A Hunter in the Making?

As hard as it might be for us to understand, not everyone appreciates a photo of a hunter posing with his or her trophy buck.

Such an image wouldn't bother us hardcore hunters in the least -- in fact, we'd be eager to check it out. But there's no way to know the reaction even a tasteful hunting photo will elicit from a non-hunter. Some folks just can't get their heads around the thought of killing a wild animal, much less killing it and then recording the moment for posterity.

Getting someone into whitetail hunting can be as simple as getting him or her to pick up a bow.

So when the young woman seated next to me on a flight to Atlanta last Sunday inquired about the photo on my laptop screen, several thoughts instantly raced through my mind. The photo was a field shot of me with the buck I got in Kansas last December, and even at a glance, it was obvious the deer wasn't just taking a siesta. Was the woman a loyal supporter of PETA, or perhaps the equally deluded Humane Society of the United States? As far as I knew at that moment, she could have been either.

What a relief to learn that she was neither. I wasn't sitting next to some anti-hunter -- I'd come face to face with a perfectly sensible 20-something who simply had a natural curiosity about many things foreign to her, deer hunting included.

Granted, after talking with Kris for only a few minutes, I realized she wasn't totally ignorant of the outdoors; several members of her extended family actually hunt. Lacking a mentor to personally lead her into the field, she'd simply never tried it. But I could tell she could see herself climbing into a deer stand, if only to find out what it's like.

By the time our plane landed in Atlanta, I'd told Kris a lot about deer hunting in Georgia and elsewhere, and she'd eagerly absorbed every word. Of particular interest to her, it seemed, was my revelation that the Atlanta area has really good bowhunting. When she told me she and her husband live in Carrollton, I suggested she stop in to visit with my friends at Buck Creek Outdoors (www.buckcreekoutdoors.com), a local archery dealer. I told her talk to the guys about getting started in archery, and to be sure to tell them, "Gordon from North American Whitetail sent me."

We'll see if that happens -- and then, if it does, we'll see whether or not she's ever bitten by the archery/hunting bug. I think she might be, and I certainly hope so. We need all the support we can get for deer hunting these days, and there's nothing more satisfying than introducing someone to a hobby that can give them and their families so much enjoyment for years to come.

Looking back on it, had that photo not been on my computer screen, or had Kris not happened to comment on it, our conversation about deer hunting never would have happened. Think how many non-hunters you've bumped into might have been intrigued by your interest in whitetails, had they only known.

Something tells me people like Kris aren't as rare as we assume. More than half the people in America neither hunt nor have any stated philosophical opposition to recreational hunting. They populate what we figuratively call the "middle ground," that vast landscape upon which the war for hunting's future is being waged. So remember: For all you know, the next chance to recruit a new hunter might be only a seat away.

***

The model 7030 laptop case from OtterBox reduces the risk of taking your computer into the wild.

On a related note, from time to time I find myself stumbling onto a new product that solves an old problem. One of those "test drives" occurred over the past month, with a rugged computer case I think many travelers (including deer hunters) will find useful: the Model 7030 laptop case from OtterBox (www.otterbox.com).

The 7030 is made of polypropylene, and it's tough -- so tough, in fact, a person reportedly can stand on it, or drop it from waist height, without damaging the computer inside. But just as impressive is the 7030's ability to protect a laptop from water. Maybe we can't live without H20, but a laptop can't live with it -- and in a lot of situations we find ourselves in while traveling for North American Whitetail, the threat of getting a computer doused is all too real. When snapped shut, this case uses an O-ring system to seal itself against water intrusion to a depth of three feet. This is significantly more protection than a soft case ever could hope to provide.

In our scrambling around the continent, we put all sorts of hunting gear through the mill. At least I now can stop worrying about my computer getting there, and back, in one piece. Now, if only there were a foolproof way to keep water out of an expensive HD video camera . . .

Previous installment on the next page

page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39