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I've reached a conclusion
#6179175
02/11/16 06:29 PM
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 482
Deersteaks
OP
Bird Dog
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OP
Bird Dog
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 482 |
I must be a bad person and even a worse hunter! I have heard it said a thousand times on so called hunting shows that " It doesn't matter if I kill anything, experiencing nature makes for a successful hunt and that's what you should enjoy. Well, maybe on opening morning and even a few weeks in, I'll agree to that. But at some point, I want to kill something! I want to put meat in my freezer and if possible, a nice rack on the ground. If I don't get the horns, then I am disappointed. If I get no meat in the freezer, then I have "Not" been successful! Doesn't mean I haven't had a good time, but I can see sun rises from my boat with a rod in my hand. Or go bird watching. I love to eat deer meat-squirrel,rabbit,duck,fish,dove and even frog legs. I do enjoy nature as well as anyone, but I love to pull the trigger! Anyone agree or am I being insensitive?
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179189
02/11/16 06:39 PM
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Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 862
rattler03
Tracker
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Tracker
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 862 |
During deer season I get disappointed if I don't get a buck or enough meat, but a few weeks after the end of season every year I look back and think, "who cares, I hunted hard and enjoyed my time afield this season." So, yeah I get disappointed but that feeling doesn't linger, and it doesn't end up being what I think about when I look back on that hunting season. That said, I've always gotten at least 1 doe/cull for the freezer, so a deer-less season might make the disappointment a bigger issue for me.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179202
02/11/16 06:49 PM
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,358
jshouse
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,358 |
I don't hunt for the kill, I hunt for the chase and the memories. I would pick beef and chicken over venison every time so I don't care to fill my feeezer, and if I don't see a buck that I want to put on my wall I don't shoot.
I hunted some places for a long time and never saw anything I wanted to shoot, so i didnt, but I loved being out in the woods every time.
If I send my neighbors a text and ask them to give me feedback on my lawn and plant rye into a giant dong pattern, I'm probably going to get some less than positive feedback. Same goes here.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179214
02/11/16 06:54 PM
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Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 11,534
rickym
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 11,534 |
I hunted harder and spent more time in the stand this year than I ever have before, and this was the first year that I went without pulling the trigger. I have been disappointed since thanks giving. It's making me wish November would come faster so I can have another go at it. It's also making me want to work harder to increase my chances. I enjoyed the time I spent out in the field but yes I'm upset and disappointed. I'm probably just a sore loser though.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179227
02/11/16 07:01 PM
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 482
Deersteaks
OP
Bird Dog
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OP
Bird Dog
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 482 |
Oh,don't misunderstand me. I love the woods and hunting and all that goes with it.Its in my blood and has been for childhood. I guess my point is, I hunt for a reason and its to try to take game. I enjoy all the benefits that go with it, but I still like to be successful at the end of the season. Its why I am there. Otherwise, I would just take binoculars to the woods and observe.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179244
02/11/16 07:14 PM
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Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 17,721
Txduckman
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 17,721 |
If you are on a bad lease or bought deer less property then yes, you should be disappointed and time to move on. And do more homework next time. I don't have to kill anything personally but I would like to see some deer and game at least. Camping at a state park is much cheaper if you have no game.
I have no experience with public land if that is what you are hunting.
If you see game that you can shoot but choose not to and then complain 3 weeks later that you didn't get anything, that is on the hunter.
Which are you referring to?
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179250
02/11/16 07:20 PM
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Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 862
rattler03
Tracker
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Tracker
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 862 |
I don't have to pull the trigger to have a worthwhile hunting experience. At least for me, there are a lot more important factors involved in determining whether or not a hunt was "successful" than simply killing, or not killing, an animal.
Last edited by rattler03; 02/11/16 07:22 PM.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179259
02/11/16 07:25 PM
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Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 650
jmh004
Tracker
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Tracker
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 650 |
I dont feel the need to pull the trigger. I just like being out in the woods. That excitment of "what will come oout next" is what keeps me going.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179277
02/11/16 07:43 PM
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Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 12,861
PMK
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 12,861 |
I truly believe people go thru various phases in their hunting life and development. I did a quick query and found several websites that give a pretty good description on 5 various phases. The TPWD also had similar that listed 6.
1. Shooting stage 2. Limiting out stage 3. Trophy stage 4. Method stage 5. Sportsman stage 6. Give back stage
I reviewed my 52 years of deer hunting and I find these to be very true. My attitude and hunting has changed a lot in that timeline ...
"everyone that lives dies but not everyone who dies lived..."
~PMK~
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179280
02/11/16 07:45 PM
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,358
jshouse
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,358 |
I never went through 1 and 2 but know plenty that are still there
If I send my neighbors a text and ask them to give me feedback on my lawn and plant rye into a giant dong pattern, I'm probably going to get some less than positive feedback. Same goes here.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: jshouse]
#6179282
02/11/16 07:47 PM
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 60,296
stxranchman
Obie Juan Kenobi
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Obie Juan Kenobi
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 60,296 |
I don't hunt for the kill, I hunt for the chase and the memories. I would pick beef and chicken over venison every time so I don't care to fill my feeezer, and if I don't see a buck that I want to put on my wall I don't shoot.
I hunted some places for a long time and never saw anything I wanted to shoot, so i didnt, but I loved being out in the woods every time.
Finally, this explains a lot about the "Big" saga.....
Are idiots multiplying faster than normal people?
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179283
02/11/16 07:47 PM
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Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 22,252
Texas Dan
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 22,252 |
"I don't hunt to kill, but kill to have hunted."
"Some people will never like you because your spirit irritates their demons."
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: stxranchman]
#6179299
02/11/16 07:53 PM
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,358
jshouse
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,358 |
I don't hunt for the kill, I hunt for the chase and the memories. I would pick beef and chicken over venison every time so I don't care to fill my feeezer, and if I don't see a buck that I want to put on my wall I don't shoot.
I hunted some places for a long time and never saw anything I wanted to shoot, so i didnt, but I loved being out in the woods every time.
Finally, this explains a lot about the "Big" saga..... haha, I assure you, he is (still) one I want to put on my wall, I just need the chance
If I send my neighbors a text and ask them to give me feedback on my lawn and plant rye into a giant dong pattern, I'm probably going to get some less than positive feedback. Same goes here.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179318
02/11/16 08:15 PM
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Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 3,126
kdkane1971
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 3,126 |
You should read... He speaks about very much enjoying the kill...and I couldn't agree more. I enjoy it immensely, and although I don't have to kill everything I see, I would be lying if I said I don't enjoy it.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179326
02/11/16 08:30 PM
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 4,800
TexasKC
Extreme Tracker
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Extreme Tracker
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 4,800 |
I went 17 years between buck kills and still never had a bad day in the woods. I don't crave venison, but I do crave being where deer roam. Just love the hunt, not necessarily the kill. Personal opinion here. Not judging anyone who likes venison and other wild game.
In the end, it's not the years in your life that count, it's the life in your years.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6179352
02/11/16 08:50 PM
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Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 6,862
HuntnFly67
THF Trophy Hunter
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THF Trophy Hunter
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 6,862 |
I think there is a difference between enjoyment and being successful. I enjoy being in the field - almost always (there were a few weather related or equipment malfunction related outings I did not enjoy). I also enjoy the adrenaline rush when my quarry comes in range, the trigger breaks over and recoil is felt, the smell of burned powder, feeling like a provider and giving thanks over my quarry - these things I enjoy. Success happens when I achieve the goal I set out to accomplish (horns on the ground, meat in the freezer, giving back and helping another hunter enjoy their experience, and/or a day where limits are reached). With regard to the OP's last statement, I do enjoy nature as well as anyone, but I love to pull the trigger! In my opinion, as days get shorter there is a tension that builds up in the hunter. The tension is as primal and instinctual as human nature can be. Somewhere in the recesses of our brain there is an alarm going off. This alarm is saying that winter is coming and it is unstoppable. The primal urge can cause those that are tuned in to nature - God's perfect order - to feel the need to kill; to provide sustenance. Satisfying that urge is enjoyable for me - be it pulling the trigger or flinging an arrow. I too love pulling the trigger because it is the culmination of all of the above for me. All that being said, I am not a go out and shoot sh!t because its there kinda outdoorsman either.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180020
02/12/16 05:50 AM
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Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,874
Enter Standman
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,874 |
I am usually tired of the loading/unloading, 3:30 alarms and heat waves by mid December. Unless I whack a big one, then I'll just go out and sit with a pair of binos and count down the days until next season
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180032
02/12/16 07:02 AM
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Joined: May 2014
Posts: 374
StretchR
Bird Dog
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Bird Dog
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 374 |
I love venison, and I'm disappointed if I don't put something in the freezer. I do enjoy all the other facets, but if there's no deer on the ground it was not a good year. If I wanted to see wildlife only, I could just go to State Parks. If it was just about the shooting, I could go to a range and kill lots of paper. I like being outside, preparing, attracting, shooting, killing, and eating deer.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180180
02/12/16 02:06 PM
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 2,111
Red Cloud
Veteran Tracker
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Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 2,111 |
Hunting is part of who I am I will always do EVERYTHING I can to put meat in the freezer and a rack on the wall. If I am not successful in that then I will figure out why. The challenge is never over for me. I love to hunt and am never disappointed in nature and what God gave the sportsman. I hope this doesn't sound like a lecture it is just how I feel.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180279
02/12/16 03:08 PM
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Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 4,971
Dry Fire
Extreme Tracker
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Extreme Tracker
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 4,971 |
I always liked to see deer and spent more time shooting them with camera, then with a gun. But I was always upset when the pigs didn't come in and so I could unload on them with my AR.
coffee spelled backwards is eeffoc. I don't give eeffoc until I have my morning coffee.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180301
02/12/16 03:18 PM
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Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 28,032
Navasot
Hollywood
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Hollywood
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 28,032 |
why havnt you pulled the trigger?
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180303
02/12/16 03:18 PM
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Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 28,032
Navasot
Hollywood
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Hollywood
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 28,032 |
or are you just speakin in general
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6180620
02/12/16 07:14 PM
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 171
Preacher Ed
Woodsman
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Woodsman
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 171 |
I might get blasted by some on here. And I don't want to start a flaming war so please don't. This is just my story and I am not making a judgment on anyone else. Two or 3 years before the timber companies started leasing land here in LA, people began to put out corn which totally changed the deer movements. It became harder to hunt the way I enjoyed hunting (finding the sign and taking my old Amacker climbing stand as deep in the woods as I could). When they leased the land, I was told where I could hunt. And if you wanted to see deer you had to plant a food plot or put out corn to compete. I hated it and got out of hunting for a while. BUT-I LOVE venison. So, I got back on a club and even though I love to watch the wildlife I hate looking at the same scenery every time I go out. I now hunt just to put meat in the freezer. Even when I kill a nice buck, what have I done. Just made a good shot. IMO I didn't go out and find a good buck by its sign, figure out how I could kill it, and patiently wait for it. I threw out something for it to eat and it found me. I find no satisfaction in the size of the deer so I am satisfied with a doe or a buck. So I pay a lease for putting 2 or 3 deer in the freezer, not to hopefully harvest a big buck. I know this goes against the grain. It pains me not to be able to roam the woods and find a certain deer and try to figure out how to kill it as I did for the 1st 25-30 yrs. of my life. But this is just me, not judging anyone else for what they like. So-I hunt to pull the trigger and if I don't, I have not been successful.
Last edited by Preacher Ed; 02/12/16 07:15 PM.
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Preacher Ed]
#6180633
02/12/16 07:25 PM
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Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 11,534
rickym
THF Celebrity
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THF Celebrity
Joined: Jun 2015
Posts: 11,534 |
I might get blasted by some on here. And I don't want to start a flaming war so please don't. This is just my story and I am not making a judgment on anyone else. Two or 3 years before the timber companies started leasing land here in LA, people began to put out corn which totally changed the deer movements. It became harder to hunt the way I enjoyed hunting (finding the sign and taking my old Amacker climbing stand as deep in the woods as I could). When they leased the land, I was told where I could hunt. And if you wanted to see deer you had to plant a food plot or put out corn to compete. I hated it and got out of hunting for a while. BUT-I LOVE venison. So, I got back on a club and even though I love to watch the wildlife I hate looking at the same scenery every time I go out. I now hunt just to put meat in the freezer. Even when I kill a nice buck, what have I done. Just made a good shot. IMO I didn't go out and find a good buck by its sign, figure out how I could kill it, and patiently wait for it. I threw out something for it to eat and it found me. I find no satisfaction in the size of the deer so I am satisfied with a doe or a buck. So I pay a lease for putting 2 or 3 deer in the freezer, not to hopefully harvest a big buck. I know this goes against the grain. It pains me not to be able to roam the woods and find a certain deer and try to figure out how to kill it as I did for the 1st 25-30 yrs. of my life. But this is just me, not judging anyone else for what they like. So-I hunt to pull the trigger and if I don't, I have not been successful. You should try hunting public land, you might enjoy it much more
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Re: I've reached a conclusion
[Re: Deersteaks]
#6181258
02/13/16 02:05 AM
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Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 1,114
Flashprism
Pro Tracker
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Pro Tracker
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 1,114 |
I am 67 years old and have deer hunted since I was 10 years old. I grew up in the North East and until I moved to this wonderful state I stalked and / or ambushed deer. Never Knew what a feeder was. I love to hunt and my only regrets are several years in those 57 years that I didn't get into the woods at all as work and life demanded an alternative use of my time. I've killed about 50 deer and most were meat kills. I only have about 4 racks worth mounting. I agree with the stages that PMK posted for as a kid and young man I had to kill something and as many as I could. We do change over time. I finally have my own place. I have had it for 5 years and I have taken 3 deer. I have plenty available but I am more concerned now that my grand kids, family and friends feel that wonderful rush when they harvest one. We only take one deer for meat as it is only my wife and I and we usually wait for a nice buck to satisfy that need. I spend every day in a tripod stand or blind from October through December and It's obvious to me that I love to see the deer as much as harvest one or I guess I wouldn't be doing what I am doing. I am managing my property to attract and maintain as many deer and quail as practical on my small place. Don't remember the fellas name, he was a Spanish hunter and philosopher who said " I do not hunt to kill but I do kill to hunt" The kill is now really secondary to the pleasure of being there!!!!!
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