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SHE Succeeds on First Safari!
Jim's daughter Eva recently returned from South Africa having taken her first big game animals, all with a muzzleloader. Eva recently expressed a sincere desire to venture into the field to hunt with her father.
Here are some of her thoughts and pictures from the safari ...
"Africa was my first experience as a hunter and my first time seeing what it is about hunting that my dad has always loved so much.
"On the trip, I was doing everything for my first time. Everything from recognizing animals to holding my gun properly was new to me and I had a short amount of time to learn it all. At first it was hard to fit-in with all of the male professional hunters, but everyone at the ranches was so helpful and willing to teach me about hunting, so I was able to quickly adapt.
"It's impossible to understand until you personally go out and experience the emotional ride from start to finish involved with hunting an animal. Excitement, patience, anxiety and worry are all overwhelming while the most difficult and most important trick is staying calm through it all. When I shot my first animal it was hard to tell if my dad was more excited or if I was.
"By far, the best part of the trip was watching my dad do what he loves and share it with me. Being locked up in a concrete blind for 10 hours showed me how similar I am to my dad, which is worrying because I don't think there's room in the world for another Jim Shockey.
"I didn't realize how much I would enjoy hunting until I tried it. I spent my whole life thinking that hunting wasn't for me, but once I learned about how beneficial the hunting industry is to animal conservation, my entire mind set changed and now I'm hooked!"
"On the trip, I was doing everything for my first time. Everything from recognizing animals to holding my gun properly was new to me and I had a short amount of time to learn it all. At first it was hard to fit-in with all of the male professional hunters, but everyone at the ranches was so helpful and willing to teach me about hunting, so I was able to quickly adapt.
"It's impossible to understand until you personally go out and experience the emotional ride from start to finish involved with hunting an animal. Excitement, patience, anxiety and worry are all overwhelming while the most difficult and most important trick is staying calm through it all. When I shot my first animal it was hard to tell if my dad was more excited or if I was.
"By far, the best part of the trip was watching my dad do what he loves and share it with me. Being locked up in a concrete blind for 10 hours showed me how similar I am to my dad, which is worrying because I don't think there's room in the world for another Jim Shockey.
"I didn't realize how much I would enjoy hunting until I tried it. I spent my whole life thinking that hunting wasn't for me, but once I learned about how beneficial the hunting industry is to animal conservation, my entire mind set changed and now I'm hooked!"
Looking for game across the South African landscape.
First big game animal ever ... a great warthog, with muzzleloader, of course!
Then this wildebeest, perfect shot at 160 yards! Like father, like daughter ... First we have to learn details about the animals we're hunting ... including where exactly to aim ...
7/24/2009
