Drinking a beer before hunting and "intoxication"

[Apollo]

download.jpg

Just my opinion. Best to avoid booze

From a health perspective, yes, it is best to avoid booze.

And you are ...??? How Old... ???

Hmm.

Sorry Youngster... I think you had better stick to playing with your iPod and Games.

[No1Mk3]

I don't drink for fun or pleasure. Actually dislike the stuff, but I imbibe purely for medicinal purposes. (If you believe that codswallop, I have a bridge I could sell you!) Just as the Mrs has a Rakia in her coffee everyday, I have a wee glass of malt whisky.

[Heckler303]

download.jpg

Just my opinion. Best to avoid booze

From a health perspective, yes, it is best to avoid booze.

And you are ...??? How Old... ???

Hmm.

Sorry Youngster... I think you had better stick to playing with your iPod and Games.

I've got plenty of people my age drinking away and seeing how bad it got for them, really put me off trying anymore.

plus the fact beer, stout, wine e.t.c all taste like piss.

*dons flame-protected helmet*

[<<Genesis93>>]

You're confusing getting plastered with 'normal' responsible behavior. You're mates 'learned' that from seeing their mates do it, who learned from older kids, from the news, from the entertainment industry, sport industry where all there heroes are sponsored by the alcohol industry...... 'That what we do'


Alcoholic beverages are not toxic or inherently bad or unhealthy, just like most substances, until you consume high amounts.....
Between a class of Red wine, and a glass of Coke, which is better for your health? Thats right, it aint the glass of sugar saturated phosphoric acid... my doctor has never recommended I have a glass of coke with my meal.

[Gwion]

I can't believe this thread is still going, its pretty straight forward.
Piss=good
Guns=good
Piss+guns=bad
End of story.

Totally agree but my take on some of the questions posed by the OP are as follows.

On average, the 'average adult' liver can process one standard drink worth of ethanol in one hour, so: can i have a beer after work and then go shooting?
Well, one beer (being a pot or 10oz glass of 4.5%abv, for example) at 530 and then shooting at 7pm, you will most likely be back to 0.00BAC (blood alcohol content). If that beer is a pint, you will still be under 0.05BAC but will still have booze in your system. Let's say you share a bottle of red (wine) over lunch at 1pm on a Saturday. That's just under 4 standard drinks each,on average, between two people. If you don't drink any more and have your last sip at 3pm, you should be back to 0.00BAC by between 5-6pm. Of course, this depends on your metabolism, how much you have eaten, how tired you are, etc. but it is the standard calculation of what the average adult body can process.

From this you should be able to responsibly figure out if you are or are not doing the right thing. If in doubt, don't do it. If you are planning to go shooting, leave the beers until after. If you have had a beer (and your "A BEER" means 2-3 quick ones at the pub after work) and someone asks you out for a dusk bunny bustin' session; maybe suggest to your mate that tomorrow is better for you. What many people consider 'just one' may actually be 2-3 standard drinks.

YOU are the responsible adult with a firearms licence, it's up to YOU to make the responsible decision.

This is not legal advice, just my opinion on the matter.

Here is a list of what constitutes a standard drink in Australia:

Number of standard drinks - beer

Full strength 4.8% alc. vol
285 ml glass - 1.1 standard drinks
375 ml bottle or can - 1.4 standard drinks
425 ml glass - 1.6 standard drinks
24 x 375 ml case - 34 standard drinks

Mid strength 3.5% alc. vol
285 ml glass - 0.8 standard drinks
375 ml bottle or can - 1 standard drink
425 ml glass - 1.2 standard drinks
24 x 375 ml case - 24 standard drinks

Low strength 2.7% alc. vol
285 ml glass - 0.6 standard drinks
375 ml bottle or can - 0.8 standard drinks
425 ml glass - 0.9 standard drinks
24 x 375 ml case - 19 standard drinks

Number of standard drinks - wine
Red wine 13% alc. vol
[G: I'm calling this light red because a good Cab or Shiraz can be 15-16%]
100 ml standard serve - 1 standard drink
150 ml average restaurant serving - 1.5 standard drinks
750 ml bottle - 7.7 standard drinks
2 litre cask - 21 standard drinks
4 litre cask - 41 standard drinks

White wine 11.5% alc. vol
100 ml standard serve - 0.9 standard drink
150 ml average restaurant serving - 1.4 standard drinks
750 ml bottle - 6.8 standard drinks
2 litre cask - 18 standard drinks
4 litre cask - 36 standard drinks

Champagne 12% alc. vol
150 ml average restaurant serving - 1.4 standard drinks
750 ml bottle - 7.1 standard drinks

Port 17.5% alc. vol
60ml standard serve - 0.8 standard drinks
2 litre cask - 28 standard drinks

Number of standard drinks - spirits
High strength 40% alc. vol
30 ml nip - 1 standard drink
700 ml bottle - 22 standard drinks

Full strength ready-to-drink 5% alc. vol
275 ml bottle = 1.1 standard drinks
330ml bottle - 1.2 standard drinks
660 ml bottle - 2.6 standard drinks

High strength ready-to-drink 7% alc. vol
275 ml bottle - 1.5 standard drinks
330 ml bottle - 1.8 standard drinks
660 ml bottle - 3.6 standard drinks
Full strength pre-mix spirits 5% alc. vol

250 ml can - 1 standard drink
300 ml can - 1.2 standard drinks
375 ml can - 1.5 standard drinks
440 ml can - 1.7 standard drinks

High strength pre-mix spirits 7% - 10% alc. vol
250 ml can - 1.4 - 1.9 standard drinks

High strength pre-mix spirits 7% alc. vol
300 ml can - 1.6 standard drinks
375 ml can - 2.1 standard drinks
440 ml can - 2.4 standard drinks.

edit: BAC

[Shorti85]

I can't believe this thread is still going, its pretty straight forward.
Piss=good
Guns=good
Piss+guns=bad
End of story.

You can say that exact same thing about driving, but it not illegal to have a beer before driving!

[Shorti85]

To those of you that actually responded to the question I thank you
To the rest of you that just simply said alcohol and guns don't mix, why even bother writing anything? It's unhelpful people like you that ruin good forums

[<<Genesis93>>]

G, why are you using the 0.00 level as the baseline??
Although I agree, about waiting until after the shooting/working to have a relaxing cold beer or glass of wine, there is absolutely no reason to suggest that zero alcohol level is necessary....from either a safety or legal perspective..... if you have 1 beer does all your rational thinking and decision making brain compartment go haywire?? Are all your senses dulled?

If it was the case then ALL drivers on the road would also require zero BAC, as operating a motor vehicle on the public road can be just as, if not MORE hazardous than operating a firearm.

If you have a beer or 2 for lunch, or a glass of wine, you're most likely to have negligible BAC by the time you've got your gear packed in the car and left the range.... no doubt on arrival at your shooting spot.
If you're ok to drive - I think it's fair to say you'll be right to shoot.
Do I advise or recommend handling firearms with elevated BAC - No.
Would I suggest all firearm handling must be avoided if there is ANY reading of a BAC? - No

Everyone must make their own decisions on how/whether to mix any drinking with firearms, However the 'law' has been created to give the enforcers the discretion to interpret 'under the influence'....

[Gwion]

I'm not making any judgment calls, just giving the basic facts of the way alcohol is processed. As i said, from that information, a responsible individual should be able to figure it out for themselves.

As for the question of what level of blood alcohol is acceptable to police or constitutes being functionally impaired by booze, that is far too subjective with too wide a range of variables to make a call on. Under the influence, however, relates to having alcohol in your system; the rest is just a matter of degrees.

To reiterate: a responsible adult should be able to make the call if they are doing the right thing or not; if in doubt, don't do it.

EDIT: extract in relation to Driving Under the Influence, from: http://www.lawhandbook.sa.gov.au/ch12s06s03s05.php

"Driving under the influence

Elements of the offence
A person who drives, or who attempts to drive, a vehicle while so much under the influence of alcohol or a drug as to be incapable of exercising effective control of the vehicle is guilty of the offence of driving under the influence [Road Traffic Act 1961 (SA) s 47].
Can be charged with DUI even if under legal limit
The charge of driving under the influence is not the same as driving with the prescribed concentration of alcohol and it is possible to be convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol even if the blood alcohol level is less than the prescribed concentration. It is not unknown for people to be convicted of driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of 0.04 of alcohol per 100mls of blood or even less. For the purposes of this offence, a person is deemed to be incapable of exercising effective control of a vehicle if any physical or mental faculty is lost or appreciably impaired. For the penalties, see alcohol and drug penalties."

Further links detailing the difference between 'intoxication' and 'under the influence' and factors that influence alcohol absorption:
http://www.findlaw.com.au/articles/4572 ... ition.aspx
http://www.druginfo.adf.org.au/topics/bac

[<<Genesis93>>]

Good info

[happyhunter]

.

[Title_II]

I thought Aussies were always drunk.

You mean you guys are sober sometimes when you post on here?

[<<Genesis93>>]

I thought Aussies were always drunk.

You mean you guys are sober sometimes when you post on here?

Well..... when you say sober....

[brett1868]

I thought Aussies were always drunk.

You mean you guys are sober sometimes when you post on here?

Be prepared for a shock...I Don't drink any alcohol and I hate Vegemite. The Russian princess on the other hand loves a cold beer and has vegemite on her toast which according to her makes her more of an Aussie then me...We actually mail her mum a jar of Vegemite twice a year cause mum loves the stuff.

[<<Genesis93>>]

You're just un-Aussie fella...

I have vegemite..... on my vegemite

at least your princess is trying

[sandgroperbill]

In more ways than one?

[VICHunter]

I have a question about alcohol and firearms. I'm new to owning firearms and hunting, it says in the safety booklet to avoid alcohol and in the rules it says that you can't be under the influence. So by having 1 beer am I under the influence and cannot use a firearm?
For example; if I were to have a beer after work then be invited to go hunting a little later, would that be illegal?

Thanks in advance

The only response I want is what is legal

As annoyingly grey as it is, what you've already read and asked is the answer.

Unlike driving there is not a set limit (e.g. 0.05) that you must exceed on a breathalyser in order to be "under the influence".

In a situation involving the use of firearms, whether or not you are determined to be under the influence is up to the official involved, be that police, judge etc.

"For example; if I were to have a beer after work then be invited to go hunting a little later, would that be illegal? "

Our firearm legislation isn't written in a way that there is a yes or no answer to that.

I think most people's opinion would be that if you had a single beer and went shooting an hour later your faculties and abilities to handle a firearm would not be diminished significantly, if at all. At the end of the day though that isn't a hard fact like a 0.05% BAC reading, it's a persons determination. As it would be in the case of an officer deciding whether or not to charge you with an offence.

Knowing you had had something to drink, one officer could observe you and decide you are not under the influence, another could observe you and decide you are - and proceed to arrest/charge you and confiscate your firearms.

You could go to court and beat the charge, but in the mean time you've already lost everything and who wants to go through that time/expense/stress anyway.

Putting opinion aside on whether or not is is Ok to have had a drink before shooting, having any amount of alcohol before shooting is walking a dangerous line as far as the law goes. You could easily fall on either side if tested.

It's safer for a number of reasons to avoid it completely before hand.

That's as black and white an answer as you're going to get.

[Gwion]

^^^^ ^^^^

[MalleeFarmer]

Agree with vic hunter. Although if I've had a (singular) beer with tea and then go out the back to sight in a bit later I think I'm fine to do that. (I'm on my own on my property) If I'm going hunting or spotlighting I don't drink beforehand at all.

[Wobble]

To the rest of you that just simply said alcohol and guns don't mix, why even bother writing anything? It's unhelpful people like you that ruin good forums

Relax mate.

Just because you didn't get the answer you were looking for doesn't meant the guys replies weren't valid.

VICHunter has covered it best, there is no yes or no answer, only common sense and a level of risk to be accepted or not.

No one is trying to be unhelpful or ruin anything. It's not a straight forward answer from what is "legal" like you were seeking.

[AnotherMisfire]

Vic Hunter covered it well.

I've decided to go overboard though and have posted a state by state guide here: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=5545

[happyhunter]

.

[<<Genesis93>>]

You assume they were drinking and shooting.

Perhaps they drank after they put the firearms away
Perhaps it wasn't their party at all.....

Littering on land that the owner gave permission to enter upon and hunt.... that is pretty disgraceful and a definite recipe for a locked gate next visit

[Elek]

Legally it's a minefield.

Reason enough to avoid it there.