I wear hearing protection when running my chainsaw, mowing the lawn, shooting, and when running other power equipment but I don't wear any when I hunt.

I hunt with a MagNaPorted .300 magnum. Unlike bird hunting and varmint shooting you might get one to four shots in an entire season when hunting deer, elk, and bear. The amount of damage those four shots are going to do is minimal. Having unencumbered hearing has gotten me more game than having lasix eye surgery has because more often than not I hear them well before I see them.

My hearing is tested every year at work. I'm 48 years old and still show ZERO hearing loss and my hearing has always been very accute so I still score really high on the tests.

Hearing damage is a function of time of exposure and the intensity level of the sound. Mowing your lawn once for 30 minutes unprotected is worse for you than shooting your gun once without plugs or muffs yet I sure see lots of people doing it.

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