I am 29, 5'7", 180lbs. It is not so long ago that I carried an f89 minimi LMG with 200round (5.56x45mm NATO) collapsible magazine afield; I may find myself doing it again - for real - in the next year or two. I'm not unfit, and can carry a heavy gun if required.
Stubble quail in Victoria's western district are not, however, quite so nasty, but require nearly as much walking as chasing the most dangerous game of all; I carry a 6 1/2lb, 29" 12g vintage London best by one of the best, with 25x1oz loads afield for them, in a gun that fits well, which I shoot well. It's a fine and valuable gun (more valuable than I could afford now that I have a young family and a mortgage on a modest teacher's wage), but I'm not scared to take it afield and risk a few honest battle scars. If I owned a 16 or a 20 throwing appropriately lighter charges, it would be a proportionally lighter, shorter gun in line with Greener's theories (96x charge, 40x bore diameter), which in my experience is about spot on.
I have come to appreciate that shooters and hunters have preferences more diverse than I can imagine. I don't have to personally like what they do, but (provided it is legal, humane and ethical) I will respect and try to appreciate others' choices borne of long experience. Maybe you, CB, could try the same.
RG
