Gearing up for this hunting season is going to be more a matter of scraping the mud off those well-worn boots rather than buying a new pair. The train wreck of our economy is sapping everyone’s discretionary income and the money people spend on hunting has been particularly hard-hit.

Hunting rifle sales are particularly weak. Even established brands like Ruger, Marlin and Remington are running consumer rebates to try and move hunting rifles.

“The market is extremely soft right now,” said a longtime industry executive who spoke to the Insider on condition of anonymity. “Hunting rifles and shotguns are the worst hit.”

Even the high-end segment of the market has been affected.

“The African safari industry is struggling to varying degrees,” said Greg Rodriguez of Global Adventure Outfitters. “More established outfitters with solid reputations are still doing well, though they are not filling up as far in advance and do, occasionally, have leftover quota at the end of the season.

“Smaller operations or those without a solid book of business are really struggling, and quite a few of those operators, especially in South Africa and Zimbabwe, have gone out of business or will soon be forced to fold their outfits.”

The prognosis isn’t too rosy either. Most observers think the hunting market will continue to be soft through 2011. In fact, several industry insiders think the malaise will spread to modern sporting rifles and handguns, two categories that have largely weathered this economic storm.