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Nov 11, 2007 2:31 pm US/Eastern
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Women Break Into Men's Domain With Hunting Program
LA PLATA, Md. (AP) ―
Whether they're experienced shooters or picking up a gun for the first time, women who learn hunting skills at an annual clinic in Maryland are eager to break into a sport that's generally dominated by men.
They're also gaining newfound self esteem, said Eileen Soper, one of more than a dozen instructors in the DNR's Becoming an Outdoors-Woman program.
"Seeing a woman who has never shot anything before get the confidence to walk up and shoot is wonderful," said Soper. "We're reaching a whole different market that's just never been touched."
Soper, 49, of Westminster, begged her father to teach her to hunt as a child, but he refused. Now she's giving her students the opportunity she never got.
On a recent weekend, 30 students went to Blossom Point, near La Plata, to spend one day learning the basics of hunting deer and the next applying their skills.
The program was for beginners only when it started 12 years ago. But since 1995, experienced female hunters have come back year after year to see friends and shoot deer.
"A lot of the more experienced female hunters got experience through us," said Karina Blizzard, who coordinated the weekend's events for the DNR. "Back then, there weren't a lot of opportunities for women to go out and learn how to hunt."
Several women who attended said the clinic offers them a non-threatening way to break into a male-dominated activity.
Michele Eustace, a single mother from St. Michaels, hadn't used a gun since a hunting trip 18 years ago but wanted an activity to share with her 12-year-old son.
"I can't keep up with him on the soccer field, but hunting is something we can do together," Eustace said. "Here they take the time to teach me how to do it properly."
Soper, who spent years as a weaponry instructor for the DNR police, said her new students enjoy learning the fundamentals.
"I taught to all these officers who were bored and didn't want to be there, and now I teach these women who are so excited to learn," she said. "To see the pride on someone's face after they hit a target or a deer, that's why I do this."
Brie German, of Annapolis, whose only hunting has come in attending the past four clinics, bagged her own deer for the first time last year.
"It's an empowering thing to be able to step up and fire into a target or a deer for the first time," German said. "I just love that feeling."
(© 2008 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)