FCS Bylaws Regarding Conduct

The below rules will be enforced at FCS events.  Violators can lose hunting, fishing, and shooting privileges.  Repeat violators can be banned from FCS events and/or lose FCS membership, per our established procedures.

Christian walk

A. Participants agree to:

1. To obey all laws of the United States of America while on FCS events (this includes while traveling to and from events).
2. To refrain from consuming alcohol while shooting, hunting, fishing, or operating machinery and using profanity while on FCS events.
3. Couples who are not married must sleep in separate quarters on overnight FCS events.

Driving Safety Rules

Participants agree to:

1. Operate vehicles, four wheelers, boats, etc. in a safe manner.

Boating Life Jacket Rules

Participants agree to:

1. Wear Life jackets while underway and until the boat has been exited and no longer on a dock, pier, or bulkhead, except the person who exits a boat at a dock once he or she has walked past the boat ramp.
2. Wear Life jackets while fishing in high traffic, high current, or dangerous areas such as jetties.
3. Wear Life jackets while wearing winter clothing or waders.  When wading, life jackets can be removed before entering the water.

Shooting Rules

Participants agree to:

1. Always treat all guns with the respect due a loaded gun.  Before handling a firearm, visually check the chamber, receiver, and magazine to make sure there is no ammunition anywhere in the firearm.
2. Always learn how their equipment operates.  Ask for instruction before going shooting.
3. Always have their gear ready at the time of the shoot.  The start of a shoot is not the time to ask others, who are ready to shoot, to help you sight in your rifle or pattern your shotgun.
4. Always wear ear protection (eye protection is highly recommended).
5. Always learn how their gun operates.  Ask for instruction before going hunting.
6. Always check their gun and ammunition before loading (i.e., always make sure their barrel and action are clear of obstructions and carry only ammunition of the proper caliber for their gun).
7. Always load when the leader says to load and unload when the leader says to unload.
8. Always put their safety on before loading and watch their muzzle at all times, including while loading.  Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction at all times.  Never let the muzzle cover anything that is not intended to be destroyed.  Never rely on their gun’s safety.
9. Always be sure of their target and what is in front of it and beyond it.  Ensure there is an adequate backstop.
10. Always keep their finger outside the trigger guard until your sights are on the target.  This is the best way to prevent an accidental discharge.
11. Always keep the safeties of their guns on except when they are actively shooting at clay, paper, etc. targets.
12. Always point their gun only at targets they intend to shoot.
13. Always put their safeties back on immediately after firing.
14. Always handle their gun with care, if it fails to fire when the trigger is pulled.  If a chambered round of ammunition does not fire when the trigger is pulled, put the gun on safety and keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.  Treat the gun as if it could still discharge.  Wait at least 30 seconds before slowly and carefully opening the action and unload the cartridge from the chamber.
15. Always unload their gun when not in use.  Leave actions open, and carry guns unloaded to and from the shooting area.  Carrying guns in cases is ideal.
16. Always store their guns and ammunition separately and safely.
17. Always clean their guns when needed, and have them repaired, if needed.
18. Always respect the environment (e.g., pick up their trash).

Hunting Rules

Participants agree to:

1. Always know and obey all hunting regulations (examples of frequently violated regulations include: buying your child a hunting license for the purpose of taking more game for yourself and saying that your child bagged them, taking game over the limit and giving the excess to others, taking game over the limit and eating the excess, and shooting across county roads).
2. Always respect the landowner and his or her property (e.g., closing gates that they open).
3. Always learn the rules of the landowner, guide, host, or leader and follow them (e.g., staying put until the agreed upon time).
4. Always learn how their equipment operates.  Ask for instruction before going hunting.
5. Always have their gear ready at the time of the hunting trip.  The start of a hunting trip is not the time to ask others, who are ready to hunt, to help sight in your rifle or wait a couple of hours while you go sight in your rifle.
6. Always wear ear protection (eye protection is highly recommended).
7. Always ensure that their marksmanship skills will ensure clean kills.
8. Always strive to improve their hunting skills and understanding of game.
9. Always ensure that their gauge or caliber is adequate to ensure clean kills of the game they are pursuing.
10. Always check their gun and ammunition before loading (i.e., always make sure their barrel and action are clear of obstructions and carry only ammunition of the proper caliber for their gun).
11. Always load when the guide/leader says to load and unload when the guide/leader says to unload.
12. Always put their safety on before loading and watch their muzzle at all times, including while loading.  Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction at all times.  Never let the muzzle cover anything that is not intended to be destroyed.  Never rely on their gun’s safety.
13. Always know the identifying features of the game being hunted and what is in front of it and beyond it.
14. Always keep their finger outside the trigger guard until your sights are on the target.  This is the best way to prevent an accidental discharge.
15. Always keep the safeties of their guns on except when they are actively shooting at game.
16. Always point their gun only at something they intend to shoot.
17. Always put their safeties back on immediately after firing.
18. Always handle their gun with care, if it fails to fire when the trigger is pulled.  If a chambered round of ammunition does not fire when the trigger is pulled, put the gun on safety and keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.  Treat the gun as if it could still discharge.  Wait at least 30 seconds before slowly and carefully opening the action and unload the cartridge from the chamber.
19. Always unload their gun before climbing a fence or tree, jumping a ditch, or running and pull guns toward themselves by the butt, not the muzzle.
20. Always unload their gun when not in use.  Leave actions open, and carry guns unloaded to and from the shooting area.  Carrying guns in cases is ideal.
21. Always store their guns and ammunition separately and safely.
22. Always clean their guns when needed, and have them repaired, if needed.
23. Always carry their fair share of the load. (e.g., paying a fair share of gas money and other joint expenses and doing a fair share of chores).
24. Always hunt with any guests and minors that they bring.
25. Always let the hunters around them know their position, especially when walking up on hunters who have their backs to them.
26. Always bring only trained dogs on group hunts (e.g., hunting from a duck blind) and control them in the field.
27. Always respect the environment and wildlife (e.g., pick up their trash, including empty shotgun shells).
28. Always take dove, duck, etc. waste away with them, if required by the host, landowner, guide, or leader.
29. Always have consideration for nonhunters (e.g., hide killed game out of view instead of tying it on top of a car trunk).
30. Always pass on an ethical hunting tradition.
31. Never shoot at unidentified furry or flying objects (UFO’s).
32. Never shoot a rifle or handgun at a flat, hard surface (e.g. a rock or tree) or water.  The bullet may ricochet and travel in unpredictable directions.
33. Never shoot game that the landowner, host, outfitter, guide, or leader has disallowed from being hunted (check the hunt details or ask the landowner, host, outfitter, guide, or leader if unsure).
34. Never kill or shoot at birds or animals that they do not intend to eat or are not doing so to assist in wildlife depredation (e.g., shooting at sparrows and dragonflies).
35. Never take an unsafe shot (e.g., taking low shotgun shots when other hunters are within the ranges of their guns and are within their line of fire, etc.).
36. Never take a shot that could potentially destroy someone else’s property (e.g., shooting dove off power lines).
37. Never shoot at game outside of the effective ranges of their guns or their abilities.

Fishing Rules

Participants agree to:

1. Always obey all fishing regulations (examples of frequently violated regulations include: buying your child a fishing license for the purpose of taking more fish for yourself and saying that your child caught them, taking fish over the limit and giving the excess to others, and taking fish over the limit and eating the excess).
2. Always learn how their reel operates.  Ask for instruction before going fishing.
3. Always have their reel ready at the time of the fishing trip.  The start of a fishing trip is not the time to ask others, who are ready to fish, to help you fill your reel with line.
4. Always ensure that their fishing equipment is adequate to catch the game they are pursuing and not prevent suffering.
5. Always watch where your hooks are at all times, including every back cast (where your lure/hook is when you bring it back to cast), every single cast.
6. Always ensure that line is not wrapped around your rod before you cast, every single cast.  If line is wrapped around your rod tip it can cause the lure to “rebound” and come back towards you or others.
7. Always respect the environment and fish (e.g., pick up their trash, including fishing line they had to cut from their reels; never kill fish that you they not intend to eat or are not doing so to assist in wildlife depredation, such as throwing carp on the bank to suffocate).
8. Always pass on an ethical fishing tradition.

Camping Rules

Participants agree to:

1. Always camp in the designated area only (if camping is allowed).
2. Always pick up their trash and any other trash that they see in the campground.
3. Always control their dogs at camp.