HUNTS
HUNTS – The course for everyone by Maureen Coleman, Thames Valley btanch
There were just a few places left on the 2016 HUNTS course when I got a phone call to ask if we could cope with taking a young guy out for a hunt who was a tetraplegic. My impulsive answer was“ yep, for sure!” and it also got me thinking that doing the HUNTS course could also be a neat opportunity for him.
“ Yes, he’ s tetraplegic … but that’ s no drama...”
After I went to Tauranga to meet Elliott and his family, it was all systems go: we take the approach that things such as the HUNTS course are all about what you can do, not what you can’ t. Until Elliott’ s mountain biking accident 2½ years ago, he was one of those 14-year-olds who live life to the full – diving, surfing, biking; he’ d signed up to join Search and Rescue and a HUNTS course as well. The latter two on this list were about the last things he wrote in his own handwriting before fate intervened. Now it was time to“ get back on the bike’, so to speak, and the HUNTS course and an opportunity to learn to hunt would be a wonderful kickstart for new and exciting experiences.
The course began in late July and we had a full contingent of participants ranging in age from 14 to 71 who would work their way through the various parts of the programme, culminating with a hunting trip over Labour Weekend. This year we’ d again decided to take the group on a fly-in trip to the Ureweras – certainly a wonderful place to be and a great way to tick a number of other boxes for them at the same time. However, this part of the course wasn’ t going to be workable for Elliott, so we looked into finding a more suitable hunting spot for him.
Starting the first night of the course with the introductions always brings out the shyest of responses from everyone but it wasn’ t long before that all went out the door. At the various sessions we had guest presenters in addition to our HUNTS course team, who demonstrated and taught topics such as navigation, animal behaviour, hunting techniques, weather assessment, first aid, firearms safety and licencing, river crossing, butchery and much more. A lot of the course is always very“ hands-on” and this is a key part of what we feel makes it so beneficial for all the participants.
Many people with a puzzled look on their faces asked how Elliott was going to get on with the course. The answer is simple: he just did it. With a few adaptions, it was straightforward to accommodate what was required. Admittedly he didn’ t put a pack on his back, lace up his boots and slog his guts out on the hill – but who’ s to say this is the only way to get an animal and enjoy the thrill of hunting?
Before the range session, all the participants were put through the firearms licencing instruction process and had to complete the test papers. Even those who already had their licence benefited from re-doing it, especially since most of them had a different instructor this time, so no doubt they would share in more helpful information. In Elliott’ s case, had a helper to write his answers for
Eight of the 12 HUNTS course participant from 2016. L-R: Steven Gray, Kelvin Clark, Daley McGuire, Elliott Keys( in the Polaris), Lisa Daly, Mike Keys, Greg Rendall, Jason Clark.
24 NZ Hunting & Wildlife 196- Autumn 2017