braggin’ board Best - americanhunter.org · Despite missing the Quebec ... ryAN NelSoN Boerne, Texas After his big sister shot her ... Climax, Mich. Luis spied this unusual buck

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30 American Hunter ■  June 2009

Members’Sure our annual showcase of NRA member tro-

phies is filled with hunters who bagged dream bucks and bulls, but it’s also overflowing with generations getting together to enjoy

a real connection to nature, a bond every son and daughter should experience at least once. We hope these photos inspire you to keep taking great shots this season. You’ll also find more in-depth tales on some of our winners as well as many more photos at www.AmericanHunter.org.

This is your trophy board, not a glorification of the kill, but an exhibit showcasing men, women and youths who honestly earn their own meat.By Sarah M. Taylor, Editorial Assistant

JAck WeiSSBozeman, Mont.Jack and his spaniel, Spot, were hunting a creek bed on the last day of Montana’s season when this long-tailed rooster broke cover. It was the season’s best at 26¼ inches.

Bill NicHolSoN McAlester, okla. After success in past years, Bill returned to New Mexico’s Hus-ton Ranch to stalk a special pronghorn. Three stalks later, with fading daylight, Bill made a 260-yard shot to take down this 15½-inch goat.

BreTT SHAMory Selinsgrove, Pa.Brett’s 13-year-old beagle, Buddy, recovered from gall-stones for his final rabbit hunt in 2008. Brett is grateful for his years of companionship and unwavering service.

GerAld WAGNer elko, Nev.Despite missing the Quebec caribou migration and getting a late start, Gerald made the most of his trip. He bagged two bulls with his Sako, includ-ing this dandy.

roBerT TuMATrout creek, Mont.Day three of a horseback hunt out of Dease Lake, Brit-ish Columbia, found Robert glassing a group of caribou. He shot this bruiser bull at 330 yards with his .300 Weatherby.

STeveN deTiBeriiSWading river, N.y.Glassing the Moosehead Lake region of Maine, Steven spot-ted a bull at 500 yards. After sneaking closer, some calling and thrashing brought the bull within gun range.

STeve & keviN GrAdiNClear Lake, Minn.On his first-ever turkey hunt, Steve, right, bagged a nice tom. His dad, Kevin, was helping him clean it at his place when they heard gob-bling. Steve called him in, and then Kevin filled his tag.

Jeff cAMPBellMountain Home, Texas Jeff’s father earned four Purple Hearts as a Marine in World War II. Jeff put his father’s bring-back Japanese 7.7mm rifle to good use by dispatch-ing this nuisance boar.

Best

American Hunter ■  June 2009 31

2008

douG BrAdleyLove Oak, Calif. Doug chased down a far-off bugle while hunting with his brother near Montrose, Colo. After bugling the bull back, Doug brought it down with his muzzleloader at 40 yards.

Brock WilliAMSoN Evergreen, Colo. On his way to help pack out his brother’s elk, Brock, right, heard a bull bugling. After cautiously stalking nearly 400 yards, he killed it with his Remington rifle in .280. It scores 335 SCI.

BuTcH MeiliNGer Wind Gap, Pa.Last summer Butch was hunting the banks of the Limpopo River in South Africa when he got a shot at this 1106⁄8-inch Cape buffalo with his crossbow. The buff charged away, but still ended up in the SCI book.

Joe doWNS Snohomish, Wash. Joe’s understanding wife was with him in Namibia when he hunted kudu. He had to make a quick 125-yard shot at this behemoth as the herd began to run.

TreNT PAiNTerStanley, Va. While scouting, Trent noticed several bucks near a CRP field in Fulton County, Ill. He returned the next day with a doe decoy that this 176-inch bruiser couldn’t resist.

roGer HeiNTzMANAberdeen, S.D.It took Roger three trips and two outfitters to bring home a cougar. He arrowed this big cat only 20 minutes after the dogs found the trail.

douGlAS WeirShelby Township, Mich. The weather was working against Douglas. Follow-ing a coughing spell, this 10-pointer appeared and became his nicest trophy in 45 years of hunting.

ricHArd WeSTLansing, Ill. Richard was drinking choco-late milk and watching a doe when this 10-pointer came to watch, too. It took seven min-utes to pick up the gun and shoot without spooking him.

GreG & cHAd BillockNewton Falls, Ohio Greg, right, drew a Maine moose tag after 10 years of trying. He and his son, Chad, were hunting near the Cana-dian border when Chad took this 37½-inch bull.

PAT HeNdrixSoNCampbellsburg, Ind. Pat was in Durango, Mexico, hunting Gould’s turkeys to complete a royal slam. With only 10 minutes left to hunt, this longbeard popped out, ending her quest.

32 American Hunter ■  June 2009

JAcoB oATeSLonoke, Ark. Jacob shot this tall 10-pointer on his family lease in Kansas using his Remington 7mm Rem. Mag. It gross scores 1526⁄8 inches B&C.

GeorGe d. eBerWiNeCoshocton, Ohio Last November, Eberwine hunted the Badlands of South Dakota with Dakota Ranch Outfitters. After spot-ting this 8x8 from a quarter-mile, George made a tense stalk before taking a 107-yard shot. It gross scored 186 B&C.

Mike yArAScHefSkiBrazil, Ind. Yaraschefski had been chas-ing a buck he called “The Big White Horn” for three years (72 hunts!) on the family plot. The third morning of firearm season, he finally dropped the buck and radioed his brother the good news.

roNAld HollidAySalmon, Idaho Ronald fulfilled his lifelong dream of taking a huge buck on his guided Nevada hunt. This monster muley scored over 208 inches B&C.

SAM feHriNGerDuluth, Minn. Three hours into his first big-game hunt, 12-year-old Sam had a terrible itch on his foot. As he had his hand in his boot to scratch it, this bear appeared. Sam dropped it with a shot from his .270.

BeN feHriNGerDuluth, Minn. Sam’s little brother, Ben, made his first deer hunt when Minnesota lowered the hunting age to 10. His dad didn’t even see this nice doe until Ben had already made the shot.

ryAN NelSoNBoerne, Texas After his big sister shot her first buck, Ryan Nelson, 8, wanted to go hunting. On his first Hill Country deer hunt, Ryan took one shot from his great grandfather’s Savage to bag this buck.

THoMAS reAdelSouth Bend, Ind. Thomas Readel went on a South African safari last year to hunt with his dad. Thomas used his 7mm Mag-num to put down this kudu on a facing mountain slope 225 yards distant.

SAGe ScHillerBonner, Mont. When Sage , a third-genera-tion NRA life member, took her Marlin 915Y out, five shots killed five gophers. Deer bet-ter look out next year!

HuNTer SMAlTzBath, Pa. Nine-year-old Hunter partici-pated in Pennsylvania’s Men-tored Youth Program. Here’s the first squirrel he bagged on “the best day of his life.”

kelli MillerGarden City, Kan. Kelli was hunting on the first day of Kansas’ youth sea-son with her muzzleloader in CRP grass when she shot this magnificent mule deer. It rough scores a 168½ B&C with a 29½ inch spread.

derek rozANSkiElizabethtown, Pa. NRA Junior member Derek and his father, John, took their first big-game hunting trip together up to Kuujjuaq, Quebec, to hunt caribou last fall. Derek took one shot with his Tikka T3 to get this brawny bull.

American Hunter ■  June 2009 33

STeve PoPovicHBeecher, Ill. While hunting on his friend’s Illinois farm, Steve had just put down his coffee when this monster nontypical followed a doe into sight. He took a 40-yard running shot on him and another to put down this 208 1⁄8 –inch giant.

GeNe TriMBleSpearfish, S.D. While hunting with his dad in northwest South Dakota, 13-year-old Gene made a three-hour stalk on this whitetail buck before his patience paid off with a shot from his grandfather’s pre-cious Savage .243.

JoSH roBerTSHuntington Beach, Calif. On the third day of hunt-ing his grandfather’s farm in southern Indiana with his dad, Josh saw this 13-pointer along a fenceline. A 90-yard shot stopped him in his tracks. Its inside spread mea-sures 19 inches.

MATTHeW ScHMidTClackamas, Ore. Matthew gained access to his lucky CRP field south of Spokane, Wash., with a door knock and a smile. The 12-year-old shot this dandy buck after letting his little brother take the shot on a mule deer the day before.

MeliSSA coNAWAyNorth Henderson, Ill. After 12 hours in a treestand without any action, Melissa saw a nice buck. Though the antlers were partially covered by leaves, the 14-year-old made the shoulder shot to take this 10-pointer.

ToM cooPerAlvaton, Ky. After seeing trail cam pho-tos of this 16-point monster on his 50 acres, Tom couldn’t wait to get a shot at him. His shot came in archery season from 38 yards, and then the celebration began.

MicHAel BArreTTWoodbury, Minn.His quality-deer-manage-ment practices and 70 hours of waiting on his stand paid off for Michael with this buck-of-a-lifetime. He pre-dicted the 10-pointer’s path and shot it at 125 yards.

luiS ferNANdezClimax, Mich. Luis spied this unusual buck coming and mouth-grunted to stop him. When the buck turned, Fernandez put a slug through the shoulder of the 17-pointer with split brow tines.

JAck MorGANLansing, Kan. After missing him the day before from the same stand, Army officer Jack Morgan spotted this buck trailing does near sunset. He hit the 12-pointer at 21 yards with an arrow to end his first success-ful Kansas hunt.

Mike TroMBlyLowell, Mich. Mike was grateful for his 30 years of hunting experience when this big buck stepped into his shooting lane last November. Mike wants to send a special thanks to Field Editor Bill Winke for sharing his advice with readers.

Jeff kiSelSouthbury, Conn.Jeff was watching a piebald doe when a nice buck came in at 25 yards downwind of him chasing another doe. Blessing his Scent-Lok suit, Kisel made a great shot on his first buck in 20 years of tough hunting.

rAy HoloHANAshkum, Ill. Ray proved his hunting prowess this year by dou-bling up on his whitetail bucks. The bow-kill buck.left, scores 151 B&C, while the one done in by rifle scores a whopping 171 B&C.

34 American Hunter ■  June 2009

MicHAel irWiNMadison, Ohio After a rainy morning in his treestand seeing “bupkis,” Irwin stood up to stretch and saw this buck. Closed scope covers foiled his first attempt to shoot, but then his shot rang true on this 1503⁄8-inch B&C whitetail.

Jody MorriSCarriere, Miss. Whitetail hunting in Illinois impresses Mississippi native Jody, who knew this deer was a shooter at first sight. His arrow brought down the 11-point bruiser that has a 20½-inch inside spread.

zSolT BoldoGHNaugatuck, Conn. When this giant showed up on his trail cams, Zsolt hoped to get a shot at it. The 13-pointer showed up follow-ing an 8-point on opening day of bow season, when Zsolt made the 20-yard shot. It scores 163 P&Y.

frANk G. GoodHArTLancaster, Pa. Frank, an 80-year-old handi-capped hunter, shot this 21-point buck in Texas on the first day of 2008. It scores a whopping 195 inches.

JeN ScArBorouGHCincinnati, Ohio Jen began hunting just last year, and already has scored a buck-of-a-lifetime. She took this unique 11-point piebald buck with her Horton cross-bow and can’t wait to put the mount on her wall.

Todd BelMoNTMonroe, Ore. Todd was looking forward to the rain that would allow him to slip quietly into a bedding area. Todd found this 5x5 blacktail while stalking two others, happily putting meat in the freezer.

cody looPerPhilomath, Ore. Cody was out hunting with his family in an area they scouted last year. When this 4x4 blacktail emerged from the mist after a doe, Cody pulled up and made a fast shot to drop it in its tracks.

roSS WeSTGATePaisley, Ore.After spotting this buck bed-ded down, Ross Westgate cir-cled a mile and a half to get behind him. He crept up in moccasins and took this buck with the .50-caliber flintlock long rifle he made himself.

Mike liTTleFt. Lauderdale, Fla. In September 2008, Mike went on a guided pronghorn hunt in New Mexico. His efforts were rewarded with this tall B&C buck netting 872⁄8 inches.

Bill HooSierBastian, Va. Bill and his wife celebrated their 35th wedding anni-versary in South Africa on a safari to hunt kudu. On the seventh day, Bill used his Remington 700 in 7mm Rem. Mag. on the beast with 59-inch-long horns.

WArd ScHrAederSalina, Kan. Ward and his wife took a trip to Scotland in 2008, enjoy-ing various B&Bs and castles, as well as hunting for red stag. Stalking these creatures requires miles of hiking, but Ward had triumphs on three successive days.

MicHAel cziNkoTADistrict of ColumbiaMichael’s safari to the North-west Province of South Africa gave him the opportunity to shoot this waterbuck with 25-inch horns.

American Hunter ■  June 2009 35

cHuck overlyNew Bern, N.C. When he drew a Colorado tag, a kindly local hunter showed Chuck the ropes. After a rifle re-calibration, Chuck brought down a 154-inch B&C monster he’d been chasing all day.

Mike rANSfordGhent, N.Y. Mike and nine friends went hunting in Altoona, Kan., but were challenged by hot weather. When this bruiser appeared, Mike put down his camera and picked up his bow. It scored 1466⁄8 inches.

lArry SMiTHGrand Rapids, Mich. After many years of wishing, Larry Smith took his Africa safari in the Limpopo Prov-ince of South Africa. There he took this blue wildebeest, among other animals.

TiM WelSHFort Calhoun, Neb. After two tantalizing sight-ings of this deer, Tim hung a stand in the area. He caught the buck trailing a doe, and took a 16-yard shot with his bow. Its gross score is 158 inches P&Y.

lT. col. Jeff kilGoU.S. Forces, Afghanistan While hunting in eastern Kansas, Jeff set up trail cams and deduced this buck’s morning routine. The next day he used his T/C to take home the 240-pounder with a 136-inch B&C rack.

Bill loWreyColumbia, Mo. Only 10 minutes into open-ing day, Bill shot this mon-ster buck in his front pasture. A taxidermist scored it at 221 nontypical and Bass Pro scored it 206 typical. Either way, it’s one for the wall.

PAul coMBSMiddleburg, Fla. In November, Paul went hunting near St. Walburg, Saskatchewan, for the sixth time. In all, he’s bagged four bucks up there between 150 and 193 inches B&C, includ-ing this big brute.

STeve NoBleHackett, Ark. Choosing to hunt a shotgun-only area, Steve zeroed in his Citori Featherweight 20-gauge with some slugs. This light-weight gun brought down a heavyweight 12-point buck estimated at 5½ years old.

Gordy oATeSLonoke, Ark. Gordy has enjoyed his yearly hunt in Saskatchewan, Can-ada, for 14 years now, and 2008 was one of his most successful. He shot this 10-point buck near Green Lake; it scores 1742⁄8 B&C.

Mike NelSoNBoerne, Tex. Mike and his guide spotted this hefty muley near sun-rise, but lost it twice during the stalk. Finally he took a 300-yard shot on this mov-ing target. It measures 1601⁄8 inches gross B&C.

ricHArd ruSSoColumbus AFB, Miss. For six days hunting a friend’s land near Salina, Okla., Rich-ard passed on many small bucks hoping for something special. He found it when this buck ran up chasing a doe and fell to his 40-yard blast.

cyruS WolfMilstadt, Ill. Cyrus saw this big buck come toward him across a creek bed on the last afternoon of shotgun season in Illinois. He took the shot and found an even bigger deer than he thought, measuring 1924⁄8 inches gross B&C.