Fears about the popularity LRH?

[PNW EOD]

I have had a recent thought lingering in my head about the popularity of long range hunting. With the meteoric rise to fame that budget friendly long range hunting rigs have seen over the last 2-3 years, I see a lot of people picking up the sport, and I think that is great. However, my fear is that a lot of these guys and girls are going to believe they can shoot an animal wherever they see one just because they shot at a steel plate one day when they first got their rifles. I must stress that long range hunting requires a LOT of practice, and knowledge in order to pull off a successful, and most importantly ETHICAL shot on an animal. I know this community only exists because of people trying to learn more about the sport, and to get insight on how to be safer and more effective. I think it is our duty to maintain and protect the integrity and image of the sport by keeping up on training and teaching others that want to get into this awesome adventure. I only bring this up because the next few seasons may be a turning point where we either make or break the image of the pursuit of the long shot with not only the public, but with that of other hunters and in the worst case, even the lawmakers. Keep on keepin' on, and best of luck this season!

 

[HARPERC]

I think the site has done well because of the rule about no ethics discussions. For me it's been a refreshing change from the traditional cast, and blast magazines assuming they hold the right to decide ethics across the board.

 

[adam32]

I believe LRH is on the peak of a bell curve...I really think once people realize they can't just buy a "long range" rifle and kill animals over half a mile without practice then it'll start fading back to where it was about 5 years ago.

Back when I first got into it a 600 yard shot on game was a "long range kill", and it required as much practice then as it does now. Nothing has changed in that regard.

I believe the next couple years will come a lot of wounded animals and even more complete misses that will leave the hunter with many doubts about how "easy" LRH is, and they will go back to ranges they are used to since they don't want to commit to practicing.

 

[J E Custom]

Ethics are an individual thing and does not single out any one group of people. I believe that the long range community is probably best at being ethical because they know what it takes/requires to hit something at extended distances and knows their limits.

Most Long range hunters/shooters know their limits and work hard to improve there skills to extend their effective range. The ones that don't care normally are the worst about taking a shot that they cant make and don't seem to care if they miss or make a poor shot. we all probably know plenty of shooters/hunters that fit into this group. They are the ones that go to the range just before the season starts or don't bother going at all to site in or check their zero, and when they do If they can hit a paper plate at 100 yards they are good to go.

We can talk about Ethics or not, but unfortunately we cant do much about it because a person either has ethics or he doesn't.

J E CUSTOM

 

[Rich Coyle]

I ran into a guy using a .264 Win Mag while I was hunting. He had an elk hanging.
"How far did you shoot to get this elk?" I asked him.
"It was a 500 yard shot," he said.
"What's your rifle sighted in for?"
"200 yards,"
"How high did you have to aim?"
"O, the .264 shoots so flat I didn't have to aim high at all."
This tells me he probably made a 300 yard shot. Most of the folks walking out of stores with these rifles will think 50 yards is 100 and 200 yards is 300 or more. They may still wound some animals though.

 

[WeiserBucks]

If everyone stays within themselves, wounded game and complete misses will be minimized. Every hunter has the capacity to make mistakes, we're only human . Every good hunter I know does everything they can to minimize the mistakes and learn from the mistakes that do occur.

 

[Rich Coyle]

[QUOTE="WeiserBucks, post: 1339333, member: 97492"Every good hunter I know does everything they can to minimize the mistakes and learn from the mistakes that do occur.[/QUOTE]

The key word is "good hunter".

 

[WeiserBucks]

You're right Rich , there will always be those that are careless and lack the ability to comprehend what led to their mistakes. The casual hunter doesn't care if they make mistakes because they have no vested interest or respect for the game they are attempting to harvest .

 

[WeiserBucks]

Definitely not LR , but I had a buck at 7 yards yesterday, thick trees and brush blocked any possible shot with my bow . I walked away with a smile on my face and realized later most guys would have attempted a shot , most likely deflecting the arrow resulting in a miss or wounded animal. I have more respect for the game than to risk a poor shot , even at 7 yards there's alot that can go wrong.

 

[Idaho Trecker]

This thread is exactly what I have thought about at length. I have many friends that want to do what I do but won't commit to any range time. I tell them until they are ready to commit I will not get them a rifle set up. Like the OP said there are a LOT of people that think since they have a rifle capable and a scope that says they can shoot that distance that is all there is to it. I will help anyone that's actually willing to put the commitment in but those people are few and far between in my circles. I personally hope the current popularity craze dies back some.

 

[WeiserBucks]

I hope the popularity of LR shooting, not necessarily LR hunting, continues to rise . More shooters and firearms owners is a good thing in my opinion. I just hope people realize the difference between killing targets and killing game. Casual shooters can be fairly successful at the range in perfect conditions, but many don't realize how challenging it is to make a successful shot in the field under poor conditions. A few guys I shoot with are excellent target shooters but place a pretty short limit on their game shooting due to past learning experiences. Good for them I say .

 

[bpcrshooter]

Agree with Idaho Trecker, I have a friend who went out and bought a rifle after shooting mine and he thinks being able to hit a 10in plate at 200yrds is great!!! I just shake my head and tell him when there is only one lead splat on it your getting there!! people today just dont know what it takes to shoot at distance and properly take game. A lot can happen in 1-2 seconds that a bullet is in flight. It seems more and more people only hunt for the trophy and not for the experience. Good luck to ALL this yr hunt safe and have fun!!!!!

 

[Rich Coyle]

There used to be a gong 15" square with the corners cut off so it was like a rounded stop sign at our range. I think most rifle owners are like a couple guys I saw at the range a few years ago. One had an -06 and the other a .270. They were firing at the gong from the bench and hitting it occasionally.

I am convinced those guys are the same guys who are buying the "long range" equipment today. When they get out in the fields and woods they wont be wounding game cause there wont be a bench with sandbags.

 

[Korhil78]

There are tons of people right now that dont shoot long range and wound a lot of animals. It's not going to change much, I don't think. I saw a guy once sight in his 270 by throwing an empty tuna can as far as he could and then shoot at it a couple of times. He never hit it once but he came close and that was good enough for him! That tuna can couldn't have been more than 30 yards away haha!

In actuality, the wounding process may go down a bit because they will most likely miss the animal altogether (hopefully). People don't realize how far a bullet will move with a little wind from 800 yards out. Now if they do buy a weather station and ballistic app, they would in my mind be more inclined to use them and practice with them because that is some cash invested. Those people that shoot two to three shots a year and try to go shoot something at 800 yards with no tools or ballistic software to aid them, I'm betting they are gonna miss more often than not.

I limit my shots to 1000 yards and under. Heck, most of the animals that I can see will be that close or closer! But I practice out to 1500 yards to become proficient at 1000 and below. All my shots on animals so far have been under 800 yards. Just the way it seems to happen.