“I got involved in bow hunting five years ago, but have never taken anything,” said one man embarrassingly at an event I recently attended.

“Do you enjoy it?” I asked.

“I sure do,” he responded, “but one of these days I’m hoping my luck will change.”

What this bow hunter may not realize is that in reality he has seen success.

Hunting with a bow is supposed to be hard. Acceptance of the difficulty and the failures that go along with it indicate the growing maturity of a hunter. After all, on nature’s scoreboard, birds of prey, mountain lions and other top-level predators succeed only on a limited basis.

Ann Causey, a professor of philosophy at Auburn University has written extensively on why we hunt. She pointed out that hunting success has been defined through tens of thousands of years of man’s existence. Our earliest ancestors fed and clothed their families with their hunting skills, and the amount and size of game taken was the standard for measuring one’s prowess. Historically, there was no concept of sportsmanship. Anything went. You either made a kill or starved to death.

For the most part, this remained a valid measure of success and failure until roughly the last century. These days, virtually no one hunts solely for subsistence. Never the less, in some remote way, the old concept of failure as a measure of a hunter’s worth remains.

Maybe in some ways, this attitude is a reflection of our highly competitive society in which the final outcome is the yardstick to which everything is measured.

More than ever before, change is on the wind. Bowhunting success has come to mean much more than taking an animal. The underlying attraction to hunting with archery equipment is that it places the hunter and game on a more equal footing. We want to be challenged, and then when success does come, it is much sweeter.

We no longer have to hunt to satisfy a growling belly, so new motivations and standards provide the drive to bow hunt. Like the famous phrase, “It’s not whether we win or lose, but how we play the game.”

Today, many hunters venture into the woods for the outdoor experience. Learning about the game we seek, enjoying beautiful surroundings and a communion around a crackling campfire with family and friends is what’s important. These connections are what link us to our hunting roots which are the most important now that our lives are so far removed from the natural world. Who would even want to hunt if we didn’t enjoy these things? As long as a hunting trip is uplifting, we do not fail.

But, the occasional taking of game is important also. A bow hunter works hard to become successful. Without harvesting game, at least occasionally, we lose intensity and direction unique to hunting with a bow. A connection to our past can be consecrated in no other way than by seeking and ultimately taking of game — if only once in a while.

There’s no denying that our competitive juices kept man fed for many years and is why we exist today. Those same urges are still a small part of why we hunt. But success is much sweeter once we realize that failure, by its old definition, is fine too.

No ordinary classroom

Eastern Middle School science teacher Monte Maggart walked around the classroom watching his students study. But the classroom wasn’t surrounded by four walls and the chalkboard and the students weren’t studying reading, writing and arithmetic.

Instead, the kids were learning about rifles, ramrods and arrow flight and the classroom was the beautiful outdoor grounds of the Howard County Izaak Walton League.

For the second year in a row, Eastern sixth graders took a two-week-long class where they earned their certification in Indiana’s Hunter Education curriculum and boy did the students enjoy it.

“This is so much fun. I’d much rather do this than go to regular class,” 11-year-old Michael Hill said as he stood in line at the rifle range waiting his turn to level the sights of the .22 caliber rifle.

“This is so cool getting to shoot,” said Brittany Neeley, age 12, before she touched the trigger which would bring the flint-lock muzzleloader to life with a belch of white smoke.

Before the day ended all 97 students would have their turn at shooting rifles, shotguns, bows and arrows. They also took part in a nature walk where they saw sign recently left by various types of wildlife.

Although not Ph.D.s sporting more degrees than a thermometer, the kids were taught by some of our area’s top instructors. National Sporting Clays Champion Ashley Hafley could be seen on the skeet range where she showed the kids proper shot gunning techniques. World Champion 3-D target archer Adam Gibson coached another group of students on the finer points of shooting a bow. Conservation officers from neighboring counties stood with watchful eyes while providing helpful hints as these kids plinked away at various targets nestled against the earthen backstop.

I have always believed Indiana’s Hunter Education program is so beneficial that it should be required in every school system. It appears the Eastern school board believes it also. “This is such a great thing for the kids,” Maggart said as watched over his young students. “It was awesome that the school board approved it.”

Throughout the class, each student learned about firearm safety, conservation and wildlife management. “This was so much fun,” said Neeley when describing the program. Students also learned about first aid, proper ethics and outdoor safety.

There is no doubt every child benefits from the Hunter Ed. curriculum. Complete firearm safety and first aid is something all kids should be exposed to whether or not they ever intend to hunt. Eastern’s school board should be commended for its decision in making this program part of the annual curriculum.

Tournament results

Morse Reservoir was the site of the Kokomo Senior Bass Anglers final tournament of this summer’s fishing season. After weigh-in it was the team of Wayne Eads and Jerry Picket that came away with top honors. The winners carried five largemouth bass to the scales sporting a combined weight of 12 pounds, four ounces. A three pound, nine ounce fish also gave them the tourney’s “big bass” award.

Second place went to Dave Ault with four fish weighing six pounds, 13 ounces. Wayne Nolder and Bob Rose edged out a third place finish with two fish tipping the scales at four pounds.

The Kokomo Bass Anglers recently completed their end-of-the-year Classic Tournament, held on Michigan’s Gun Lake. In spite of tough fishing, Dave Pross weighed in two largemouth bass totaling five pounds, 10 ounces, which was good enough to earn him the title of 2006 Classic Champion. He also had the big fish of the final event, a largemouth tipping the scales at three pounds, 11 ounces. It was a good day for Pross as he also received the club’s prestigious Angler of the Year distinction.

Max Kelly took second with two fish weighing four pounds, six ounces. Third place went to Bob Lawson with two bass weighing two pounds, 13 ounces.

Hunting results

Here is this week’s list of bowhunters who have seen success and found it necessary to visit one of our area’s state-approved deer check-in stations. This information is provided through the help of Bryant’s Outdoor Store, Burlington Locker, Full Draw Archery, Jack’s Tackle and Frank Simpson’s Deer Processing.

Boone County: Melanie Jarrett — 130-pound, eight-point buck.

Carroll County: Larry Reef — 90-pound doe; Chad Bingaman — 110-pound doe; Joe Kelly — 120-pound doe; Levi Pullen — 65-pound button buck; Mark McCarty — 90-pound doe.

Cass County: Richard Brown — 135-pound, eight-point buck; Mike McNabb — 125-pound doe; Brad Young — 125-pound doe; Matt Good — 70-pound doe; Malachi Clark — 65-pound doe.

Clinton County: Nick Freedline — 110-pound doe.

Fulton County: Robert Swette — 100-pound doe; Joe Conyers — 130-pound doe; Jeff Renie — 115-pound doe; Greg Bartrum — 100-pound doe.

Hamilton County: Zack Martin — 110-pound doe.

Howard County: Brian VanHorn — 125-pound, eight-point buck; Adam Craig — 100-pound doe; Jason Shoemaker — 90-pound doe; James Hickey — 105-pound doe; Don McElroy — 110-pound, eight-point buck; Joe Woodruff — 90-pound doe; Jeff Gillem — 140-pound, seven-point buck; Richard Gasaway — 80-pound doe; Dona Armfield — 207-pound, 10-point buck; James Ade — 180-pound, 10-point buck; Gary Spangler — 120-pound doe; Aaron Maple — 155-pound, nine-point buck; Shawn Petty — 144-pound, five-point buck.

Marshall County: Billy Bryant — 100-pound doe.

Miami County: Alan Welcher — 125-pound doe; Nathan McKee — 115-pound doe; Herschel Conyers — 90-pound doe; Greg Carden — 110-pound doe; John DeGrow — 97-pound doe; Gabe Hartwig — 145-pound, six-point buck.

Pulaski County: Nelson Noble — 125-pound doe; Mark Cade — 110-pound doe; Ron Sharpless — 80-pound doe; Chris Miller — 120-pound doe.

Tipton County: Zack Lawson — 178-pound, eight-point buck; Russell Lawson — 75-pound doe.

John Martino is the Tribune’s outdoors columnist and may be reached through the sports department.