Mike Schmitz was injured in a car accident in 1987. He's a C-6/7 quad with limited strength in his hands and no trunk balance, which means he has faced many of the same problems I did in the field. Mike uses either a mono-pod (Level Lok) or a bi-pod (Harris) to support his weapons when shooting, wether it be a rifle, shotgun or crossbow.
"To help me in the balance dept., I use a couple of different things: A tree stand safety harness attached to the back of my chair that I can lean into without falling forward (works great for trap shooting), and a chaise lounge similar to the ones you buy to take to the beach (the back is high and can be set to a pretty good angle to all the way flat - excellent for wing shooting of all kinds) or I'll just sit on the ground and lean against a tree," he says.
In 2006, Mike was selected for the Pathfinder Award by Safari Club International because of his determination and success in the field as well as his dedication to helping other disabled outdoorsmen.
Congratulations Mike!
He has since been on his first african safari and currently coordinates hunts for BADF which provides hunting opportunities for terminally ill & disabled children and adults.
"As for what I hunt," Mike says, "that's easy. Everything. Mostly deer, geese, ducks and dove but I'm planning my first elk and turkey hunt this year. Chances are I'll go after some bushy whitetails as well this year.
As for advice and insight? Hmmm......
Number one would be to get out there. You won't know what you can do if you
don't try. If you're confronted with a problem, try to find a way to tackle
it and go from there.
Number two - if using a manual chair, set it up to be as tippy as you can.
This will take some of the weight off the front wheels which keeps them from
getting hung up on everything.
Number three - get some BIG knobby back tires and watch for sand (I spent
close to an hour trying to get un-stuck form a sand trap one day... don't
laugh).
Number four - practice with all of your equipment regularly in simulated hunting
conditions. Shooting from a bench is one thing but it's a lot different in
the field.
Number five - get help when field dressing. It sucks to have a spasm and fall
into the gut pile....."
Below - Mike bagged this tremendous elk with his crossbow last year in Canada.
Congratulations Mike! That really is a hunt-of-a-lifetime sized trophy.
Click here to read the story.
Mike will field questions for anyone with
similar injuries. For more info, he can be contacted via e-mail:
mschmitz@bellsouth.net
