Ep. 105: Answering Your Questions (LIVE), Part 3

This week is our final live Q and A at the Pope and Young Club Convention, and there's still some great questions raised about hunting tactics that I think will really help a lot of hunters out there this season. So let's jump into part three of Live at the p n Y. I have two young boys, and um, what Western State would you suggest me to concentrate on them? For youth? Elcome Western State? To concentrate for elk is it?

Are you thinking like something where over the counter, something over the counter where you know, you know not you know, nothing crazy access for a kid or anything like that. It's something where the kids need to work and you know earn it, that's for sure. Okay, I think that. I mean I would say, like, you know, I think good. Everybody's like, oh, go to Colorado. There's a compele from Colorado.

Don't go to Colorado. Um, but that's not. Actually what I like to say is it depends on where you live, because the best like the best place to hunt somewhere that you can go and like have it's not so far away, so like you might hear of a unit all the way across, you know, eighty drive from you. It's like, oh, that's that place is on fire right now. But I'd rather pick the spot it's four or five hours away. You can get into that you can maybe

spend the summer. And so for living in California, I mean, the closest over the counter tag is the organ you know, and there's and you're gonna find some good hunting. It's like it's just like anything where you spend your time and where I think there's like where's the best place to kill a bull? Where's the best place to kill back?

Anywhere you got a tag? You know? And it probably the best places where you can get a tag multiple times in a year, in anywhere that you can access and maybe put in a little bit of time before and after the season, because if you're if you're close enough where you can maybe make a summer trip out of it with the family and you can go and get some summer scouting intel because it's one of the easier times to actually find animals, mostly for deer, but

for elk as well. And then you can say, okay, well, now we've we've put in a little bit of time here. Now we can go back into that unit. It's close enough, we can make a trip out of it, and we can do this two or three years in a row. It's gonna be It's gonna be time well spent as opposed to chasing the best unit, or chasing this or chasing that, just picking something that you can access and go to. You I think you mentioned south facing slopes.

Could you talk a little bit about that in your experience with whatever direction facing slopes are, how that impacts elk for instance. Biology. Yeah, so so the south slope, you know, it gets more sun, so it's gonna be the dry side. The north faces that wet side. Um the north faces more of like betting areas, thick cover safety.

Oftentimes the north face is steeper because it gets more water, more precipitation, more runoff, you know, so it's holding that water, it's holding that snow than it's flushing it down in a faster rate. So it actually creates like oftentimes a more steeper part of the mountain, whereas the south face is often drier and more gentle. Um. You know, you look at a big mountain, it's like the north the company north face, it's like big steep mountains because that's

that's the hard one to climb. Um. But the south faces where it's especially for elk canna provide that food and that forage. So um. You know, there is there is that kind of thought of kind of picking your your areas that you hunt based on the orientation of the mountain. But not all, not all mountain ranges to go north, south, east west. But it's just saying, like, you know, where's the dryer side, where's the difference, Like based on those two sides, and you've got two completely

different types of habitat. And that can even be on one ridge. And I'm not saying like the north side of a mountain. I'm saying, like the north face of that one ridge, um will be that dryer side, and then the other side will be the bedding side. So what they're gonna do is they're gonna be popping out of the south side over into the north face, feeding and then dropping back and bedding into the south face. It makes it a little easier to kind of narrow down.

And then and then so what I would do how I would expand on that as I would say, where's the predominant wind direction? You know? So I would go, okay, um, maybe the you know, like look at the predominant wind direction there, And I would say, where's the wind blowing down like down over that south face? And and then you can kind of figure out like based on those kind of things, start pinpointing. Okay, here's where I'm gonna start my hunt. So here's where I'm gonna start looking,

because they're gonna bed in that safety. And then you've got that food nearby. So you got deer fell dear bedded thirty yards, you're in range only exist throw up the swords. You feel the wind changing, you want to get that there to stand up before it blows up. You're said, what's your best way to to stand up? Oh, that's a good question, because I've tried them all and I have found the best way. You know. It's one of those things You're gonna do something and it will

either be the right thing or the wrong thing. I will tell you all the things I've tried. Um Uh. I have done the rock toss. Everybody Chris has done it successfully. I've had a lot of rock tosses go wrong. Um. I think one thing that I tend to do is it depends on um try not try not to do it too low. But like I like to, if I'm like this is gonna be bad, sometimes I'll actually just start my draw cycle and that sound of the draw is enough to make them curious, but not enough to

spook him. So I'll draw. But there's times where it's like draw and they just don't even care, and you're like okay, and then it's like let down. And I've gotten five draws on one year, but that one time they troubles you. You know, sometimes they draw and they look at you, but at that point it might already be too late. You know, you're already settled in and you're ready, and then let her rip. Um I've done though, like uh, this was you know he'd probably like this

is that was a terrible idea. But the giant buck that I was talking about, I snuck in thirty three yards to that deer, and um, I just had his head and neck above their the stage and I'm like, oh my god, Okay, it's just waiting, waiting, and I'm like okay, and then I was like I was thirty three yards and this is like I didn't know anything about anything really, but um I knew how to get close to this stuff and what a big deer was, you know, but I it. So I was like, Okay,

I'm just gonna sneak up. I was been there for hours, and I was like, I gonna sneak up three more yards. So like so I'm like, just so it's like an even thirty you know, as might as well. I got bored whatever. So I'm like guy, and I'm like, oh, maybe it'll get you know. Stand. So I started creeping up three more yards and then I'm like, tim, there now thirty yards and I feel the wind shift and just like and I'm like as soon as I felt that wind, I drew back and that buck just blew

out of there, and I was like, damn it. And I thought to myself, like, what would I have done different? I thought, I'll just shoot him in the back of the head next time. It doesn't work, because I tried it once and it didn't work. A deer went away with an arrow stuck in his antler, and I was like, well, that's the last time I'll ever try that. Uh say that again. Yeah, Um, I have done the grunt as well. Um, you know, one thing, I've had it, I've had it

work out, and i've had it not. You know, generally they're they're more calm. I'm like with ELK, I would do the alcohol for sure, because they're just they're more used to the sound the grunt call like will stop him. But they always kind of like the mule here for some reason look up first. They're like, you know, instead of like the stand up and look. And I think it just you know, I think that that kind of like, oh, I'm already at full dry. I did the grunt and whatever.

One time I did a turkey call and it worked really well, so I was just like, deer stood up and didn't even care. So I was like, I don't know, I've tried it all, and I just don't know. I think over time the best option has kind of been you know, it's it's like whatever you feel in the moment. But I think the drawing thing generally works for me because it's just enough time that they like stand up, like they're like, do I get out of here? Stand up?

And then it's like arrows gone. But there are those times where they don't even hear it and you gotta draw first grunt call on coast deer in the run. Yes, yeah, I've I find that they're more um, they're more susceptible to rattling. But I have used the grunt. I've also used like even just like standard white tail like snort, we'se um. But they I think that rattling is the

most effective call for cou's deer. Well, I'll take it back rattling and distress call, which seems um interesting, But I feel like the distress call doesn't get used enough, and they most dear. I've I've been pretty successful calling in dear all species of dear with a with a distress call, just a wounded deer. It's um. It's got two effects. They run away or they run to you.

But when they run to you, it's really awesome. UM. But the it works really well too in more arid places like so that's why I think it works on the Cou's deer and desert meal deer um pretty well. I don't know why that is. They're just maybe more uh, maybe there's like that higher like they're kind of a smaller deer, and I think coyotes probably can kind of get on them any time of year, so they kind

of they group up and they defend whatever's in distress. UM. I kind of started using that call after I was stalking in him on this group of deer uh in the high country in Nevada actually, and there was this little fawn that kind of ran away from the herd, and this coyote came just barreling in there, and I heard and that entire herd of deer, thirty deer, like just every deer in the bushes, busted out and chase

that coyote out. And there was three bucks in that group with those does, and they came to and I was like, m okay, and I've right it, and I've had bucks come running in um or. You know, you gotta kind of it's gotta be kind of the right scenario. You look for a scenario where there's deer with fonso during the rut. It works best because it's actually the does that are more doing it, and then the bucks come with um. But they get super like, um, I don't even know, like the best way, like they get

super dumb when that distress calls coming out. I don't know if you've ever. Uh, it works really well on Havelina's as well. Um, Havelna distress call and they come running in and charging and and it works one time after that it like they get super wise to it. But the first time they're kind of dumb and they stand there and they're like what's going on? And they they keep coming back and investigating. So, um, you just kind of gotta commit to it if you decided to

try that. But um, it's it also works. Is like when things don't work out, blow the distress call. Yeah, what are the chances of calling a hurt bull downhill during the rut? Uh? Not real good? Um I found Like so the herd bulls, like you know, he's like already got his thing and you kind of got it.

The best way to kill a herdble during the rut is to actually like dog him, um, and to get to a point where he kind of feels like when he's uphill, he kind of has the advantage and he knows it, so he's like, well, come up to me. But they don't like when they have the disadvantage. So generally what will happen is when you get that hurt and kind of a frenzy and they start moving off, and you'll know, like, okay, the herd starting to split up.

That's when your best chance to call in the herdble because things are going on and things are getting chaotic. That's when other satellite bills start peeling cows off. And it is like a super physical task. But what I do is I like start dog I call it dogging the bowl. So I'll just start following and bugling, bugling bugle and keep that herd just going, keep that noise going,

and keep that bowl going. And I found that right when they crest over, So like when that bull crests over the hill, I want to be right at that ridge and let out the meanest bugle you've ever made, and nine times out of ten, that bowl whip around and come right back up to you. And it's just something those bulls like don't like about that. They don't like somebody else because that's like a dominant position and you're letting out that mean dominant bugle and they just

don't like that. I would say, all the all the herd bull I would say, oh, I think about it most. I actually I have called in a couple of horribles up but um, most of the herdbles that I have called in in my life have been from being above them, not blow him. Um. Oh no, wait, yeah, no, I can't even think of a single one that I've called downhill. Really, does anybody think of some good ones that they've called in from down Hello? No, I don't know what it is.

They just they they're like, well, if you if you think you're tough, come up here and fight me. And then when you're above him, they're like, oh he thinks he's tough. Oh no, he's about me. The cows are gonna think I'm weak. I better go get him. It's just like some weird thing that they don't like anybody else. In your opinion, what's the easiest toughest jar to hunt or is there a I? Um? I think personally, I think early season, like the ture meal deer or the

hardest deer to hunt. Uh. And the reason there's a couple of reasons for that. I've I've said that for a very long time, and I think that actually out of all the North American species that I've been fortunate enough to chase, I think the mature meal dere's one of the I mean it's like for me, it's like that's probably like the trophy of trophies because they, you know, like everything else has like a really good like something or a season or something where you can exploit a weakness.

And I kind of like build my hunting philosophies around that, is, like how how do you get in and you find that one little chink in the armor. Mule deer though, it's like, well, white tails they can be patternable or you know, they can follow out and you can you can ambush them. Um, you know, black tails is a very difficult hunt. But they also have like a black tail is the perfect mix between a meal or and a white tail, so you they do have those patternable tendencies.

Mule deer is like it's one of the only animal I mean, you know, it's like one of the animals that it's appear spot in stock game most of the time, like you have to you have to sneak in and get it, and that's that's what makes it so difficult. And they generally like don't lend themselves. Like you know, there's there's young dumb deer for sure, Like there's those ones that are just like, hey, i'm five yards off

the road and you know somebody drove up and got me. Um. But there there are you know, like early season, especially when they're hiking, they're they're just a smart there. They're keyed in, they've got their ears out, they're listening, they've got great sense of smell, great sense of site. I think it's a pretty hard one to do because you know, like elk you can call in. Um, they just they

just aren't really susceptible to those tactics. And they aren't they are patternable in a way that like makes you think that you can anticipate them, but they will like yeah, they're coming out here every day and then you go sit there and they're coming out yeah three yards that way.

You know. So I think that that's probably in my opinion that I'm sure somebody else might have some other But you know, then you're talking about like okay, well I've I've spot and stocked a lot of white tails, and that's really difficult because in that thick, crunchy stuff, Um, they're super keyed in, but you know you can. You can also change your tactics and the same with meal here. I mean you could sit walk R but they don't. They generally don't hit the same water very often. Um,

they're just a little more nomadic, a little less predictable. Well, do a couple more questions if anybody's got a few, Yeah, good for it. Uh, you obviously do D I Y stuff. And you guys, when you get guys that are primarily d I Y in camp and you're guiding them, what mindset do you want the Y I Guide too to

bring too? Yeah, that's a great question because I've been that guy, and um, you know, I think like the best my you know, if you're with a guide and outfere that really knows what they're doing, you know, I think the best thing is like you bring the skills that are needed for you as the hunter, and then you know, like don't let them second guests themselves, you know what I mean. Your best opportunity with somebody that really knows what they're doing is let them do what

they know to do, you know. Um, but also like bring the things that you can bring, which is be prepared with your shooting, be able to physically keep up, you know. I was like, well, I could go out and shoot an elk. I mean, I don't mean to be like, oh yeah, pack yourself. Like I feel like I could go out on public land and pretty much shoot if I'm just like not trying to film under whatever, shoot a bowl any day of the week with my bow.

It's because like I can get after y'all, I can go in, I can I can do what it takes. And if somebody can stick with me and do that, then everybody's chances increase, you know. And so you're obviously hiring that person for a reason. And so whether it's their knowledge of the area, whether there, it's their experience calling, whether whatever it is, then like, you know, be there and just be able to to keep up, to do what they can do and like hunt like with them.

And I think that that's gonna be the best recipe for success, um, you know, and because sometimes they'll be like, oh what do you think you know, and mostly it's just like tell me what to do? You know, And I've even been that person, like you know, I'm here,

I'm with you. You know, these animals, let's do what you know is right because once you start getting the group think and everybody puts in their two cents, most of the time instantaneous decision making went out the window and and then it's like catering to someone else's knees. But if you can be that person that can just like I just want to, I just wanna we're just hunting like you would hunt, then you're gonna have a lot more success. But I also know that that's not

always possible. So does that make sense to that? Yeah, and answer it. You're open a bowshot? Yes? So, uh, Tim Burnett that he does solo hunter with me, he opened a bowshop. It's over on um so on Longley. Um, so yeah, it's just getting getting fired off. So the doors are open. Um, there's still some bows and boxes everywhere, but yeah, it's still it's pretty much up and running. So pretty stoked on that for it. When practicing shooting a bow, what's your opinion on shooting in like awkward

situations and positions? Yeah, that's um, that's like my number one thing when I when I shoot, everything I do is really focused on bow hunting. Like I mean, I love archery, but I don't really care to shoot paper at all. I mean I do. I I love to shoot a bow. I love the act of shooting a bow. And understand that a lot of people get into bow hunting through archery, but I got into bow hunting through hunting. That makes sense. So it's like everything I do is

so focused on hunting. So when I'm practicing, I like to anything that I do. I like to practice like I'm doing. So that is like practicing those types of things through the years of the way that I've adjusted my practice as being like if I go on a hunt and I, like, say, missed a shot or did something, you know, like made a badge of whatever, I mean, I really replay those things in my head and then

I go throughout the year and adjust those things. One thing that I realized that I was doing the number one shot that I would miss is like generally, when I'm talking and I was trying to come in from above, I think it's the most effective way to get in close.

So I'd come in from above and then i'd be you know, say a steep hill and I've got the deer below me, I'm looking at the deer, I draw down low out of sight, and then I get everything settled, and I slowly start raising up and and then as soon as I can see that animal, you know, then I'm like, I don't want to get all the way up and be skyline, so I'm like crouched halfway down

like this, you know, and then I'm off kilter. It's probably some kind of slope of the hill, and I would I would downhill shooting in like a squat position. I'm MUFTI more of those shots than I care to think about. And it's like never even dawned to me until I was like I started really going like, okay, I've missed a couple of those, and then I started practicing those and on like weird he'll pitches of hill

and things like that. And then over the years you just find a better way to center yourself to to keep that, you know, like keep everything level, to a different way of leaning into the hill, in a different way of um and shooting. And and then there's sometimes too where I've said, that's not the most efficient way

that I could have made that shot. Instead of being in a in a squat position like I'm doing a chair pose, why didn't I just go up to one knee and you know, keep my left knee down in my right knee up and and do it that way. Or maybe I didn't have enough uh lift for that, so maybe it's like why didn't I just go from here to actually just committing to being full up and

locked in and steady and take that shot. So um, you know, but I do like to practice all those awkward positions, all those like hunting focus things while throughout like the year, um, and then another thing I love

to do. And I think it's like I mean the traditional hunters will know, but like roving practice, like I'll get a rubber blunt tip on, and whether it's my recurve longbow compound bow, I love to just like walk around in areas types of places that I'm hunting and shoot pine cones and rocks and dirt clods because it's like that practice in the hill that it's like we aren't setting up a target, we don't have to do anything.

We can just send it and you know, like get that practice of those you know, like I'll just be like that's the deer down there in my mind, raise up, shoot and just keep moving in hike and carried around

and maybe shoot jack rabbits or whatever. But just like that that act of being in the field, getting those like in the field shots you're you're dealing with when you're dealing with terrain, you're dealing with who knows what other and and I even bring those on ivory hunt um, especially backcountry hunts, because it's a good way to like shoot your bow in camp and make sure that everything is like you took a tumble down the mountain and

make sure everything's working right, like just shoot the blunt tip at something, you know, dirt clod or whatever in camp or in the field. What's your sight set up? Did you prefer like one pin to three pin or five pen or whether advantages? Yeah, I started out with h you know, I used to love like a big multi pin seven pin site. Now I'm going now I

shoot the spot hog fast steady XL. So it's got it's a single pen site, but it's got the two indicators, so I'm essentially shooting a two pin with a single pin. I asposed to that maybe four years ago, and just I think it was I don't know, like you do something so long and you think like, oh, this is the best system, and then for someone I don't even know why I decided to switch to that, and it's just been a lot better for me. Um, I think I what I The first thing I noticed about it

the first animal I shot with it that site. I was like, man, I can see everything, and I can actually like walk like see the animal and anticipate their movements a little better, and like just really get a feel for the everything that's going on while I'm at

full draw and and my brain just clicked with that system. UM. I will say, like, you know, maybe starting out, you're like to be practicing and you go back and you're like okay, and then you go to walk to thirty yards and you just shot way over your target and broken arrow because your site was set at eighty five, and you're like dang it. Um. But over time I got used to adjusting it. Now the tupin thing in the single pin is good because I can set it

like I like to. I'll just set it at thirty three yards walking around, and I can essentially shoot out to sixty yards without even adjusting it if I had to, um,

because I know the drops and everything. When I first started switching over to that single pin system, I did have one thing where I was like I was hunting follow deer in Australia and I had this buck and I'm like, okay, he's coming in and uh and I set my pin and then he walked like way closer and my brain was like I know all the drops down, I don't know all the drops up. You know. Luckily

I just held under his belly. Shot perfect shot. But it really like clicked in my head like Okay, I'm always gonna undershoot the score and use the other and like I'd rather hold over. But also during my practice, I started doing a lot of undershooting and really knowing like Okay, if I had that pin set at fifty and I need to shoot it thirty, where do I hold um? So? But I like I now I would more adjust my pin where it's like my bottom pin would be that yard digen and I'd rather hold the

bottom pin high than shoot underneath something. But the major downside to the single pin, and what I really miss about multiple pins is like you know, knowing your trajectory of your arrow and understand whether a brand you're gonna hit a branch at twenty yards or not. Because I would always draw back if the thirty yards or forty yards, and my twenty yard pin is centered on a limb. It's like, okay, tweak it a little bit. Um. It's a little harder to thread than the needle with a

single pin, but the benefits away each other. Now, another good option would be like a three pin slide or something like that. But I've tried everything and I just kind of settled on this one for me personally. Yep. Ever, years ago, I think I seen a picture you killed it a really heavy ad meal deer and the desert stuff wrong that. Yep, what's your biggest takeaway from that?

I think we can learn from you. Yeah, I mean I think a part of it is like there's that there's that thing about like patients and then like moving at the right times, you know. It was like so many hunts. It's like you gotta be you see something, You've got to be there right now. The way that I got that deer was it was moving up the canyon and I was like, I had a friend with me, actually, and I was like, we're running to the top of this thing, like we need to get to the top

before those deer, and I sprinted to the top. It was everything I could do to get up there, and then it was like almost a second too late, those bucks are coming out, and I just laid down. You know. The first deer had kind of seen something. I laid down, and I just I mean, I've done this many times with deer or whatever. It's like being able to freeze and not freak out. Just like I laid there, and I'm like, you know what, if I got to take

a nap, I will take a nap. Get yourself comfortable in that freeze position, because you don't want to be in this position, you know, like one leg out because it's not gonna work out for you. But get yourself comfortable, get and and be like I don't even need to look, you know, and just let them acclimate to like the presence of you, you know. And in some ways the rest of the deer fed around and fed off. I didn't. I end, I'm not speaking him, which is the goal,

and the big buck wasn't with them. But I knew that between me and the bottom of the hill there was only one tree and that big buck. I was like, well, I'm gonna stalk to that one tree because I wonder if that deer just knew something those other deer didn't. It's like I'm gonna bed here. I stalked down to that tree and I didn't see the dear. I was like, it's not here. But one thing that I stress no matter what you're hunting, is I I do this tactic

of simultaneously assuming two things. I always assume that the deer has never left, and I always assume that they have. Like how do you do that? Because what that means is, as I'm stalking to that spot, I'm never going to second guess that it isn't there. I'm gonna say like, I'm stalking to the spot one knowing that he's there, but I'm also telling myself in my head, he probably moved. So that means that I have to be paying a hundred percent attention to everything around so I don't miss

or misstep or miss going through something. And it's like just kind of this mantra in my head of like telling myself, I'm always expecting him to be there because I've had those hunts where like a deer's bed in under tree, I stock in. I get to twenty yards and I was like, the deer's not here, what's up and I stand up and that deer was asleep and blows out and you're like, wow, that sucked. Or there's

times where you stock in you're like he's there. I'm you're so laser focused on that one spot, and then he blows out fifteen yards to your right and you didn't even your brain didn't. So I'm constantly assuming both things, and by that I'm I'm really just saying you're paying it mentioned everything, and so stalking into that um, he wasn't there, but I set up like he was, and it was kind of like one of those, you know,

one of those things like wind shift. I did see another buck there, and I was like, Okay, this other buck is probably gonna see me. He might blow out a smaller buck um. And the second that that deer ran out, I was already at full draw and made

that grunt sound. And I mean, like, if you I've listened to watch rewatch videos that I've filmed or whatever, and I'm always whistling or grunting for some reason that you know, people are why you whistle a mule deer, That high pitch sound actually kind of distracts them a little bit, just making that noise is like, if you know, they don't know what they got spooked with, they stop and look and at that point is already too late, arrows on its way and uh, yeah, I got that deer.

So this is like a just one of those things where you kind of have to put everything together but that you know, being patient at the right time, going fast when you need to, and then simultaneously assuming they're there and assuming they aren't and you know, if you add all this together, you're gonna be pretty successful, are you Heck enough? Yeah, it's an it's definitely an advantage.

But do you know, he's you gotta find figure out the things that you know, like okay, maybe you can't, but then it's like, okay, we'll figure out that thing that you're good at. Maybe it's like hey, you know, for for something like that, like I can't make it up there, then you know what I would do. I would almost back out and say I need to get a good view of this and I'm gonna watch those things until they bed, you know. So it's just a

different tactic. But but basing on that, that's kind of like the same thing as like, you know, okay, what's a what's a good strategy for what's going on right here and for your like what you think you can do. Um, And then I think that that's like a good way to kind of mix all the things together. Yeah, I use a risk I use a risk trap trigger release. I think I've had the same one for like, I've only had two in my life and they're the same one,

same like ones. It's pretty old, but I just like it. Um. I know that it's like I don't really know because I in my way into archery was me teaching myself, and I learned a really a lot of bad things. Um. I mean I I guess I got into compound shooting based on like I just shot a traditional bow from when I was a kid. My teacher was Byron Ferguson books of just like be the arrow I learned to shoot. I had a string with a softball in the backyard

and I would swing the softball. I never shot at a stationary target until I was like, got a compound bow. He was like, that's how I shot, just swinging moving things and shooting them, which is really good. But when it came to, uh, you know, compound bow shooting, I didn't understand sites I didn't understand any of that, so I had a lot of really bad habits later on. You know, people were like, oh, you'll develop target panic,

and I think, just shooting it probably paper targets. I would, but my mind is so focused on hunting that I think I never I was fortunate to not do that. I know. Um, I think if I was to restart, I probably go with the you know, like a different release. But for me it works, you know, so, and I do now. I actually have a pretty much every release ever made, and I will go out and I will shoot with multiple releases. Like if I'm shooting really bad, I'll just throw a back tension release on and shoot

a few with that. Or I'll use my wrist release and hold it in here and fired it off with my pinkie. And I constantly like change up the way that I'm shooting. So I like to have like multiple options, but I always hunt with the risk release. And because one of my like mantras another thing hunting like a

lesson learned. Um, my rule is like my release will be on my wrist on my bow because I have guided and I have come into encounters with like we got in I had a client one time, like I'm like calling and he's up there and he's ready, and I call in this herd bowl and he walks past him it like fifteen yards and nothing happens, and I'm like, dude, what's going on? And he's like, I don't have He came back, He's like, I don't have my release, Like

he went to the bathroom. He set the release down and had no release in this ELK came in and he just missed his opportunity and I ended up um. I ended up getting some pecord out and making a release by doing like a kind of like a trucker's hitch where you can like run it through, back it and then hold it between his fingers, drawback and then just open his hand like this. It ended up working, but he didn't. We ended up hiking back out and

get going. I actually had another release, and from that moment on, I actually started putting a spare release in my pack when I was guiding. But I I even had an encounter with a white tail where was like I learned that lesson myself was like going in UM to an area had my release in my I can't even remember. I couldn't even find it was like just going into here. I think it was my backpack or something,

and I'm like, oh, big buck. The same buck that I've been trying to hunt all season is right here at thirty yards bedded, and I'm like, where's my freaking release? You know. I was like I've been there, so Um, that's one reason I like the wrist release. I and I always know where it is on my wrist or on my bow. Uh yeah cool. I think that's one last question. Yeah, what do you message you use when you shoot traditional? And how much do you shoot traditional

versus compound? Yeah, I mean I don't know. I'm like I said, I I kind of shoot a little bit of every way. I mean, I shoot split fingers, I shoot. It just depends on my bow, like I've got certain bows. Yeah, I I think it's a combinat. It's more instinctive than aiming. But I do um use like a point on like my you know, yeah, point on target kind of thing. Um, it really depends Like I've got a recurp one recurp that I shoot one way, and I've got a long

bow that I shoot another way. Um. I like to kind of just shoot all different ways and I kind of changed over. You know, it just depends on how that bow feels to me personally. But mostly it's it's a lot of instinctive. It's more instinctive than anything because I just kind of started that way, and it just like I don't know the whole Like I some people say it's not a good way to do it, so I don't ever try to tell somebody how to shoot.

I just do know what works for me and do it minds more like the throw of all philosophy, Like I just see it and I do it um and I kind of do that. I still do that with a compound though. I mean I think it's a it's just like a way that I kind of don't worry about the action. I think, like, don't get that buck fever is like I just like people are like, well,

what's your problem? And on my process is I just go in and kill the deer, and like it's a really good process, you know, like yeah, because you don't have time to work it up in your head. You're just like, well, I'm just going in here and I'm shooting the deer. And it's like if you make it that simple, then it sometimes is and and then when I start to think about things like anytime I'm shotgun

shooting or whatever. Anytime I'm like doing uh, some kind of shotgun thing and it's like there's people and whatever, and I just start telling myself how to shoot. I will miss every clay that's thrown. But if I just if if I'm walking on the hill and I'm half sideways and a checker flies out at fifty four yards and I gotta twist turn and throw it up with my pack on, I'll shoot it in the head every time. You know, It's just like that's just how I am,

and I not I know, not everybody's like that. So um, definitely more of an instinctive type shot on many things. So yeah, thank you so much. I appreciate everybody. Thanks again everybody for listening. That concludes our live Q and A. As the early season approaches, we have a ton of great topics to cover coming up, including pronghorn tactics, drought

hunting strategies, maybe some wildfire workarounds. Also, don't forget to send me your hunt questions via Instagram, and also head over to my Remy warr On YouTube channel for some new hunts videos. How two all that stuff that's gonna be coming out. So until next week, I just want you to think about hunting. Yeah. Sure, maybe your work will suffer a little bit, it's okay. As long as you think about hunting, everything will be fine, especially with

the season coming up. So keep thinking hunting. Und