What is the focus of today’s Pope and Young Club?

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After seeing all of the Pope & Young related posts on multiple hunting sites over the past few months - membership drive, Convention, etc - I was curious and decided to check it out and look at what the club stands for and its current initiatives.

After reviewing the club’s official website and Facebook page it still really wasn’t clear to me. The official statement is “to protect the future of our bowhunting heritage and promote the conservation and welfare of habitat and wildlife". But the focus of the club’s communications appears to be the record book, club positions that define its views on acceptable bowhunting practices, and providing a P&Y member fraternal platform. Didn’t see much information on conservation except a few articles by Shane Mahoney, but it was unclear how those were related to P&Y initiatives. All-in-all the club’s public facing information left me with more questions than answers about current initiatives what the club currently stands for.

So, can someone please give a better summary of what P&Y is and its current initiatives. Not at all bashing the club or its members - consider all hunters / bowhunters as part of the same greater team. Just seeking a better understanding, and certain I’m not alone.
 
OP
Spiral Horn
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This is actually a serious inquiry. I really do want to understand today’s P&Y Club. Would someone please provide a brief summary of P&Y’s current focus and initiatives. Cannot figure it out from their website. Thanks.
 
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You probably can get some information on Bowsite versus here on Rokslide. Or better yet try them out by becoming a member and really seeing what they are about. Too much for me to even attempt to summarize in a post.
 

MattB

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As a P&Y member taking a fresh look at their website, I agree - there are descriptions of the various pillars of the club (bowhunting, fair chase, record-keeping, conservation) but in no place that I could find do the club tie it all together.

Ordinarily I would suggest looking at the news to see what an organization does as the best proxy for what it stands for, but you need to pick through that fairly hard to get the gist (lots of partnerships announced which muddle the message).

I am certainly no spokesperson for P&Y, but I would say they are first a bowhunting organization which focuses on protecting the sport and championing fair chase, and secondarily a record-keeping and conservation organization.

One thing I will add is that in recent years there has been quote a bit of new blood injected into the leadership of the organization. One thing I traditionally did not care for was how the leadership was very old guard and a s a then outsider, I thought you could "feel" that in many of the organization's policy decisions. Today's P&Y feels a bit more progressive to me.

There seems to be a renewed effort for you involvement as well, which I applaud.
 
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This is actually a serious inquiry. I really do want to understand today’s P&Y Club. Would someone please provide a brief summary of P&Y’s current focus and initiatives. Cannot figure it out from their website. Thanks.

Are these not questions for P&Y?
Dont you want it from the horses mouth the other opinion of the horses mouth?
3rd Party opinion is rarely more accurate then 1st hand asking who you are asking about.
 

brsnow

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I think it will progressively end up with one general season with weapons of choice. Perhaps merge with B&C to stay relevant. The idea of more traditional archery is fading.
 
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Part of the reason I suggest Bowsite is the President and at least one of the directors of P&Y post frequently on Bowsite. Many very active club members post there as well. Plus you post there.
 
OP
Spiral Horn
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Yes. Originally tried posting this on bowsite but my submitted post was never published (likely censored). There is a zealous P&Y following on bowsite that sometimes stands in the way of open discussion. (Have nothing against either and am still active on bowsite). I’ve seen quite a big P&Y push lately, and not being able to ask questions there, posted here in the hope of some honest discussion of the club‘s current focus. P&Y’s website doesn’t clarify anything. As a lifelong bowhunter I am actually curious about what P&Y is about today. No blasphemy intended.
 
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Here you go............

Article I: Identification



1.1 The name of the Club shall be "Pope and Young Club" and hereafter shall be referred to in these By-laws as the "Club."



1.2 The Club was incorporated June 5, 1963, in the State of Washington.



1.3 The Club is a nonprofit corporation pursuant to the Washington Nonprofit Corporation Act.



1.4 The principal office of the Club is The Pope and Young Club, Box 548, 273 Mill Creek Road Chatfield, MN 55923.



1.5 The voting membership of the Club shall be the Regular and Senior members. Honorary members also shall have a vote when so designated by the Board of Directors. General Members may vote for their representative on the Board of Directors, the Second Vice-president



1.6 The operations of the Club shall be managed under the direction of the Board of Directors hereafter referred to as the "Board."





Article II: Mission and Purposes





Mission:
To ensure Bowhunting for future Generations by preserving and promoting its heritage and values.



2.1 To identify acceptable bowhunting equipment to include compound bows, recurve bows, longbows and flat bows which are hand held and hand drawn under the archers own physical control as identified in the document titled Rules and Regulations of the Pope and Young Club, Inc., attached hereto as Appendix A.

Purposes




2.2 To establish and maintain a scientific system of classification of North American big game animals taken with bow and arrow under the Rules of Fair Chase as specifically designated by the Club.



2.3 To collect and maintain scientific data and records pertaining to bowhunting and North American big game trophies taken with bow and arrow; to establish and maintain scientific methods and formulas for measuring, checking and classifying such big game trophies; to maintain a repository of such scientific data and records pertaining to such trophies, including the size of the animals and location where taken and to make such data and records available in a manner approved by the Board.



2.4 To publish and disseminate information in relation to such North American big game trophies to all interested persons on a non-discriminatory basis, including, but not limited to other conservation groups, sporting groups, and game departments.



2.5 To promote the welfare and conservation of North American big game and their habitat through support of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation.



2.6 To promote bowhunting as a healthy and satisfying outdoor recreational sport for all and to encourage the selective taking of mature trophy animals.



2.7 To encourage, above all, ethical behavior, good sportsmanship; respect for the animals one hunts; appreciation and respect for their habitat and adherence to game laws.



2.8 To establish, maintain, modify and enforce, from time to time, such rules and regulations as the Club feels necessary or desirable to accomplish its mission and purposes.



2.9 To be an organization not actively engaged in the approval, defeat or repeal of public legislation or the election of public legislators and officials.



2.10 To collect and to maintain a repository of archery and bowhunting artifacts and display such artifacts for public viewing.
 

Trial153

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I will say that the website is terrible. My nine year son can build a more intutive and attractive website
 
OP
Spiral Horn
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Submitted a trophy entry many years ago, so if that required membership then at one time I was a member. Understand the ongoing recognition of fair chase bow-harvested trophies, the many club positions on things like fair chase, ethics, equipment requirement, etc. The #1 thing that most folks appear to associate P&Y with today is being extremely and actively anti-crossbow (article 2.9???). But most prospective members (including me) are not really at all interested in what the club is against; but what does it stand for, and what is its current focus/initiatives. As a bowhunter I applaud the clubs efforts to support bowhunting, but first and foremost I’m a hunter, so what else are they currently doing?
 

MattB

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Yes. Originally tried posting this on bowsite but my submitted post was never published (likely censored). There is a zealous P&Y following on bowsite that sometimes stands in the way of open discussion. (Have nothing against either and am still active on bowsite). I’ve seen quite a big P&Y push lately, and not being able to ask questions there, posted here in the hope of some honest discussion of the club‘s current focus. P&Y’s website doesn’t clarify anything. As a lifelong bowhunter I am actually curious about what P&Y is about today. No blasphemy intended.

Maybe engage a couple directly via PM on Bowsite?
 
OP
Spiral Horn
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That’s probably not a half-bad idea Matt. I’m actually looking for info and really would lIke to avoid being misconstrued as something else. Thanks.
 
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MT257

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Yes. Originally tried posting this on bowsite but my submitted post was never published (likely censored). There is a zealous P&Y following on bowsite that sometimes stands in the way of open discussion. (Have nothing against either and am still active on bowsite). I’ve seen quite a big P&Y push lately, and not being able to ask questions there, posted here in the hope of some honest discussion of the club‘s current focus. P&Y’s website doesn’t clarify anything. As a lifelong bowhunter I am actually curious about what P&Y is about today. No blasphemy intended.

How long did you wait to see your post, normally post show up after a 5 minute wait period.
 
OP
Spiral Horn
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Submitted this past Sunday or Monday - never showed up. Been on Bowsite many years and started numerous threads. Was actually curious and looking for some clarifying info. But it’s beginning to look like a fool’s errand.
 

Trial153

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I agree, Bowsite either has some interesting algorithms for things or someone is hypersensitive about censoring criticism pertaining to P&Y.

I have been fairly critical of the president's frequency of injecting partisan politics into issue and more often not my posts disappear
 

MattB

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That’s probably not a half-bad idea Matt. I’m actually looking for info and really would lIke to avoid being misconstrued as something else. Thanks.

Any time, I am full of half-bad ideas. Just ask my wife.
 
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