Tom Venesky: Should laws be changed in regard to deer drives in Pennsylvania?

Deer drives always made me uneasy.

I’ve participated in plenty, and admit it can be a fun way to hunt.

But no matter how fast-paced the action was, the risk was always inherent.

And obvious.

When you have a group of “drivers” moving through the woods directly toward a line of “standers,” with deer in between, it goes against every standard of safety. For a stander, there is really no safe direction to shoot.

If a deer appears in front, any shot that is fired would be in the direction of the drivers. A shot at a deer to the side would be in the direction of the other standers.

And if a deer got through the line of standers, the shots would be at the animal as it’s running away – not a good idea.

So if deer drives are so risky, why are they allowed?

Well, the majority of the time no one is shot during a deer drive, so no harm no foul. Yes, it’s risky, but as long as everyone survived there’s no reason to outlaw the practice, right?

However, the tragic case in Pennsylvania’s Juniata County on Dec. 2 is not only a reminder of just how dangerous deer drives can be, but it also highlights the need to consider some changes.

According to news reports, a group of 24 hunters were doing a deer drive when a buck jumped up and ran back through the drivers. According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, two hunters shot at the buck, and another hunter who was in the direct line of fire was struck in the hip and died.

With limited details beyond that, it’s not clear what went wrong here during this particular drive.

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For anyone who has ever participated in a drive, it’s exciting when deer are pushed out and on the move. To see a buck on the run really gets the adrenaline flowing, and I’m sure that had something to do with shots being fired in the direction of another hunter during the drive.

In a situation like this – when a buck is kicked out during a drive – hunters can become focused solely on the target and forget about safety. And like I mentioned before, there aren’t a lot of safe shooting lanes during a deer drive.

The other fact about this unfortunate incident that got my attention is the number of hunters – 24 – that were involved in the drive. The law in Pennsylvania limits hunting parties to 25 people, so this was legal, but that is a lot of hunters to account for during a deer drive, regardless of the size of the area.

And maybe that’s what needs to change.

I’ve been on deer drives of all sizes, and it was always the ones with 10 or more people that made me uneasy. I won’t be a part of them anymore because it’s simply not worth the risk.

However, when you have a handful of hunters doing small pushes for each other, things are more precise, controlled and safe. In small drives like this, when there’s a driver or two and a couple of hunters standing, deer usually don’t bust out at full speed but rather sneak their way out of the drive.

It’s just a much safer scenario than the huge hunting parties that send every deer in the area fleeing out of the woods at full speed.

There’s no question that the more people participating in a deer drive, the riskier it becomes. That’s why I’d be in favor of limiting hunting parties to, say, a dozen hunters instead of the 25 currently allowed by law.

To me, 24 hunters in a drive is excessive. If there were fewer hunters on that drive, would the accident have still occurred?

Maybe not.

Fewer people means a lower likelihood that someone will be in the line of fire if a buck jumps up between the drivers and standers.

I remember a large drive I participated in years ago, and it was the last. I was one of the drivers and we were pushing out a thick area of scrub oak. I heard a shot ring out in front of me and as I continued to walk in a straight line toward the standers, there laid a dead doe.

It was directly between me and one of the hunters who had been standing. He had shot directly in my direction.

Large-scale deer drives are dangerous. There’s no need to have 15, 20 or 25 hunters pushing deer directly toward each other.

It’s time to lessen the numbers and reduce the risk.