Age Range of BP shooters

[Stykbow]

Some of the discussion on another thread about the lack of young folks in this sport got me to thinking….how old are we as a group? I’m not doing this for any reason other than satisfying my own curiosity and suspicions. So, just how old are ya?

 

[kyron4]

One would wonder if modern inline muzzleloader have captured more of the younger generations, that without inlines would have gravitated to traditional muzzleloader.

 

[RIDE-RED350R]

What might also be an interesting metric along with age group is how many years one has been shooting BP.

I am in the 41-60 age group and have been shooting BP for just about 26 years. Started at 18 years old

 

[Brokennock]

These results will be slightly skewed by many older b.p. shooters not using internet forums. And, I'm thinking there may be some younger shooters to whom it is just something they do, but not something they dedicate their internet time to. I would be an example of this in reverse. I would like to spend more time shooting my flintlocks but circumstances don't allow it. But I read about it, participate on forums, and read a lot on the history involved with my time period of interest that is flintlock related. However I do spend quite a bit of time with a modern pistol in my hand, and have for many years. A couple decades of being an instructor, range officer, match director, and yet I spend almost zero time on the internet regarding these things, and participate in no forums on the subject.
But, it is an interesting question, and the numbers are falling about where I would suspect for the age ranges offered.

 

[doubleset]

While surveys of this sort can be fun, they can't ever reveal any reliable information (for the usual reasons having to do with different biases in statistical sampling). However, I can pretty much guarantee that the Administrators of the forum either have this information at their fingertips or could easily get it (at least for the subset of members who disclose their ages, etc. -- not everyone does). They might be willing to share this. I know that would take the fun out of all the speculation, but if people really want to get a reasonably close idea of this ...

 

[Eterry]

I don't think anyone is looking for or wanting a Double Blind Study of the average age of shooters on this site.

This is a fun thing to do; I recently did the same thing on the Model A forum I'm on. Just for recreational use only.

I can attest THIS Mod isn't in possession of ANY Demographic information of ANYONE!

And btw, we are getting OLD!!!

 

[sheriff john]

Fun stuff. Results might change by season - when folks are kept inside by weather or outside when the temps are nice. Also - some groups have jobs, while others are retired and able to enjoy this forum when :Management" (wife) shuffles off to bed. Insomnia fuels participation.

 

[Stykbow]

Yes, the numbers could be slightly skewed, but as some have mentioned, it’s mostly for fun and just a little about hard info. It should still give us a fair idea of our age range on the site.

 

[Stykbow]

One would wonder if modern inline muzzleloader have captured more of the younger generations, that without inlines would have gravitated to traditional muzzleloader.

Absolutely they have. That’s what most folks are shooting, so when those young folks start looking to extend their deer season that’s what they get because that’s what most everyone is using.

 

[user 49399]

Stykbow,

You and I see it around here. There are folks younger than us shooting muzzle loaders but they’re inlines. I’ve been called old school more than once.

 

[mushka]

Yes, a poll of how long have you been shooting BP guns might be interesting. I'm 77 and have had a BP rifle since the late 80's but have only been shooting BP guns seriously for a little over three years. Interesting.

 

[Kansas Jake]

Analogy of old school hotrodders with carburetored engines and youngsters with ricers with turbos and computers for tuning. Of course there are crossovers between the two.

 

[JamesA]

Being retired is a plus. I shoot during the week because the ranges at our club are usually empty during the day. After work and on the weekends, the place is crowded and you can't really get much shooting done. I shoot two types of firearms, black powder and center-fire smokeless. Inline black powder does not interest me.

 

[doubleset]

Yes, the numbers could be slightly skewed, ...

Yes, they might be -- but you have no way of knowing this, knowing that they're slightly skewed, or knowing that they're so totally skewed that you're reaching the complete opposite of an accurate conclusion. So it's best to look at this as purely an entertaining game -- like fortune cookies!!

Maybe it's just me -- or the years spent using data analysis to make accurate inferences and draw reliable conclusions. I just can't get any fun from thinking I've arrived at meaningful numbers when in fact there's absolutely no reason to believe that.

It should still give us a fair idea of our age range on the site.

Such a survey MIGHT turn out (by accident of available data or biased sampling) to represent the same underlying truth that a reliable analysis would -- but there is no way of knowing that, even if it were to happen. If you don't grasp this distinction, then I guess that the surveys can be a lot of fun. But if you do grasp the distinction, you have to realize that such a survey is just like picking what's true by throwing dice or spinning a roulette wheel or throwing a dart -- which can also be fun. And I guess that's mostly why the survey feature is provided anyway.

I know that people will continue to insist on missing the point about these "surveys" and what they "show", but (again) in fact they don't provide a "fair idea" of anything -- or at least you can never have any confidence that they do. And I do know that perhaps most people don't know enough about elementary statistics to understand this. Perhaps we should do a survey on that!

 

[Stykbow]

Yes, they might be -- but you have no way of knowing this, knowing that they're slightly skewed, or knowing that they're so totally skewed that you're reaching the complete opposite of an accurate conclusion. So it's best to look at this as purely an entertaining game -- like fortune cookies!!

That’s all anyone is doing here. This poll will only gather a cross section of data based on the members that choose to respond; just for the fun of it. We’re not conducting serious business here or trying to solve some problem. It’s just a fun little poll to see where we land based on who answers.

 

[tenngun]

When I got into this I was still a teen and most of the shooters were thirties or forties.
By the time I got in my thirties and forties I was medium age. Most folks were about the same age.
Every event I go to now I see at lest some younger

 

[Omahkapi'si]

Guess the over 80 yrs takes in us born in the mid 1700’s

 

[Stykbow]

Guess the over 80 yrs takes in us born in the mid 1700’s

You’ve held up awfully well for your age!

 

[TFoley]

I'm 76 and I've been shooting BP since 1978.

 

[deerstalkert]

That’s all anyone is doing here. This poll will only gather a cross section of data based on the members that choose to respond; just for the fun of it. We’re not conducting serious business here or trying to solve some problem. It’s just a fun little poll to see where we land based on who answers.

this!
i swear, if someone wanted to poll how many people have a terminus to an alimentary tract, some people would argue about that!