Stanley

[dan]

Stan,
I have admired your humble attitude since you joined this forum... I don't hear you "brag" much, you just seem to give advice if its wanted or asked for. But, I have noticed its usually good advice, from a guy who certainly must have put a lot of seasons under his belt, and bucks on the wall...
I am sure I am not alone in wanting to hear more about your journey as a bowhunter. When did you start bowhunting? How has it changed? and what were the key turning points in your hunting journey?

[Black Squirrel]

Stan,
I have admired your humble attitude since you joined this forum... I don't hear you "brag" much, you just seem to give advice if its wanted or asked for. But, I have noticed its usually good advice, from a guy who certainly must have put a lot of seasons under his belt, and bucks on the wall...
I am sure I am not alone in wanting to hear more about your journey as a bowhunter. When did you start bowhunting? How has it changed? and what were the key turning points in your hunting journey?

X2!

[Brad]

x3, I am glad we can all share in Stanley's experiences, both good and bad, because there is always a lesson to be learned. A wealth of knowledge does not come along everyday and we are very fortunate to have you here, glad to see you enjoying the woods, passing on your knowledge, and helping out all the time on just about all subjects. I hope someday I too can share my info as you do, and pass it along to others.

Stan,
I have admired your humble attitude since you joined this forum... I don't hear you "brag" much, you just seem to give advice if its wanted or asked for. But, I have noticed its usually good advice, from a guy who certainly must have put a lot of seasons under his belt, and bucks on the wall...
I am sure I am not alone in wanting to hear more about your journey as a bowhunter. When did you start bowhunting? How has it changed? and what were the key turning points in your hunting journey?

X2!

[RUTIN]

Lets hear it!! lol

[rizzo999]

As a "newbie" to this site he is one of the posters who always seems to have great points/insight. I can't wait to read his story!

[Spysar]

I'd love to hear about Stans bowhunting journey.

[spiker2930]

Stan,
I have admired your humble attitude since you joined this forum... I don't hear you "brag" much, you just seem to give advice if its wanted or asked for. But, I have noticed its usually good advice, from a guy who certainly must have put a lot of seasons under his belt, and bucks on the wall...
I am sure I am not alone in wanting to hear more about your journey as a bowhunter. When did you start bowhunting? How has it changed? and what were the key turning points in your hunting journey?

Time for the annual Bio's, Stanley time for a speech, Share the Knowledge

[Edcyclopedia]

He's probably forgot more than I will ever understand...

Let's have it big guy - or do we need to put you under the interagation light -hmmm?

[PLB]

This should be good!!!!

[ Post made via Android ]

[Milk Weed Seed]

Sounds like a great read coming? I'm looking forward to hearing your story!!! I think most here will agree, Stan must be short for standup guy:-)

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Dewey]

Bump

[xpauliber]

That's a reality show that I would actually watch: a bowhunter's progression from suction-cup tipped arrow launcher to BBSK. Let's hear it Stanley!

[Stanley]

I'll put something together and post it up later when finished. I'll make it as short as possible so as not to bore anyone to death.

[blackwolf]

Looking forward to a great read. Really enjoyed your pictures and discussion last fall.

[Stanley]

The bowhunting chronicles of Stanley Schmidt as requested:
I always had a fascination with the bow and arrow. My first bow was the one with the suction cup wooden arrows about 1955. I broke the bow and had to replace it and make one out of an apple branch from the neighbor’s tree. I was always making bows, no one had any money back then. I did buy a few brass tipped wooden arrows for $.10 at the Coast to Coast store.
We moved in 1959 to another neighborhood I was 9. The new neighborhood guy Billy Callahan had a laminated recurve bow and I was amazed how much better that would cast an arrow than my old apple branch bows. I mowed grass and shoveled snow and saved my money up and bought a Ben Pearson 50 lb fiberglass bow. I think it was $8.88 Took me a couple of years but now I could compete with Billy. Rabbits in the yard were not safe.
I got my first hunting license in 1963 I would walk the rail road tracks and hunt in the timbers there. I would just climb up into a tree or hunted from the ground most of the time. Back then you could go anywhere and hunt. Didn’t even need to get permission, no one else hunted. Back then there were no deer in Iowa. Timber ground was considered a liability as taxes had to be paid with no income.
Dad bought twenty acres in 1965 and I hunted that ground, had a nice creek on one border. Never saw a deer on that property in the 4 years he owned it. I also hunted Kiettles timber down the road. It actually a deer or two on it. I’m not sure what I learned those years except patience and getting skunked. Shot gun season ran for 3 days, buck only and shooting hours were 8 to 4. Archery season was from about end of September to the end of November.

I finally got into some real deer in 1971 I was stationed (Coast Guard) in Kentucky on the Mississippi river bottoms. Killed deer in Kentucky Tennessee and Missouri. Back to Iowa in 1973, very few deer but getting better. I would say on average one deer sighting every two weeks. Got my first Iowa buck that year (button). My goal after that was to get a better buck every year. I pretty much did that for a few years and upped the anti to P&Y bucks. I did get skunked some years here and there but learned a ton hunting everyday of the season bar none. It is so much easier to learn when you are actually seeing deer daily. In the years I tagged out early I would go to the neighboring states and hunt; Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri.
I started shooting 3D in 1974 won my first tournament in 1975. I shot for many years and won about 100 tournaments in all. I haven’t competed at all since 1995. I am sure I couldn’t compete with today’s archers, they are just too good. My mindset was; never just shoot an arrow, concentrate on every practice shot (never waste a shot). If you lose concentration quit for the day. The first 3d tournaments were a piece of cardboard with a deer drawn on them.
I earned my deer hunting degree without the aid of books, magazines, videos, hunting forums, my dad didn’t hunt at all. I learned from actual hunting, as did a lot of the guys from my era. In my mind that is my biggest accomplishment not the heads I have on the wall. That about sums up how I got started bowhunting and my passion for the sport.