For Christmas, I’m going with something on the lighter side this week. The old school teacher in me surfaced recently. I once thoroughly enjoyed putting evaluation instruments together, and I just had to “scratch that itch.” I hope you enjoy my South Dakota Sportsman Scale, but don’t take it too seriously. For many, a golf course or jogging trail fills one’s outdoor needs. South Dakota Sportsman’s Scale

How active a South Dakota sportsperson are you? The following scale is primarily based on participation, not prowess or success. To merit a “yes” answer, the activity must have taken place in South Dakota in order to score, and all questions are worth four points. General

1. Have you ever camped in a state campground?

2. Have you by canoe, paddled a stretch of the Big Sioux, James, White, Bad, Cheyenne, Moreau, or Grand River, or the Missouri below Pickstown?

3. Have you ever encountered a rattlesnake?

4. Have you ever by ATV or snowmobile traversed one of the many Black Hills trails?

5. Have you ever scuba-dived and/or spear-fished?

6. Have you ever attended a SDGF&P monthly commissioner’s meeting? Fishing

1. Do you, on an annual basis, buy a fishing license?

2. Have you ever, with artificial flies and a fly rod, pursued trout in a Black Hills stream?

3. Have you ever fished on the Oahe Reservoir?

4. Have you ever specifically fished for catfish?

5. Do you ice fish on a regular basis?

6. Do you own boat? Hunting

1. Do you, on an annual basis, buy a hunting license?

2. Do you, on an annual basis, buy waterfowl stamps?

3. Have you ever bought a furbearer trapping license?

4. Do you regularly hunt pheasants?

5. Have you ever hunted snow geese in the spring?

6. Do you purchase at least one deer tag on an annual basis?

7. Have you ever hunted with a bow & arrow/crossbow?

8. Have you ever hunted with a muzzleloader rifle?

9. Have you ever specifically hunted predators such as fox or coyote?

10. Have you ever specifically hunted sharptail grouse or prairie chickens?

11. Have you ever hunted pronghorn antelope?

12. Have you ever hunted elk?

13. Have you ever spent a day or an afternoon prairie dog shooting?

Scoring

94-100 Give family members a good picture of yourself so they can remember what you look like.

80–92 Family wise, you might be pushing your luck. Consider some moderation.

60–76 Your outdoor activities are done in moderation. You are well-adjusted.

32-72 Don’t hesitate to hit the great outdoors more often. It’s good for your overall health!

0 – 28 Get a life!

I personally scored an 88, and Betsy and the kids have always felt that my hunting/ fishing has been a bit much. I believe I know a few guys who scored 90-92, and they’re happily married thanks to very tolerant understanding wives. Though my scale may seem “guy oriented,” I had no intension of excluding women from this evaluation.

I certainly wish my devoted readers a meaningful Christmas. With Christmas commercialized the way it is, not to mention a political correctness that strives to keep Christ out of Christmas, take a moment, perhaps around that Christmas dinner table, to remember just why we celebrate.

See you next week.