Dear Deer: Fear this Spyder

Christmas may have come and gone, but this weekend had a similar holiday morning feel to it.

After more than six weeks of waiting, my new bow, a Hoyt Spyder 30, finally arrived! But I wasn’t able to get my hands on it until after a few patience-testing days. Work and family obligations left me unable to get to my bow shop to pick it up, even though the call of its arrival came several days prior.

Spyder 30 ready to hunt!

Spyder 30 ready to hunt!

Last week’s ATA show in Louisville came with it a number of reviews on the bow. I’m pleased to see that the lion’s share of those were glowing (including one that noted Hoyt’s unprecedented under-rating on IBO/ATA feet per second – seems it’s actually faster than advertised!).

While I’d like to say it was Hoyt’s connection to one of my hunting mentors Bill Winke that led to me selecting this bow, I actually decided on the Spyder after a true open-minded test drive of several 2013 models. The Spyder simply outclassed all others when evaluating my personal preferences on draw cycle, shot reaction, speed and general feel. The Mathews Creed was the other finalist among the six bows I shot and finished a close second when the decision added up.

Spyder2

The Spyder actually marks the first Hoyt I’ve ever owned. My last four bows previous to this have been Mathews, and I’ve loved every one of them for different reasons. My favorite among any of those was an Outback that still hangs in my hunting room and will be a bow my kids will one day shoot. As I get older, I’m getting less brand loyal and more into equipment that I simply like better.

Spyder3

In fact, the one minor detail I decided to give up on when selecting and ordering the new bow was getting the Bone Collector licensed version. I have nothing against that crew, I just didn’t want to appear like a hardcore BC fan who just had to have the show’s logo on my bow.

I buckled after realizing that doing so was going to save me an estimated $100. I felt strongly about wanting a camo riser with black limbs on the bow. Ordering this version meant I didn’t have to go through Hoyt’s custom shop, which was backed up well beyond the six weeks I waited.

Upon getting the bow set up by Sie Graham at S&S Graham Archery, it was time to start sighting it in.

If I can maintain this kind of group, the Spyder 30 and I will get along just fine!

If I can maintain this kind of group, the Spyder 30 and I will get along just fine!

It didn’t take long. I’m no Robin Hood, but I was pleasantly surprised with the initial groups out of this bow out to 40 yards. It’s truly a fun and comfortable bow to shoot.

 


It Turns Out, She’s One of Us!

Very few things have captured the national news cycle over the last 24 hours more than a particular football fan sitting in the stands during last night’s BCS National Championship game.

Katherine Webb as a Realtree model (Image borrowed from Realtree.com)

Katherine Webb as a Realtree model (Image borrowed from Realtree.com)

This particular show stopper, though, just happens to be dating A.J. McCarron, the quarterback for Alabama who easily steered his team to consecutive national championships during the aforementioned game. That’s still not what made her Twitter followers grow roughly 8,200% since (and still climbing!).

Katherine Webb (@_KatherineWebb) was in focus on ESPN’s broadcast when play-by-play analyst Brent Musburger made several comments pointing out her beauty. The rest of the world, as awkward as it was, pretty much agreed.

I’m not sure anyone could argue that she’s beautiful, but then again, she is also the reigning Miss Alabama.

For us hunters, it gets better.

It turns out Webb also is a hunter. In fact, she is a camouflage model who has done work for Realtree in the past. According to Realtree staff, she loves to hunt quail, dove and deer, she describes herself as a country girl and is very proud of those facts.

I’m from the country. I’m a hunter. Heck, I even have a boat load of photos featuring me in Realtree camo. Any comparison to Miss Webb stops right there for me.


Exercise the Ol’ Fashion Way – Chasing Rabbits

My feelings on rabbit hunting weren’t firmly in place until college.

While I managed to pop a few bunnies here and there as a teen on our farm, it wasn’t until I met two beagles named Flash and Barney while away at school that I found out just how enjoyable it can be to round-up rabbits.

Now I just wish I could do it more often.

My brother-in-law Jeff Albaugh, and his son, Brock, allowed me to join them (and their beagle Abbie) for a holiday hunt last weekend and it brought back a lot of the memories from those rabbit hunts way back when.

We opted to take along a couple handheld cameras in order to make a blog post out of the hunt. Have fun watching it, if for no other reason than you get to see me in a funny hat.

Here’s hoping you all have a great start to the New Year!


Further Gun Control Doesn’t Add Up

As my dad tells it, he was amid a normal service call in the fields of one of his best farming customers. This day was pretty ordinary except he had my cousin Richie, who was no bigger than a blade of timothy grass, along for the ride.

Then ordinary turned anything but.

With his focus squarely pointed toward the mechanical task at hand, a wack job with a loaded shotgun pointed it square at my dad’s head, threatening to pull the trigger at any moment. The tripped-out gunman, who turned out to be the son-in-law of the farmer, was certain that my dad was on the property stealing.

He was not.

And if the farmer wasn’t home to disarm the gunman after several intense minutes, there stands a strong likelihood I wouldn’t be here.

My dad, a concealed weapons permit holder in one of the most difficult states to be so, was able to have a weapon with him for every service call from there on out.

I pride myself on being open minded. And I’ve heard a lot in the last eight days about folks wanting to talk about gun control.

Let’s do it. I’m more than happy to converse about it. Part of engaging in the talk about gun control comes with the responsibility to get educated about the facts.

None of my arguments are new – many of them are circulating media channels and social media networks in unprecedented fashion. Very few are as powerful to me than the fact that our Commander in Chief does not spend any waking moment without armed security protecting his life.

That luxury is more than justified.

But any argument to reduce my ability to protect myself, is to say that my life is less important than the President’s. That very well could be true. My mama might beg to differ, just as I can assure you that I will utilize whatever means possible to protect my children. To me, they are the most valualbe lives on this earth.

I do not own any of the oft-reffered to “assault-type” guns. My reason is simple. The legal versions of these guns do not provide any advantage for me from several of the semi-automatic weapons I own when it comes to protecting my family. If they were to provide additional value on that front, you could bet your bottom dollar I would have one.

Why?

The evoloution of evil is scary. Anyone who thinks greater government meddling in gun rights will keep nimrods, or persons outside of their normal capacities, from performing evil acts is simply ignorant. Any further restrictions are only mandating the means for law-abiding citizens to react to that evil.

Among many of the things that still aren’t adding up to me is the fact that every single terrorist who performed the evil acts at schools in acts that are gaining media attention of late, were breaking the law the moment they stepped foot in an educational building with a weapon. THEY WERE BREAKING THE LAW. How will stricter gun control stop them from doing those hateful acts?

I’m all for talking about gun control. All I ask is that those talking come armed with the facts. Far too much is riding on it.