerry promised.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog

[SteveB]

They noted the county’s volunteer instructors had offered 25 hunter safety courses throughout the year, and that many had gone a third or half unfilled.

The root of the problem right there.

Failure to plan by those needing the course and blaming it on others.

[sampotter]

Procrastination is like masturbation; feels good while you're doiing it but in the end you're really only f!@#$ing yourself...

[landtracdeerhunter]

Reguardless, their is a problem here, that needs to be solved.

[sampotter]

Yeah- the problem is that all these people waited until some hunting seasons already have started before attempting to do hunter's safety. Sorry, better luck next year.

Edited October 7, 2012 by sampotter

[SteveB]

Reguardless, their is a problem here, that needs to be solved.

One solution is that the people needing the coarse take it earlier in the year when there are ALWAYS openings.

A week before is too late to be prepared for that season for most anyway.