The difference between my first deer and my 50th is kind of hilarious

I started hunting last fall and my first deer looked like I'd been in a knife fight with it. Took me 45 minutes to get it skinned and I left half the hide on by accident. Fast forward to last weekend, I did one in about 12 minutes with my old buck knife and it came out clean as a whistle. The funny part is the only real change was I stopped rushing and started paying attention to where the fat layer sits. Anyone else notice a big jump in their skill after a certain number of carcasses, or was it more gradual for you?

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evan_jenkins20d ago

Nah man, I gotta call this out. You're giving way too much credit to practice when the real difference is probably the deer itself. That first one was likely a young, dumb buck or a doe that fought back because you didn't hit it clean. The 50th probably dropped dead on the spot, so of course it's easier to skin. Anyone can look like a pro when the animal does half the work for you. I've seen guys with 200 deer under their belt still butcher a carcass if they get a bad shot or a tough old rutted-up buck. It's not your skill that changed, it's your standards. You're timing yourself now and bragging about it, but you probably still leave silver skin on half your cuts and call it good. Speed ain't the same as quality, and honestly the fact you're counting your kills is a whole other red flag.