bronco1

I picked Dayton/Central but, any game in this district next season could be the one.

'Terrorist' Remark Puts Outdoorsman's Career in Jeopardy Zumbo's Criticism of Hunters Who Use Assault Rifles Brings Unforgiving Response From U.S. Gun Culture By Blaine Harden Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, February 24, 2007; A03 [Hidden Content] SEATTLE -- Modern hunters rarely become more famous than Jim Zumbo. A mustachioed, barrel-chested outdoors entrepreneur who lives in a log cabin near Yellowstone National Park, he has spent much of his life writing for prominent outdoors magazines, delivering lectures across the country and starring in cable TV shows about big-game hunting in the West. Zumbo's fame, however, has turned to black-bordered infamy within America's gun culture -- and his multimedia success has come undone. It all happened in the past week, after he publicly criticized the use of military-style assault rifles by hunters, especially those gunning for prairie dogs. "Excuse me, maybe I'm a traditionalist, but I see no place for these weapons among our hunting fraternity," Zumbo wrote in his blog on the Outdoor Life Web site. The Feb. 16 posting has since been taken down. "As hunters, we don't need to be lumped into the group of people who terrorize the world with them. . . . I'll go so far as to call them 'terrorist' rifles." The reaction -- from tens of thousands of owners of assault rifles across the country, from media and manufacturers rooted in the gun business, and from the National Rifle Association -- has been swift, severe and unforgiving. Despite a profuse public apology and a vow to go hunting soon with an assault weapon, Zumbo's career appears to be over. His top-rated weekly TV program on the Outdoor Channel, his longtime career with Outdoor Life magazine and his corporate ties to the biggest names in gunmaking, including Remington Arms Co., have been terminated or are on the ropes. The NRA on Thursday pointed to the collapse of Zumbo's career as an example of what can happen to anyone, including a "fellow gun owner," who challenges the right of Americans to own or hunt with assault-style firearms. From his home near Cody, Wyo., Zumbo declined repeated telephone requests for comment. He is a 40-year NRA member and has appeared with NRA officials in 70 cities, according to his Web site. In announcing that it was suspending its professional ties with Zumbo, the NRA -- a well-financed gun lobby that for decades has fought attempts to regulate assault weapons -- noted that the new Congress should pay careful attention to the outdoors writer's fate. "Our folks fully understand that their rights are at stake," the NRA statement said. It warned that the "grassroots" passion that brought down Zumbo shows that millions of people would "resist with an immense singular political will any attempts to create a new ban on semi-automatic firearms." Some outdoors writers drew a different lesson from Zumbo's horrible week. "This shows the zealousness of gun owners to the point of actual foolishness," said Pat Wray, a freelance outdoors writer in Corvallis, Ore., and author of "A Chukar Hunter's Companion." Wray said that what happened to Zumbo is a case study in how the NRA has trained members to attack their perceived enemies without mercy. "For so many years, Zumbo has been a voice for these people -- for hunting and for guns -- and they just turned on him in an instant," Wray said. "He apologized all over himself, and it didn't do any good." Zumbo's fall highlights a fundamental concern of the NRA and many champions of military-style firearms, according to people who follow the organization closely. They do not want American gun owners to make a distinction between assault weapons and traditional hunting guns such as shotguns and rifles. If they did, a rift could emerge between hunters, who tend to have the most money for political contributions to gun rights causes, and assault-weapon owners, who tend to have lots of passion but less cash. The NRA appeared to be saying as much in its statement Thursday, when it emphasized that the Zumbo affair shows there is "no chance" that a "divide and conquer propaganda strategy" could ever succeed. "Jim Zumbo Outdoors" was not broadcast as scheduled last week on the Outdoor Channel and will not air next week, said Mike Hiles, a spokesman for the channel. He said sponsors have requested that they be removed from the program. The show "will be in hiatus for an undetermined period of time," he said. Zumbo's long career at Outdoor Life, which is owned by Time Inc., also came to a sudden end in the past week. Zumbo was hunting editor of the magazine, which is the nation's second-largest outdoors publication. He wrote his first story for Outdoor Life in 1962. The magazine's editor in chief, Todd W. Smith, said that Zumbo submitted his resignation after hearing of the large number of readers (about 6,000, at last count) who had sent e-mails demanding his dismissal. Smith dismissed as "conjecture" a question about whether Zumbo would have been fired had he not resigned. "Jim is a good guy, and I feel bad about this unfortunate situation," Smith said. "We are living in very delicate times. For someone to call these firearms 'terrorist' rifles, that is a flash-point word. You are painting a bunch of enthusiasts with the word. They don't like being called terrorists." When he wrote his now-notorious blog entry, Zumbo was on a coyote hunt in Wyoming sponsored by Remington, a detail he noted in the entry. That mention -- as it bounced around in recent days among a number of assault-weapon Web sites -- triggered a call for a boycott of Remington products. That prompted Remington to issue a news release, saying that it has "severed all sponsorship ties with Mr. Zumbo effective immediately." Remington chief executive Tommy Millner issued a personal appeal to gun owners who might be thinking about boycotting the company's products: "Rest assured that Remington not only does not support [Zumbo's] view, we totally disagree," Millner said. "I have no explanation for his perspective. I proudly own AR's and support everyone's right to do so!" Zumbo, in his public apology, said that when he wrote the blog entry that criticized assault rifles, he was at the end of a long day's hunt. "I was tired and exhausted," he wrote, "and I should have gone to bed early."

Dayton's defense only allowed 49 points in district play. 20 of those points were Central.

You can find out everything you need to know on the UIL website. [Hidden Content]

Dayton by 3.

Good post, I agree.

Final in 6 Innnings Dayton 14 Central 3

Bottom of 6th - 2 outs runner on first and second Dayton 14 Central 3

I am sure Huffman won't have a problem either.

BH shouldn't have a problem with Crosby.

Probably, he has got to live up to the rep now. ;D

Frank Smesny(Soph.) got the Start. Cameron Crapo(Fr.) came in after 4 and is pitching now.

BOTTOM OF 5TH Dayton 12 Central 2

Yeah surely an arrest was made. Maybe they only release the wardens part of the story.

Dayton Nederland Central

My thoughts exactly. ;D

This is a pretty cool, you can see all the old stamps and the price changes . [Hidden Content]

That sucker is big ain't it. I didn't know we grew'em that big.

Hunter Takes New Texas State Record Bighorn Sheep AUSTIN, Texas — A ram Stephanie Altimus harvested in the Beach Mountains in early January should stand as the new Texas state record desert bighorn sheep. The record sheep scored 184 points under the Boone and Crockett scoring system following the required 60-day required drying period for scoring purposes. Trans-Pecos Wildlife Management Areas manager Michael Pittman scored the record ram. “This is a great ram and it shows just how far the Texas bighorn program has come,†said Pittman. The record eclipses Terry Fricks’ previous state best of 183 5/8 taken on Elephant Mountain WMA two years ago. Since 1988, when TPWD reinstated hunting for desert bighorns on an extremely conservative basis, approximately 70 permits have been issued. More than half of the rams harvested in Texas have qualified for the Boone and Crockett Club’s big game record book A ram scoring 179 was also taken this year at Elephant Mountain WMA with a permit donated to the Texas Bighorn Society, which auctioned it off with proceeds going into the bighorn sheep program. By conducting annual helicopter survey counts, TPWD biologists can ascertain not only how many animals are present, but also if there are surplus bighorn rams that can be harvested through highly conservative hunting opportunities. The most recent survey documented 822 sheep. This year’s record sheep numbers made possible a record 12 bighorn sheep hunting permits in Texas, well above the previous high of eight permits two seasons ago. Nine of the 12 Texas permits issued this year were for sheep hunts on private land, illustrating how private land stewards are benefiting from the restoration effort. “To anyone unfamiliar with the Texas bighorn sheep restoration program and big game hunting, the price tag for the right to hunt these magnificent animals may seem inflated,†said Mike Berger, TPWD director of wildlife. “But it’s the cause that fuels the bidding. These folks are investing in conservation.†“In additionâ€, added Berger, “we regularly offer desert sheep permits through our public hunting program at virtually no cost to reward the hunters of Texas who have supported this restoration program for decades.†Berger said the decision to offer the permits is based on evidence of additional surplus bighorn sheep observed during the annual aerial census surveys. Nearly a century ago, wildlife biologists estimated there were about 500 desert bighorn sheep in Texas. Half a century later there were none. Today there are more than 800 of these majestic animals in the state and counting. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologists recently completed their annual desert bighorn sheep counts and report populations continue to expand and flourish after years of restoration efforts. The desert bighorn sheep was once prominent in the remote mountains of West Texas, with populations of more than 1,500 animals in the late 1800s. Due largely to unregulated hunting, bighorn numbers dwindled to about 500, according to the survey conducted by Vernon Bailey in 1903. Protective measures for bighorn sheep began as early as 1903 with the enactment of a hunting prohibition; however, changing land use caused numbers to decline to an estimated 35 sheep by 1945. The last reported sighting of a native bighorn sheep occurred in October 1958 on the Sierra Diablo Wildlife Management Area. Biologists believe the last native Texas bighorns were gone by the early 1960s. Efforts to restore bighorns in Texas began in 1954 with the development of a cooperative agreement among state and federal wildlife agencies and private conservation groups. Through landowner and Texas Bighorn Society support, remote mountains in the Trans-Pecos have been enhanced to meet the basic needs of the desert bighorn, including construction of numerous man-made water guzzlers. These capture the area’s limited rainfall to provide more reliable water sources for sheep and other wildlife. The Texas Bighorn Society offers online visitors a chance to observe these animals in the wild via a satellite Web camera and a weather monitoring system near one of these “drinkers†atop Elephant Mountain. To view bighorns in action, go to [Hidden Content]. In addition to the conservation work by Texas Bighorn Society members, hunter funded initiatives such as the Big Time Texas Hunts, sheep permit auctions, hunting license buyers, and the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration federal aid program have provided money for ongoing TPWD research and management efforts.

Game Warden Field Notes Released March 26, 2007 The following are excerpts from recent Texas Parks and Wildlife Department law enforcement reports. Mexican fisherman can’t learn his lesson — Several Region V game wardens were patrolling Falcon Lake Feb. 22 when they observed a Mexican commercial fishing vessel in Texas waters. They made contact with this vessel and apprehended two Mexican subjects who were fishing illegally. One of the subjects had been apprehended four times within the past year. Wardens seized the boat, the motor and approximately 1,200 feet of gill net. Bad gamble begets bad luck — On Feb. 17, a Harris County game warden caught two subjects goose hunting without a valid hunting license or appropriate stamps. The subjects stated that they decided to take the chance of not getting checked instead of purchasing a license. Cases are pending. Drugs, alcohol and doughnuts — A speeding truck entered the McFaddin Wildlife Refuge Feb. 12, zipping past a Jefferson County game warden. The warden followed the truck onto the beach where he watched it perform doughnuts in the sand for several minutes. When the truck finally returned to the road, the warden stopped the vehicle. The occupants admitted to alcohol consumption, but denied any drug usage. Upon further investigation of the vehicle, the warden was able to locate marijuana hidden in the air vent under the dash. Citations were issued. Game Warden’s Patience Foils Fisherman’s Plans — A game warden was doing surveillance on Falcon Lake and various points of the Rio Grande Feb. 6 when he noticed a pickup truck packed with people and towing a boat approach an improvised launch site on the Mexican side of the river. Seeing the game warden, the driver decided to wait. The game warden proved more patient. After much kicking of dirt, smoking of cigarettes, and cursing, the driver left without launching the boat. Who’s filing charges on whom? — An Aransas County game warden received a call Jan. 19 from a local duck hunting guide who was upset with another guide and wished to file hunter harassment charges against his competitor. The warden made contact with both guides, and each decided to file hunter harassment charges against the other. The warden sent both statements and two offense reports to the Aransas County attorney for sorting out. Teamwork brings down bad guys — A region seven game warden and two Montana wardens cooperated in the investigation of two Texas residents suspected of participating in a Montana poaching ring. The investigation led to a search warrant that turned up approximately 19 elk, mule deer and white-tailed deer. Violations spanned a 20-year period. Both Texans are facing numerous charges and fines totaling $20,000. Suspect gets warden’s welcome — A man who fled to Oklahoma to avoid his arrest returned to a game warden’s welcome in Hardeman County Jan. 23. On a tip, the warden waited for the suspect’s arrival at a relative’s residence. The suspect showed up and was consequently arrested for his connection with stolen deer blinds and feeders. Oyster boat captain refuses citations — Chambers County game wardens patrolling Trinity and Galveston Bays boarded an oyster boat Jan. 20. While the wardens were inspecting the catch, the boat’s captain grabbed a handful of undersized oysters and started returning them to the reef. The wardens issued citations for the undersized cargo and for the captain’s failure to comply with the inspection. The captain said he would rather go to jail than sign the tickets. The wardens were happy to accommodate his request. Hunter clears his conscience — After interviewing a 25-year-old resident for an hour, a Newton County game warden listened as a young man confessed to illegally harvesting two deer. He then also admitted to killing a 7-point buck on another property in November, which he tagged as a mule deer. Apparently on a roll, the suspect continued to confess, admitting to possessing both Louisiana and Texas resident hunting licenses and to taking roosting wood ducks the week before without a state or federal duck stamp. Numerous charges are pending. Fisherman takes ride in flying boat — On January 13, Zapata County game wardens responded to a boat accident on Falcon Lake. An individual participating in a bass tournament was returning to the public ramp at a high rate of speed when the throttle stuck. While the operator was attempting to correct the problem, the boat hit the shoreline and went airborne. The boat hit a vehicle causing minor damage and narrowly missed a bystander. The boat finally landed approximately 58 feet from the water’s edge.

First Texas Spring Alligator Hunting Season Starts April 1 AUSTIN, Texas — For the first year in “non-core†counties outside historical alligator habitat in southeast Texas, a spring alligator hunting season will run April 1-June 30. The new regulation comes as people continue to move into alligator habitat across Texas, and state biologists try to provide more hunting opportunity and another means to proactively manage conflicts between people and alligators. Some public confusion has emerged around the new spring hunting season, which has a two-fold purpose, according to Jim Sutherlin with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. He works with the state’s top alligator biologists as manager of the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area near Port Arthur and helps set Texas alligator management and hunting regulations. “The intent of the new spring season is partly to provide additional hunter opportunity and second to proactively reduce conflicts between alligators and people,†Sutherlin said. “We’re trying to be more proactive in managing Texas alligators. There are a couple of non-core counties that do have high potential for alligators, such as Harris and Fort Bend, and these are areas where we have had an increasing number of nuisance alligator reports in recent years. Our agency continues to emphasize public education as a primary way to minimize human-alligator conflicts.†For decades, Texas alligator hunting has been carefully regulated in the southeastern “core counties†of Angelina, Brazoria, Calhoun, Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Matagorda, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Polk, Refugio, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Trinity, Tyler and Victoria. In these 22 core counties, the traditional fall alligator season continues, running Sep. 10-30. The number of alligators taken in core counties is controlled by alligator hide tags issued to private landowners, based on annual surveys conducted by state biologists. Hunters who take an alligator in core counties must immediately attach one of these tags to the hide. This year for the first time, in the 232 non-core counties of Texas outside the 22 southeastern core counties, a spring alligator hunting season will run April 1-June 30. Spring hunters may take one alligator per licensed person during this time frame, and only on private property. Within 72 hours, hunters in non-core counties must complete an Alligator Hide Tag Report Form and mail it to TPWD headquarters in Austin along with a $20 hide tag fee. Report forms are available at TPWD Law Enforcement offices and in the TPWD Outdoor Annual available wherever hunting licenses are sold. There are also some “special properties†within the non-core counties where core county regulations are in effect. In these areas, landowners can have TPWD biologists survey alligator habitat and populations and issue hide tags as they do in the core counties, and these properties must then conduct harvest according to the core county regs. Rules for spring alligator hunting in or around water have generated particular confusion. Hunting an alligator on private property or private water is legal with the consent of the landowner or landowner’s agent. It is illegal to use a firearm to shoot a free-swimming alligator in public water. However, with landowner consent hunters may anchor a hook and line on private property and place the line in public water, then use a firearm to dispatch the alligator after it is caught. Private water includes ponds and stock tanks surrounded on all sides by private land. Public water includes large public reservoirs or lakes and navigable streams such as rivers and bayous. Anyone hunting alligators in Texas must possess a valid hunting license and all alligators must be tagged. As Texas residents expand their homes and businesses into alligator country, encounters between these normally shy reptiles and people have increased. Late spring through summer is alligator mating and nesting season, when gators are more likely to be visible. In recent years, there’s been a steady rise in alligator complaints in southeast Texas in and around Houston and Conroe, many of which are not true “nuisance†alligators. The situation is driven in large part by expanding human development, with roads and housing subdivisions moving into alligator wetland habitat. In Texas, no fatalities have been documented due to alligators. In the past two decades, there have been fewer than 20 injuries due to alligators reported to TPWD statewide, none life threatening. In 1969, a state law that preceded the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973 protected the alligator in Texas. A combined effort by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and state wildlife agencies in the south brought the alligator back, allowing it to rebound in many areas where it had been depleted by unregulated hunting and loss of habitat. The alligator was removed from the endangered list in the 1980s. Since 1984, sustainable hunting has been allowed in Texas and Louisiana. In October 2003, it became a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $25 to $500 for any person who intentionally feeds a free-ranging alligator. Use of bait for legal hunting by licensed hunters or nuisance alligator control hunters is not interpreted as feeding. Alligator experts say the most important rule for the public is to never feed an alligator or allow it to get food. Once an alligator loses its natural fear of people it must typically be killed, since if relocated it would only seek people to find food and become a problem somewhere else. Biologists emphasize that people who may hunt alligators for the first time in the new spring season should think in advance about how to care for the alligator after harvest. Skinning should take place as soon as practical. Alligators are cold blooded reptiles and don’t need to be field dressed like some other popular game animals. But hunters should avoid direct sun or heat on the carcass or skin if possible. The decision about what to do with the hide determines the skinning process. Biologists strongly recommend that hunters consult with a taxidermist early on. More helpful details are in the TPWD brochure “Alligators in Texas,†which contains complete regulations for recreational hunting and commercial harvest, plus alligator skinning tips, cooking recipes, forms and other information. This brochure and the required Alligator Hide Tag Report Form for spring hunting are available as .pdf files on the TPWD Web site. Also online are public safety tips for Living with Alligators, alligator research reports and basic natural history. To request copies of alligator brochures or hunting report forms by mail, phone the Texas Wildlife Information Hotline at (512) 389-4505.

Outlook Good for Spring Turkey Season AUSTIN, Texas — Prolonged dry conditions across the state last year may have impacted wild turkey production in some areas, but overall, the outlook for the 2007 spring turkey hunting season is bright, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologists. Rio Grande spring turkey hunting season opens March 31 and runs through May 13 in 153 counties. The spring eastern turkey season is open in 42 East Texas counties from April 1-30. Special youth-only weekends are set for March 24-25 and May 19-20. “We haven’t had range-wide production the last couple of years so, generally, there might not be as many mature gobblers out there,†said T. Wayne Schwertner, TPWD turkey program coordinator. “With Rio Grande turkeys, however, that means instead of a heckuva lot of birds, hunters might see just a lot of birds.†TPWD census surveys estimate upwards of 60,000 hunters take part in Texas’ spring turkey season and harvest more than 25,000 gobblers. About half of the state’s spring turkey hunting activity occurs in the Hill Country, where Schwertner noted timely rainfall could give the bird population a boost. “There have been some bright spots, localized areas that have gotten rains,†he said. “We got some late winter rainfall and spring rainfall and that’s a good thing, but to really have a major impact on reproduction we need mid-winter rainfall.†Statewide regulations allow the use of shotgun, rifle, handgun, legal archery equipment, or crossbow to take Rio Grande turkey; however, individual landowners and public hunting areas may further restrict the devices to be used. The bag limit for Rio Grande turkey is four turkeys per license year. Regulations and bag limits vary by county, so check the county specific rules where you are hunting. Only gobblers are allowed to be harvested during the spring hunting season. Consult the 2006–07 Outdoor Annual for season dates and bag limits in your area. In the eastern portion of the state, last season saw hunters having to blaze paths through felled trees and debris left over from Hurricane Rita, with below-average harvest results. Things should be better this spring, said Schwertner. “The thing with Easterns is a slightly dry spring is a good thing,†he explained. “Now that the national forest lands are recovering, thanks to prescribed burns opening up habitat, it should be easier to hunt and concentrate the birds more.†Eastern turkey hunting is limited to shotgun, lawful archery equipment or crossbow, with a one-gobbler bag limit. All harvested eastern turkeys must be taken to a check station within 24 hours. To find the check station nearest you, contact a TPWD field office or call (800) 792-1112 or go online at [Hidden Content] . “My only hesitation, because of the storm in 2005, I can’t say what reproduction was a year ago,†added Gary Calkins, TPWD district wildlife biologist in Jasper. “It’s tough to say how many young birds are out there. It should be pretty good, though. Most of the mess in the national forests from the storm has been cleaned off so hunters should be able to move around. We lost a lot of hardwoods in the southern part of the district, but what was out there produced really well and this winter was fairly easy, so the birds came through okay.†If you intend to hunt in the national forest lands, most areas require a TPWD Annual Public Hunting Permit (available for $48 wherever hunting licenses are sold) and the permit is needed to access several hundred thousand acres of public hunting lands in East Texas. Calkins said Eastern turkey populations on private lands remain strong in certain areas of the Pineywoods. He said harvest data indicates that the longer 30-day spring season in East Texas has not had an adverse impact on bird numbers. “Harvest has remained about the same. Most of the harvest still occurs during the first part of the season, probably because there are more hunters out there early on and the birds became educated,†Calkins said. “Although it gave hunters more opportunity to chase them around for a longer period, most of the birds were taken during the first part of the season.â€

I teach Hunters education in Dayton feel free to ask any questions, if you are interested I would be glad to talk about it. March 26, 2007 Hunter Education Instructors Needed AUSTIN, Texas — Hunters 21 and older who find themselves wanting to give back to the activity they love and enjoy should contact the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and become certified as a hunter education instructor. “The department needs men and women to share their love for hunting and the great outdoors by volunteering as an instructor,†said Terry Erwin, hunter education program coordinator. “The Hunter Education Program's goals are to reduce hunting related accidents and violations; promote safe, responsible, knowledgeable and involved hunting practices and enhance conservation efforts, hunting traditions and values. Current instructors include game wardens, volunteers and professional educators, but we need your volunteer help to carry on this valuable tradition.†Prospective instructors must graduate from a state-certified hunter education student course in addition to taking TPWD’s four-hour online training and then attend an 8-hour instructor training workshop and written examination. Other steps include an oral interview by a TPWD game warden. A criminal background check will be conducted and those failing to meet certain standards may be denied certification. Application forms and a schedule of upcoming instructor certification workshops are available by contacting Erwin at (800) 792-1112 ext. 4999 or visit the TPWD web site at www.tpwd.state.tx.us/learning/hunter_education/instruct.phtml

I don't know if we have the most but, we do have it where it counts. We shouldn't be to far behind anybody in this district as far as speed goes. I know for sure Central's Hall is fast, saw that last year.

BH gets the win by 4.