• Posts
    • Bowhunting Articles
    • Bowhunting News
    • Bowhunting Gear
  • Interviews
    • Straight Shot Blog
  • Videos
  • Deer Pictures By Robert Hoague
  • Cooking Wild Game
    • Cooking With SusieQ
  • Wild Hogs
  • Bowfishing
  • Events
  • Contact
Tuesday, February 7, 2023
Bowhunting.Net
  • Login
  • Register
  • Bowhunting Articles
  • Interviews
    • Straight Shot Blog
  • Bowhunting Videos
  • Deer
  • Wild Turkey
  • Scouting
  • Bear
  • Cooking Wild Game
    • Cooking With SusieQ
    • Wild Game Cooking
No Result
View All Result
  • Bowhunting Articles
  • Interviews
    • Straight Shot Blog
  • Bowhunting Videos
  • Deer
  • Wild Turkey
  • Scouting
  • Bear
  • Cooking Wild Game
    • Cooking With SusieQ
    • Wild Game Cooking
No Result
View All Result
Bowhunting.Net
No Result
View All Result
Home Bowhunting Posts

If You Do This – You Are Stupid!

M.R. James by M.R. James
March 25, 2016
in Bowhunting Posts
0 0
A A
0

MARQSCOUT

Sponsored by:  The Archery Hall of Fame & PCBA

Yeah, I’m pissed … and here’s why!

By: M.R. James
By: M.R. James

I’VE SAID IT BEFORE and I’ll say it again. If you hunt from a treestand without wearing a safety harness, you might as well wear a great big sign that reads “Yes, I’m stupid!” Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!

Only this morning I read another news account of a bowhunter found dead at the base of his treestand. And while he reportedly had a safety harness with him, it was in his pocket. So what happened? No one will ever know the details of why and how he died. But he’s dead and that’s a damn shame.

Somehow I can’t help but believe that like some folks now reading these words, the guy believed it could never ever happen to him.

But it could and did.

He was wrong. Dead wrong! And so are you if you think you’re bulletproof.

Treestands can be a deer hunters best friend and worst enemy. Hunting from trees is the most consistently successful method to tag game, but each year falls injure and kill hunters.
Treestands can be a deer hunters best friend and worst enemy. Hunting from trees is the most consistently successful method to tag game, but each year falls injure and kill hunters.

STATISTICS SAY ODDS ARE one-third of bowhunters are destined to take a tumble while climbing into, out of, or while in elevated stands. Think about that. Can you name anyone who’s fallen? I sure can and so can most of the veteran bowhunters I know. It can happen to anyone. Anytime. Anywhere.

Believe it!

Wearing a safety harness is mandatory when hunting from elevated stands. It’s also smart to wear a climber’s strap or safety line when climbing into and out of stands.
Wearing a safety harness is mandatory when hunting from elevated stands. It’s also smart to wear a climber’s strap or safety line when climbing into and out of stands.

A friend of mine, who was with me when I arrowed my first Montana bull elk, died of a broken neck years later while hunting bears from a treestand. No one knows why and how he fell, but somehow he did and he’s dead.

Another friend fell while hanging a stand. He survived but suffered severe injuries – and still walks with a bad limp. Another guy I know is paralyzed and “lives” in a wheelchair because he’ll never walk again. And even though I wasn’t hunting at the time, I once lost my balance and jumped backwards from an eight-foot stepladder while trimming tree limbs, coldcocking myself when I banged my head on the ground. This list of accidental falls could go on and on. Sadly, it does.

SO HOW DO WE STAY SAFE? We begin by recognizing the fact each and every one of us is vulnerable and we must never climb without wearing a fall restraint safety harness. Ever! If we won’t do it for ourselves, we should do it for family and friends who would have to attend our funeral, visit us in the hospital, or feed, dress, and to tend us because we’re paralyzed and we can’t do it for ourselves.

When hunting alone, we also make sure a hunting buddy or family member knows exactly where we’ll be and when we expect to be home. We slip a cell phone and a whistle into our pocket or pack in case we fall and can’t walk to get help. And we take pains to be safe each and every time we climb a tree, especially in cold, wet, or icy weather. We not only wear a safety harness but add a lineman’s climbing strap or treestand lifeline for use when climbing up and down to and from a stand. We never climb while holding our bow or other hunting gear, raising and lowering hunting tackle with a haul line. We always keep three of four contact points (hands and feet) with the ladder or steps when climbing into or out of stands. And once in the treestand, we immediately buckle ourselves in and do not unbuckle until just before climbing down. This is the most dangerous time frame we face while hunting from elevated stands.

Here’s a hunter’s-eye view of a couple of feeding does. Knowing you’re securely buckled in allows you to focus on making the shot, not fretting about falling.
Here’s a hunter’s-eye view of a couple of feeding does. Knowing you’re securely buckled in allows you to focus on making the shot, not fretting about falling.

Finally, prior to using our hang-on or climbing stands, steps, and ladders, we inspect them for any sign or wear or damage. We check support cables and tighten bolts and screws, if necessary, and double check all straps.

BACK WHEN I RAN BOWHUNTER MAGAZINE, I repeatedly included little reminders designed to make readers think of safety. One of my favorites was, “Bowhunting Safety Is No Accident!”

It was true then and it’s true today.

But the bottom line is we are the ones responsible for keeping ourselves safe. We are the ones who must recognize the need to be proactive in doing whatever is necessary to avoid injury or death. We are the only ones who must admit that a life-changing or life-ending accident could happen to us.

Because doing anything less is downright stupid!

ponsored by:  The Archery Hall of Fame & PCBA

and…

AAHunting-the-Dream1If you like to read M.R.’s bowhunting adventures you will love his newest book, Hunting the Dream.
Hunting the Dream is available now so be sure and get your copy of this great book.

For more please go to: Thoughts and Tips

Tags: Archery Hall of Famebeing prepared to huntbowhuntingbowhunting.netM.R. JamesPhysically Challenged Bowhunters of AmericaTreestand Hunting
Previous Post

P&Y Club Helps Fund the National Conservation Leadership Institute

Next Post

Last Bearhunt: The Chef Pt. 3

Next Post

Last Bearhunt: The Chef Pt. 3

Black Lightning: Graphite/Silicone Lightning in a Tube

Protect Against Zika, West Nile, Lyme Disease and More with BugBlocker

This is the second recipe that I have tried making Low Carb Venison Sausage Balls and this recipe is by far much better than the first one I tried.

Cooking With SusieQ: Venison Sausage Meatballs

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • Sydnie Wells 2023: The Search For Bullwinkle
  • Gladiator Meets Tim Wells
  • Tex-Mex Venison With Meatballs
  • The Great American Outdoor Show- Your Hunt or Fish Starts Here
  • Is it Too Far? Think Before You Release That Arrow
  • Wild Turkey Cajun Pasta
  • Bowhunting Articles
  • Interviews
  • Bowhunting Videos
  • Deer
  • Wild Turkey
  • Scouting
  • Bear
  • Cooking Wild Game

© 2023 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • Bowhunting Articles
  • Bowhunting Videos
  • Deer
  • Bowhunting Gear
  • Western Bowhunting
    • Elk
  • Wild Turkey
  • Cooking Wild Game
  • Wild Turkey Bowhunters Blog
  • Straight Shot Blog
  • Register
  • Activate
  • The Original Bowhunting Website & Blog. Online Since 1996.
  • Robert Hoague Field Notes, Photos & Blog

© 2023 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
-
00:00
00:00

Queue

Update Required Flash plugin
-
00:00
00:00