The integrity of the CBH Big Game Club records program will not be compromised!
By Nate Treadwell
Big Game Club Committee
Lately there have been a couple noteworthy incidents involving falsified and unscrupulous attempts to enter animals into the Big Game Club Record Book. These have been well-publicized situations involving suspected illegal and dishonest acts. The alleged poaching of trophy bucks from a National Park and, most recently, illegal antler buying on ebay, are simply unethical and cowardly acts. Furthermore, attempting to officially enter bucks procured by such means into the Record Book is another egregious offense -- not to mention what it does to undermine public trust.
Since official measurers obviously cannot witness every successful hunt, we initially give hunters the benefit of the doubt when entering an animal into the record book. It is right to do so, as the vast majority of the hunters in our state are good, honest people. We do, however, require that each hunter attest to the fact that their animal was killed only under lawful, ethical, and legitimate circumstances. On the back of every official score sheet is a fair chase affidavit. A successful hunter must fill out and sign the affidavit when entering an animal into the record book. It states that the animal was legally killed under ethical and fair chase conditions. This is a sworn document. It can, and will be used in a court of law as evidence. Attesting to anything other than the complete truth on this document is patently illegal. Falsifying any information on the document is nothing more than an act of perjury.
Unfortunately, in these recent cases, the Record Book, and the bucks entered by the offenders, were apparently used primarily for personal advancement. Perhaps the hunters were tempted to cross the line to gain the admiration of peers, or to create a façade of prowess that they had difficulty achieving legitimately. In the most recent case of antler buying, even procurement of industry sponsors and exposure to hunting magazines were supposedlymotivating factors. Ego must have clouded the judgment of these men.
This is unfortunate and quite sad. The Record Book should not be reduced to such a trivial purpose. The intent of the Record Book is not to be a forum for self-aggrandizement and promotion, especially from ill-gotten trophies. The records program is in existence to honor the rich heritage of bowhunting in this state, the glorious animals that roam it, and the honest outdoorsmen who pursue them. Its intent is purely good. More importantly, the game we hunt is deserving of nothing less than completely honest, legal, and ethical pursuit. The Big Game Club intends to uphold this mentality to every extent possible.
The BGC considers any form of poaching,or illegal and unethical hunting a serious affront to our existence. We will not tolerate or accept any sort of such behavior. We will fully assist any law enforcement agency with their investigations to the best of our ability when it comes to prosecuting such offenses. We simply will not stand for any sort of impropriety. The integrity of our record book depends on it.
All trophies entered into the book by those found guilty of illegal and/or unethical behavior will be stricken from the records. The offenders’ names and any photographs will be eliminated from future editions of the Record Book. Depending on the nature of the offense, the membership of offending individuals may be suspended or revoked as well.
In a state where our passions as outdoorsmen are under constant attack, we as hunters must hold ourselves to a higher code of conduct. Incidents like this are black eyes for all of us. The BGC intends to uphold the opposite – to be a bright spot, a good book, and a source of positive motivation for ethical and honest hunters. The records program will continue to stand as a model of legitimacy for hunters for generations to come. Nothing less will be accepted.