Still can't hunt with it.

[LongCarbine]

At least I can hunt small game with a x-bow now in Wisconsin and deer during gun season. We were trying to get x-bows to be considered as archery equipment, but the W.B.A wanted to keep THEIR 3 month season to themselves. They didn't even want the age to be lowered from 65 to 55 . So I guess My friends and I are going to spend ALL of our hunting money out of state again!

[frisky]

Wait out the 65 year requirement, I did!

[vixenmaster]

Tis very sad when Bowhunters deny other Bowhunters the right to hunt the same deer the State owns

[agingcrossbower]

The WBH thinks crossbows are more of a firearm than a bow. Very greedy people that want to keep the bow season to themselves. Good for them the recurve shooters let the wheely bows hunt with them. Of course there's no difference of course.

[Dash]

The same happened over here except worse. We were sold out in a goverment deal with the archery associations who had no interest in keeping the crossbow alive here. A comment from one of the heads of these archery assosiations was that "Crossbows are just like rifles and have no place in archery here". Thats the sort of mentality we are dealing with.

[Gewehrhund]

I'm not sure where this anti crossbow,(almost hatred), comes from. It can only be ignorance. It's not like we can make 300 yard kill shots on deer or shoot 400 bolts per minute, we still have to adhere to the same "archery shots", i.e. no branches in the way 40 to 50 yard maximum distance and a relaxed non moving deer. The only advantage we have is not having to draw the bow.

[one shot scott]

For thm ignorance is bliss. As long as it doesn't effect them and their ability to hunt, then all is good.

[Walkin]

I'm sure this isn't groundbreaking information but as we all know most organizations use established standards as the guide to establishing their own rules and standards; unfortunately, as long as the Pope and Young Club deems crossbows as more of a gun than a bow it's going to be an uphill battle trying to include our crossbows as legitimate archery equipment.

Basically what it takes is the balls to think for themselves at the local, regional, provincial or state level. And that, my friends, is simply asking way to much of and from the lemmings...........

[LongCarbine]

That's what happened here. When they tabled it in Feb. Then voted on it in March they used the Wisconsin definition of archery [held draw by hand] not the one we wanted that called all bow & arrows "archery" . It's the same one they used to open WI. to compound use years ago . Funny how that works . I have been told getting the definition change might be the only course of action now.

[Walkin]

There is another way to look at it:

Here in Alberta I'm "entitled" to hunt with a crossbow because back in September, 2010 a moments lapse in focus on the part of a Jeep driver sent me careening off of my motorcycle and the permanent injuries to my back, neck and shoulder now "enable" me to hold a "Special Crossbow License". Do you see what I'm getting at?

The fact that I can not pull back the 40 pound minimum poundage to hunt big game in Alberta gave me the "right" to use a crossbow so that I would be treated equal with all other hunters who would have been able to hunt in the archery only season; in other words people with a permanent disability or handicap, as it is usually referred to, should not be discriminated against by the simple fact of their unchangeable personal situation. But lets look at it from another point of view; why should a physically "challenged"( U gotta just laugh at all these politically correct terms of patronization) person enjoy special "rights" that the rest of population does not.....

I'm sure my way of thinking may not find to much sympathy with most people but I do not believe in special rights for some over the rest of us, whether you're handicapped or not. If permanently injured folk are given a "right" than that "right" need to be extended to include everyone.

[LongCarbine]

Walkin : I'm sorry to here how you got your "right" to carry a crossbow but aren't politics grand? Sometime's you do have to laugh at it all. I'm not disabled but after working as a machinist all my life I've walked on enough cement , hurt my back and played with enough chemicals over the years to make shooting my v- bows more than a couple of times very uncomfortable. All I want to do is to enjoy bow hunting again, and like I said before I will have to go out of state, And I know there are a lot of other ex-bowhunters out there who just don't bowhunt anymore , because of aches & pains and other reasons, the numbers in WI. are dropping every year ,But that's what the anti-crossbow people want!!! And that is sad.

[Walkin]

And I think that is what we all want; to enjoy the outdoors and harvest game in a way that is respectful and ethical while at the same time not harming the outdoors and it's wildlife so that all others may also enjoy it as we do.

It's simple, isn't it LC.