Posted By: Jungleexplorer
My son finally got a deer! - 12/04/15 05:01 PM
Years ago when my son was 14 I set him a on stand for the first time and five minutes later he shot a huge buck. I had barley driven away. He was like, "This deer hunting thing is easy!". I was upset because I knew he was ruined! You are not supposed to get your first deer like that. You are supposed to freeze your buns off for weeks and though you started off imagining shooting a buck so big it could cradle a baby grand piano in it's rack, you end up settling for a spike buck and you are exhilarated about it. That is how your first deer season is supposed to go. Then each year, as you get more experience, you get a bigger deer and so on and so forth. Shooting a massive 200lb 10 point buck with your fathers rifle on a 70 degree day after sitting on the stand for only five minutes is the worst thing that could happen to a beginner. It creates an unreasonable imbalance in their expectations. There is nothing left for them to aspire to after that.
Just as I expected, the next year when he did not get a huge deer in five minutes suffering some minor cold on the stand, he was like, "I don't think I want to hunt deer no more." Each year, I would ask him if he wanted hunt deer and would not show much interest. He bought stupid guns like AR-15s and pimped them out with all kinds of gadget that made them look real cool, but when it came to accuracy, they were sorry at best. All the while, I was like, "Hey son, why don't you buy a serious deer rifle." Finally last year Savage had a sale on a Axis II XP package with a weaver scope for $289 after a $50 rebate. It was a heck of a deal and after much pressuring, he finally caved and bought one, a .243. After putting three in a 1/4 inch group at 100 yards, he was like, "Hey this gun is way more accurate then those other guns I paid $800 for. I said, "Yes, that is because this is a serious long range hunting weapon, not some cool looking toy that was designed for close quarter fast action combat."
So after I shot that nice buck a while back, my son finally said (after 6 years), I think I would like to try to get a buck. I showed him pictures of all the bucks coming to my feeders and said he could shoot anyone but my target buck. I told him. "You go out morning and afternoon. It might take a few days, but if you are patient, you will get one. He did and after about five days, he got this nice one. He was so happy! I was like, "Yes! He is finally getting back to what deer hunting is supposed to be." Getting a good deer is supposed to be a reward that you earn.
Just as I expected, the next year when he did not get a huge deer in five minutes suffering some minor cold on the stand, he was like, "I don't think I want to hunt deer no more." Each year, I would ask him if he wanted hunt deer and would not show much interest. He bought stupid guns like AR-15s and pimped them out with all kinds of gadget that made them look real cool, but when it came to accuracy, they were sorry at best. All the while, I was like, "Hey son, why don't you buy a serious deer rifle." Finally last year Savage had a sale on a Axis II XP package with a weaver scope for $289 after a $50 rebate. It was a heck of a deal and after much pressuring, he finally caved and bought one, a .243. After putting three in a 1/4 inch group at 100 yards, he was like, "Hey this gun is way more accurate then those other guns I paid $800 for. I said, "Yes, that is because this is a serious long range hunting weapon, not some cool looking toy that was designed for close quarter fast action combat."
So after I shot that nice buck a while back, my son finally said (after 6 years), I think I would like to try to get a buck. I showed him pictures of all the bucks coming to my feeders and said he could shoot anyone but my target buck. I told him. "You go out morning and afternoon. It might take a few days, but if you are patient, you will get one. He did and after about five days, he got this nice one. He was so happy! I was like, "Yes! He is finally getting back to what deer hunting is supposed to be." Getting a good deer is supposed to be a reward that you earn.