Deer Hunt Big Buck Registry fueled by Rackology.org

Why do we hunt?  Why are we hunters? What makes us tick? For many reasons, these are questions that we should probably ask ourselves as hunters.  Robbie Kroger has set out to answer these questions as part of his Blood Origins project.  We all have a connection in our roots to hunting, passed along from generation to generation. This is what we might consider our hunting heritage. It has a smell, a feel, you breathe it in and it feels amazing. 

If you've ever explored the many hunting services that are available today you've probably had some experiences that left you wanting more. This is exactly what drove Tony Caggiano to start Wold Slam Adventures while exploring a World Slam turkey hunt.  Today Tony offers his knowledge and experience of hunting to those seeking a world class hunting experience.  Still, despite having access hunting around  the world Tony says he'll still enjoys coming home to deer hunt his own woods.

Chancy Walters is a fisherman, a hunter, a wildlife artist, an entrepreneur, a cook, a traveler and a self proclaimed adrenaline junkie and storm chaser.  Chancy prefers a no scouting, run and gun, snooking for whitetails style of hunting. He says it leads to a stress free lifestyle. His talents go beyond the field though when he picks up a paintbrush to capture the very scenes he lived, and makes a living selling the artwork he created. 

On a frosty November morning in 1979 a 9-point whitetail buck walked into Don Higgin's set. Don squeezed the trigger on his grandfathers Remington 12-gauge, the slug found it’s mark. The fire to deer hunt forever more was ignited. Don became a conservation contractor and transformed lots of the Midwest into whitetail habitat for the US Government and private individuals. In one week in October 2017, Don shot two bucks of a lifetime totaling over 400 inches of antler.

Matt Ross is certified wildlife biologist and licensed forester. He received his bachelor's in wildlife conservation from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and his master's in wildlife management from the University of New Hampshire. Before joining the QDMA staff, Matt worked for a natural resource consulting firm in southern New Hampshire, and he was a QDMA volunteer and Branch officer and is now QDMA's Assistant Director of Conservation.

Cuz Strickland has been around the outdoor industry scene for quite some time now.  You may remember the television show Mossy Oak's Hunting the Country back in the 90s.   Cuz was one of the first employees of Mossy Oak when he joined the team back in 1987 and worked with Toxey Haas to develop the Media Production Department. Today he serves Mossy Oak as Senior Vice President of Media Services and Cuz still maintains a hands-on, through-the-viewfinder approach to outdoor television production.

Danielle Halverson is 20 years old.  A petite frame, you would be hard pressed if you passed her on the street to think the words 'stone cold killer'.  But make no mistake, despite her age, looks, and demeanor, Danielle is a lethal bowhunter. It's interesting to interview today's younger generation and come across someone like Danielle who says she never stops thinking about deer hunting, guides for mule deer, and has a couple of 170" class deer under her belt.

You are about to listen to a series of stories where the victims never thought they'd be lost. Dave Paulides, author of the book Missing 411 - Hunters - Unexplained Disappearances, decided to delve deeper and investigate a subset of missing persons. Dave identified a deeper subset of missing person that hit home with us, specifically hunters with skill sets whom you could never imagine deemed missing, much less lost,  all of which were never found.

In this show, we dig a little deeper in ozone and how it’s should be used, an ever changing outdoor industry environment and what that means to the Enforcer, more of Tim’s tips and tricks for hunting whitetail, his hunt one big buck mentally, how he prepares for a hunting trip, and the story of how Tim guided legendary Dodger’s hitter Kirk Gibson, on a whitetail hunt for a buck called Fraser.

Seems like one of the most controversial topics amongst hunters these days is high fence hunting. So, we decided to take another deeper look into the subject, only this time with Shawn Smith from Texas. Shawn, along with his father Rowan, runs a high fence-low fence ranch, a deer breeding and genetics facility, and a deer fence manufacturing company. There are quite a few things that we can learn from deer in a high fence/low fence managed hunting areas that we can take to the field on even public grounds.

If you’ve shopped for a tree stand between 1996 and now, you may have noticed a sticker on the box or on the tree stand with the three initials, TMA - the Treestand Manufacturer's Association. This sticker seems to be attached to everything we buy relative to climbing a tree these days, but what the heck does in mean? That TMA sticker, it means a heck of a lot more than meets the eye.

Blake Alma has written for numerous outdoor publications, written 4 books, and hosts his own outdoor radio show. All because someone handed him a fishing pole when he was 13 years old. He fell for the outdoor way of life. Here's the kicker. Blake is only 16 years old.  In just 3 years Blake has accomplished more than many accomplish in a lifetime.  Blake is driven, isn't consumed by video games, and has a direction that we rarely see in a 16 year old these days.

Ben’s reputation in the whitetail world is no secret. With the many Boone and Crockett bucks to his credit, it's easy to see why hunters want to know more. Ben’s dad started trapping and hunting with Ben when he was just a toddler. He credits his woodsmanship, deer and habitat knowledge to his father and the older generations of people who spent time with him outdoors. Ben now works as a forester/timber buyer for a local sawmill and as an outfitter for Wicked Ridge Outfitters.

When you get your own Wikipedia page, you know you've done something notable. Turns out Nick Hoffman has a page on the interweb based encyclopedia, and he should.  Nick made a career playing fiddle next to the likes of Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, Trace Adkins, Sara Evans, and Brooks & Dunn.  But the fun doesn't stop there.  Nick has a show on the Outdoor Channel called Nick's Wild Ride where he hunts different parts of the world, but explores unique aspects of the local culture while on location. 

Every hunter dreams of shooting a trophy buck—of looking down on a cool, crisp morning and seeing a massive set of antlers walking below his or her tree. Master Bowhunter Bill Vale’s landmark book brings into perspective the order of survival.  Bill enjoys hunting in areas where the deer are under extreme hunting pressure, like Bill’s hunting area of Calhoun County, Michigan, where there are some of the highest numbers of hunters per square mile than any other place in the country.