Hunting shows. . . am I the only one?

[Recluse]

Out in my shop and was watching a hunting show earlier this afternoon and saw one of the shooters make the sloppiest shot. So, he shot again. Missed. Shot again and still didn't kill the coyote. Finally a third shot did it in.

The idiots actually laughed about it.

I've seen a number of shows in which bad shots were taken and in which the animal was NOT going to die easily. On only ONE of the aforementioned shows did the host/shooter truly feel bad and was kicking himself, on camera, about making a lousy shot and how it was just bad all the way around and thus the necessity of spending lots of time at the range BEFORE the hunt to ensure you don't make bad shots.

But the other shows. . . no big deal. The idiots were more concerned about their trophy rack getting away or lost than the fact they made a bad shot.

The other thing getting me about these hunting shows, other than the idiotic ones that try to take on a "reality tv approach" (outdoor photography elimination competition BS), is that it seems you are incapable of taking a deer or turkey or coyote or elk or bear or anything else that has fur/feathers and breathes unless you have the latest scopes, range-finders, ammunition, camo clothing, stands, boots, scent-repellant, etc etc.

Somehow, me and my friends used to manage to fill our birdbags during dove season wearing a t-shirt and jeans and some snake-proof boots. During deer season, we put on a brush jacket and out into the woods we went. Somewhere during my teenage (or maybe it was later) years, we started having to wear orange vests or hats. For duck-hunting (which I hated and still hate), hip-waders and a duck-blind did it for us.

My granddad and uncles taught us boys that being still and quiet was way more important than having expensive camo clothing. They were right.

*Shaking my head* Some of these shows. . .

Don't even get me started on the "tactical shooting" shows.

:coffee:

[dagger dog]

Yeah, it turns your stomach to watch some of the idiots. Doesn't our sports film industry "SHINE" every numbskull going can run and edit digital media.

We came a looong way from Curt Gowdy, The American Sportsman, Fred Bear ,gad about Gaddis haven't we ?

[btroj]

I think the gear is due to sponsorships and product placement.

In the end a good hunter is well equipped between the ears, not on his back

[RP]

I just stopped watching them myself. Almost off of them are not really hunting unless you count shooting deer in a pen. To me they could just go out and shoot a cow.

[Sweetpea]

I am reminded of an episode of Tred Barta where he made what appeared to be a lethal shot with his bow...

They searched for days, but never found it.

Somebody said he could ethically shoot another, but he insisted that he'd made his kill, and his hunt was over.

So much of what we do is personal choice and common sense.

Some of it takes skill and practice. If we are unwilling to practice, we are lacking on the skill, and have no business harvesting game.

Brandon

[smoked turkey]

I signed a two year contract with one of the network providers in order to get the Outdoor Channel. I am a year and a month into it. At this point I have pretty much quit watching it. It is pretty pathetic to me. I don't like watching Monster Bucks or Whitetail Freaks and the like. It is like shooting fish in a barrel. It is not what I call sportsman like hunting. There are a few shows that I do enjoy, but about all they have in their 30 minute segment is 10 to 12 minutes of actual hunting. The rest is commercials and other stuff that I don't care about. I'll be glad when my contract is up. At this point I don't plan to renew.

[WILCO]

I don't watch them, as I see ignorance all day long when I'm out and about. It's the new normal.

[KYCaster]

If I had a TV the only outdoor program I'd watch would be "Kentucky Afield". Produced by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, it shows real people hunting and fishing the right way.

Here's a typical feature:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pEHXNm4VKE

It's been running on public TV as long as I can remember. If you can find it, it's worth watching.

Jerry

[TXGunNut]

My TV's been "dark" for over a year, feeling better about it every day.

[Thumbcocker]

+1 on Ky. Afield. The rest of the shows are commercials that try to turn hunting into football with numbers and stats. They show no respect for the critters.

[woody1]

I don't watch 'em. Seldom watch a fishing show either. Regards, Woody

[1Shirt]

I seldom watch them anymore! Agree with Recluse as I go back to the red and black wool plad days for deer hunting, with (if you were lucky a pair of rubber bottom Bean boots!
1Shirt!

[reloader28]

I quit watching them a couple years ago. They are nothing but a joke. 99% are high fence point and shoot.
LOTS of bad hits, but they call every one a "good shot".

[Kraschenbirn]

I have yet to find a single one of the current "outdoor" shows...including all of those "guns" shows...that I felt was worth the time/effort it took to pick up the remote and and change the channel.

Bill

[starnbar]

The one that did it for me was a shot taken towards the property owners barn. The tv host which I can't recall now said it was ok because of a small berm between the shooter and the barn. I have 5 sons and the first rule I taught them is never shoot towards anything you don't want to pay for meaning money or jail time.

[Boerrancher]

I can't stand watching outdoor shows anymore. Years ago I enjoyed them when it was real hunting and fishing. Don't get me started on the Tacticool shooting shows either. I don't enjoy seeing guys make these long range shots and calling it hunting. To me if you don't get blood on you 50% of the time when you pull the trigger or loose an arrow you are not hunting the animal you are only shooting it. If I want shooting skills I will watch a good target match, or take the kids to the range and let them bust clay birds at 100 yards with a 22LR.

My good friend and I have talked about making a few hunting videos just to show folks how it is done, but the modern crowd would probably find it boring. There is not a lot of high speed action when you spend hours working that nice buck so you are within 20 yards or less of him when you take your shot. I am very old school. I do wear cammo, but only because it is normally my everyday wear. A good pair of cammo pants bought on clearance will last longer than the junk they now call denim jeans. I don't buy into all of the gimmics that are sold in most stores come deer season. I don't need the deer calls, rattles, and scents that are marketed these days. My clothes are washed in lye soap and I bathe with lye soap. That is my UV and scent blocker.

I am a capitalist, and am not against making money, but those that make millions off of the gimmics are not going to get any of my money. They can have other peoples money. If you are one who uses this newfangled stuff and have success with it then by all means don't let me dissuade you. You can keep it. I don't seem to need it.

Best wishes,

Joe

[DHurtig]

If you think the shows are bad, wait til you meet the people in them. I hear all these people talk about how good Randy Anderson is. I met him years ago before he was famous, what a self righteous ego maniac. My son works at Cabela's and has idolized Michael Waddel for years. My son got to meet him at work a while back. Son said he is a loud mouth self centered jerk and won't watch his shows anymore. I guess even the hunting industry has its own version of Hollyweird.

[cja245]

The only hunting show I'm all that interested in is "Meateater" on the sportsman channel.

[lbaize3]

I have to agree with you. I would much rather be hunting or fishing than watching it on TV. Same with some shooting shows. Don't care to watch shooting competitions, would rather be participating.

[Freightman]

Never watch the "hunting" shows nor do I own any cammo, hunt every year blue Jeans and plaid flannel shirt, not going to spend more on clothes than I do hunting :D

[TXGunNut]

I must admit I would get a giggle when they shot a "300 lb boar".

[DLCTEX]

I am tired of the same old theme repeated over and again. Roger Raglin? came to our area to do a hunt and stayed at a B&B in town. My son passed by and saw a buck in their truck and stopped to visit. Roger was rude and ignored him. His camera man acted embarrassed and talked with son.

[gray wolf]

Ever wonder why some folks are down on Hunting ??

[Swamp Man]

Years back I was watching a so called hunting show "can't remember which one" and seen these guys shoot a hog. Then they loaded him up and started driving down the trail then a guy opens up a gate. When they drove out the gate you could see the hunt was done on a small fenced in plot of woods. That was the last so called hunting show I ever watched.

[FLHTC]

Yeah, it turns your stomach to watch some of the idiots. Doesn't our sports film industry "SHINE" every numbskull going can run and edit digital media.

We came a looong way from Curt Gowdy, The American Sportsman, Fred Bear ,gad about Gaddis haven't we ?
Oh geez, do those names ever bring back memories. Bing Crosby and Phill Harris bird hunting together was like watching the best cinema production of all times. The American Sportsman was on our tv every weekend, then Wide World of Sports. Gosh i miss those days. I was fortunate enough to hunt near Remington Farms on Maryland's Eastern shore and at times, i felt like i was living the American dream that many only saw on their tv set.
Thanks for the memory jog.

[Goatwhiskers]

The only one I'll watch is that goofy one with the Texas hog hunters. The drama is stupid, but the old man comes up with some interesting comments. Those "hunting" shows are all about money, ie: the sponsors need to sell product and need to convince watchers that all their garbage is essential to hunting success. As others have said, I hunt in jeans and a warm flannel shirt, maybe a coat, and have seen more deer when sitting on the ground under a tree than anywhere else. GW

[dragon813gt]

Haven't watched any because I got rid of TV five years ago. Sounds like I'm not missing anything. A good friend tells me all about one of the whitetail shows and how awesome it is. He seemed surprised when I had no clue what "150 Class" was. I've never scored any deer that I've taken. Most of them are does as I hunt for meat and not trophies. Most of the time I'm in my work clothes and most likely smell like fuel oil. Hasn't stopped me from filling my tags. I'm wondering why I'm successful w/out all that gear they say you need?

[Beau Cassidy]

Not only do they make bad shots but in my opinion they don't zero their rifles.

Case in point. A little over 20 years ago when I lived in Mississippi I took the owner of the then premier turkey manufacturer in the south to the range on Christmas day so he could zero his rifle. It was himself, his camerman, and 2 nephews. I had a nice target frame and target at 100 yards and the range had very nice benches. I had the Hart front rest and Bald Eagle bags ready to go. Well this turkey shows up, went downrange, and put up a paper plate. He called his new rifle (I don't remember what kind) zeroed when he could hit the plate. In no way would any of us call his rifle zeroed. Anyway, he put his rifle up and let his nephews shoot maybe 5 .22 rounds a piece out of a rifle he brought. He made a big deal about getting that on camera and was totally different when the camera was on.

On another occasion I Elk hunted with a guide in New Mexico who for the most part had very bad experiences with so-called celebreties. He told me a few stories and the jist of them was bad hits, poor hunting skills, etc.

[waksupi]

Oh geez, do those names ever bring back memories. Bing Crosby and Phill Harris bird hunting together was like watching the best cinema production of all times. The American Sportsman was on our tv every weekend, then Wide World of Sports. Gosh i miss those days. I was fortunate enough to hunt near Remington Farms on Maryland's Eastern shore and at times, i felt like i was living the American dream that many only saw on their tv set.
Thanks for the memory jog.

As a point of interest, Crosby and Harris hunted on one of our farms during one of those shows.

[dakotashooter2]

I can't believe the trend to take any shot you can get. I was taught that a full frontal shot was a low percentage shot yet you see TV hunters take it all the time. It makes me wonder how many animals they lose and never show on camera. I was also taught and learned by experience NOT to shoot at game that was looking at you when bowhunting. Yet on most of the shows the hunters whistle or grunt to stop the deer and it looks straight at them (or the cameraman). I'm supprised more animals don't jump the string than what is shown but then again they are not going to show that. I've also noticed dispite the claim that mechanical broadheads are Gods gift to man, often full penetration is not achieved or at least not at a rate any higher than fixed broadheads. Notice in bowhunting shows where nearly all deer are recovered well after dark or in the morning even when the deer obviously fell in sight/sound range.. I have shot a fair number of deer in the late evening and only had one I couldn't recover till after dark. Sorry but shooting a deer at 600-800 yards is great shooting but NOT a test of hunting skills.

I'd like to know where these guys find all these stupid deer cause the ones I hunt sure don't let you get away with movement and noise they make..................or stand there looking at you waiting for you to shoot.

[DanWalker]

I wanted to be an outdoor writer for the longest time. The stuff I saw and heard along the way, turned me from this path. I have only had a couple things published several years ago. I feel the medium is dead for all intents and purposes. Outdoor television has devolved into 30 minute infomercials, hosted by egomaniacs. Where did all the adventure go? The viewer wants to share in a hunt, NOT be given a sales pitch by some product pimp, hawking the latest and greatest garbage during a pen hunt. I got a GoPro camera for Christmas last year, and will be filming some stuff. I doubt I will publish anything else...

[archmaker]

Blue Jeans, t-shirt, and tenner shoes, usually limited out in dove by noon. Sometimes I wished for Snake proof chaps, but never saw it, so you spent as much time looking at your feet as you did the sky when walking into your spot. :)

Got bored yesterday afternoon, so turned on 'hunting' show. 15 minutes into it, I turned off the TV and stared at the Blank screen, and the TV being off was big improvement.

[Smoke4320]

yes it seems today all hunting shows are to push a product. no about the adventure . tryed a few times to watch them and done with 15 minutes.. Canned hunts, editing, shot replacments ext .. just can not stand them anymore

[dakotashooter2]

All the "romamce" has gone out of hunting shows. Guys like Curt Gowdy could make an ant hunt sound like a hunting adventure into some faroff land....................You felt like you were right there with them and they were talking to you personally. Nobody has that tallent any more..........

[rking22]

I'm the same way. As a kid I always looked forward to a hunt with Howard Hill ,Bear ,Curt Gowdy ect. The current shows are , in my opinion ,doing much more harm to our sport than help. Just an extended infomercial! I was running channels waiting for Wifey to get ready to go somewhere and watched a crossbow shooter shoot a large hog "in the middle" ,litterally mid body! The hog locked legs and fell over where he stood! Bolt penetrated about 1/3 of length. I am certain someone shot that hog in the ear with a rifle to "get the shot" for the advertizers. Probably 10 years ago and I won't even stop as I go by now. Just Disgusting! I hunt in brown jeans and a jacket and all my "hunting stuff" fits in my pockets. But then I'm not a Pro.

[reloaderman1]

I quit watching them a couple years ago. They are nothing but a joke. 99% are high fence point and shoot.
LOTS of bad hits, but they call every one a "good shot".
Ditto on that not watching anymore! Just about all the deer I've seen shot looked like they were gut shot !

[HangFireW8]

I love the 3 minute whispered conversations before taking the shot.

Around my parts you move your jaw and the deer and the shot are gone.

[popper]

I always enjoyed Larry Czonka's show, wild Alaska, below zero is interesting also. Yes there is a camera there but it's still better than Bobs Burgers.

[dakotashooter2]

I love the 3 minute whispered conversations before taking the shot.

Around my parts you move your jaw and the deer and the shot are gone.

I have to believe such conversations are often filmed after the fact and edited in.

[FLHTC]

As a point of interest, Crosby and Harris hunted on one of our farms during one of those shows.
How lucky you are. They were a fantastic pair who genuinely portrayed the comroddery of the sport of hunting. My family would often reflect on those shows when we were afield for birds.

[searcher4851]

No doubt the new shows are a completely different experience than the old shows. I guess that has something to do with the difference between hunting and selling. The truly unfortunate part is that non-hunters see these new shows and think that that is what hunting is really like.

[Old Iron Sights]

These shows are nothing but info-mercials for equipment, atvs and clothes. I want to see one of these guys take a long bow or lymans gpr into the woods and actually have to hunt. Stopped watching these shows long ago.

[dakotashooter2]

Yup. No one locating game for you, no game cams, no baiting, no food plots..........................

[GaryN]

It's not just the infomercials it's the high fives and the hero worship. I can't stand to even turn them on anymore. Some of my best hunts were busts as far as game getting goes. If I have a good time and see game it is a success. I remember an Idaho elk hunt where I got a shot at a six point bull with my bow. I hit a small limb in between me and him. I mmmmmmm-missed. It was a great hunt. All that other stuff in the videos takes away from hunting and sportsmanship.