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Greetings and Happy New
Year!
2010 is shaping up to be an
important year for bowhunters and BOU’s busiest year ever. The board met on Jan. 14 to identify
some bullet points for the year and make preparations to address upcoming
issues.
- Unit
hunter management on all of Utah’s deer units (statewide limited entry)
- New
big game season dates
- New
state elk management plan
- Urban
bowhunting
- Bowhunter
education
In order to deal with these
issues effectively, the board identified some internal business items to be
addressed.
- BOU
convention and board elections
- Improvements
for BOU regional committees
- Improved
communication for BOU membership
- Membership
renewals and recruitment
More details are provided
below. With so many important
issues on the horizon, we obviously have a lot to do. In order to best serve your interests,
we need your continued guidance. We
also need your help if you’re willing and able to offer it. Feel free to email or contact your regional chair or board officers as well as utilize this website and encourage your friends to join
Bowhunters of Utah!
Unit
Management
The Wildlife Board has called for the Mule Deer Management Plan committee
to revisit the issue of unit management (statewide limited entry). The DWR will draft a proposal which will
include provisions for dedicated hunters, lifetime license holders and tag
allocations. The DWR expects to
have a draft by May. The deer
committee will then meet in June to discuss the proposal and make any necessary
revisions. As your representative
on that committee, I’ll make the draft proposal available to you and be looking
to the BOU membership for direction.
New
Season Dates for 2011
It’s widely known that the DWR offered suggestions (as an information
item) at the November RACs for comprehensive changes to the big game season
dates. Meantime, as you also know,
the Wildlife Board reduced the general any weapon deer season to 5 days. Suggestions were made at the Board
meeting to make identical changes to the length of the general archery and
muzzleloader deer seasons. At least
two Board members stated their intention to visit the issue of equity next
November.
If you haven’t already seen the suggested new season dates, they’re
available here.
At present,
it appears that the best way to proceed, (as indicated by member feedback so
far), is to support the DWR season proposal, option 2. If harvest reduction (shortened season)
becomes an issue, we’ll make a counter-proposal to accept antler restrictions on
the general archery hunt. While
previous experiments with antler restrictions during the rifle season haven’t
worked out, we can demonstrate the effectiveness of antler restrictions for
bowhunters who are actually close enough to the animals to count antler points
accurately.
Elk
Management Plan
Gordy has been representing BOU on the elk management committee and
reports that he’s pleased and encouraged by the committee’s progress. Gordy has made committee reports on our
website forum and as always, he’s willing to get feedback and able to answer
questions there. The adoption of
any new management plan is always a hot topic, so we’ll keep you posted as the
new elk plan develops and proceeds through the RAC process.
Urban
Bowhunting
BOU was the first and only organization to have the foresight to see this
issue coming and its potential opportunity for bowhunters. We presented urban bowhunting to the
RACs as an information item in 2008.
The time for
urban bowhunting may now be here.
Communities along the Wasatch Front, confronted with the problems they
create by developing on winter range, are looking for viable solutions to big
game animals living in their neighborhoods. As discussion of solutions continues,
specialized bowhunting is gaining support as at least one option.
BOU is currently developing a plan to present to these communities. Obviously, the plan will have to include
special provisions to address the concerns of residents and adequately ensure
safety as well as responsibility.
But for archers who are willing to meet the requisite standards and
conditions, urban bowhunting could offer some interesting opportunities for an
entirely different kind of hunt.
You might think that bowhunting within city limits is a pipe dream or
that it isn’t practical. But there
are urban hunting programs already up and running successfully in several other
states.
Bowhunter Education
BOU has always been a strong supporter and advocate of IBEP bowhunter
education, with several instructors among our membership. State bowhunter education developments
are making progress with a draft education manual to be released this
summer. Although Utah currently has
no real bowhunter education requirements and offers no special incentives, we
anticipate that incentives could be offered in the near future for archers who
obtain bowhunter education certificates.
Meantime, BOU continues to support and promote the IBEP course as an
enjoyable and useful experience for all Utah bowhunters. Besides, research demonstrates improved
success rates for bowhunters who have taken the course.
BOU
Convention and Board Elections
The BOU annual convention will be held at the Lee Kay Hunter Education
Center in Salt Lake City in June.
(More details to come.) BOU
and Lee Kay have been building a partnership over the past year or two. We attempted to hold a benefit shoot and
clinic for Lee Kay last spring, but got rained out. Frank Taylor has been a long time
volunteer at the facility and he and I supported Lee Kay’s Open House last
summer, teaching new archers how to shoot and offering kids a chance to fling
some arrows. On May
22nd, BOU will have a work day to make improvements to the new
archery range. Everyone’s invited
to pitch in and lend a hand.
Respond to this email if you’d like to lend a hand.
Prior to the convention, BOU will hold board elections for those offices
that are becoming vacant. Election
results will be announced at the convention. All offices have a two year term
limit. So please consider serving
your fellow bowhunters! Open
offices include: President, Project Manager, Newsletter Editor and Regional
Representatives.
Regional Committees
BOU is a “bottom-up” organization.
As such, we depend upon the active participation of bowhunters within
each of the state’s 5 regions. That
participation is organized within regional committees. Those committees craft proposals,
represent BOU at the regional RACs, hold regional activities and meetings and
recruit bowhunter members and corporate members. Regional committees have few
requirements and a lot of autonomy.
Shaun Graves has developed a committee chair manual outlining the
responsibilities of the committee chairs.
In addition, I’ve accepted the responsibility for better communication
with those chairs and to act as a mentor for any regional committee that wants
guidance.
At present, BOU is seeking active committee members in every region. If you’d like to take a more active role
in the organization, we can sure use your help. Just reply to this email!
Improved Communication
BOU recognizes the importance of communicating with our membership
and has renewed our commitment to improve communication. We plan to continue with improvements to
our website and we welcome your photos and your participation on our forum. Our newsletter will continue with the
same quality that you’ve come to expect.
And although I’ve been slacking off during the past hunting season, I’ll
resume sending you these messages every month.
But
communication is a two-way deal, so don’t hesitate to let us know what you’re
thinking and what your concerns are.
And of course, we’re always interested in your hunting
stories!
Membership Renewals
I’m including
several expired members in this message, thinking maybe your membership expired
simply because you forgot to renew it.
But as I said at the beginning of this message, the year ahead will be an
important one for Utah bowhunters.
In fact, in my 40 years of hunting in Utah, I don’t recall a year that
has been more critical for the honorable tradition of bowhunting. We need your support!
BOU also
offers corporate memberships for $300 annually and $250 with reciprocal
advertising.
Every current
member can also be a recruiter.
Please use any and every opportunity to encourage our fellow bowhunters
to join us.
Thank you for your support,
Finn |
