I Got A New Hunting Rig.....

Fred McIntire

Fred McIntire

Active member
I have been searching for quite some time for a Sportspal canoe to hunt and fish out of. I finally located one a little over an hour away from my home. It's a Sportspal S-16 double end canoe in excellent condition ! It was advertised as a canoe/trailer/outboard package. I was able to talk the guy into selling just the canoe and the Trailex aluminum trailer for a very reasonable price. I picked it up Saturday and brought it home. Pretty happy about my find !

Does anyone else hunt out of a Sportspal canoe ?

I'm looking forward to being able to hunt out of it this year. I was in a terrible car crash on July 8th of this year. My car got hit by a semi tractor trailer rig on Interstate 70 in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. The car was flipped over and went air born, landed on its roof, and slid down the interstate for quite a distance. While air born, upside down, I remember thinking "This is it !" Very scary. God apparently has other plans for me though. It has been hard to get back into the swing of things. If I do anything overly physical or exert myself too much, it just wears me out and I feel horrible, tired and exhausted. The doctors say it could take a long time to fully recuperate from my injuries. I know I'm blessed to be alive. As you can see from the picture, it was only by God's grace and mercy that I'm still here..... Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable hunting season

Fred

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Good morning, Fred~

Well...Congratulations on surviving that "adventure"!

I have experience neither with a Sportspal nor with sliding down a highway wrongside up - but I wish you a thorough recovery and many more fine times afield/afloat.

All the best,

SJS
 
Congratulations on surviving the accident. Recovery is a slow and often painful process. Just keep a positive attitude and focus on the progress you are making. I just had a total knee replacement a few months ago, as well as having recovered from shattering my L-1 vertebra seven years ago, as well as surviving two cancer diagnoses. Life tastes a great deal sweeter every time you cheat death. It takes time to heal, as well as to rebuild the muscle mass that stabilizes your skeleton, enabling you to return to normal activity. I was told I would be active within three months post TKR...realistic recovery to near full activity levels has taken exactly six months. I can balance on a roller board, balance standing on my surgical leg for extended periods, walk down steep grades, and ride both my mountain and road bikes for extended periods now. Things I couldn't do three months ago. Find something to focus your energy and time on. I have been refurbishing a Maine built 1996 TDB-17' classic.

My duck hunting, trapping, fishing partner had a Sportspal 14'. Between my Grumman and his Sportspal we paddled most of the navigable rivers and streams in southern Michigan from High school into our college years. Arland still has his boat stashed on the shore at his family's camp on a great bluegill fly fishing lake in southern Michigan. I am not all that fond of their square stern models, they don't track as well.
 
Very glad God was with you on that trip. Take each day as it comes and try not to get flustered. It could have been the end for you, but you are still here for your loved ones and the love of ducks. You will get there.
 
Fred, you are right. There are many other things for you to do. I hope that Time will heal. Good luck when your season opens.
Al
 
Fred
You certaintly deserve a new hunting rig after that accident. Don't rush that recovery but enjoy your new boat.
wis boz
 
Fred - You are very Blessed to be alive, time heals all wounds. One of my old hunting partners had a Sportspal that we hunted out of for years. Very stable, and can carry lots of gear, dog and 2 hunters.
That said, when fully loaded they paddle like a old log. Seldom did we stay in the canoe to hunt. For one man they may be better, and for you just what the doctor ordered. Enjoy yourself.
 
Fred:

No Sportspal here, but I scan the local classified regularly for a small light beat-up one for remote trout ponds. Those suckers are indestructible and light.

I do have a pile of canoe, and love hunting from them. I know some like to jump shoot or even lay out in a canoe, but I mostly use them for transport and hunt from shore.

I'm glad you are recovering from your accident. If you'll take on bit of advice from someone who has been there--I spent several months in the hospital, went home in a wheelchair, and couldn't really walk for most of 9 months--do every single thing your physical therapist tells you to do, then do it again, and again if you can. It makes a huge difference. My recovery was significantly slowed because once I got to the point I could kind of walk again, I blew off a lot of PT so I could do all the things I missed doing while I was laid up. Although this kept me active hunting, fishing, and working in the garden, that is not the same as the PT that's designed to help you recover.

If I could do it over again, I'd be more diligent, and I think I would have been fully recovered a year or more earlier.
 
Great canoes. I have a friend who has one and loves it for hunting and fishing the river by his house. Good luck with a speedy recovery.
 
I'd just like to say "Thank You !" for everyone's well wishes and encouragement. I greatly appreciate it.... I experience a lot of pain, stiffness, and soreness in my neck, arm, and back with any strenuous physical activity, not to mention the killer headaches that come on. The doctors say it could take some time though to fully recover from the trauma to my body and the concussion I received. I'm very blessed though to have survived such a terrible crash.

I'm looking forward to using the Sportspal hunting this season, and for fishing and family recreation next year too.

Fred
 
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