Biggest hurdle/barrier to entry into hunting?

[OneGunTex]

I’d say also that a lot of Barrier to Entry to new hunters is current hunters them selves not all but more then we care to admit exist so just hear me out

Yeah, and not to mention all the hunters in this very thread who seem to want to actively discourage new hunters. I hope they're not taking their kids out with them and causing overcrowding in the next generation /s

 

[Steve300xcw]

I’d say also that a lot of Barrier to Entry to new hunters is current hunters them selves not all but more then we care to admit exist so just hear me out and as a note I’ve done it myself so let me explain. We as the hunters get pretty sanctimonious when we discuss conservation to a new hunter we to often are quick to condemn people for going out and shooting a forkey or a spike bull and how that’s not conservation because we who have hunted for many years wouldn’t do it but to nurture and grow a supported new generation of hunters that will benefit us all have to look the other way and say Awesome Job! not why did you shoot that I would have never done that and let those grow up, I have had to talk my self out of saying that to a lot of young kids and understand that that’s part of maturing and become what we all want to see.

I'll be honest. Ive got more respect for a guy sticking a forked horn in the freezer than I do the dorks worrying about how many inches some buck is.

 

[FLS]

Having a mentor is a huge advantage, but not a deal breaker if you really want to hunt. Figuring out seasons and tags isn’t that hard if you have even modest reading comprehension skills. Every state in the nation has public land with game on it to hunt. Some is better than other. Figuring what’s good and what’s not is part of the process. Success is not and shouldn’t be guaranteed.
I think the biggest barrier is the hunting industry itself. They’re lining up to get their hands in your pocket by convincing you you need their products to be successful. That’s 100% bullshit. You don’t need name brand hunting clothing, a custom rifle , or thousand of dollars in camping great to become a very lethal hunter. A pawn shop rifle and the clothes you have in your closet are sufficient to learn with. If you want to learn to be a killer, buy a .22 or a shotgun and learn how to find, hunt, kill, clean, and cook squirrels, rabbits, or whatever small game is available within reasonable distance of where you live. Once you’re proficient with that move to bigger game. Kill the first legal animal you can. Crawl, walk, run. Again, it’s not supposed to be easy. Quit whining and get after it.

 

[Coyote Commander]

The biggest barrier facing new hunters is the same as the rest of us.

Access to quality hunting.

You can have a mentor, the money to buy gear, special seasons and weapons, etc etc.

But if you dont have a decent place to go hunting, odds are you wont stick with it. Otherwise its just a more expensive nature walk.

 

[RockAndSage]

So how do you expect to expand those other people to support us without also expanding the number of hunters? It stands to reason that if every hunter brings along 15 other supporters (which actually checks out, because something like 4.5% of the US population are hunters and 75% of the population supposedly supports "regulated hunting"), then adding 1% more hunters should add another 45 million supporters.

If you personally bring hunting goodwill to 15 other non-hunters (while adamantly telling them they should absolutely NOT start hunting despite all the awesome things you tell them about it to get their support), what's your plan to double that number? Totally defies logic. Biggest public advocates for our hunting and fishing rights are certainly big conservation orgs - who get so much unwarranted hate from the "everything's overcrowded" bunch on here.

Re-read what I wrote. It's about sharing the fare over dinner, not taking people out into the field. Wives, daughters, kids' friends, their parents, etc. A wild game dinner is a rare and special thing for people who don't hunt.

You won't be convincing anti-hunters to support hunting. But the winnable middle of non-hunters is won over by personal connections and positive experiences.