American Hunter – August 2019

americanhunter.org ❘ 67 ❘ august 2019

I can control the hearing aids through
my phone; when I am in a noisy restau-
rant or at a trade show, I can fine-tune
the sound so I may follow the conversa-
tion. Conversely, when I am in the woods
and everything is quiet, I can adjust them
to allow me to hear the approach of a
buck as it breaks a twig, or the distant
gobble of a turkey. I can hear sounds I
forgot existed, such as the wind rustling
birch leaves in late winter. True hunters
know the importance of such things.

Advantage: Hunter
If you can hear better, you can hunt better.
I love rabbit hunting with dogs. Now I
can hear the hounds well before the rabbit
runs past me. (It’s happened.) When
hunting upland birds in thick cover, I can
hear the dog’s bell stop when he goes on
point. I can also understand my friends
when they tell me the dog is on point.
This leads to fewer birds getting bored
and leaving and a lot less shouting.
There are other, less obvious benefits
for me as a hunter.

PROTECT WHAT
YOU HAVE
Any gunshot can damage your hearing
permanently. If you already deal with
hearing loss, it’s critical to protect the
hearing you have left.
You should use some sort of protec-
tion to attenuate the noise level when
you shoot. For hunting, high-quality
electronic muffs seem to work best. You
can wear them over your hearing aids
so you can still hear ambient sounds,
but they block loud sound impulses to
protect against damage. Take a second
to put them on before you shoot that
buck or duck. You will be glad you did.

I AM A VETERAN

AND THIS

IS MY VICTORY.

Jim Sursely

“My victory is proving that a disability is not a

limitation.” After losing an arm and both legs to

a land mine, DAV helped Jim put life back together.

Every year, DAV helps more than one million veterans

of all generations in life-changing ways—connecting

them to the health, disability, and financial benefits

they’ve earned. Help support more victories for

veterans. Go to DAV.org.

11254_DAV_NRA_4.4375x2.3125_Horizontal_Jim_4C.indd 1 5/10/16 11:38 AM

The new 22 Magnum semi-auto adds extended range and

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22 WMR SEMI-AUTO RIMFIRE

ALSO AVAILABLE IN: Gray Brown Tan Olive Drab

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SAFETY NOTE: Always wear ear and eye protection when shooting fi rearms.

(Images shown are for marketing purposes only and are not intended as safe fi rearm

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RS22W2111

22 WMR

Optic not included

continued on p. 83 (^) »