Well opening day was saturday and we got out for a while. This year I'm packing my Reeder 475 and the 500 Linebaugh I just finished. I'm hoping to get something with the 500 since I built it myself I figure that would be pretty cool. I also have my 9yr old daughter enrolled in what they call the "mentor" program where kids between 8 and 12 can hunt with an adult and they actually punch the adults tag. The other cool thing is they accumulate a preference point every year until they turn 12 and pass their hunter safety course and get their own license. Saturday we saw one doe which would be legal because of my disabled hunting permit but she couldn't see it bedded in a bunch of ferns until it took off. I have her hunting with my 7-30 Contender rifle. I was amazed when I started working with her this summer how fast she caught on and how good of a shot she is. Hopefully we'll be back out next weekend but I'm going in for my 5th back surgery on wednesday, they are going to remove part of one disc and inject the other with steroids. Some how I managed to herniate two more disc one adjoining each of the two fused sections in my back and neck so I haven't been able to walk without a cane or walker which means all I've been able to do is road hunt. I'm hoping since this is going to be an outpatient procedure I'll have my legs back right after the surgery and when we come home from the central part of the state I want to take a bunch of logging roads on the west side of the cascades and see if we can't get my daughter her first deer, unfortunately the area I live in has pretty poor deer hunting but the elk hunting is great. We're backwards in that we have alot more elk than deer. I'm hoping by elk season in November to be able to get around some on foot so I can put the 500 to work. I figure the 500 with the 435gr CP bullets I'm running should be just the ticket to anchor another Roosevelt. Anyways I'll be gone for a few days but I'll let you know if my daughter scores on the way home.

Damn Rod, hopefully you will be done with all that stuff soon.

Glad you got out with your little one. Wish you success in your hunt and your health.

Great to be out in the woods with our children, aint it?
We tried a Contender in 7mm tcuon a 14 inch platform for my 12 yr old and she just could not shoot well enough with it. She will be using her .257 Roberts again this year.
In Missouri we have a "Youth Season" where kids 7-15 can hunt with an adult, or on thier own if they have had the hunters safety course. They get their own tags but can use only one before the regular gun season. They get Oct 31 and Nov 1 this year.

Glad to hear you got out!Hope all goes well with the surgery,I feel your pain and will offer some prayers for a speedy recovery.(2 lowers and one upper myself)Rod what area is the surgery going to be?L3,4,5,6?

L4 to S1 is already fused(first surgery was a discetomy/lamenectomy but it didn't last) and the disc they are working on this time is L3-L4. In my neck C5-C6 has been fused twice and now C6-C7 is out, T5-T6 is also herniated but it's not putting pressure in a way that causes me any problems except localized pain. I'm definitely tired of these surgeries and there is a chance if not probability that eventually these two levels will have to be added to the existing fusions.

I was actually supposed to go in for my tests 3 weeks before I did but I had an opportunity to get my daughter into a private Christian school but I had to be here to do it so I cancelled my appointments and then I put off the surgeries so I could take my daughter out for opening day. To me it was worth enduring the extra pain to be able to do those things for my daughter. As much as I'd love to smack a deer with the 500 I built I'm really hoping we can get her a shot a deer, unfortunately we don't have the deer numbers or the number of opportunities those of you in the east have, we get one tag for one deer and western OR deer season is about 4 weeks.

Glad you were able to get out before your surgery. Espically spending time with your daughter. I will be in prayer for you and a quick recovery. I've had 8 back surgeries due to 2 accidents. First I fell out of a deer stand and fractured two vertebrae. This was in 1996. Then in 2001 I was fishing a bass tournament when I was hit by another boat. In this accident I fractured all of my lower lumbar vertebrae and broke my pelvis in 4 places. The result has been a life of pain, pills, and doctor visits. I have yet to find that any surgery has helped with my pain other than the bolts holding my pelvis together. I will not have another back surgery unless it is life or death. Also, the pain meds can be a problem unto them selves when you stay on them long term. Many times they bill these surgeries as out patient and minimally invasive, but don't be fooled. There is no such thing as a minimally invasive back surgery. Be prepared to take it easy for a while. Don't push it. You will only set yourself back if you push it to hard to soon. I know from experience. But there is hope. I am doing the best that I've done since the last accident. My pain is finally under control due to a new med. (Non narcotic) I finally feel like I have my life back and can do most of what I could before the accidents. I have 3 small children one of which is just getting to the hunting age. He killed his first buck last year, an 8 point. I am finally enjoying hunting, fishing, and life in general again for the first time since my accident in 2001. I, like you, love the outdoors. To celebrate or sorts I am having Gary Reeder build me a 475 LB. I am looking forward to getting it hopefully before gun season opens. This will be my first attempt at handgun hunting. I hope the best for you with your surgery and I will promise to be in prayer for you. I know I don't know you but I do feel for others with back problems. I know how debilitating it can be. Enjoy the things that are important, God, family, and the outdoors. Life is shorter than most realize and can be changed in the blink of an eye. I pray for your speedy and complete recovery. Good Luck and God Bless!

Rod; I feel your pain, just had Hip surg. on May 21 and then July 21 had reconstructive rotator cuf and torn bicp.tend rebuild. Didn't hunt much last yr, hope to be out this year. Good luck

Rod, I wish you the best of luck with the surgery and I hope your daughter get a nice deer.

Did That Boater Turn-Out To Be A DUI Case? I Hope You Were Able To Collect At Least A Few Grand For All This Pain & Suffering He's Putting You Through* * *

Thanks guys, just got home and compared to the first 4 surgeries this one was a breeze but we figure it's probably going to be a matter of time before we have to include this in the fused section but for now I am taking it easy because that was a near miss. I'm burnt out on being cut on between my wrists, shoulder and back so I'm going to try and not push so hard or fast for a while especially since the doc flat out told me I have several disc in worse shape than the two that herniated this time and if I don't knock it off I may not like the outcome.

Since I get my medical treatment a couple hundred miles from home I did take the opportunity to venture off on to some various logging roads and explore a little bit in some new country but overall it was pretty bleak in animal appearances but nice just to get out in the woods and drive around a little. I'll probably take my daughter and wife out this weekend and maybe let them do some walking and I'll just park myself in my rig or a lawn chair and see if someone is kind enough to scare a critter out in front of me.

Great to see you are doing as well as can be expected. I think time in the woods is probably the best medicine “you” can get right know.

Hey Rod,

I too will put you on my prayer list and wish you a speedy recovery. I too know how debilitating pain can be.

Great work bringing up your daughter as a hunter. I can tell you that my son Joe and I are about as close as father-son can be and I know part of it has been the hunts we have shared since he was old enough to walk, and Joe is now 31.

Proof of that can be seen in my new Video.

http://www.hunterseyevideo.com

Hello Rod,

I'll also be praying for your recovery. I had my neck medically fused when I was 12 due to scoliosis.

And ditto on Dpeters comments, this January I had to have a life saving brain surgery(Praise Jesus). So needless to say life is short and you never know what is next, spend your time and love with your family and take it easy.

God Bless,
Joseph Richter

Rod,
I will be praying for you.

Unfortunately we did have to hire legal counsel. It turned out the driver was a 17 year old boy that had been drinking. They had an ice chest full of beer according to witnesses. I think they knew the wildlife and fisheries officer because nothing was done. It wasn't even noted in the report. In fact they tried to say it was my fault. It later came out from other witnesses that saw the ice chest full of beer and the boy finally confessed under oath that he had been drinking. Other boaters had to testify that he was driving recklessly and was at fault. We will never know if he was drunk but I have my opinions. They settled out of court but there wasn't much we could receive in the way of financial support. They only had a small insurance policy and basically nothing of value to their names. And certainly nothing that could replace nearly a year of lost wages and the medical bills that have totaled to over $200K to date. Not to mention future medical bills I will certainly incur. I am also self employed and when I don't work I don't get paid. We pretty much lost everything. Home, business, declared bankruptcy, and turned our lives upside down. After 8 years we are just now getting on our feet again. I hold no ill will towards the boy but he will never know the life changing impact that one incident had not only on my life but the life of my wife and 3 small children. I wish in some way he could walk in my shoes just for a day. But such is life.

The Worst Part Is The Stupid Kid Was Obviously Just Trying To Play "Bad**s" In Hopes Of Impressing His Teenage Friends. It Almost Seems Like We'll Have To Adopt Minimum Boating Age Laws To Reduce The Incidence Of These All-Too-Common Tragedies.

Thanks again guys I really do appreciate the prayers and wishes, I'm definitely going to take it easy because these last two discs herniated pretty easy.