Jeff Thieman pays attention to the moon phases. When Ohio’s bow season opened Sept. 29, five days following the harvest moon, he was brimming with anticipation.
The hunter from Waterford couldn’t wait to spend the afternoon in a deer stand overlooking a bench in the timber where his trail cameras were working overtime. By 3:45 that day, he was 30 feet aloft with his crossbow.
“It was warmer than I liked, but I knew it would cool as the evening approached,” he told Ed Waite, who’s writing the story for Rack magazine.
Jeff was hoping to get a shot at a Morgan County 26-pointer he’d watched double in size in three seasons. He called the deer Drop Tine.
“In 2016, the buck carried about 120 inches of antler. The next, he was in the 175- to 180-inch range. This year … he added another 50 inches,” Jeff said.
“My stand is basically in the middle of an open oak flat, surrounded by trees. A mineral lick is about 35 yards away,” he explained. “Some distance behind the setup is a hay field, and a unplanted bean field was beyond the trees in front of me. The beans were not planted because it was too wet for too long.”
At 6:00, a small 11-pointer appeared and fed. Ten minutes later, Jeff saw another buck.
“It stopped almost 70 yards away and began thrashing the trees and underbrush,” he said. “I think he was trying to intimidate the smaller buck.”
Jeff doesn’t know if the ploy worked because he never looked at the 11-pointer again.
“As soon as I could, I grabbed my crossbow from the hanger and turned on the Tactacam. I had to watch that deer for probably 15 minutes as he slowly moved into range. He was attacking every tree and shrub as he drew closer.”
When Drop Tine was at 30 yards, 10 minutes before 7:00, Jeff squeezed the trigger and watched his nock disappear into the deer, which kicked and sped downhill.
Too nervous to trust his shaking legs, he sat for another 20 minutes before going after his bolt.
“The arrow was covered in blood, and there was an excellent trail heading in the direction he had gone. I started calling everyone I knew, including my parents, girlfriend Kelsey, and her brother, Wes,” Jeff said. “I also contacted a friend, Eugene Lang. He, Wes, my brother and I took up the blood trail at 8:45.”
The deer had traveled only 100 yards. Its BTR score is 235 2/8 inches.
— Read Recent Blog! Opening Day to Remember: Hunter: Dylan Martin | The deer tallies 181 2/8 inches on the BTR scale.