PITSMIT wrote:
dimitri dis nie om pret te he ten koste vd diere nie meeste karoo boere laat oes elke jaar getalle springbokke in elkgeval omdat hulle te veel raak so hoekom nie sommer kompetisie hou terwyl jy oes nie dit maak die getalle minder en dan het die manne sommer bitji samesyn na die tyd en meer mense leer ken mekaar absoluut niks fout met so kompetisie nie almal moet net seker maak daar bly nie gekweste diere agter nie dan is alles gewax
PITSMIT,
I'm the only person here so far that is against this type of competition. I must say that I am a bit surprised. On the other hand, a lot of good people have no problem with the concept and participate in such competitions. But I maintain my view.
Have fun. I agree.
Cull your herds. I agree.
Get together with other outdoorsmen. I agree.
Father and son weekend. I agree.
Raise funds for worthy causes. I agree.
Have a competition of some sorts. I agree.
Kill animals for points and prizes as part of the competition. Strongly disagree. I am not so naive as to think that lighthearted, friendly competition does not exist between friends in the field. But a formal competition with teams competing for prizes is a whole different matter. It goes against the spirit of what I consider hunting or fun. I think it is bad for the image of hunting in a world where hunting is under siege. There are also a number of associations and other bodies within the hunting industry that are against animals being killed as part of a competition. These include the SA Wingshooters Association, Rowland Ward and SAH&GCA (to a greater extent). I've never asked them why they are opposed to killing competitions but they must have a good reason.
[Inserted after I wrote the story below: Sometimes I get a bit carried away on hunting matters. It's not that I have nothing to do with my time]
Jan, his two sons and brother Gert have won XXX hunting competition for the last 2 years. They pride themselves on discipline. Only Head/Neck shots within 200m and only lung shots beyond 200m. Last year it was close. Oom Byljies and his team were only two points behind them on the final standings. This year there is a cash prize of R3,000 or 5 springbuck carcasses. In today's economic environment that is a lot of money/meat. Gert has told his troops that this year they had better defend their title. They decide that on the first morning of the competition they will only take shots at animals within 200m - that means head/neck shots which means more points. They pass up six shots at animals standing at between 230m and 300m and by lunch time they only have two springbuck in the bag. Both headshots. They have to get 6 more springbuck by the close at 4.30pm! They are back in the veld by 1pm. That is when KleinJan wounded his buck that was angling slightly away. A gut shot means points deducted. Jan was not happy with his son. He could feel the title starting to slip away and Oom Byljies' smile getting bigger. With the wounded buck now dispatched they still had 5 buck to get. Jan told his younger son Wimpie that he had better shoot straight as they need the points. Wimpie, only 16 years old, was feeling the pressure. He had never been in this situation before in the veld. Wimpie managed a great shot behind the shoulder at 220m and radioed his dad.
"Was dit n' kopskoot?"
"Nee pa, hy het bietjie ver gestaan"
"F@#!" This competition was not going according to plan.
Gert got in a great neckshot at 180m and a fantastic long-range shot behind the shoulder at 340m.
"Agter die blad Gert??
"Ja Jan. Kalmeer man. Die bok het blerrie ver gestaan"
Two more buck to get, one each for Kleinjan and Wimpie. They needed two headshots to give them a score of 80 - 5 points less than their winning total last year!
"Gert gaan sit jy met Kleinjan, ek sal met Wimpie sit"
Both the boys looked nervous.
"Hoekom sweet jy so Wimpie? Ontspan, jy moet reg wees vir die skoot"
There were only 40 minutes to the close when they heard Gert on the radio.
"Kleinjan het sy bok. Kopskoot!"
Jan nearly wet himself. "Pragtig seun!"
Wimpie wiped his forehead. He was so scared of letting his father and the team down.
With 15 minutes to go, Jan was not doing well. "Daar is nie fo#$@n bokke op die plaas nie." No buck meant no points. Maybe he should ask the farmer to drive them around the farm before they leave. Who would know if they hunted for an extra 20 mins - they could still get to the meeting place on time. Maybe the farmer had an extra carcass hanging in the coolroom?
"Daar's een pa!" whispered Wimpie as he pointed to a springbok in the distance. 284m on Wimpie's rangefinder.
"OK seun. Kopskoot"
"Ek skuus pa?"
"F&%$n kopskoot!!"
"Maar pa, dis ver"
His son was right but this was their last opportunity. If they did not shoot they had NO chance of winning. He wouldn't normally do this, least of all to his son but he knew that it was worth the risk. If his son pulled off the shot then they had a good chance of taking the title"
"Wimpie, vat jou tyd maar skiet die don#$@e bok in sy kop"
"Ja pa"
Sorry for the long story (actually enjoyed writing it) but this is not what hunting is about. It won't happen to everyone. Not even to a handful of people. But similar things can and do happen. Personally I think it can bring an ugliness and unnecessary amount of risk taking to the whole thing. The result, (besides the negative image that competing by killing portrays) is buck with their jawbones shot off.
My opinion.