It always amazes me when I read about city councils or county commissions that attempt to ban backyard archery practice or deer hunts in or near urban areas based on their lofty concerns about public safety. That’s because most of us who are deeply involved in hunting and the shooting sports know our pastime is far safer than most organized sports that regularly take place in city parks and public schools.

New safety data released last week definitively backs up that premise, revealing that hunting is safer than 28 other recreational pursuits, ranging from soccer to skateboarding and from cheerleading to bike riding.

Based upon injuries by number of participants, compared to hunting a person is 11 times more likely to be injured playing volleyball, 25 times more likely to be injured cheerleading or bicycle riding, and 105 more times likely to be injured playing tackle football, according to new data compiled by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).

The NSSF report reveals hunting with firearms has an injury rate of .05 percent, which equates to about 1 injury per 2,000 participants, a safety level bettered only by camping (.01 percent) and billiards (.02 percent). For comparison, golf has an injury rate of .16 percent (1 injury per 622 participants), while tackle football topped the list of activities with an injury rate of 5.27 percent (1 injury per 19 participants).

“Many people have the misconception that hunting is unsafe, but the data tells a different story,” said Jim Curcuruto, NSSF’s director of industry research and analysis. “Comprehensive hunter education classes that emphasize the basic rules of firearm safety and a culture of hunters helping fellow hunters practice safe firearms handling in the field are responsible for this good record.”

The number of hunters who went afield last year is estimated at 16.3 million. Of that total, approximately 8,122 sustained injuries, or 50 per 100,000 participants. And the vast majority of hunting accidents—more than 6,600—were treestand related.

The injury data NSSF used to compile this hunter-safety report comes from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System of the Consumer Products Safety Commission 2010 and the International Hunter Education Association’s Hunter Incident Clearinghouse. Activity participation figures are from the National Sporting Goods Association Sports Participation in 2010 report.