Quote Originally Posted by LarkoftheRiver View Post
I thought it would be more; $35 a year is great! I'll be joining as soon as I cash my next paycheck.

I have to go by the bookstore for some books for my classes anyway, so I'll hunt around the book section of this site and write down a few titles.

I'm not sure if I could ask someone to sponsor me. I have no idea how to go about it.
Hey Sarah,

I give the same advice to everyone in your shoes. Don't be too eager to find a sponsor. I think a sponsorship is usually conveyed as some surreal blessing bestowed upon you and when it happens, you have to accept it no matter what.

The reality is that you're about to embark on a two year journey with someone. You should be screening him/her as much as he/she is screening you. Try to find someone who hunts the way you would like to hunt and someone you get along with. If you don't want to pick up the phone to call your sponsor because you don't get along and you always get an ear full, it's not worth having that person sponsor you.

I did my apprenticeship in Texas and can tell you there are PLENTY of falconers down there. Be patient and hunt with several people several times before bringing up that subject. If you do it that way, you'll have a good idea of who you get along with and who you don't.

If you can take two years to learn about the sport and also make a new lifelong friend, it's far more rewarding than a situation where you each tolerate each other until the time is up. Just my two cents. Someone on here likes to say when it's done being fun, it's time to quit, or something to that effect. Keep that in mind, find a sponsor you get along with, and have fun!

Good luck! The THA has an apprentice coordinator who will help you out with this process. Reach out to the club - that $35 membership fee will be worth every penny as you progress.