I caught up with an old friend from Riverton last week, and during our conversation he gave me a tip on how to use a ratchet strap to eliminate the recoil from rifles that kick like mules. It was a genius suggestion, and so simple I’m surprised it isn’t common knowledge. The idea is you run the strap around the butt of the rifle, and hook the hooks to the front edge of your shooting table. The ratchet strap keeps the rifle from slamming into your shoulder, making sighting in or practicing with your heavier calibers a lot more comfortable.
But that wasn’t the end of his advice concerning ratchet straps. He said he always carries one when he’s hunting, because they can come in handy in a lot of different situations. For instance, if you’re lucky enough to get permission to hunt on someone’s ranch land, you might come to a gate that doesn’t get much use. Those old gates can be a real bear to open, and if you do get it open, you’ll need to get it closed again. That’s when your ratchet strap can save the day. Wrap it around the two posts, then use the ratchet to come-along the gate posts together, and the wire loop will lift up easily over the posts so you can open it, or slide easily back down on the posts when you close it again.
I figured I’d give Bob a tip of my own, since he was generous enough to give me two. I’ve been out hunting where I’ve needed to cross a fence, but the wires were strung too tight to easily get through between the strands. Using a ratchet strap, I was able to pull them all together enough that I could slide through under the bottom strand or step over the top strand, and when I released the strap, they went back to their normal tension.
Don’t overlook the usefulness of a good, cheap, lightweight ratchet strap. And maybe make sure you have one in your hunting pack.
