BECKLEY —
West Virginians are considered great shots — it’s simply part of our mountain heritage. The Mountaineer doesn’t carry around a shrimp net, for crying out loud, and although I have never seen a nationwide poll, I can only assume that the people watching the Mountaineers play ball are somewhat confident that the Mountaineer knows a thing or two about shooting a firearm.
Most of us grew up participating in such extracurricular activities as squirrel hunting, rabbit hunting and filling freezers full of fresh venison. Unlike other areas of the country, we were raised blessed in a gun-friendly culture with plenty of room to enjoy the natural world sharing nature’s bounties. Our rifle skills were tuned and sharp because we participated regularly at shooting. Even though we might not have known it at the time, we were practicing to become great shots.
Fast forward to today, when everyone seems to be overworked and overbooked, and many of us simply do not have the time to practice. Yeah, ammo and guns are more expensive, but since when have sportsmen allowed costs or time to get in the way of our pursuits or passions?
Unlike bowhunters, who practice religiously from different yardages and at different hunting scenarios, rifle hunters can sometimes undervalue the need to practice on a regular basis.
This past week, I was asked by a local writer and a professional in the firearm business to set up a range scenario for some long-distance shooting at my hillside farm in Fayette County. I was honored to be asked and we spent a day crawling around in the hayfield shooting at little targets far away. I have to admit I was a touch rusty, but after a few shots and a little luck, the practice of my youth paid off. I wouldn’t have won any gold medals at the Olympics, but I left the backroads feeling pretty confident that if a bugling elk happened to want to meet me on a foggy mountain morning, there would be plenty of room in the bed of the truck to accommodate him.
I am often asked by West Virginians about hunting out west. I mostly get questions about specific rifle calibers, scopes and other gear. I rarely get asked what kind of practice drills they should be concentrating on to make that shot on an elk or mule deer of their dreams.
My point is simple. Whether you are learning to play the guitar, blow bubbles or shoot a rifle, practice makes perfect. And with many West Virginians familiar with the drill, a little practice goes a long way.
As a friend of mine once told me after a successful practice session when I was shooting well, “The only problem now is making up an excuse as to why you missed the deer. You had better be thinking of a real good one, too; not something lame like the sun was in your eyes.”
Before this year’s opening day of West Virginia gun seasons, find a little time to practice shooting in field situations with the equipment you plan on carrying in the woods. After all, Mountaineers are well known for our shooting ability and we have a reputation to uphold — even if the sun does get in our eyes.
Outdoors
Practice makes perfect
As gun seasons approach, find time to work on your shot
- Outdoors
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Hunting has become more mainstream
As sportsmen, we live by an ethical code of conduct. We are taught by our mentors not to take our way of life for granted and to be aware of our actions as not to cause offense to others. In short, we are taught to behave in a manner as to not make a non-hunter into an anti-hunter.
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Birding among outdoor passions
If you love the outdoors, there are probably some activities you like better than others. Maybe it’s trout fishing or deer hunting. My passion is birds. I love the spring migration when new species return almost daily.
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Setting the record straight on rabbits
Thanks to cartoon characters such as Bugs Bunny, the rabbits we see in our backyards, eastern cottontails, are familiar to almost everyone. And yet I suspect that most people think they are rodents. They are not. Rabbits and hares are lagomorphs, members of the mammalian order Lagomorpha.
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Fickle weather can wreck plans
Well, it’s officially spring. We have “sprung forward” into daylight saving time in hopes of long, sunny evenings to play and work outdoors in the glorious, warm rays of the sun. In return for our daily routines being altered by the time change, we are awarded with unpredictable weather and mud season — gee, thanks!
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Black deer among nature’s rarities
A few weeks ago, Joan Robinson contacted me after she noticed something out of the usual while driving along a Hampshire County backroad in the Eastern Panhandle. It was so unusual she even questioned herself at what her eyes were actually seeing.
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Male half of nesting eagle pair feared dead
One of southern West Virginia’s much-loved and only confirmed pair of nesting American Bald Eagles is suspected dead and the pair’s eggs located at the tip of Brooks Island off W.Va. 20 are in jeopardy.
Wendy Perrone, executive director of Three River Avian Center, said National Park Service Law Enforcement was notified that an Amtrak train hit the eagle Sunday around 10:30 a.m.
Since Sunday, the Park Service, Three Rivers and dedicated volunteers have scouted the track and surrounding area from Brooks Island to Sandstone Falls, but no one has recovered the bird. The male bird, affectionately called Whitey, has also not returned to the nest, leading experts to believe he was killed. -
There is help for anglers getting started
According to statistics from the National Surveys of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, which are published every five years, the number of anglers in the U.S. is in a steady decline. Over the last 20 years the number of anglers has dropped from 35.6 million in 1991 to 33.1 million in 2011.
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Beckley among places to ‘talk turkey’
This past week brought us snow and rain. Like my kids are fond of saying in a very sarcastic tone, “Really?” For the sportsmen in our area, the last couple of days of winter can be a downtime in the action. For those needing to scratch the hunting and fishing itch, I have a little news that might just do the trick.
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‘How do robins survive winter conditions?’
Winter must be winding down because I’m getting letters and e-mails about winter robins.
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Sequester impacting hunting, fishing industries
A news release from Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.) Communications came across my desk this week, and I felt the information was worth sharing.
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Hunting has become more mainstream
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