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Black
Bear Hunting with a Can-Am Commander 1000 XT SxS
/ UTV
GNCC ATV Racer Brandon Sturdivant
Takes ATVriders.com Black Bear Hunting
| ATV
/ UTV Hunters Buyers Guide to ATV
& UTV Links |
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Elkins, WV (2/20/2012) - We were
super excited when we got the call about another
bear hunting trip into the West Virginia Mountains
with our good friend and former Pro GNCC ATV Racer,
Brandon Sturdivant. The excitement level gets ramped
up at just the thought of hearing the hounds let
loose on a fresh bear track and the rugged intensity
of the Elkins region just adds an element that makes
the hunt seem like another place in time.
I was also excited to hear that we would have
access to a new 2011 Can-am Commander 1000 XT
SxS / UTV on the hunt and that always makes me
feel relieved due to the fact we can use the Commander
1000 XT to help during the hunt and if successful,
aide in getting a harvested bear out to an awaiting
truck much easier then dragging, which is an incredibly
labor intensive chore.
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The view
on top of the mountain range in Elkins,
West Virginia is breathtaking no matter
what time of the year it is!
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Hunting in general can be summed up by explaining
it as a whole lot of boring (in a good way) combined
with a few minutes of extreme excitement. The
call that a bear had been spotted or a track found
can take you from sitting on the side of a logging
road to a nerve racking high speed run over icy
logging roads only to reach the location and have
nothing good to grow on. That's pretty much how
the majority of the week went for our hunting
group although nearby some reports of success
were coming in so we remained hopeful.
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Icy logging
roads were the only routes that could
be used for larger vehicles like trucks.
The Can-Am Commander 1000 XT would prove
to be handy in the tight brush
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The Can-Am Commander 1000 XT was missing in action
early in the hunt due to its owner having to work,
and I was starting to get a case of feeling rejection
as our successes were nil and all we had were
good conversation, great food and some serious
scenery to view. I really wanted a chance to check
out the Commander 1000 XT in use, and see what
it had to offer as it was indeed a replacement
for the owners Yamaha Rhino, which had an unfortunate
issue that left it ablaze a month earlier. Knowing
there was no insurance on the Rhino, I felt a
bit better knowing at least the owner was pulling
in some wages to cover the cost of the new ride.
One topic of the week was that of being laid
off which unfortunately was on the rise as the
area continues to be sucked into the poor economy.
Suddenly, not having a bear to chase or a SxS
to play with took a back seat as I absorbed the
cold harsh reality so many are facing just trying
to make ends meet and my small wishes seemed paltry
when compared to others who might not have a job
to return to the next day.
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