Hunting Cross bow style has gotten a bad reputation among traditional bow hunters, who claim hunting cross bow style gives an unfair advantage to crossbow users over more traditional bow hunters. The debate had continued to fire heated debates throughout the hunting cross bow and traditional bow enthusiasts. When statistics concerning specific hunting cross bow and hunting traditional bow users have been checked, the results have some hunting cross bow enthusiasts singing a victory song. It seems there is an advantage for crossbow users, but that advantage is very small, and negligible.
Hunting cross bow users were evaluated over traditional bow hunters in the state of Ohio, where crossbow hunters, to the chagrin of traditional hunters, have been somewhat vindicated. In spite of the cries of ‘foul’ within the bow hunting community’s traditional bow users, the most current research, done by impartial parties, shows a 23% success rate for hunting cross bow users and a 21% success rate for bow hunters, leaving traditional bow users with just a bit of egg on their faces. While most people believe this research will do little to stop the controversy between the two opposing parties, it is interesting to note that:
• 155,000 registered hunters participated in bow season hunting.
• 70,000 of them practiced crossbow hunting exclusively.
• 55,000 registered hunters used a vertical bow
• 30,000 registered hunters used both a vertical bow practiced cross bow hunting.
Senior Citizen Hunters who received free hunting licenses:
• 4,000 used a cross bow
• 1,000 used a vertical bow
• 1,000 used both
From these statistics, it is clear that out of the 55,000 registered hunters who participated in vertical bow hunting, a whopping 30,000 used both bow and crossbow. From the 6,000 registered bow hunters who were senior citizens, a huge majority, 4,000 used a cross bow, and 1,000 used both traditional bows and crossbows. It is clear this is a preferred method for seniors.
With so many people enjoying crossbow hunting and the statistics in the single state with the most available statistics over a large block of time showing that there is little realistic difference in hunting cross bow style and traditional bow style as far as kill rates go, it seems that there is no conclusive evidence to support the traditionalists viewpoint on the positive effects of prohibiting crossbow use during bow season.