Tree stand incidents can happen to deer hunters regardless of skill level or experience and result in serious injury or even death. Unfortunately, in nearly every case, these incidents were preventable. To help prevent injuries, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources is encouraging hunters to practice the ABC’s of Tree Stand Safety:

• Always remove and inspect your equipment
• Buckle on your full-body harness
• Connect to the tree before your feet leave the ground

“Hunters should take tree stand safety seriously, every time you hunt from, hang, or move a tree stand. By performing these three simple steps and properly using a haul line, tree stand users can virtually eliminate their risk of falling to the ground as the majority of falls occur outside the stand,” said Megan Wisecup, hunter education administrator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

The Iowa DNR reports an estimated 60,000 hunters will be heading to the timber in the next few weeks as Iowa’s archery deer season gets underway Oct. 1. For hunters in the derecho corridor, this year will not be like seasons past. According to Tyler Harms, deer program leader for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), “Scouting is always important, but if you’re hunting in the area damaged by derecho, it will be particularly important this year.” Deer are habitual animals, Harms said, but in the area impacted by the historic August storm, deer travel lanes, food sources and even some bedding areas – their habits – have likely been changed.

Hunters should spend time getting reacquainted with the new landscape and to pattern deer habits and identify the locations of any downed trees as hunters are most likely going to be walking out there in the dark. They may also need to reset or rebuild tree stands or move the tree stands to new travel corridors or to new cover. Deer movement will likely be increasing with the activity in the field, between the crop harvest underway as well as fields being chopped as part of the damaged crop removal requirement for insurance. “The current weather pattern and crop removal will make for an interesting start to the season, especially for the first weekend,” Harms said.

In a typical year, deer tend to focus on existing food sources, then turn to green browse as the harvest continues. Given the amount of waste grain in the derecho fields, bow hunters may need to rethink their strategy.

Iowa deer population down slightly: The results of Iowa’s annual spring spotlight survey indicate the population is 3 percent lower than last year, said Harms, who coordinates the project. Part of the decline could be related to last year’s outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease in certain locations. “What we know is that the population can recover,” he said. “While we were in a pretty significant drought this year, we haven’t received any reports of the disease. That may change as the crops come out, but so far, so good.”

Bowhunters hunt a lot: Bowhunters wait all year for November when they cash in a large chunk of their vacation hours so they can spend time in the tree stand during the rut waiting for that hormone charged stag to come along. The rut is the deer breeding season, when deer, especially-bucks, loose their usual cautiousness and become active and aggressive during all hours of the day. Bow hunters fall on the avid range of the participation scale. Based on the annual bowhunter survey, they go out an average of 12 trips per year and spend an average of 3-1/2 hours per trip. They tend to be more selective and harvest fewer does than other regular deer seasons.

CWD sampling: While chronic wasting disease sample collection is often associated with the shotgun seasons, the Iowa DNR does collect deer tissue samples during bow season as part of its statewide annual effort to monitor for the fatal disease. “Those adult bucks harvested early in the fall by bow hunters are the best samples for us when looking for the disease in new areas,” Harms said. The DNR has a goal of collecting a minimum of 15 samples from each county, with higher quotas assigned to counties where the disease has been found in wild deer or have high risk of the disease due to adjacent counties with positive animals.  Hunters willing to provide a sample are encouraged to contact their local wildlife biologist to arrange for the collection.

In the event that the county quota has been filled, or if the hunter is interested in testing a fawn or other nonpriority deer, hunters may choose to pay for their own test through a new partnership with the Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Hunters will need to contact their local wildlife staff and ask how they can get their deer tested through the new hunter submitted option. The DNR will collect and submit the sample on their behalf. There is a $25 fee for the laboratory to run the test. Results should be available within 2-3 weeks.

Changes to deer seasons

• The antlerless deer quota has been adjusted in 23 counties.
• The January antlerless deer season will not be offered this year except in certain zones for chronic wasting disease management.
• The early muzzleloader and first shotgun season buck-only restriction has been removed in Winnebago, Worth, Hancock, Cerro Gordo, Franklin, Hardin and Grundy counties. The early muzzleloader buck-only restriction has been removed in 20 additional counties in northwest corner of the state.

Deer donation program: The Iowa DNR, the Food Bank of Iowa and 39 meat lockers are participating in the Help Us Stop Hunger program for 2020. Hunters are encouraged to contact a participating locker before they harvest a deer to see if the locker has any additional drop off instructions. Hunters may also sign up as a deer donor with the Iowa Deer Exchange at www.iowadnr.gov/deer then scroll down to Iowa’s Deer Exchange Program link. There, donors can provide their information on what they are willing to donate. The database creates a map and table with information deer donors and deer recipients can use to get connected. There is no cost to participate. It is illegal to sell wild fish and game in Iowa.

Text to harvest: Hunters who harvest a deer are required to report their harvest by midnight on the day after it is tagged or before taking it to a locker or taxidermist. The hunter whose name is on the transportation tag is responsible for making the report. If no deer is harvested, no report is necessary. New this year is the option to report the harvest via text message. Simply text the registration number to 1-800-771-4692 and follow the prompts. Hunters are still able to report their harvest online, by phone, or using the Go Outdoors Iowa app.

Don’t Veer for Deer: The combination of cool fall weather and tractors and combines removing crops in fields across Iowa will likely get deer moving early this year. With the peak of the deer breeding activity still more than a month away, drivers need to remain vigilant with their defensive driving skills. “Try to minimize distractions, like cellphones or eating while driving, and, if possible, avoid driving during dawn and dusk which are when deer are most active,” said Harms. “Slow your speed, look fencerow to fencerow and for the reflection of their eyes. If a deer jumps on to the roadway, don’t veer or try to avoid it, but use a controlled braking technique.” Drivers passing through the storm damaged part of the state need to be aware that deer may not be traveling through the usual corridors, Harms said.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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Hawkeye Ten Conference 

(3-0) Kuemper Catholic 25-25-25 Shenandoah 11-21-11

(3-1) Red Oak 25-25-25-25 Harlan 16-27-16-22

(3-2) Lewis Central 17-17-25-25-15 Atlantic 25-25-15-17-9

(3-0) Lewis Central 25-25-25 Creston 22-17-15

(3-1) Atlantic 25-21-25-25 Creston 14-25-22-22

Corner Conference Tournament 

(3-1) Stanton 25-17-25-26 Sidney 16-25-18-24

(3-0) East Mills 25-25-25 Griswold 12-14-17

Western Iowa Conference 

(3-0) Missouri Valley 25-25-25 Riverside 18-23-16

(3-2) Logan-Magnolia 25-23-25-27-15 Tri-Center 21-25-20-29-12

Pride of Iowa Conference 

(3-0) Southwest Valley 25-26-25 Bedford 21-24-13

(3-0) Nodaway Valley 25-25-25 Central Decatur 17-20-15

Rolling Valley Conference 

(3-0) Coon Rapids-Bayard 25-25-25 Boyer Valley 16-19-18

(3-0) Exira/Elk Horn-Kimballton 26-13-25-25 Woodbine 24-25-21-22

(3-1) CAM 22-25-25-25 Paton-Churdan 25-17-23-19

Bluegrass Conference 

(2-1) Orient-Macksburg 19-25-15 Moulton-Udell 25-6-13

Other Area Iowa 

(3-1) Abraham Lincoln 25-25-21-25 St. Albert 18-16-25-15

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

UNDATED (AP) — Iowa State’s Breece Hall leads the Big 12 and is third in the nation in rushing through two games. His first real test comes when No. 18 Oklahoma visits Ames, Iowa, on Saturday night. Hall ran for 154 yards and matched his career high with three touchdowns in a 37-34 win at TCU. That followed a 103-yard, one-touchdown outing in the season-opening loss to Louisiana-Lafayette. Oklahoma has allowed just 120 yards rushing and 2.4 yards per carry in its first two games to rank first in the Big 12 and fourth in the nation.

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The San Diego Padres are bringing some serious swagger and talent to their first postseason appearance in 14 years, against their old nemesis, the St. Louis Cardinals. Led by 21-year-old Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado and Wil Myers, the Padres will host the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 1 of a wild-card series on Wednesday. Says Tatis: “Man, we’re good.” St. Louis will start left-hander Kwang Hyun Kim (3-0, 1.62 ERA), who pitched at Petco Park for Korea in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. San Diego will counter with right-hander Chris Paddack (4-5, 4.73), who has had a seesaw season.

UNDATED (AP) — It took one week for the Big 12 to bring just a little more strangeness to the year 2020. Five-time defending conference champion Oklahoma opened league play with a shocking home loss to Kansas State, perhaps opening the door for another program to finally to step in and claim the title. Iowa State can put Oklahoma’s season on the ropes Saturday when the Cyclones host the Sooners. Iowa State beat the Sooners in 2017 and lost to them by a point in 2019.

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Patrick Maroon has joined elite company by winning the Stanley Cup in consecutive seasons with different teams. Maroon is the only member of the champion Tampa Bay Lightning to win it last year with the St. Louis Blues. He’s the eighth player to do it in NHL history and first since Claude Lemieux in the 1990s to get his name on the Cup in consecutive years. Corey Stillman went back to back in 2004 and 2006 after the lockout prevented the trophy from being awarded in 2005. Maroon is one of several additions to the Lightning that helped them finally win it all.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Former University of Iowa football lettermen William DiCindio has passed away at the age of 83.

DiCindio lettered for two seasons (1960-61) as an offensive guard for the Hawkeyes. DiCindio and the Hawkeyes captured the 1960 Big Ten Championship and finished the season ranked No. 2 in the Coaches Poll under head coach Forest Evashevski. In addition to his undergraduate degree, DiCindio earned a Law Degree from Iowa.

A native of Scranton, Pennsylvania, DiCindio entered the United States Air Force following high school graduation, serving as an Airman First Class from 1954-58. Prior to his honorable discharge, DiCindio played for the Air Force football team at the Chicksands Military Base in the United Kingdom. He was named to the All-Europe Air Force team during that time.

As a Labor Relations Attorney, DiCindio had a storied career and never fully retired. He continued working as an arbitrator and mediator on the Federal Board of Mediation and the Labor Boards of New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania through 2020.

Predeceased by his parents, Jennie and James DiCindio, and six siblings Mike, Grace, Mary, Domenick, James, and Gilda, he is survived by his beloved wife of 60 years, Lois, and their five children, David and his wife Maureen and their children, Stephanie and her wife Marianne, Jessica, Cavina and her husband Dennis and their children Aaron, Avery, Avielle, Aiyana and Ashton; Sheena and her child Jream; Vincent and his wife Gina and their children, Vincent and his wife Jenna, Maria and Christina; William and his wife Sabina and their daughter Hailey; Michael and his son Michael; DeAnne Salzer and her husband Michael and their children, Gianina and Calilynn.

The Iowa Association of Track Coaches has released their weekly update to the individual cross country rankings. Here is a look at the area ranked runners.

An announcement has come down Tuesday morning that the anticipated top-ten meeting between Audubon and Coon Rapids-Bayard has been cancelled. Audubon had to cancel the contest and CR-B has said they will search for a possible alternate opponent this week.

This comes on the heels of another top-ten game being called off on Monday. Fremont-Mills had to cancel their highly anticipated trip to Anita to face the CAM Cougars Friday. Fremont-Mills went to virtual instruction this week after a COVID-19 outbreak at the end of last week. The Cougars did not indicate they would try to find an alternate opponent for what was to be their Homecoming.

The AHSTW vs. Riverside contest also won’t happen this week in 11-man play due to the Vikings going to virtual learning this week with a COVID outbreak of their own.

We’ll update if any changes or alternate opponents for these schools are announced.

Girls Team Scores

1. Earlham 41
2. Exira-EHK 84
3. West Central Valley 105
4. Audubon 115

Girls Individual Top Ten

1. Lilly Dixon, Earlham 21:07.00
2. Chasey Rowen, WCV
3. Grace Slater, Audubon
4. Katie Noah, Earlham
5. Taitlin Koch, WCV
6. Gabrielle Valencia, East Union
7. Christa Cass, O-M
8. Camryn Paulsen, Exira-EHK
9. Mya South, CAM
10. Katelyn Nielsen, Audubon

Full results: O-M Girls 2020

Boys Team Scores

1. Earlham 15
2. CAM 95
3. WCV 112
4. O-M 122
5. East Union –

Boys Individual Top Ten

1. Zach Dixon, Earlham 17:58
2. Jayden Dickson, Earlham
3. Dominic Braet, Earlham
4. Riley Harger, Earlham
5. TJ Harkins, Earlham
6. Jack Flickinger, Earlham
7. Ethan Follman, CAM
8. Cael Hazen, WCV
9. Blake Thompson, O-M
10. Jacob Driskill, East Union

Full results: O-M Boys 2020

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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