Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Discuss deer hunting tactics, Deer behavior. Post your Hunting Stories, Pictures, and Questions/Answers.
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dan
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Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby dan » Fri Jun 30, 2017 10:48 am

Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Who believes that? You hear that statement a lot, but is it true? Is that what makes a great deer hunter? I say "hokie" Im more of the type to say:

You need to test your limits, to know what your limit is..

You will never know how successful you can be if you don't push to the point of failure.

In order to succeed, you must 1st fail, to know what true success is...


So, who is getting complacent? ;)


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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby ODH » Fri Jun 30, 2017 11:03 am

What I like most about deer hunting is its dynamic - the game changes every single day. "System's" are for things or situations that stay the same. Once I figured that out i appreciated the sport in a whole new way. But man I failed A LOT along the way. And I still fail but in way more interesting ways.
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby blizzardhunter » Fri Jun 30, 2017 11:13 am

I'm still trying to find what works :lol: I think you have to know your strengths and take advantage of them but should always be open minded to a new approach.
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby RidgeGhost » Fri Jun 30, 2017 11:19 am

ODH wrote:"System's" are for things or situations that stay the same. Once I figured that out i appreciated the sport in a whole new way. But man I failed A LOT along the way. And I still fail but in way more interesting ways.


ODH, that really sticks out as something to remember. Especially the failing in more interesting ways part.

I spent the first 18 years of my deer hunting career trying to follow "systems" taught to me by my mentors. I'm thankful that they introduced me to the sport and taught me what they know, but what they were able to teach me hasn't put me where I want to be. I've changed my entire game plan and attitude towards hunting now that I'm on the beast. I may or may not not be more successful, but I've already had a blast scouting for this season. I'm open minded about all of your ideas and I only see room for improvement, but I'm willing to fail every day if I can learn something new.

So no, systems don't work in this world. Maybe systems for gear, or systems for the shot process or hanging a stand, but not for beasting a wild beast.
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Jackson Marsh
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Jackson Marsh » Fri Jun 30, 2017 11:42 am

sys·tem

ˈsistəm/

noun

1.

a set of connected things or parts forming a complex whole, in particular.

2.

a set of principles or procedures according to which something is done; an organized scheme or method.


Find buck bedding.
Determine buck exits.
Find kill tree/spot.
Determine hunter entrance route.
Determine what wind to hunt bed.
Determine/educated guess when buck is using bed.
Quiet entrance and stand setup.
Cross your fingers and hopefully kill buck.

Sounds like a system to me. :lol:
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby <DK> » Fri Jun 30, 2017 11:55 am

Someone hacked Dans account Or this is a test to see how dedicated we are isnt it? Not fooling me! ;) 8-)

On a serious note, people are creatures of habit and dont like change. A deer will adapt to us, most hunters try to force a deer to change his adaptive habits. As ODH pointed out things can happen or change and deer always seem to find a way to put us back in check. I think if one stops forcing the place they WANT to kill that buck and do it where he allows it. With a mindset like that you can successful w any tactic or system IMO. Make the adjustment.
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby SidewayZ » Fri Jun 30, 2017 12:45 pm

I couldn't agree more. About 12 years ago I went back to school after serving in the Marines. I had many challenges during those years trying to balance life, family, newborns, children, work, etc. I failed 3 classes during that time in college and aside from hurting the wallet because I had to pay for same class again, it really got to me that I failed. All three classes I aced the following semester.

Everything I have accomplished in life and have had success in always had three main ingredients: 1) Hardwork (sometimes it fells like you have to move a mountain) 2) Failure and 3) Perseverance to succeed! (a whatever it takes attitude to achieve a goal).
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
-SidewayZ-

I'm not scared to fail, I just fear regret!
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby JoeRE » Fri Jun 30, 2017 1:43 pm

I suspect Dan was talking at least partly about hunters who find a system that doesn't really work, but stick with it anyway just hoping for lightning to strike.

It is true getting outside your comfort zone really can teach you a lot. Applies to a lot more than hunting too.

That being said I do like to find a system that works. Key word works. :lol:
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Fri Jun 30, 2017 1:59 pm

I believe it's a trap a lot of hunters fall into myself included, u get lucky and assume u found the cats aaassss... The whitetail is the most adapting big game animal out there. The hunter who adapts along with them and tests the limits has the upper hand
Life is hard; It’s even harder if you are stupid.
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Southern Buck » Fri Jun 30, 2017 2:41 pm

I'm still trying to find my way into the realm of the big buck killers, but I'll say this. Mistakes used to be something I was terrified of.

I read all the magazines and watched all the shows that made it seem like you only had one chance to be successful, and if you blew it you may as well just forget it and try again next year. It stunted my growth as a hunter and paralyzed my decision making in the field. Now I realize mistakes are just opportunities to learn and grow as a hunter. Trying new things gives me first hand knowledge of what does and doesn't work in the field.

In baseball, a player that only fails 7 out of 10 times is considered a player. For big buck killers, it's more like 9.9 out of 10. There's nothing more satisfying than coming up with a game plan that works out.
But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. John 20:31
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Boogieman1
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Fri Jun 30, 2017 3:13 pm

Southern Buck wrote:I'm still trying to find my way into the realm of the big buck killers, but I'll say this. Mistakes used to be something I was terrified of.

I read all the magazines and watched all the shows that made it seem like you only had one chance to be successful, and if you blew it you may as well just forget it and try again next year. It stunted my growth as a hunter and paralyzed my decision making in the field. Now I realize mistakes are just opportunities to learn and grow as a hunter. Trying new things gives me first hand knowledge of what does and doesn't work in the field.

In baseball, a player that only fails 7 out of 10 times is considered a player. For big buck killers, it's more like 9.9 out of 10. There's nothing more satisfying than coming up with a game plan that works out.





Bingo!! Speaking for myself, the bucks I have on my wall I remember very little about "highlights" mostly. But those big bucks that I screwed the pooch on I remember every detail of the hunt. Think I subconsciously burn it in to my head to keep from ever making that mistake again. After 10 or 12 of those type follies u should be doing ok isn't that much more that can go south as long as u learned from the lessons
Life is hard; It’s even harder if you are stupid.
-John Wayne-
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Lockdown » Fri Jun 30, 2017 4:13 pm

Great post Dan. This one will take off for sure.

There are so many variables that there is certainly no one size fits all system that works for everyone. We all have strengths and weaknesses. And we certainly can't read our way to success...

I posted in a thread a few months ago about learning to be aggressive. When you're aggressive you learn. If I push farther will I bump him?? If I put a camera here is it going to burn this bedding area? When I'm questioning something I like to do it rather than sit back and wonder what would've happened if I did.

The main reason I'm confident hunting from natural ground blinds is because if I think it's possible to kill from an unorthodox set up, I'll try it, even if I feel it's low odds. Heck I can remember sets ups where I'd get settled in and think to myself "oh man... This is never going to work." But I almost always sat there to see what happened anyway. Sometimes the result was a white flag with me thinking "yep. I knew it.". Other times id be walking to the truck grinning because the set up worked and was far more effective than I thought it would be. Push the envelope. Keep learning. Keep building.

If you only do what makes you comfortable, you'll never improve. :think:
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Stanley » Fri Jun 30, 2017 4:29 pm

Great post Dan.
You can fool some of the bucks, all of the time, and fool all of the bucks, some of the time, however you certainly can't fool all of the bucks, all of the time.
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby Dewey » Fri Jun 30, 2017 5:38 pm

I never believed in using a system unless it's every day repetitive things that require specific steps to complete in a timely matter. When it comes to hunting and fishing I'm constantly experimenting and trying new things. That is the beauty about the outdoors as the challenge is completely new every single day. I will be a student until the day I die. Most days I fail but something is learned from every single one of those failures and improved upon for future hunts. About the time I think I figure it out I change it up again to keep it interesting. It's a never ending process. :lol:
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Re: Find a system that works, and stick with it...

Unread postby dan » Fri Jun 30, 2017 8:10 pm

We do things repetitively that have shown us success... But people tend to get complacent. I believe the fear of failure has saved many a big bucks life. It could also be argued that being overly aggressive or trying something that seems crazy has probably saved a few too... But, trying new things, pushing as close as you can, testing how close of an off wind is to close, etc. is what pushes us to the next level.

Many times I get asked those questions... How close? How high, when do I need to stop scouting, etc... The best way to learn that answer is not to ask, but rather to try and push those boundaries. To drop the day to day system and test your limits. You gotta spook a few deer to know what spooks deer... You gotta get to close, to know how close is to close... You gotta fail to understand what success is...

The more years I hunt and the more successful, and unsuccessful hunters I talk with, the more I realize success depends greatly on the way you think and the way you process information. Attitude has a great deal to do with success. Confidence too.. But knowing your limits is part of confidence building.


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