Tony LaPratt boot camp?

[Brutus]

I've been to Boot Camp several years ago and loved it. Tony and Lesa were very hospitable.
If you can get past his promotion of self there's a lot of things that can be learned in an in the field setting.
There is no way under the sun that i can implement everything he does. Don't have the time.
The number one thing i disagree with him on is how he treats and gets along with his neighbors. I see my neighbors as an asset and have developed relationships that are greater then any world record buck ever could be.
Theres plenty of other things I would disagree with him on however I learned more then I disagreed on and would go back cause I just plain had a great time.
From every one Ive seen posting on these forums there's 2 that are pretty much carbon copies of LaPratt... Jeff Sturgis and Bio.
I've only ever heard a few people ever say they wish they would not have gone. Pretty sure they are the one's that probably tried to argue with him.

 

[Weasel]

It's definitely another case of "To each their own." It's up to each person to decide what is right for them and their property. I personally wouldn't spend the $800 on something like this. But then again, years ago I may have said the same thing about the consultant I hired last fall. I felt like it was the right decision at the time (and still do). You can't blame LaPratt for continuing to offer the camp, he supplies a product/service and there is obviously enough demand out there for him to keep doing it all these years. That's what makes this country great.

 

[Tap]

I attended his camp several years ago during the earlier days of learning this stuff. In those days, I couldn't get enough of the habitat learning process (I still can't get enough of this). I also went to the Daugherty's property tour and Barry Wensel's camp, tagged along with Sturgis on a friend's place, plus a few other tours.
I loved them all. I just like this stuff.
Were any of them too expensive? I guess not because I could afford it at the time. Were they worth it? Depends on your yardstick.
There is definitely value in the enjoyment factor and also value in actually seeing things with boots on the ground.
I love these forums, I love reading books about this stuff, and watching well done videos, but the hands-on experience of bootcamps and tours is pleasurible to me. So, yes, it was worth the price of admission (to me).
I can't say that very many of the tours I've taken had a direct comparison to my property or my hunting experience. There's no way that Wensel's Iowa compares to Tap's Pennsylvania.Barry will be the 1st to tell you that killing a Booner in Iowa is far more realistic than the chance of killing one in Pa or Mi. But I did learn some valuable information and definitely enjoyed every penny's worth.
I can say the same with Lapratt's camp. His Mi property and it's location isn't anything like it is here where I live. But I still enjoyed it.
I will say that the most valuable thing that I learned at Lapratt camp was how a small property can hunt "big" with the proper habitat manipulation. His 50ish acres seemed like 500. And I can understand the concept that an intricate layout can keep bucks busy checking for does on a small property. Compartmentalized properties keep bucks occupied which translates into less daylight hours they spend on the neighbor's place. I can read about those concepts but until I actually walked it and laid eyes on it, I couldn't fully comprehend it.
I can't say I am a big fan of his personality and demeanor, but I sure do respect his work ethic. The amount of work he's done on his place is very impressive.
Yeah, overall, I'd say I'm glad I went.