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CLEAR Temp: 41 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Saturday, October 12, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend September 27, 2002 The line forms tonight for game tags By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune Thousands of procrastinating Oregonians together will plunk down almost $500,000 on hunting licenses and tags today on the eve of some big-game seasons that start Saturday. The deadline for buying buck-deer, cougar and bear hunting tags is tonight, and those wait-until-the-last-minute hunters will clog sporting-goods stores like the Big R in White City this evening to buy their license and tags. "We’ll definitely get a crowd," said Gary Griffin, who manages Big R’s sporting goods department. "People seem to all have different priorities until (today)." Traditionally, the day before the start of the fall deer hunts results in an explosion of license and tag sales, even though the licenses have been available since late 2001 and all the tags have been on the market since late June. Those who miss their purchases tonight — whether it be from a flat tire, a late work day or basic forgetfulness — will miss joining more than 200,000 rifle-toting Oregonians who take part in buck-deer seasons across Oregon. "I just don’t know how those guys can wait until the last minute like that," said Duane Dungannon, spokesman for the 7,000-member Oregon Hunters Association based in Medford. "There are people who buy their Christmas trees on Christmas Eve, and I’ve never understood that, either. I guess it’s just their tradition." While most hunters are afield Saturday, some spend the day fishing for a sob story strong enough to cajole the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife into issuing them a tag after tonight’s deadline. "We get all sorts of excuses as to why they couldn’t buy their tag before the deadline, and sometimes they’re even good," ODFW spokeswoman Anne Pressentin Young said. But never good enough. "Injuries are popular," she said. "And a fairly common one is, ‘My wife was supposed to do it.’ That doesn’t fly." Last year, Oregonians spent about $480,000 on licenses and tags on deadline day, compared to about $80,000 on another typical mid-September day, Pressentin Young said. Tags are for sale at 560 Point of Sale license outlets across the state, as well as ODFW offices. The pre-season deadline was established as a way to curb poaching because some hunters would wait until after they shot a deer to buy a tag, Pressentin Young said. Cougar hunting is year-round here, and bear season began Aug. 1, but today’s deadline on their tag sales was set to mesh with the deer tag sales. Most bear and cougar tags are now sold to hunters who carry them while primarily hunting deer. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S