Not Renewing Huntin fool membership

firebird

FNG
Joined
Feb 19, 2020
Messages
75
Just annoyed and had to vent

1) Increasing the cost and decreasing services with the exception of the full $150 membership.

2) I get the magazine late, sometimes a few days before the application deadlines pretaining to the magazine articles. Most cases I’ve already done my research and applied before the magazine arrives. Which Huntin’ fool tells me is fine by them because I’m in Canada, snail mail.

3) Theres a dozen pages of information and the rest is filler with hunt give away winners and once in a lifetime tag holders stories. Product promotion and there tag application clients. Which don’t really apply to me, I’m just trying to hunt what I can right now and build some points and have an adventure.

4) I have tried to use there services on the phone with their “advisors” a few times over the last 2 years and it’s not been helpful. - Once for an outfitter, which they just sent me some contacts and said he was good, I was hoping and asking their advisor for a little more detail than that. -Another time regarding a specific unit in a state and the guy I was supposed to talk to tried a few times and was gone away hunting untill after the application deadline. I tried him in the late summer and he closed the file in December after talking once telling me he didn’t have time to review right then and then leaving me 2 phone messages, which I called him back and left messages in return.
- the last time regarding landowner tags, I wanted some general information and advise, the guy told me to look harder and get back with specific questions, I emailed him again after doing so and no response.
 
Buddy of mine had a very similar experience to your #4 a few years ago.

Called to get some general ideas on units he had enough points to draw. They told him he needed to pick one and get back to them with specific questions. He did. Advisor told him there were elk and you would have to work for them. That was all he had. Gave my buddy contact numbers for 3-4 other guys that had hunted the unit. After multiple attempts to get ahold of them he just quit trying as they never answered and wouldn't call him back.


Waste of time and $$$.
 
I had it for a year when someone gifted me a membership. Great articles and stories but mostly N/A to me as their focus is definitely on monster animals and once in a lifetime or guided hunts. I did take advantage of the referral service and got a list of names/numbers of people who'd hunted the unit I drew that year. But not sure that's worth the price of admission as you can get that info online too.

My wifes uncle did win a sheep hunt in Alaska through them though. If you are chasing some of those tags it is a way to increase your odds outside of the state draws...
 
The only reason I renewed a 2nd year was for the draws. But I got tired of that and was spending money that could go elsewhere
 
Sounds like they hired some guys from Eastman’s to do their charts and graphs...

Once Jason Carter and Adam Bronson left with the sale, there was no reason whatsoever to get HF.
 
I left 3 years ago, overall I liked the magazines, etc. But like picking my own units so never did call them for advice. Interestingly, I still get calls every year from other members asking about hunts I did in 2017. So if you sign up for that, they keep you on those lists even after you cancel your subscription.

I like the Epic Podcast, sort of like Meateater, in that its more for entertainment than anything.

Haven't fiddled with the Eastman's Taghub, but do pick up a magazine here and there.

I still have both Gohunt and OnX, which are now pretty much straight competitors with GoHunt starting their mapping division and OnX teaming up with TopRut. Will use this year to hopefully use the Gohunt mapping app and looking into TopRut to see which one of those I will keep going forward. Been an OnX and GoHunt member for 4-5 years, so I really had hoped that OnX and GoHunt would merge.
 
I switched to Epic and have had great customer service, fantastic magazine, good advise and great prices on optics.
The name is cheasy, as was mentioned already but that's marketing and it got someone talking about them.
 
I've subscribed to Huntin Fool for probably 10 years now, renewed my membership for this year but also subscribed to Epic Outdoors and I've found the quality of information to better enough that I'm dropping Huntin Fool for next year. Epic has a better website and more intuitive and accurate tools to look at draws in my opinion.

The HF advisors have been great in the times I've used them to book guided hunts, and saved me a lot of time in research for those hunts, but anymore it just seems like they're constantly trying to sell me more raffle tickets vs trying to provide more value. I'm also not a fan of being a member to subsidize things like hiring a completely unqualified Instagram huntress, so I'll take my money elsewhere. There's too many good alternatives on the market today.
 
HF lost my $ to goHunt years ago.
Back in the old days Jason and Adam were great if you called in to ask a few questions. Would consider Epic if I wanted to add another service.
 
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