Safety on driven hunts for big game: the top priority for everyone!

"All the hunting federations already offer numerous training courses for hunters and/or driven hunt organisers.These courses on safety when hunting will be updated to include a compulsory refresher course every 10 years.It will not be an examination, but a training course to recap on hunting safety techniques, to remind people of situations in which accidents can happen, the behaviours to adopt when encountering people in the wild who are not hunting, to adapt the weapon to the game being hunted, and so on. All the local hunting management plans already have a safety section adapted to the local biotope and hunting practices.

In addition to this training, in order to reinforce and standardise certain hunting safety rules, particularly for the many hunters who hold national licences, there are plans for collective large game hunting campaigns:

-An obligation to wear a neon jacket,
-The installation of temporary signs indicating that a hunt is in progress
-Every local hunting federation will also appoint a hunting safety commission, consisting of the members of the board of the federation"

Source: https://www.chasseurdefrance.com/pratiquer/chasser-en-securite/

On a driven hunt, the briefing before the start of the hunt is essential to remind you of the safety rules and instructions. It is also an opportunity for the organisers to check permits and insurance, and to explain how the day will unfold. The rules to be observed during a hunt apply not only to hunters in action but also to anyone who might be present at the hunting ground, such as motorists and hikers. For this reason, marking out the hunting area is of paramount importance.

Any transporting of guns in a motorised vehicle must be carried out: with the gun unloaded and dismantled, or holstered and unloaded. The use of a vehicle is forbidden during the course of the hunt. The exception is for people with physical mobility disabilities. The wearing of neon clothing is compulsory, depending on the local rules.

As soon as the hunter arrives at their hunting post, they must first of all identify themselves and signal their presence to their line neighbours. Once you’ve located them, you need to define your 30° shooting angles. This is done by taking 5 steps towards one of your neighbours and 3 steps perpendicular to the animals’ direction of flight. They will do the same thing on the opposite side, towards their other neighbour. The hunters must also adapt this procedure to the configuration of their terrain: take account of any obstacles (trees, rocks, paths, houses, roads, etc.) that might be within your shooting angle.

You can mark out your angles in different ways: using local material such as two branches that you plant on either side of your post in the middle of the path. Or even better, by using driven hunting stakes.

Once these factors have been taken into account, the shooter takes up position "in their shooting angle" to wait for the signal to start the hunt. The start of the hunt has been sounded, the hunter can then start loading their gun, after checking the barrel(s). It is imperative to load the gun with the barrel facing the ground and in the safety angle. Once the driven hunt has started, you must not leave your post before the signal is given indicating the end of the hunt. Each shot must be accurate, at close range, and with clear identification of the game. For greater safety, it is best to use high shooting positions such as watchtowers. Of course, all positions that result in a shot that does not hit the target are to be avoided. If an animal is shot and wounded, the hunters must not pursue it. The bloodhounds will take over the search at the end of the hunt.

Finally, an animal that is subject to a hunting plan must only be moved after ringing.

For safety reasons, beaters must be dressed in neon clothing to be visible from a distance. The dogs accompanying the beaters must also wear collars to enable them to be identified quickly. The beat must be perfectly aligned, and if this is not the case, the lead beater can stop the progress of the line to ensure maximum alignment.

Visibility is one of the main safety issues on driven hunts. In order to be able to hunt while remaining both visible and camouflaged, equipment is required that meets these two objectives. To be visible, wearing neon clothing is the best way to ensure you can be seen. At Solognac, some of our neon products for driven hunts are labelled in accordance with the European PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) standard. To obtain this certification, our standardised PPE products have to meet stringent specifications. The many test points required by the PPE standard include the product’s ergonomics, visibility, and the ageing of the material. These tests are carried out at the Decathlon research centre before being certified by an independent laboratory. For camouflage, our product managers have recently developed the Treemetic neon, which you can check out by clicking here.

Being a beater entails a number of obligations to ensure one’s safety. To this end, they must possess these three characteristics:

- Visibility
- Tear resistance
- Perforation resistance

At Solognac, we have been working closely with beaters for many years, enabling them to provide the brand with expertise in the field. We thus developed a product range specially designed to meet the expectations of the beater. This offer guarantees resistance to the aggressive vegetation in our forests, thanks to the ultra-resistant components, tests under extreme conditions and constant improvements.

Marc Monnet - A Solognac driven hunting and beater product tester and presenter on the Seasons TV channel

Marc and his fellow beaters are known for not being "soft" on their equipment, and they wear out a minimum of 4 pairs of boots per year, per person (Note: the Supertrack boots tested by Marc remained waterproof for 1 year of “testing”). Therefore, whether it be boots or shoes, strength is the top priority. Marc prefers boots because of their ease of use with the Supertrack 900 beater’s trousers. He keeps a pair of hunting shoes with gaiters and chaps in the boot of his car for more spontaneous hunts. One important detail: gloves enable you to avoid being held back and to avoid losing the benefits of an ultra-resistant outfit: jacket + trousers + adequate boots. Solognac developed the Supertrack gloves based on his advice. Let’s not forget the protective glasses that are becoming more and more indispensable. This applies since Marc’s team makes at least one appointment per year with the ophthalmologist due to branches or reeds hitting the eye despite the caps.