Bonus Point Soup

Zim

Zim

Very Active Member
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2,342
Since I have not won anything in the lotteries this year I just wanted to see if I could win something. I have 259 bonus/preference points built up over 12 states. For the priveledge of donating to all these states I get the grand prize of sitting at home this hunting season. Just curious if anyone out there can top 259 points without drawing one tag in 2009 or 2010. I'd like to be the champion of something.

Chief ingredient was the watered down draw odds as a result of reduced nonresident quotas in Utah, Oregon, Nevada, Wyoming & Maine.
 
we still have WY to draw and the app period for SD has yet to open....you still have a chance to add to your soup, or add some red meat from 4 legged creatures.
 
You are correct I do have about a 15% chance in Wyoming for either deer or lope. I am counting my chickens before they hatch in consideration of the 2 year roll I've been on.

I have the salt and pepper waiting tho.
 
With that many points you should have some good hunts coming your way in the next couple years. If it helps I have 26 total points and I used none of them this year and I am going on two great draw hunts. I did not think it would help.

What is your best set of points? For example, 15 points for deer in Utah or 17 points for elk in Colorado. Lay it out there, show us the math on the 259 points.
 
>Since I have not won anything
>in the lotteries this year
>I just wanted to see
>if I could win something.
> I have 259 bonus/preference
>points built up over 12
>states. For the priveledge
>of donating to all these
>states I get the grand
>prize of sitting at home
>this hunting season. Just
>curious if anyone out there
>can top 259 points without
>drawing one tag in 2009
>or 2010. I'd like
>to be the champion of
>something.
>
>Chief ingredient was the watered down
>draw odds as a result
>of reduced nonresident quotas in
>Utah, Oregon, Nevada, Wyoming &
>Maine.

Zim - that is a bad deal, but I have to ask, how many of those states did you just apply for points, or for glory units that require a ridiculous amount of points, relative to marginal improvement in quality those glory units represent?

I have about 2/3 the number of points you mentioned. I am not too hung up on drawing a premier unit, and I don't ever apply for just points. The last four years, I have drawn no fewer than 5 out of state hunts per year. I look at the research services and stay away from those units that are heavily promoted and make sure one of my choices has decent odds at a unit that is a good unit.

My theory, and it may be wrong, is that the premium units listed by those research services are the "No-brainer" great units, but there are a lot of other units that are not too much further down the quality list, and those non-glory units usually have 5X-10X better drawing odds. Sometimes I am hunting second-fifth choice units, but at least I am hunting.

Having had plenty of those glory tags, there is no guarantee that you will see the 200" muley or 400" bull on that hunt. Guess I would rather hunt as many days as possible, thinking my odds of finding a great critter improve with every day I am in the hills, even if I am not in a "Top 5" unit.

Sounds like you are on a hard luck streak. Hope it gets better for you.

"Hunt when you can - You're gonna' run out of health before you run out of money!"
 
Zim - that probably makes you the champ.

Do you still have that Asian girlfriend that loved the outdoors?


UTROY
Proverbs 21:19 (why I hunt!)
 
LAST EDITED ON Jun-18-10 AT 02:34PM (MST)[p]I counted a few things.

I applied for a total of 35 different hunts this year.

Of those, only one was for points only.

Many of these are for long shot sheep & moose tags with very low odds.

I subscribe to the Huntin Fool (for where not to apply) and zero of my unit selections were in their top 5, unless there were fewer than 5 unit choices for the species.

All of my preference point state hunts were units that I could have drawn last year based on stats, other than maybe some in Oregon where nobody can draw a good tag with 1 1/2 % NR tags.

Some examples:
Applied for pronghorn in CO unit 2 with 13 points.
Applied for unit 45 mzl elk in NM with 3rd pick.
I have: 12 points across the board in OR, 14 elk points in CO, 14 deer points in Utah, 12 points for everything in AZ but elk (8), etc.

Over the last 2 years if you add up the odds from all my applications statistically I should have expected to draw 5 tags. It's just been bad luck.
 
Just remember Zim you can't take all those points with you.I'd be putting in for at least 1 maybe 2 "sure thing" tags a year to make sure you have a hunt to go on.Remember with Utah and Colorado you have options with returning tags if you happen to draw to many and can't make all the hunts.
 
Actually too many tags would not be much of a problem. All my work for USPS involves my laptop and a phone. I can work from just about any large post office in the US. So if I had too much time between hunts I could just work out there a while. I'm able to spread out most my pick's seasons. Plus I'm single so no obligations. I had a couple sure things that didn't turn out sure.
 
I may have held the record until yesterdays Washington "Un-Official" results. I had 349 points as of yesterday in various states and no tag yet this year, but looks like I drew a 2nd deer tag, no suprise, almost a sure thing. Gonna be a slow year, come on Wyoming deer.
 
There is no reason you couldn't have hunted a dozen times or a lot more with that amount of points..

One example if you started on the ground floor in WY, there is no reason you couldn't have hunted pronghorn at least twice by now, and thats just for starters. 13 for Co lope? They aint exactly known for cranking out monsters, pick a decent unit and hunt man!
 
I'd at least do an OTC hunt in ID or CO, leftover tag somewhere, buy a landowner voucher or something...A year without mulies or elk would suck! With the extended poor economy, I bet there will be some good deals on vouchers as the season approaches.
 
Ya I know on the WY lope suggestion. Only reason I didn't target that is mathematically I should have drawn 2 or 3 tags each of the last 2 years. Had I known that I definitely would have applied. My g/f wants to go but she's girly and not strong enough for elk or mulie country. Also I'm not so thrilled with pronghorn hunting.
 
I am only sitting at around 75 points and the only thing I have left is my Wyoming Deer Tag.
 
I rally did not think i had that much till i started adding them up and was amazed at what i have built up. I am 32 years old and have 164 points built up in 7 states
 
I'm right there with you, I have 235 in seven states. I have not drawn a tag this year, and last year the points didn't help me either. In 09 I drew a NM bull tag and that was it. I apply for points in a couple of states and mostly apply for the top hunts in the others. I just look at it like this, every year I don't draw just puts me that much closer to the tags I really want. I am not very patiently waiting for Wyoming to find out if we have goat tags.

TBC
 
I have extended my record after Wyoming results!

Now 0-fer-61 with 261 points and that concludes my season. Hahaha. Fitting end, WY wanted to be a part of my record so bad they actually posted 2 unsuccessful deer results for me and each one says I was awarded a point. Does this mean I will have 6 points next year! Yahoo I can pick any unit and get it!

I will have to call Ripley's too see if both my WY deer points count towards my record. Might be 262 points w/o a tag.
 
After Arizona sheep & deer I ended with 263 points with no 2010 tags. Anybody top this? Do I get a plaque.......or a trophy?
 
What do you expect? Your at the end of the Alphabet ZIM:) JK Good luck this next year. I sure hope your luck does not all happen at once and you have 6 or 8 great tags all at once!
 
You are knowingly putting in for low odds hunts and still complaining????

Hopefully you aren't counting any points in NM because there aren't any to be accumulating there. If you are putting in for 60ish hunts like you say then that means it has only been a few years since you hunted last????
 
Wait a second ZIM
You say too many tags wouldn't be a problem because you have a flexible job and you are single with no obligations
You may not have any tags for this year but all and all I don't think you should be complaining a hole lot here
I have 3 Utah hunts and 2 Wyoming hunts all give you as long as you also take my wife ,3 kids and my prick for a boss
(School starts tomorrow so the kids will need school clothes)
If you don't take the deal all just say I hope you have better luck next year.And yes you should get the trophy
 
Obviously, hunting does not hold the same meaning for some as it does for others.

Between 3 and 8 of us, my family, we have hunted out of state for 10 years in a row.....at least 2 trips per year and sometimes 3. I personally am running 17 years out of 21.

We have NEVER been completely skunked and on a couple of trips, everybody filled. These are all public land, DIY hunts. Some OTC tags, but mostly areas with high draw odds.

Are we hunting premium areas? Obviously not, but we are HUNTING and having a great time! I haven't had a NR point in years.
 
You are right Zim you should have drawn a couple of tags. I've got 221 points in 9 states. Drew 2 this year Az. archery Antelope and a big one Co. Sheep. Last year drew nothing year before 4 tags. Keep it up and you will get too many one of these years. I think you are right to be careful with that many points because if you put in for easy to draw hunts you will get those and thats when you will get the tags you really want. On off years I just go along on good hunts with buddies. Good luck next year.
 
LAST EDITED ON Aug-25-10 AT 12:32PM (MST)[p]Hell ya I put in for premium units I'd be stupid not to. However, as I mentined I always avoid Garth's top 5. Ideally I'd like to draw 2 tags/year, so my draw strategy has been based on that. Statistically, based on my choices I could have expected to draw 5 tags the last 2 years, just didn't happen.

However, next year will be different because I am cashing in my Wyoming elk points and Colorado antelope, basically 100% draws now. Problem will be odds will swing over 50% for WY moose and a couple others. So ya I expect the tide to change and 2011 will be the mother load.

Other problem I have is Utah deer points at 14. I can draw about any hunt except of course Henry Mountains. Not sure what to do with these points. With WY & CO tags next year I probably shouldn't burn these in 2011, but I am gaining nothing with another point.
 
I have 255 points but I did draw three tags. Wyoming Antelope Utah Elk and Iowa Whitetail, also got a backup Antelope tag in Colorado. It seems that I draw 2 to 3 good Hunts a year. You probally just had really bad luck this year and I would not be surprised if you draw 5 or 6 good tags next year.
 
LAST EDITED ON Aug-25-10 AT 03:40PM (MST)[p]biggameballer, Ya I thought I would hit something late like the WY lope or deer with reasonable chance about 15%. What unit you hunting in Iowa? I bowhunted there many times in the 90's, unit 5 public land. But after the price hike I have been sitting on 4 points. I moved here to Illinois 4 years ago and it's a lot cheaper, plus 2 buck tags.........only $26/each. Wish I could justify returning to burn those Iowa points. Nice public land there. May do it one year in Allamakee County just to try a new place. Went there for a USPS inspection and it was cool looking by the river.

2011 would be a great year for me to hit the mother load because it looks like I will be on a 2 year cycle with USPS. 2 years in the field, followed by 2 in the office. Next year will be an office year meaning just phone and computer needed, so I can basically move out west for a couple months if I need to, and work from the Denver office or something to bridge my hunts. 2012 would not be so easy.
 
269 points now...and three tags this year...One suprise and two I expected. I got you beat in total points...I pretty much always do a sure thing or two and if I have to return it, consider that the price of always getting to hunt.
 
HavetoHunt claims he has 349 or something, but all you guys got tags. How many points did you lose after your 3 tags. Did you deduct that from 269?

I'd like a nice wall plaque to look at while I'm not hunting.
 
I'm at 172 with no draw tags this year. I look forward to knocking you off the top of the leader's board next year when I get skunked again, pushing me over 200, and you losing a bunch of points.
 

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