Make That One Less Deer For The Fall Hunt

Each weekday morning about 7am you will find me out at the bus stop waiting with my 5–y/o kindergartner to get picked up for school.   I’m discovering it to be an interesting time standing waiting alongside a busy morning highway.   And today was certainly no exception.

The bus had departed maybe ten minutes earlier and I was still standing near the road talking with the neighbor.   The traffic was zipping by with folks in a hurry to get to their jobs for the day.   This included a fast-moving semi truck presumably hauling grain heading northbound.

For some reason my eyes just focused on this semi as it trailed off away from me when suddenly a deer darted directly in front of the semi.   The distance was maybe 200 yards from where I stood and I witnessed the semi swerve and then came a noticeable “thud.”   From even my angle it appeared this deer took it squarely in front of the truck’s grill.   The semi never even slowed down and just kept on trucking down the road.

Moments later another car oblivious to the accident sailed by and I watch as its driver attempted unsuccessfully to swerve and bounced over the debris in the road.

The neighbor and I then slowed additional traffic down to warn them as we ventured down road to discover the eventual carnage.

Deer

We quickly removed as much of the deer from the middle of the road as not to cause continued traffic problems.   Let me tell you…the site of this might have been bad but the stench was nearly overwhelming.

Indeed, this deer was crossing the road heading right onto my property when it got schmucked.   Not a pretty sight, but one I have grown accustomed to seeing along this road and in the very spot, nevertheless.

But, I’m not going to whine about one less deer for this fall.   Instead, I want to remind folks it is that time to be careful…and to train your mind NOT TO SWERVE away from a deer when driving.   I know that’s hard to do, but let’s face it a semi truck is not going to evade hitting a deer.   Some of the best drivers in performance cars cannot react that quickly (and safely).   It requires a person to just be mentally prepared and not to overreact.   Why?

Simple, on this same stretch of road maybe 1/4 mile heading in the opposite direction this happened some 35 years ago.

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A fawn was standing in the roadway and the semi attempted to avoid it.   Not a good outcome.   The driver had gone over a million miles accident free prior to this incident.   Explain that one to your employer.

So, let this be a reminder…for safety sake do not swerve to avoid deer or you easily can lose control and cause more damage anyway.   Let this also be a reminder that deer are on the move this time of the year and it pays to be vigilant and aware of those areas they are likely to be traveling.

©2013 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Time To Do A Little Bragging About A Friend

Hey folks, I just have to take a moment on this blog to do a bit of bragging about my good friend, Adele Beals, in Owatonna, MN.   This past weekend she entered a statewide professional art competition here in Minnesota and won BEST OF SHOW with a painting I think you will like.

First, let me give you a little background on this.   Back during the spring of 2012 my daughter, Elsie, who was almost 4–y/o at the time, wanted to go turkey hunting with me sitting in the blind.   Well, as most preschoolers are not very patient, I promised to take her out to the blind to hunt for about an hour.   As things were winding up and I soon had to take her to school, my friend, Todd Rost, snapped a quick photo of the two of us as I was explaining to Elsie where the turkeys would likely have come from that morning if we had see any action.

I had posted the picture on my Facebook wall and it was there for over a year.   Then, this summer, Adele contacted me and asked if I would grant her permission to use the photo to paint it for a local art competition.   Well, to be perfectly honest with you I was quite flattered and granted her full use of the image as you will see it here:

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But, Adele wanted to put her artistic touches to it and so she solicited my advice how it could be improved.   Well, I told her that in real-world turkey hunting I would not be so inclined to let Elsie where pink camo and pink Hello Kitty boots to the blind.   I also told her that her toy gun with the pink camo likely had to go.   As you will she, Adele did all of that as well as put a turkey hunting vest on Elsie that even shows some turkey calls sticking out of the pockets.

One final touch that I did not ask for, but that I certainly appreciated, is Adele took some of the gray out of my beard and made me look at least a few years younger.

Well, enough on all of that.   Here is the painting that won 2013 BEST OF SHOW from the Artists of Minnesota competition held in Duluth, MN this past weekend.   Don’t you agree Adele did a wonderful job painting this image?

This painting is entitled “Daddy’s Talkin’ Turkey On A Blind Date.”

And you know, the best part about this is the award was given by the members who voted, not just a panel of judges.   Think about the back story here.   Many of the artsy type folks, and I make that reference with no disrespect intended, are not the usual profile of folks who typically are big hunting supporters.   I think that’s another of the positives that comes from this win.

A subject that some in our society might find offensive of an adult showing a young child how to hunt or to be using a gun (albeit a toy gun in this instance) apparently did not distract from the talent that was on display in the painting.

Kudos again to Adele!   For her to win using a painting that contains my image speaks a lot on its own.

©2013 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

The Fine Line Between Hunting Success Or Failure Is NO EXCUSES!!

Spend any time in the typical deer hunting camp and you will hear hunters explaining away their lack of success.   Spend any time in a duck hunting camp you will also find hunters lamenting why things didn’t go as intended.   Huddle around parked vehicles during a pheasant hunt and you’ll hear countless reasons why that rooster kept wingin’ over the horizon.

Excuses…nothing but damn excuses!!!

Hunters are full of them.   In fact, some hunters are famous for always having a new one just for the appropriate occasion.   Fact of the matter is it’s our human nature to blame equipment or circumstances for our shortcomings rather than the person pulling the trigger or releasing the arrow.

Now, that’s not to say equipment can’t indeed malfunction or who would have predicted that 100–year-old tree to finally topple over just as the deer was moving into range before scaring off…but in most situations hunting excuses = joke.   They always have and they always will.

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Truth is the hunter who always looks to excuses for lack of hunting success may simply be joking around and having some fun.   And certainly there’s nothing wrong with that.   Yet, there’s a faction within our hunting community where excuses become a serious crutch underscoring poor performance.   We all have bad luck on occasion, but too many hunters create their own misfortune and the excuse is a crutch highlighting it.

None of us like to admit that we didn’t spend enough time this summer on the archery range to get our bow really dialed in for optimal deer hunting performance.   Likewise, the duck hunter who never made it out for trap night at the local sportsman’s club shouldn’t expect to be flawless in those follow-thru shots on fast-moving waterfowl.  Much the same can be said for the pheasant hunter who fumbled with the gun taking it off safety messing up the timing of his shot.

Often times success in hunting means beating the odds.   The room for error isn’t that great to allow for amateur mistakes, yet still see positive results.   Sometimes a hunter can get downright lucky, but most times success is a product from lots of practice with equipment plus deploying an educated game plan knowing the animal.   In other words, hunting success is like an investment…the dividends you are allowed to take are directly related to the value a person puts into it.

It’s important for hunters who genuinely seek success to eliminate any need for excuses cropping into a conversation.   When things go wrong and failure results, the hunter who accepts personal responsibility will be miles ahead of the hunter who seemingly has an excuse ready in every pocket.

This fall it should be every hunter’s goal to minimize the use of excuses no matter how tempting they can be.   If you missed the shot, accept that a few more days at the range could have paid off in better results.   If that animal responded to your calling, but just wouldn’t present itself…accept that perhaps you’re not the expert caller you’d like to think you are and you need more practice.   If you’re not seeing action, maybe it’s time to realize how staying out late and partying isn’t a priority compared to getting up early, feeling refreshed and energized for the morning hunt.

This year, I’m calling for NO EXCUSES allowed in my hunting camps!   Let’s focus on success by capturing that inner predator spirit present inside each of us.   Besides, stories of success are a lot more fun to share.

©2013 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.