I love hunting with my Barnett C5 Wildcat and Barnet Buck Commander Extreme Carbonlite crossbows. I also enjoy hunting with my compound bow. Its lighter and easier to transport but just as deadly. In the bowhunting community, there is a subsection of bowhunters who think crossbow hunters should be in a class of their own and not regarded as true “bowhunters” as crossbows have some advantages over modern compound bows. I hunt with my crossbow more mainly because it fits better in my pop-up blind and is easier to use in many instances when I am filming and hunting by myself.

I always seem to catch heat from fellow bowhunters who consider crossbow hunting cheating in the bowhunting world. In other words, one cannot hunt with a crossbow and call himself a bowhunter. I never look at it that way. A crossbow and compound bow both have many of the same advantages and limitations in common. One isn’t better than the other. They are just different. I often remind myself what it takes to get out in the woods, sometimes regardless of the weather, wait and watch and finally make an accurate shot on an animal. Most of the time it takes true grit. Regardless of the weapon, it takes fortitude to be a hunter in every sense of the word. My thoughts? Just call me a hunter!