Shoot
The Right Buck!
By: Roger
Raglin
This past summer while visiting a large ranch in southern
Oklahoma where I plan on doing some whitetail hunting this fall, I found myself
in an awkward position when one of the ranch hands asked me why I had never
entered any of my Oklahoma bucks into the state record book for trophy bucks.
On the Boone & Crockett scale a buck must net 135 pts. In order to
qualify for this particular book. While
I was flattered that he had taken the time to look, quite frankly his question
caught me totally off guard. Not
wanting to seem brash, conceited or say anything that might offend him, I
decided to simply answer him with a very truthful statement.
“I never really gave it much thought,” was my only reply.
With November upon us, if you are a deer hunter and if you ever were going to
pick a month, a week, or even one weekend to really get excited about getting
your buck on the ground this is the month in which to do it.
I probably need not elaborate as to why, but let’s just say
‘there’s music in the air’ for every single buck alive in most regions of
the country. The best tip I could
ever give you as a sportsman – bow, rifle, muzzleloader – is spend just
about as much time as you possibly can in the woods and still stay married or
keep a job. The ‘rut’ only
comes once a year. Savor it. Enjoy
it. Thank God for it!
Above all else during this magical month, please shoot, harvest, kill
call it whatever you want, SHOOT THE RIGHT BUCK!
The right buck is the one that YOU really want.
In recent years I have seen a new trend developing among the deer hunting
fraternity that I’ll have to say I don’t really care fore, “hunting for a
buck that scores!” Scores meaning
qualifying for a particular record book or books.
Make me throw up will you?
Now let me set the record straight before I go any farther here.
I’m not against scoring a buck deer’s rack.
I’m certainly not against any record book organization.
I’m not against scoring a buck and entering myself here and there.
What I am against and what I suggest you not be accompanies that whole
notion of hunting a buck and shoot that buck because he does or does not meet
some requirement ‘score wise’ for some record book.
I’ll save you the agony. I’ve
been there/done that and I can tell you from experience that carrying that
attitude into the woods inside of you will most times absolutely ruin the most
precious thing that sport hunting has to offer you – solid, irreplaceable,
memories that money can’t buy.
Several years ago I rattled and grunted up a wonder, wide, heavy racked
whitetail buck. He came charging
in, stopped about 18 yards from my tree stand and offered me a perfect broadside
shot. However I passed him up
because he was only an 8 pointer. His
tines could have been a little longer too – you know so he would score better.
A few days later in the hunt I had the chance to run an arrow through a
nice 11pt. Buck with long slender tines. A
real scoring machine type buck. As
I walked up to my fallen trophy I immediately knew that I had shot the wrong
buck! Even though my 11 pt. Buck
was a great buck and a sure Pope & Young qualifier, down in my heart I knew
the heavy racked 8 pointer I passed up was a much more impressive buck.
I knew I had cheated myself that week because of the ‘scoring thing’.
I vowed that day to never let that happen again.
Life is pretty short friend. As a deer hunter November is on of God’s special gifts for
us to enjoy. So seize the moment.
Get out in the woods with your favorite weapon in hand.
Obey all game laws but most importantly this November chisel this law on
the tables of your hear, “SHOOT THE RIGHT BUCK.”
If your buck scores well, good. If
he doesn’t, so what? It’s your
life. It’s your experience.
If it’s the buck you really wanted, that’s all that really matters.
A couple of years ago while attending the annual Boone & Crockett convention
in Dallas, Texas I had the opportunity and privilege of seeing Milo Hanson’s
new world record typical B&C whitetail buck.. the
clean 6x6 monster buck’s rack was truly something to behold.
However along side of the new #1 rack were three other quite impressive
sets of antlers. One in particular
knocked my eyes out! The
whitetail’s rack was at least 28 inches wide.
Carrying a typical 5x5 configuration his nearly 30” beams were as thick
was my wrist all the way out to the ends. He
must have been a real fighter since you could tell a number of other points had
been broken off including part of his left main beam.
What a rack!
I was so taken by the size of all four racks that I didn’t notice that a
stranger had joined me in a starring at these wonderful racks.
“How would you like to have all of these standing out in front of you at one
time?” the stranger remarked to
me glancing my direction and then quickly looking back down at the oversized
antlers.
“That would be something,” I
replied. “I think I’d have to
shoot this one,” pointing to the massive broken tined 5x5.
“What! Don’t you know this one
is the new world record?” The
stranger exclaimed pointing to the Hanson buck.
Once again I found myself in one of those award situations.
Time to be perfectly honest as I replied, “I never really gave it much
thought.”
I’d shoot the right buck – the one I wanted!
This November I hope you do too.
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