Dave McCracken
Moderator In Memoriam
Since I was able to quit my second job recently I've had a little more time to watch TV. And this being Fall, the Outdoor Life Network has been running more hunting shows instead of hundreds of hours of bike racing.
This is a good thing. But...
While all TV is devoted to selling stuff, lots of outdoor shows are dedicated infomercials. For instance, Benelli's Outdoor Adventures had a segment recently pimping their M-1 variant with separate PG for turkey hunting. Hale and Knight and Jerry Parrott were the celebrity callers.
Sorry, Benelli, if I can get a turkey within 30 yards, it's not the presence or absence of a separate PG that'll decide whether his spurs hang off my mantel.
Even Shotgun Journal devotes some shots to a close up of the ammo used by the guys in the field and of course, it's from a sponsor also.
One show sponsored by a major maker did show an 870 Express owned by a guide. It was good and rusty. Jokes were made about it...
Still,if you can stand the commercialism and take the endorsements with a bit of salt, there's some good stuff there.
For instance...
"Pull" is subtitled,"A tour of America's finest gun clubs". It's more like a long commercial in the middle segment, while we hear about the great things at such and such a place, but the shooting is good, there's tips from folks like Gil Ash and the two hosts seem to have a great time. And lo and behold, they even are shown missing some. Shari Legate and Billy Gianquinto are the hosts, both have long experience with shotgunning.
Billy also is host of a show on waterfowling with his dog "Buck". This also has some not so blatant endorsements, but the shooting looks genuine and the ducks and geese fold nicely. More on this later.
Shotgun Journal is possibly the best thing going right now. The hosts, Bruce Scott and Marty Fischer, travel and we get to see things like a Pigeon shoot in Argentina, the FITASC Championships(including an interview with Will Fennell, who posts here) and the restoration of an old Model 21 Winchester with a trip to the museums of Cody Wyoming. They have a good time, emphasize sportmanship and ethics, and seem decent sorts.
Dez Young has two shows of him hunting with his Lewellyn setters, first Hank, (Hunting with Hank) and a newer show, Upland Days with Dash(Son of Hank) and Dez. Dez goes after western birds, big prairie stuff and the dog work is terrific. I never hunted with Lewellyns, but watching this show makes me think combing all those burrs out of those long coats would be well worth it.Again, sportsmanship and ethics get more than lip service.
While editing can hide many faults, these folks seem to be good shooters. On some other shows, the mistakes show through.
Another one, which shall remain nameless, showed a snow goose hunt. Goose after goose got hit lightly and sailed out a good part of a county before crashing, while a chorus of "Good shots" rang out and had the cast lying through their teeth.
Guys, if you can't hit them cleanly, don't show the evidence nationwide, OK? And go practice. Ethical shotgunners do exactly that and don't take low percentage shots on stuff that suffers if we do not do our job. Good shots are when the critter folds and heads earthward now, not later.
And, when the camera shows a mess of gamebirds flushing in what looks like CRP land, if they're pen raised birds instead of wild ones,THAT SHOULD BE MADE PERFECTLY CLEAR. A show tonight had everything, including good dogs, good shooting and some tips by Jon Kruger on clays,but the birds had to be kicked sometimes to get them in the air. Preserve shooting is OK, but it's not classic upland hunting, it's preserve shooting....
And one more show with some guy that couldn't hit well with a belt fed 4 gauge extolling the effectiveness of a 410 on stuff as large as wild ringnecks might heve me biting down on my blood pressure pills to make them work faster. That fellow will have some atoning to do if there is a Karmic Law governing us.
Sometimes our friends act more like our enemies.
Rant more off, dismounting from soapbox....
This is a good thing. But...
While all TV is devoted to selling stuff, lots of outdoor shows are dedicated infomercials. For instance, Benelli's Outdoor Adventures had a segment recently pimping their M-1 variant with separate PG for turkey hunting. Hale and Knight and Jerry Parrott were the celebrity callers.
Sorry, Benelli, if I can get a turkey within 30 yards, it's not the presence or absence of a separate PG that'll decide whether his spurs hang off my mantel.
Even Shotgun Journal devotes some shots to a close up of the ammo used by the guys in the field and of course, it's from a sponsor also.
One show sponsored by a major maker did show an 870 Express owned by a guide. It was good and rusty. Jokes were made about it...
Still,if you can stand the commercialism and take the endorsements with a bit of salt, there's some good stuff there.
For instance...
"Pull" is subtitled,"A tour of America's finest gun clubs". It's more like a long commercial in the middle segment, while we hear about the great things at such and such a place, but the shooting is good, there's tips from folks like Gil Ash and the two hosts seem to have a great time. And lo and behold, they even are shown missing some. Shari Legate and Billy Gianquinto are the hosts, both have long experience with shotgunning.
Billy also is host of a show on waterfowling with his dog "Buck". This also has some not so blatant endorsements, but the shooting looks genuine and the ducks and geese fold nicely. More on this later.
Shotgun Journal is possibly the best thing going right now. The hosts, Bruce Scott and Marty Fischer, travel and we get to see things like a Pigeon shoot in Argentina, the FITASC Championships(including an interview with Will Fennell, who posts here) and the restoration of an old Model 21 Winchester with a trip to the museums of Cody Wyoming. They have a good time, emphasize sportmanship and ethics, and seem decent sorts.
Dez Young has two shows of him hunting with his Lewellyn setters, first Hank, (Hunting with Hank) and a newer show, Upland Days with Dash(Son of Hank) and Dez. Dez goes after western birds, big prairie stuff and the dog work is terrific. I never hunted with Lewellyns, but watching this show makes me think combing all those burrs out of those long coats would be well worth it.Again, sportsmanship and ethics get more than lip service.
While editing can hide many faults, these folks seem to be good shooters. On some other shows, the mistakes show through.
Another one, which shall remain nameless, showed a snow goose hunt. Goose after goose got hit lightly and sailed out a good part of a county before crashing, while a chorus of "Good shots" rang out and had the cast lying through their teeth.
Guys, if you can't hit them cleanly, don't show the evidence nationwide, OK? And go practice. Ethical shotgunners do exactly that and don't take low percentage shots on stuff that suffers if we do not do our job. Good shots are when the critter folds and heads earthward now, not later.
And, when the camera shows a mess of gamebirds flushing in what looks like CRP land, if they're pen raised birds instead of wild ones,THAT SHOULD BE MADE PERFECTLY CLEAR. A show tonight had everything, including good dogs, good shooting and some tips by Jon Kruger on clays,but the birds had to be kicked sometimes to get them in the air. Preserve shooting is OK, but it's not classic upland hunting, it's preserve shooting....
And one more show with some guy that couldn't hit well with a belt fed 4 gauge extolling the effectiveness of a 410 on stuff as large as wild ringnecks might heve me biting down on my blood pressure pills to make them work faster. That fellow will have some atoning to do if there is a Karmic Law governing us.
Sometimes our friends act more like our enemies.
Rant more off, dismounting from soapbox....
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