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Shooting without Breathing
By Mike Handley
A 200-inch whitetail is a bucket-list specimen, and, for most of us, it’s a box that’ll never be ticked. In 2020, then-15-year-old Claire Flood put a big checkmark on the list she didn't even know existed by felling a monster in Breckinridge County, Kentucky. And get this: It was her very first deer! Five days into the state's rifle sea... READ MORE
Sorry, Little Brother
By Mike Handley
Greg Shembarger is the reason I seldom use the phrase “buck of a lifetime.” At 21 years old, the deer hunter from Berrien Center, Michigan, has already taken numerous bucks deserving of that designation, and I suspect there are many more in his future. He was but a teenager when he dropped his largest in 2019, an Illinois bruiser that s... READ MORE
Thanks, Brother
By Mike Handley
Cory Anderson and his father were unusually quiet during the drive from Georgia to Christian County, Kentucky, last fall. Instead of excitement over their annual deer hunt, they were profoundly aware of the vehicle’s empty seat. Missing was Cory’s older brother Raymond, who had died from COVID following a family beach vacation. Everyone... READ MORE
Priorities!
By Mike Handley
Not even COVID could keep Derek Walker out of his deer stand on Sept. 25, 2021, not when he knew the No. 1 deer on his wish list was on its feet, near his stand, and after daybreak. The 37-year-old real estate agent from Marengo, Ohio, might have been weak, his head might’ve been pounding, and his temperature spiking, but he was NOT going to ... READ MORE
Antlers, to Boot
By Mike Handley
Unless the only tag in your pocket is an antlerless one, the next time you get ready to turn out a doe's lights, make sure to check her backtrail. I've lost count of the times deer hunters wound up with a lot more than venison to show for an arrow's thwack or the whump of a bullet. Jared Selover of Wapakoneta, Ohio, almost forgot this cardinal rule... READ MORE
Alabama's New Blackpowder Record
By Mike Handley
Alabama gained a new state record last season, and it came off public land. Michael Ray Perry of Vinemont smoked the 18-pointer on Nov. 5 while hunting within the Black Warrior Wildlife Management Area, part of the sprawling Bankhead National Forest. The 57-year-old was accompanied that day by his wife, Kathy. For the last 45 years, Michael has hun... READ MORE
Who Wouldn't Play Hooky?
By Mike Handley
In the fall, Kyle Bowers often spends the remains of weekdays in a deer stand. One Friday last November, however, he decided an evening sit wasn't enough. The 37-year-old mechanical pipe fitter from Ladoga, Indiana, hunted after work on Thursday, Nov. 13. Just before dark, Kyle heard what sounded like a buck chasing a doe. A few minutes later, he s... READ MORE
Nicholas Co. Buck Among Kentucky's Upper Echelon
By Mike Handley
Kentucky's record book entries saw a major reshuffling following the 2021 deer season. Among the several categories' new top-10 whitetails was a Nicholas County buck taken by Mark Wade of Carlisle. The 55-year-old homebuilder and farm worker's Sept. 20 harvest, the veteran hunter's best-ever, is the new No. 9 among the Bluegrass State's irregular-r... READ MORE
Scott County, Indiana’s Best Typical by Shotgun
By Mike Handley
Gary Cole isn’t exactly a trophy hunter, but neither is he a meat hunter. There’s no point in striving for the latter when your floor freezer is on the fritz. Going into the 2021 deer season, the 66-year-old Pepsi Cola machine operator from Lexington, Indiana, had eaten tag soup for two years, and prospects for anything more substantive... READ MORE
Cow-free Zone Yields Bruiser
By Mike Handley
The property Nate Boeckman hunts in Kansas holds more cattle than deer, and there's one less whitetail following the 2021 season. His friend's 174 acres is mostly pasture, but a timbered draw serves as a major travel corridor for deer that are more comfortable in the shadows. With the landowner's blessing, Nate fenced off the draw to keep cows out ... READ MORE
If You Pass Them, They Will Grow
By Mike Handley
Brian Lay must possess more self control than your average deer hunter, and the same could be said for antlers. As the man from Harrodsburg, Kentucky, suspected, the 160-inch whitetail he allowed to keep on trucking in 2019 was much bigger the following year. Even so, he gave the animal's core area a wide berth because he thought it had the potenti... READ MORE
It's Official: Huff Buck is a World Record
By Mike Handley
This will come as no surprise to deer hunters who browse social media, but the state of Indiana yielded a new world-record whitetail last fall. Greensburg's Dustin Huff, 27, put a crossbow bolt through the impressive 13-pointer in Decatur County on Nov. 4. He'd been in his treestand on a family friend's property for three and a half hours, and the ... READ MORE
West Virginia Buck Shuffles Records
By Mike Handley
The best thing Jesse Truman has ever done, as a deer hunter, was forgetting about a trail camera on the 200 acres he hunts in Clay County, West Virginia, about 35 miles from where he lives. He’s hunted that piece of ground for a very long time. Despite the difficult terrain, which is more deer-friendly than hunter-friendly, there’s no p... READ MORE
South Dakota Monster
By Mike Handley
Mike Beadle's South Dakota buck was one of the first to come across my radar in 2021. I had the pleasure of speaking with the 45-year-old from Aberdeen within days of the Sept. 12 harvest. He was still dancing on the moon, every detail still fresh. Mike was amazed that his hunt for this buck had ended so soon, that he'd sealed the deal while it was... READ MORE
The Third Hail Mary
By Mike Handley
A city ordinance almost prevented Randy Kukral from scoring his career-best whitetail last month. The desperate - and now smiling - man's Hail Marys involved talking to a police chief and knocking on two doors. Where Randy lives and hunts in Portage County, Ohio, a hunter isn't allowed to shoot a deer off any property with fewer than 8 acres. While... READ MORE