[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Deer Farming #45928

Wrong thread…. 🙄

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Now I've seen everything. And I'm disgusted #45214

Are there actually states where this sort of nonsense would be considered legal during archery season?

They certainly wouldn’t be in Idaho.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Deer Farming #44082

David Petersen wrote: We could do worse than “Embrace your outrage” as a guiding philosophy.

Well yeah….but don’t let it eat you up, either. As one of your co-conspirators once said,

“Be as I am – a reluctant enthusiast….a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here…”

😉

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: The "Form" Thread #44081

Arne –

Thank you so much for an excellent observation that I’ve been totally missing. I’ve noticed, when going back and looking at video, that my string hand is moving down upon release, but I couldn’t figure out exactly why, and I wasn’t connecting that to the bigger picture. This is exactly what I was hoping would happen with starting a thread like this.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: The way to practice a perfect shot #43750

Thanks for sharing that, Steve. That video also led me to this one that looks interesting:

http://youtu.be/fZNdx_g_mr8

As an aside, the Yumi is a fascinating bow design. Have you ever shot one?

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: New books #43714

Currently on the nightstand:

I still can’t decide if this is a good or bad book to read right before hunting season…..:shock:

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: The "Form" Thread #43707

So Ralph – I admit that I don’t think I fully understand target panic. When you had TP, how did it manifest itself? Releasing too soon? Lack of accuracy?

I should also add that I think it’s possible to analyze form to death, and “analysis equals paralasis,” as they say. And there’s also obviously no single “correct” way to shoot – just general principles that will take various individual forms.

But I still think it’s interesting to talk about and share info on.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: The "Form" Thread #43578

R2 wrote:

My paunch looks bigger on film than it does when I look at my feet. Darn. 😀

You’re taking “form critique” to a new level, Ralph.

Steve, good point about being specific in what you’re looking for if you post a vid to this thread.

All in all, I feel pretty good about my form, but there are two things that stick out for me –

1) sometimes I feel like I “rush the shot,” and I should slow down a little more at anchor. On the other hand, when I pause at anchor too long, my release sometimes gets sloppy for some reason. I’m always working on finding that fine balance (for me) between a smooth draw and continuous follow-through, with that extra fraction of a second pause at anchor that makes a difference in my accuracy. I’d love to hear any other perspectives on that.

2) I’m curious what people’s thoughts are on my elbow position. Too high? Not a big deal? I hear some people say that an “in-line” elbow is absolutely critical, yet I’ve seen plenty of examples of world champion target archers who don’t do that, and they are obviously very accurate.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Elk and eneregy #43048

I should probably also clarify that despite my post above, I’m not one of those “us vs. them, oil and gas companies are evil” types at all. I have friends that work have worked in the industry, and I’m not naive to the realities of our consumption.

I just want to see that it’s done responsibly. And that when information exists warning of negative impacts in sensitive areas, that those warnings are heeded, and compromises are made to protect wildlife, and the activities we love to do (and that many people who work for the oil & gas extraction companies also like to do…). Doesn’t seem like too much to ask.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: The Trad Knife Thread #42773

Agreed, Burgess – those Canadian belt knives are a great design. Quite underrated, I think, until you use one for a bit, and then all of the thought that has gone into the design becomes apparent. I have one of the “Bird & Trout” models as well, and it’s cleaned a lot of birds and fish!

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Elk and eneregy #42760

Decades ago, various conservation groups tried to warn the State of Wyoming and energy developers that extensive, barely-regulated development of the Pinedale Anticline and Jonah Fields would have significant impacts on some of the largest, healthiest mule deer herds in the state (also wintering grounds for pronghorn and elk).

The usual response was given;

“There is no demonstrated link between oil and gas development and wildlife impacts.” This was followed by a slick PR campaign showing mule deer feeding in front of drilling rigs…

When it was pointed out that this was untrue, and that studies detailing negative impacts on wildlife already existed, then the response changed to,

“Well, we’re going to do things different this time. Trust us.”

And then, after a couple of decades of rampant oil and gas development, when a recent study documented that exactly what had been predicted was clearly happening, and that the mule deer population in that part of the state had plummeted by more than 60% in the last two decades (coinciding perfectly with the rise of oil & gas development in the area), then the response from the industry became,

“Well, some of it might be our fault, but you can’t prove that it’s ALL from oil and gas. There might have been other factors too.”

And the response from the governing agency (the BLM) when this study became public? They literally shrugged and said, well, there isn’t much we can do about it now…

How many “studies” is it going to take?

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Keeping it fun! #40426

T-roy wrote: I was trying to keep in fun in my backyard last night shoot my bow. I wanted to try out my GoPro for a few different shots, I put the GoPro right next to my target. As I drew my bow back my mind says “don’t hit the GoPro” what happens next…..I totally smoke the GoPro 😆 Sucks Yes…Funny HECK YES! Just a bummer that I lost a GoPro that is only a few months old…no way to repair it. Once I am able to get the video from it I will see if I can post it on here for everybody to laugh and enjoy 😀

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Tis the season #39303

Good luck, Ralph!

As of today, it’s officially less than a month till archery season opens here. I’ve got a lot going on in the coming month, but it’s going to be hard to focus on anything else…:D

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: New books #38983

tradhunter1 wrote:

It’s a very eye opening book and there are many anti wolf folks that think “he is the DEVEL” (Kathy Bates-the water boy) for even being such a large part of the reintroduction. It opened my mind to new thoughts.

Yup. And, at the same time, he has been equally hated by those on the other side of the issue because as part of his job, he occasionally had to put some wolves down when they were found killing livestock (government policy).

Anyone who can have both sides of the issue hating him that much is a character worth reading about, imo.

It’s also worth pointing out though, that one of the big reasons so many ranchers hated him was because he refused to write up every dead livestock as a “wolf kill” just because a rancher said so. He did thorough investigations of every livestock carcass that was reported to be the result of a wolf, and in the vast majority of cases, he found no evidence that wolves were the culprit – it was usually disease, poor livestock mgmt. that resulted in an accident, etc. Very few people on the anti-side of the argument, or at the federal agency he worked for, wanted to hear that – they just wanted every livestock death attributed to wolves, even when the facts clearly said otherwise.

[Bruce Smithhammer]

in reply to: Keeping it fun! #38872

R2 wrote: They’re working good with carbons. Seems my 5″ work better with my wood shafts. Maybe because one can mess with more finesse dealing with spine when using carbon. Wood has limits and that’s why fletchings were invented.

Interesting observation, Ralph. I’ve never experimented with reduced fletching on wood shafts, so I’d never really thought about the fact that there might be a difference in how they behave in that regard, as opposed to carbon.

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