By Jason Vincent
I have a pre-sleep checklist. The final three items: take a leak, drink some water, turn on white noise. It’s the last one that bothers me.
I’m a child of the 1980s. It was a reckless era. Adults smoked in McDonalds, everyone was crashing Honda’s Big Red three-wheelers, and we shot guns without hearing protection. It was magical.
In my early 30s, I pushed it too far. I rushed a shot with a ported .30 caliber ultra magnum wildcat round when there was no time to waste. I had my earplugs dangling from the back of my hat when I dropped to the prone position to shoot off a hard pack section of clay, and I clearly remember telling myself there was no time to put them in. The experience was seared into my memory because two seconds later, I was certain I’d just caused myself permanent hearing damage. The ringing lasted for three days.
Fast forward another decade of hunting, and my hearing has gotten worse, even as I’ve gotten smarter. I try to always use a silencer or hearing protection, but there have been duck hunts without earplugs, me being caught off guard when I didn’t realize a friend was about to shoot, loud music, and other general life things that can cause hearing problems down the road.
I’m down the road. Permanent tinnitus. It’s on the low middle of the spectrum, but my last hearing test didn’t go well. They told me I have the hearing score they see when a 74-year-old comes in complaining. Without white noise to drown out the high-frequency whine in my head, falling asleep is tough. All of this was avoidable. I don’t have a time machine, but my kids will benefit from my stupidity.
These days, I’m vigilant. I wear digital plugs when I’m in the field and digital muffs when I’m on the range. My kids all have a set of muffs, too. Wearing them while shooting is not optional.
Digital hearing protection has come a long way over the years, and it’s become very affordable. Around the Field Ethos office, we have probably 10 sets of Walker’s. My preference is for the Razor model as the lower profile design keeps them from riding up when you’re trying to get your cheek weld on your rifle stock. They’re only $59 on Amazon.
If you’re reading this and you’re over 30, you may already have irreversible damage, but you can keep it from getting worse. If you have kids, get them a set of Razor Compacts and protect them before they have problems. They’ll probably never thank you for it, but they won’t thank you for saving their collar bones from a three-wheeler either. Kids are dumb—80s kids were dumber.
Cost: $59
Pros: Good sound quality; comfortable; protects your hearing so you can hear when you’re old; the slim design keeps them from getting in the way while shooting.
Cons: When shooting a magnum caliber unsuppressed like an uncivilized mongoloid, you may want to double up your protection with an in-ear plug.
