Strength = Hunter Safety?

[JPH]

We were comparing draw weights on another thread and msbadger, who is female, shared that her draw weight is over 50 lbs. I was impressed and told her so. Her reply hit on something very important:

"Must be a farm/constuction back ground thing....throwing 50+lb bales of hay...100lb bags of feed and grew up raking gravel and asphalt in families constuction company...also one of two girls in a nieghbor hood of boys....strength is safety and power..besides I'm not good waiting for others help to get things done....."

I think strength is a very neglected area of hunter safety! The ability to lift yourself on a limb after a tree stand accident, to haul a deer, to carry your gear, and to help a hunting parter in trouble.

Anyone agree? Disagree?

[paulie]

I certainly agree! I guess I never really thought about it before but, you make a very good point! I have put two of my girls through hunter saftey over the past few years, And I dont recall the issue of "strength" being brought up even once!

[MSHunter]

Following Paulie's lead, I, too, think you bring up an excellent point. Strength and overall physical conditioning (being in shape) are vital to success. Not only for the reason you've already mentioned, but also for any other types of exertion such as hiking that may need to be done, as well as dealing with any extreme environments (hot/cold, steep terrain, etc.)

[JPH]

I'm glad to know I am not alone on this and paulie makes an excellent point. Hunters' safety classes are great. Please don't get me wrong, but they do very little to address what is really killing hunters.

- Statistics show that hunters are 3X more likely to die of heart attack than gunshots.
- Death from firearms related accidents have steadily declined since hunters' safety classes became mandatory but deaths from treestand accidents have risen. 
- Statistics are not kept on how many non-fatal hunting injuries there are resulting in trips to the hospital or days lost from work, unless they involve guns.

I agree that strength is only one part of the equation, but I think it is a bigger part than is commonly acknowledged.

[PrairieShadow]

this can go for anything in life.
 
Be physically fit usually mean being strong compared to someone who is not fit. I have a friend who was in a horrible car accident and still had months of recover but his survival was soley attributed to his super high fitness level.
 
Survival of the fittest![:D]