Let's Get Real

I was chatting with some friends on a hunting forum and the subject of televised hunting shows came up. The person mentioned being tired of the same old – same old type shows that have a couple guys sitting over a feed plot behind a fancy blind and waiting on something to walk their way. They have their camera crew, state of the art equipment, wear the latest in hunting “fashions”, have all the new technical gear, thousand dollar rifles and scopes and seemingly all the comforts of home. I know the kind of shows they were referring to. And I agreed – I’m ready for something a bit more real.

I personally would love to see more shows get real. Shows dedicated to us "poor hunters" - the ones that are true do it yourselfer’s utilizing public land. Shows for those of us that don’t hunt with fancy equipment, who get in the woods with no guides. Where if we spend the night, we might have a tent on a sandbar or under an oak tree, or even just a couple old quilts in the bed of the truck. Most of us really don’t have a fully equipped cabin to run back to when the sun goes down. Many of us use the same firearm we started out with when we were nothing more than kids, or ones passed down to us from our fathers and grandfathers. I want shows where the hunter has to actually use his/her own wits and learned lessons to be successful in filling their tags.

Too many of the current hunting shows are simply dreams that are out of reach for many us hunters. Even if we already have a firearm, when you consider the cost of ammo, license, tags and transportation cost to get to the woods, often, that takes the whole hunting budget for some of us. There is a lot of difference in hunters that hunt as “professionals” or just for the sake of hunting and those of us that hunt out of need to provide food. Necessity hunters have a lot more riding on their success than just a nice trophy and pretty photo's. I remember several seasons that I simply couldn't afford to go hunting - I had a family and the kids needed shoes or school supplies instead. I couldn't take the money from the family budget to buy the license & tags. So, I sat and dreamed of times past and wished luck to those that could go.

I have never hunted from a stand. I have never hunted over a feed plot. I have never been on a guided hunt or been to a hunting camp other than where ever we stopped for the night. I have never been a member of a hunting club, so all of my hunting has been on public land. And I've done an awful lot of walking, stumbling, climbing, sliding, sweating and shivering through the years! I've fought mosquitoes big enough to mate with turkeys, bled gallons from brier scratches, hobbled with sprained ankles, shivered like a vibrating sander, watched all the pretty color changes in countless bruises, itched to insanity from poison ivy/oak/sumac, ate plenty of smushed bologna or pb & j sandwiches, drank creek and river water, and then swelled with pride when I managed to out-do the fellows!

Speaking of such, lets not forget seeing more females! Being female is difficult enough as it is without having to fight against an antiquated good ol’ boy system and prove ourselves over and over, getting looked at like we have a third eye in the middle of our forehead! In today’s world, there is no reason why us woman should have to stay at camp, keep the fire burning and do all the cooking. Most all firearm manufacturers have models suited to most woman’s smaller frames. Now I’m definitely not one of the smaller framed women, but it’s good to know that the availability is there! Where is a woman’s hunting show?

The same thing goes for taking the kids, boys or girls. Most manufacturers have youth models, so there is no excuse not to take them. And, with the ever changing politics, we never know when we will be really fighting to keep our rights. If our kids don’t grow up learning to hunt, learning to respect the land, learning the joys of hunting and experience the pride of being responsible for the meat on the dinner table, how can we expect them to fight for these rights when they are old enough? I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather pass on my old Winchester to one of the grandchildren instead of turning it over to the government! The children are our future. Give us a show with a youth hunt. I want to see the kids beaming with pride! I want to see them learning and enjoying a time old tradition.

Dear television hunting show producer – Show us some more traditional hunting. Quit showing me the same rich guys with the fat endorsement contracts, their fancy rifles and scopes, wearing the latest in hunting fashions while sitting comfortably on their behinds in a fancy blind waiting on that 6 X 6 elk, monster black bear or 10 point whitetail. Better yet, let’s get real – send those rich guys on a hunt with one of us!