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Too Popular?

With the exception of your tether supporting your weight all the time there is really not much difference in safety either way. Treestand hunters that are hooked to the tree from the ground up are just as safe as we are. Saddlehunters as a group feel safer and use extreme climbing methods at times that can be more dangerous but that’s not the saddle causing it.
Saddle hunting is growing in popularity and I feel it will continue to grow for several years. Mobile hunting was already growing and I have more company over a mile in the last decade or so. Many of the new mobile hunters don’t stay mobile long. A lot of hunters on public in my area just want to kill a deer. They don’t care much for trophy’s but are having difficulty finding deer close to the road. The truth is if you just want to kill a deer you don’t have to walk that far to do it. If you can’t kill deer a quarter mile off the road walking in 2 miles isn’t going to change much at all. Since starting my mobile journey I have actually decided my chances of killing any deer are just as high or maybe higher in an area with more hunters. You can be more likely to kill a mature deer a long way in. You can depend more on natural deer movement instead of deer being pushed around by other hunters. People who have been having difficulty closer to the road have this idea that deer relocate a couple miles to get away from hunters. It happens to some degree but most new mobile hunters quickly learn that they aren’t seeing any more deer way back in the woods than they were close to the roads. For the solo hunters any mobile treestand is easier to carry a mile into the woods than dragging that deer out. Then they start being mobile road hunters. Nothing wrong with that either. I find a lot of deer relatively close to the road protected by water crossings and thick brush that people find difficult to access. To me it’s so much easier dragging deer through a couple hundred yards of knee deep water than a couple miles of dry open ground.
 
There is the perception from a lot of guys, even those hunting mobile now, that sitting in a saddle for an extended period of time can't possibly be comfortable. At least not as comfortable as their current climber or stand. Combine that with the fact that it is relatively pricey to get into on your own and, since its not really mainstream, there isn't a lot of opportunities to try it so many simply are hesitant to take the plunge.

I also often also hear the question posed "How do you shoot from a saddle?" We have all become so traditionally ingrained in sitting and shooting while facing away from the tree it is hard for many to imagine approaching it differently. Maybe the transition to that was a little easier for me since I generally hunted from a Summit 180 before making the switch so I faced the tree from my climber most of the time. The bottom line is we're creatures of habit and it can be hard to wrap our heads around an entirely different approach
 
I have been hunting out of saddle for 14 years since I read Eberharts book in 2005. Back then people thought you were a crazy oddball. They couldn’t even give saddles away for many years. I remember MC sports had one gathering dust for several years before I bought it for $40. The last year or more has been completely insane. I gave up on Facebook cause how many videos can you watch of people hanging on telephone poles in there backyard. Now it’s their wives and kids. It will be interesting this fall because a lot of the people that are saying it’s so comfortable hanging for 10 minutes in their backyard will realize what the word saddle shape means. My prediction is there will be a lot saddles for sale cause there are easier ways to try and kill a deer.
 
GVDocHoliday said:
I'm afraid the popularity will lead to a lot of possible injuries.

I think saddle hunting is a very physical and athletic activity. I see alot of people on Facebook posting about their saddles that they just got...and alot of them don't look like they have an easy time putting one foot in front of the other, let alone trying to climb a tree.

Just one time forgetting to clip on your lineman's belt before unhooking your tether, and you're effed.

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This is my biggest fear. Before saddle hunting became cool, there were a lot of new and sometimes questionable things being done in the name of cutting weight or becoming more efficient. Some of these ideas panned out, some of them didn't. Our small community was able to police itself on questionable safety ideas and I can't remember anyone getting hurt. Fast forward to now and we have a huge influx of saddle hunters who don't all have the basic knowledge to build on. It's a "I want it now" world and they can go watch a youtube video and try some crazy stuff on their own. Anyone can post a youtube video, it doesn't mean they know what they are doing.

I really think someone is going to get seriously hurt this year. I have thought it would be more related to climbing methods than actually using a saddle, but we've already seen someone have a bridge failure from 20 feet up when it wasn't tied on properly. That is scary.
 
redsquirrel said:
This is my biggest fear. Before saddle hunting became cool, there were a lot of new and sometimes questionable things being done in the name of cutting weight or becoming more efficient. Some of these ideas panned out, some of them didn't. Our small community was able to police itself on questionable safety ideas and I can't remember anyone getting hurt. Fast forward to now and we have a huge influx of saddle hunters who don't all have the basic knowledge to build on. It's a "I want it now" world and they can go watch a youtube video and try some crazy stuff on their own. Anyone can post a youtube video, it doesn't mean they know what they are doing.

I really think someone is going to get seriously hurt this year. I have thought it would be more related to climbing methods than actually using a saddle, but we've already seen someone have a bridge failure from 20 feet up when it wasn't tied on properly. That is scary.
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Somebody already posted that they fell. I think it was a DIY bridge but I can’t remember for sure. Unfortunately you pretty much can guarantee it is going to happen. Especially when people leave the telephone poles in there backyards and start going around limbs and doing stuff in the dark. I pray it’s a safe 2019’ season for all
 
I am a firm believer that in this instant gratification time in which we live people see a video and think that they can do that without understanding that there is a basis of safety/training that is involved. Not having an understanding of knots,breaking strengths force vectors and many other factors can contribute to a very dangerous situation. There is personal responsibility involved and gaining the proper knowledge before leaving the ground. I personally never understand shaving pounds and potentially sacrificing safety to create a lighter setups. I pray we don't read about future accidents because someone was reckless in their safety procedures. There have always been individuals that forgo safety and not use any fall restraint using treestands and the more people get involved in saddle hunting the potential for injury increases. Climbing requires one to be attentive at all times and to be sure of every move.
 
Rangermatthews said:
Somebody already posted that they fell. I think it was a DIY bridge but I can’t remember for sure. Unfortunately you pretty much can guarantee it is going to happen. Especially when people leave the telephone poles in there backyards and start going around limbs and doing stuff in the dark. I pray it’s a safe 2019’ season for all
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It was a tubular webbing bridge, incorrectly tied. My suspicion from reading the post is he tied an overhand instead of an overhand on a bight, and even then probably didn't have a lot of tail in the knot. I've hung for two seasons on that combo, but it still made me go check my stuff!

As far as saddle hunting popularity goes, I think the bubble will pop. Folks will find out that sitting in a saddle is not exactly like sitting on a cloud, and they'll go back to what they're used to after a lifetime of sitting in chairs. Also, the next new thing will come along, and folks will drop this to pursue that.

Or it'll end up like bow hunting. A cool niche that gets traction thanks to guys wanting to hop on a bandwagon and do a little virtue signaling. Before you know it, all that hunting from a saddle means is you had $200 in discretionary income.
 
In 13 yrs i have never ran into another saddle hunter. Besides my crew of 4, i have only heard of another guy on public who used one. Maybe just a myth lol. Saddle hunting has been my secret weapon for so long, it will be weird if i see a bunch of hunters wearing them in the woods. I guess i'll find out in a month.
 
The older I get, the lazier everyone else gets. Of the guys I consider “good” deer hunters.....maybe two are in shape enough to saddle hunt. What’s funny is they always ask me to use my saddle to help hang their stands...lol.
 
Adrena123 said:
In 13 yrs i have never ran into another saddle hunter. Besides my crew of 4, i have only heard of another guy on public who used one. Maybe just a myth lol. Saddle hunting has been my secret weapon for so long, it will be weird if i see a bunch of hunters wearing them in the woods. I guess i'll find out in a month.
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I have been hunting from a saddle since 2003 on public land and I too have never run into another hunter in a saddle. I have enjoyed my little secret. I guess the secret is out now.
 
Since the 80's in Alabama there is a decreasing number of Hunting Licenses sold. Additionally the ratio of deer hunters has decreased with overall licenses sold. Although there may be an increase of Saddle Hunters, hunting pressure is on a decline. This may not be true for other states. Alabama is not known for record deer like our neighbors to the north. Their hunting pressure may be from out of state sales.
 
I wonder if there was a similar hype when climbers first came around.


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I have always been a mobile type never racking the same tree twice most all the hunters I know use some type of preset l went to a saddle to avoid lugging around a 25 pound climber now i have spoken to some af the guys about trying out a saddle and there looking at me cross eyed. So saddle hunting is enjoying a surge look at all the new gear options for saddlers this is great . I don't think that saddle hunting will go mainstream just because most people are lazy and want to hunt out of ladder stands every where I go not uncommon to see ladder stands everywhere left up year after year in the same place.
 
I just started saddle hunting last year. So I'm as new as they come. I've talked to deer hunting friends and some others about saddle hunting and my limited experience with it, and I get a lot of "that's cool, or " I'll have to look into that" but I only know of one person who actually took to the saddle. It's not the magic pill a lot of folks are looking for to kill deer. I agree with whats been said already, If you don't know how to find and kill deer before you take to the saddle, it's not going to give you those skills. I have group of guys that have been coming to the public land by my house for 10 years, 10 YEARS and not one of them has killed a deer with a bow in that time. In fact when I see all their cars and trucks parked in the lot it makes me feel good because other hunters see the crowd and move on. I'd give them all saddles and not have one worry about how many deer they would kill.
As easy as an experienced tree climber or long time saddle hunter makes hunting from a saddle look, it is a specialized skill set. We use equipment that others are unfamiliar with, and lets face it, it takes effort to want to learn and grow. It has been said already that people these days are lazy and want that instant gratification, and to a large extent I cannot disagree. I think lots will try it. Most will give it up because it's not what they thought it was going to be, or that they didn't realize the benefits they thought it would give them in killing deer. For some it will not be as convenient as they thought (to much work). Some just won't feel comfortable hanging from a string from 20 feet. For a few it will be that lost link or the true ah ha technique that they can add to an arsenal of deer killing techniques. I used to run 7 or 8 fixed position sets, that I could re position mid season if I needed to. Last year with the saddle I used two. I killed one deer from a fixed position, and two bucks from the saddle. I predict you OG saddle hunters will see a larger influx of new saddle hunters than you saw in the past. Most will not use it to it's fullest potential, and a lot will drop it completely. I think there is a threshold that most will be unwilling or unable to cross that will keep TRUE saddle hunters a small and elite group.
 
While the increased popularity may lead to more choices and lower prices, I think @Nutterbuster is right when he says "the bubble will pop." I'm not sure we'll ever see saddles on the shelves at the big retailers. Lock-ons and sticks are popular but the big stores only carry a couple brands of sticks and most of em are steel junk I wouldn't waste my money on. So if sticks are popular but still not on the shelves, I doubt saddles will make it to the shelves.
 
I’ve been a traditional climbing stand mobile bowhunter for almost 20yrs. Then about 3 yrs ago I went to a rch, sticks, and lightweight hang on. All because I want to lighten my set up and have better opportunities to kill deer. I’ve run into others but not anything like gun season. As mentioned I see ladder stands in the same place year after year. And some hang ons mixed in. But by and large most hunters are lazy gun hunters only and even at that their often first couple days and the following Saturday guys. Btw, nothing against gun hunters. I worried that when crossbows were allowed that the woods would be filled with the lazy gun hunters that never had the discipline to bow hunt. And there was a little of that but I think it fizzled out and a lot of used crossbows went up for sale.
Essentially people don’t want to put in the work and being mobile is work. Being mobile with a saddle is even more work. I’m going to have to do a lot of practice with a whole new foreign concept of shooting out of a saddle. The online scouting and boots on the ground scouting I know. But physically shooting from a saddle is going to take some work. So I think there will be a bubble that pops as well. And maybe summit or a big name will release some saddle models and ride the wave but it won’t become mainstream. Also as mentioned, hunting as a whole is slowly dying because people don’t have patience and don’t want to deal with heat, cold, bugs, not filling a tag, etc. So I think mobile hunters with motivation have a future without every Tom, ****, and Harry being 50 yards away waving at us in their tree hanging from a saddle.
 
2 yrs into saddle hunting. What I think most people forget as an advantage that I really like is No One knows my spots. I can even do presets stealthily and can keep low profile. Yes moving around is more work I guess but lugging a climbing stand isn't easier or hang on sets keep you contaminating one area with scent. That is something that is worth more than most people forget about. Maybe the bubble pops but that's ok with me.
 
Saddle hunters will probably maintain the same ratio that traditional Archers hold in the archery world...a small fraction of folks that are looked at with contempt or wonder by the majority.

Someone will get hurt or worse because they tried an unsafe modification, trying to be an arborists without the training that is involved, use a piece of equipment outside of it’s designed specs, or a wrong or bad knot.

I watched a couple videos by the guys from New York, one is an Arborists for 30 years. You need to pay attention to guys like that.
 
Are people more afraid of increased injuries due to saddle hunting or climbing? There may not be a difference in how it’s reported but I think there should be distinctions. I don’t think there is much difference in saddle hunting vs hunting from a loc on. The same people using unsafe gear while saddle hunting will be the same ones using unsafe gear in treestands. I think the increased hype of the WE steps will be more of a problem than the increased hype in saddle hunting. I’m not saying the WE steps are unsafe, but WE didn’t seem to have near the excitement until the knaider and swaider/ multistep aider videos came out. There will be very few people who put in the time and practice required for the aider methods to be safe. How those WE steps are installed vary greatly from tree to tree and doing it in the dark going around limbs will create serious challenges and safety risks for people who didn’t put in the practice.
 
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