Why do you care if Xbows are allowed in your bow season? Whether they are easier to use or not... How does it affect you if someone else uses one? I don't understand.
If not shoot, mess it up. Most of the time it's just about the excuse. There has to be some reason for their failure. X-bow Gun Hunters Baiter Etc It's just someone to blame for their short comings a lot of the times. Some have a deep conviction for bowhunting, and i get it, but these folks are in the minorty.
MS is one of the last south eastern states that has not allowed xbow except for elderly and disabled. I could type pages of talking points but at the end of the day, for me, it's about special season preservation. At some point you have to set book ends for what types of weapons you allow in a "special season". I think drawing the line of xbows is a reasonable bookend. A special season is the incubator for the sport of bowhunting. Without the limited weapon format, the vast majority of hunters will select the most efficient, easiest to use weapon. In this case, that would be the xbow. In your state, xbow harvest out number verticle bow harvest and that variance will continue to grow IMO. Our MS Dept. of Wildlife has made it public they wish to have a one season, pick your weapon, format. Allowing change only opens the door for more user expectation for change. You can look at the MS primitive weapon season. For years it was black power, iron sights. Then came scopes, then inline muzzeloaders, now they are using single shot rifles. The majority of hunters complain that "muzzleloader" season just isn't the same, its lost its appeal. I'm certain it will completely disappear within a decade. Ok, I'm off my soapbox.
Well honestly, it would just put more guys in the field, and there are plenty now. It wouldn't affect me much per say, but it might. Archery in IA isn't a dying sport that needs new recruits, is why I am not in favor of it.
We all will get old or sick at some point. I like the idea that I'll still be able to hunt during archery season when that happens. I wouldn't care if they opened a general xbow season for all ages in IL.
Honestly, I don't. It has absolutely NO bearing on me and what I do...........at all. I think people that are perfectly healthy and able to use a compound/longbow are nothing but chicken ass wimps if they're using one, but it has no affect on me. I don't care. If a crossbow allows someone disabled in some way, or an elderly person who would otherwise not get to hunt, to be able to hit the woods, I'm all for it.
Do some find it funny we all complain about hunter numbers, but when a law is passed that puts more hunters in the woods, hunters tend to go "Wooo, Wooo we did'nt want that many"
As someone who used to hunt with one, I wouldn't go so far as to say they are inferior, but they definitely pose several problems and I see your point. Loud, bulky, heavy, awkard in the stand or blind are just some of the reasons hunting with a crossbow can actually be a pain in the neck.
You need to do some research, the majority of states have shown a one year increase after xbows and the following years actually show a decline while non xbow states have remained relatively stable... Like I said, we have been fighting this for years in MS and I have seen all the data, supporting both sides... Verticle bows are available to anyone who wishes to participate and for those that can't (elderly and disabled), they can already use an xbow. I own my land, so it will not effect me at all, but I still think it opens doors that should not be opened. Not to mention its almost soley being pushed by manufacturers. Seems dirty.
They don't affect me. I don't like em and around here in southeast Va the ol boys that use to not bowhunt and wait to run dogs said it was too hot to be in the woods all of a sudden bought Xbows....so it was the laziness on their part, they tell me they don't want to have to practice shooting and all like I do...hell I told em that a compound is really easy to shoot and within a few weeks they could kill a deer, then they threw whole "well my shoulder can't take it" thing...we get that a lot around here, perfectly healthy guys younger than me saying it.. I don't mind them for the disabled or older men and women, but I do not like the fact that it creates the laziness...I mean come on.
That's kind of my point, we tend to over react. We can use x-bow in MI for the SLP. If you are over 50 you can use one anywhere. My questions AR are fought because of "choice", people want to have the freedom to choose what they shoot. I guess weapon choice is where we draw the line. Let's be honest the modern day bow has pretty much sucked the life out what bowhunting was years ago. The compound is what made archery today what it is with numbers. The x-bow is going to save archery in some states. I am not saying I agree with it, just how it is today. Without the compound archery would be a dead sport IMO. Remember there are those who fought just as hard to keep the modern day bow out of archery also.
Pesonnally it bothers me not. Never has! Im not even sure in Indiana, but i think they are legal now other than for handicap hunters. <<<<See there it dosent bother me or i would know for sure
Come hunt PA public land in archery and then tell us if you mind crossbows being added to the mix. I feel for those guys.
That's a bunch of BS, don't be putting everyone In the same boat. I don't care for them, never have and never will. There not a bow to me plain and simple. Put them In the gun seasons for anyone to use and call them a different name and I'm fine with It. I don't have a problem with the disabled using them either regardless of the season.
Yeh, see it in the 70's compounds were the end all...end of the world..now look at them, it's norm. With that said, it still more challenging than a xbow but less than a trad bow..there are a few guys I know who had xbows and now shoot a compound and they certainly agree with me on this
It doesn't really matter to me much, however I don't hunt PA public land. If I did, I would care a lot more. The weapon isn't what bothers me, It's the type of people that will increase in numbers in the PA woods because of now being allowed to use them. As it is today, we (PA) have opening day of small game season in the archery season as well to contend with, public land gets beat up pretty good by these guys. Also, it wasn't that long ago that we didn't have a bow season in November in PA. Season used to be only in October and only a few weeks long. It's already been said that with the new x-bow regulations for 09' that if harvest numbers increase due to more hunters (because of x-bows), they may need to modify the season dates accordingly in future years to prevent overharvest. If that happens, you can kiss November archery hunting goodbye in PA. Rifle season is a zoo and I'm hoping that the archery season doesn't end up like it now with x-bows and the new recruits. There is no shortage of hunters in PA, and it's pretty difficult to get anywhere on PA public land without seeing others even during archery seasons of past. With that said, it wouldn't bother me a bit if they passed it in NY. The hunting crowds in NY are not as bad as they are in PA, I doubt it would affect much up here.
