1 00:00:01,280 --> 00:00:05,040 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Wired to Hunt Foundation's podcast, your guide 2 00:00:05,040 --> 00:00:08,000 Speaker 1: to the fundamentals of better dear hunting. Present it by 3 00:00:08,039 --> 00:00:11,799 Speaker 1: First Light, creating proven versatile hunting apparel for the stand, 4 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:15,880 Speaker 1: saddle or blind. First Light, Go Farther, Stay Longer, and 5 00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:18,239 Speaker 1: now your host Tony Peterson. 6 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:21,680 Speaker 2: Hey, everyone, welcome to the Wire to Hunt Foundations podcast, 7 00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:23,520 Speaker 2: which is brought to you by First Light. I'm your host, 8 00:00:23,520 --> 00:00:27,000 Speaker 2: Tony Peterson, and today's show is dedicated to a reality 9 00:00:27,080 --> 00:00:29,160 Speaker 2: that a lot of us probably don't want to face, 10 00:00:29,800 --> 00:00:31,680 Speaker 2: which is that we are all hypocrites when it comes 11 00:00:31,720 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 2: to hunting. Let's face it, we're all pretty biased toward ourselves. 12 00:00:45,760 --> 00:00:49,080 Speaker 2: It's not real hard to overlook our own greed and 13 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:51,960 Speaker 2: our own securities and well a lot of the flaws 14 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:54,120 Speaker 2: we all bring to the table. And if you're not married, 15 00:00:54,160 --> 00:00:55,880 Speaker 2: how are you going to know about them? Who is 16 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:58,040 Speaker 2: going to point them out to you every day until 17 00:00:58,080 --> 00:01:01,360 Speaker 2: you die? We are all hypocrites, and it's okay. It's 18 00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:03,639 Speaker 2: how we treat each other it really matters, and that's 19 00:01:03,680 --> 00:01:16,400 Speaker 2: what this show is all about. My wife and I 20 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,919 Speaker 2: coach are eleven year old girls in softball. The league 21 00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:22,119 Speaker 2: they play in is all girls who are either going 22 00:01:22,160 --> 00:01:26,520 Speaker 2: into sixth grade or fifth It's a slow pitch player 23 00:01:26,520 --> 00:01:29,600 Speaker 2: pitch league, so as you can imagine, the games are 24 00:01:29,680 --> 00:01:33,319 Speaker 2: pretty terrible. The rule for player pitchers is that if 25 00:01:33,319 --> 00:01:36,480 Speaker 2: they walk three batters in any inning, it's time for 26 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:39,000 Speaker 2: a coach to tag in and pitch for them. If 27 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:41,319 Speaker 2: they didn't have that rule, the games would last forever 28 00:01:41,400 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 2: and the scores would be I don't know, ten thousand 29 00:01:43,720 --> 00:01:47,279 Speaker 2: to ten thousand after four hundred ninety seven innings of play. 30 00:01:47,400 --> 00:01:51,200 Speaker 2: What's weird about the coach pitch situation is that most 31 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:54,560 Speaker 2: of the coaches are terrified to pitch. It's like, I 32 00:01:54,600 --> 00:01:57,200 Speaker 2: don't know, kind of like a public speaking engagement almost, 33 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:00,600 Speaker 2: so most of them will not do it. Now, I've 34 00:02:00,600 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 2: been speaking in public long enough to know that I 35 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 2: don't have a ton of shame left, so I usually 36 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:09,359 Speaker 2: do it, and you know what, occasionally I almost get 37 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:13,200 Speaker 2: divorced over it. My wife absolutely will not pitch, and 38 00:02:13,240 --> 00:02:15,080 Speaker 2: if you ask her why, you're not going to get 39 00:02:15,080 --> 00:02:18,520 Speaker 2: a straight answer. But we all know why. So I 40 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:20,920 Speaker 2: do it. And the truth is I do a pretty 41 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:24,160 Speaker 2: good job now. I'm not being cocky there either. I 42 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:27,160 Speaker 2: pitched to my daughters all the time and I've pitched 43 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:29,959 Speaker 2: in this league for a few years. It's not terribly 44 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:33,760 Speaker 2: difficult to underhand a slow softball over the plate, even 45 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:35,800 Speaker 2: when the strike zone varies so much because some of 46 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:39,840 Speaker 2: the players are tiny. What sucks is most of the 47 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:42,800 Speaker 2: girls aren't very good at hitting, and by that I'm 48 00:02:42,800 --> 00:02:47,440 Speaker 2: being very very charitable. Even our best hitters strike out often, 49 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:50,640 Speaker 2: and our worst hitters would probably strike out trying to 50 00:02:50,639 --> 00:02:53,760 Speaker 2: bat off a tee. What makes me look good is 51 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:57,040 Speaker 2: when they hit. What makes me look bad is when 52 00:02:57,120 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 2: they whiff. It doesn't matter if I throw perfect pitches. 53 00:03:01,320 --> 00:03:05,080 Speaker 2: They whiff a lot. My wife, who apparently doesn't realize 54 00:03:05,080 --> 00:03:07,400 Speaker 2: how popular I think i'd be on Tinder if I 55 00:03:07,440 --> 00:03:10,480 Speaker 2: were to fire up a fresh profile, often comments on 56 00:03:10,520 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 2: how bad my pitching is. But it's not and from 57 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:16,560 Speaker 2: the dugout it's pretty tough to tell just where the 58 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:19,520 Speaker 2: pitches go. That doesn't stop her from telling me she 59 00:03:19,560 --> 00:03:22,359 Speaker 2: thinks I should do a better job, a job I'll 60 00:03:22,400 --> 00:03:25,600 Speaker 2: remind all you dear listeners that is one she will 61 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:30,480 Speaker 2: not do. It drives me crazy, almost as crazy as 62 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:32,800 Speaker 2: a recent episode of the podcast I put out about 63 00:03:32,800 --> 00:03:35,320 Speaker 2: small water holes and how making one might help you 64 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:38,360 Speaker 2: kill some deer. I had a fellow who I've never 65 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:41,680 Speaker 2: met but who's loosely connected to the hunting industry call 66 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:44,720 Speaker 2: me out on it for being bad advice. His reasoning 67 00:03:44,800 --> 00:03:47,640 Speaker 2: was that in CWD hot zones, a water hole could 68 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:51,280 Speaker 2: cause the disease to spread. He even supported his email 69 00:03:51,400 --> 00:03:53,400 Speaker 2: with quotes from three fellows who also work in the 70 00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:56,920 Speaker 2: hunting industry, and to his credit, he said he didn't 71 00:03:56,960 --> 00:03:59,400 Speaker 2: listen to the episode, and I got the impression none 72 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:02,200 Speaker 2: of them did. And also to his credit, he's right 73 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:05,400 Speaker 2: on one count. If you're in a CWD heavy area, you 74 00:04:05,440 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 2: probably shouldn't have followed my advice. I didn't say that 75 00:04:08,200 --> 00:04:11,280 Speaker 2: in the podcast, and I should have listen. Guys. I'm 76 00:04:11,320 --> 00:04:13,839 Speaker 2: a good softball pitcher, but not really good at giving 77 00:04:13,880 --> 00:04:17,040 Speaker 2: hunting advice. Sometimes you live and learn now, As you 78 00:04:17,080 --> 00:04:19,920 Speaker 2: can imagine. When he called me out, complete with support 79 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 2: from several guys who also didn't listen to the podcast, 80 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:27,039 Speaker 2: I got defensive. I noticed, not surprisingly, that all of 81 00:04:27,080 --> 00:04:29,400 Speaker 2: them own their own land, all of them have pretty 82 00:04:29,400 --> 00:04:31,599 Speaker 2: big chunks of ground to manage. And while they told 83 00:04:31,600 --> 00:04:34,279 Speaker 2: me that putting water out is unnecessary because deer have 84 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:36,960 Speaker 2: survived for thousands of years without our help, and that 85 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:40,159 Speaker 2: they can get water naturally. They failed to address the 86 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:44,000 Speaker 2: reality that they are all four kill plots. Some of 87 00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:46,599 Speaker 2: them have written articles about kill plots. They clearly don't 88 00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:48,640 Speaker 2: mind putting something out for the deer that the deer 89 00:04:48,720 --> 00:04:52,160 Speaker 2: don't need in an effort to artificially concentrate them. And 90 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:54,880 Speaker 2: we know CWD prions can live in the soil and 91 00:04:54,920 --> 00:04:57,840 Speaker 2: eventually end up in plants the deer eat, but none 92 00:04:57,880 --> 00:05:00,719 Speaker 2: of them cared about that for some reason. Now I 93 00:05:00,760 --> 00:05:03,880 Speaker 2: did mention that fact, but none of them responded. I 94 00:05:03,960 --> 00:05:06,440 Speaker 2: didn't mention the fact that while it's fun to view 95 00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:09,120 Speaker 2: the entire world of white tails through our own experiences, 96 00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:12,120 Speaker 2: I don't have that luxury. I have to try to 97 00:05:12,120 --> 00:05:14,280 Speaker 2: think about people who live all over the country who 98 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:17,440 Speaker 2: hunt white tails, many of whom don't own large tracks 99 00:05:17,440 --> 00:05:20,960 Speaker 2: of land that they can manage. In other words, those 100 00:05:21,040 --> 00:05:25,479 Speaker 2: guys are hypocrites, and so are you, and so am I. 101 00:05:25,480 --> 00:05:28,960 Speaker 2: I've mentioned this before, but I have this nasty habit 102 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:31,600 Speaker 2: of trying to find some advantage someone might have who 103 00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:34,400 Speaker 2: either kills a giant buck or who has a track 104 00:05:34,440 --> 00:05:38,560 Speaker 2: record of getting it done. The exercise, which comes way 105 00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:41,720 Speaker 2: too naturally just allows me to feel a little bit 106 00:05:41,720 --> 00:05:44,440 Speaker 2: better about myself. But it's an ugly trait and it 107 00:05:44,480 --> 00:05:47,359 Speaker 2: makes me a hypocrite, just like it does when I 108 00:05:47,360 --> 00:05:49,720 Speaker 2: see someone pose with a dead buck and a crossboard 109 00:05:49,760 --> 00:05:54,719 Speaker 2: or a rifle. It's very very easy for me to think, well, sure, 110 00:05:55,200 --> 00:05:58,040 Speaker 2: anyone can kill a buck with a weapon like that, 111 00:05:58,040 --> 00:06:02,320 Speaker 2: that's an awful big crutch. YadA YadA. Now you take 112 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:05,120 Speaker 2: some stick bow hunter and have him tell me to 113 00:06:05,120 --> 00:06:07,000 Speaker 2: take the training wheels off of my bow because I 114 00:06:07,080 --> 00:06:10,360 Speaker 2: use a compound, and I'm all like, hey, man, go 115 00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:13,080 Speaker 2: kick rocks in the street. You lead us prick. You 116 00:06:13,120 --> 00:06:17,400 Speaker 2: see how that works. Hypocrisy is rampant in human nature, 117 00:06:18,480 --> 00:06:21,599 Speaker 2: and it's probably more prevalent in an ego centric type 118 00:06:21,640 --> 00:06:24,599 Speaker 2: of activity like hunting than it is in some of 119 00:06:24,640 --> 00:06:27,159 Speaker 2: the things in life that we're just less passionate about. 120 00:06:27,400 --> 00:06:30,160 Speaker 2: But it is everywhere. Let me give you another example. 121 00:06:30,880 --> 00:06:34,000 Speaker 2: If you ever visit hunting forums, you'll see hypocrisy at 122 00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:38,560 Speaker 2: a level that's almost laughable. I actually like hunting forums, 123 00:06:38,640 --> 00:06:40,719 Speaker 2: even though I don't participate in them much because I 124 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:42,680 Speaker 2: have to talk to enough people every day that I 125 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:46,239 Speaker 2: really don't want to communicate with. But those hunting forums 126 00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:49,159 Speaker 2: serve a pretty damn good purpose. Generally, if you have 127 00:06:49,200 --> 00:06:52,080 Speaker 2: a question about broadhead choice, or the durability of some 128 00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:54,520 Speaker 2: kind of clothing, or how to camp in grizzly country, 129 00:06:54,520 --> 00:06:57,600 Speaker 2: and on and on, you can usually find a localized, 130 00:06:57,640 --> 00:07:00,680 Speaker 2: experienced community on hunting forums. And while you might need 131 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:02,480 Speaker 2: to filter out some of the folks who aren't really 132 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:05,960 Speaker 2: qualified to give advice, you'll find plenty who are. That's 133 00:07:06,080 --> 00:07:09,040 Speaker 2: great in my opinion. But you'll also see that a 134 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 2: lot of these forums are dominated by about fifty posters, 135 00:07:12,440 --> 00:07:15,720 Speaker 2: and the threads often veer in the same predictable direction 136 00:07:15,800 --> 00:07:19,200 Speaker 2: over time. There's one forum that is primarily focused on 137 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:22,280 Speaker 2: Western hunting, which is definitely one of those The cause 138 00:07:22,360 --> 00:07:26,800 Speaker 2: de jure is shitting on non residents and lately hunting 139 00:07:26,840 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 2: influencers for ruining all the hunting out West. Often, much 140 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:34,440 Speaker 2: to my delight, these guys will point out that influencers 141 00:07:34,440 --> 00:07:37,760 Speaker 2: who are making millions of dollars are the root cause. Now, 142 00:07:37,800 --> 00:07:40,560 Speaker 2: if they'd listen to me, which they probably won't, I'd 143 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:42,360 Speaker 2: explain to them that if you run into one of 144 00:07:42,400 --> 00:07:45,800 Speaker 2: the three hunting influencers who's actually making millions, it's going 145 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:47,280 Speaker 2: to be on a ranch where the cost of an 146 00:07:47,320 --> 00:07:50,200 Speaker 2: ELK is twenty five thousand dollars, it's probably not going 147 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:52,000 Speaker 2: to be on public dirt in their favor over the 148 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:57,280 Speaker 2: counter unit in Colorado. Anyway, the common refrain is that 149 00:07:57,360 --> 00:08:02,080 Speaker 2: hunter's participating in social media, particularly with kill photos, are 150 00:08:02,160 --> 00:08:06,440 Speaker 2: ruining all hunting. Now that leads to the commercialization of hunting, 151 00:08:06,440 --> 00:08:08,480 Speaker 2: and how the whole thing is terrible and needs to stop. 152 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:11,600 Speaker 2: And you might be nodding your head and saying, preach it, 153 00:08:11,720 --> 00:08:17,160 Speaker 2: my Western brothers, But the problem is that forum is 154 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:21,520 Speaker 2: covered in bannered ads, and I mean covered in them. 155 00:08:22,040 --> 00:08:24,440 Speaker 2: You can also read all kinds of reviews on high 156 00:08:24,600 --> 00:08:27,200 Speaker 2: end gear, which, if you know anything about that world, 157 00:08:27,520 --> 00:08:30,120 Speaker 2: you know how those reviews come to be. Now, I'm 158 00:08:30,120 --> 00:08:32,840 Speaker 2: not saying this is specific to that forum or any forum, 159 00:08:33,320 --> 00:08:36,480 Speaker 2: but generally the gear tends to be painted in a 160 00:08:36,480 --> 00:08:40,320 Speaker 2: pretty positive light, and there are very compelling reasons for 161 00:08:40,360 --> 00:08:45,000 Speaker 2: such a rosy picture to be out there. Anyway, every 162 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:47,439 Speaker 2: once in a while, someone will point this reality out 163 00:08:47,520 --> 00:08:51,000 Speaker 2: to the posters, and they'll immediately find ways to show 164 00:08:51,640 --> 00:08:55,079 Speaker 2: that their favorite hunting forum isn't nearly as damaging as 165 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:57,080 Speaker 2: this site or that site or this person or that 166 00:08:57,160 --> 00:09:03,480 Speaker 2: personality or whatever. They hate the commercialization of hunting, except 167 00:09:03,559 --> 00:09:06,360 Speaker 2: they don't understand that the spot they are bitching about 168 00:09:06,520 --> 00:09:11,160 Speaker 2: is commercializing hunting. They also don't know, but I do 169 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:14,080 Speaker 2: that advertisers have a lot of say in the direction 170 00:09:14,160 --> 00:09:17,360 Speaker 2: of the content in the forums and the articles in 171 00:09:17,360 --> 00:09:19,839 Speaker 2: the video is created by the owners. I once had 172 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:22,400 Speaker 2: an illuminating conversation with a woman who worked for a 173 00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:25,400 Speaker 2: major bowl manufacturer, and I asked her about this as 174 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:27,520 Speaker 2: we mowed down on some PF changs for lunch at 175 00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:30,880 Speaker 2: ATA show one time, and she said, the whole reason 176 00:09:30,920 --> 00:09:32,720 Speaker 2: we advertise with some forums is so we have a 177 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:35,040 Speaker 2: say in the content and shut down negativity if it 178 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:40,400 Speaker 2: pops up. We are all hypocrites. We are all, nearly 179 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:42,400 Speaker 2: to a man and woman, quick to point out the 180 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:45,480 Speaker 2: dangers of the anti hunting crowd. They want to take 181 00:09:45,480 --> 00:09:48,880 Speaker 2: away our rights and our opportunities in our way our life. 182 00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:52,520 Speaker 2: They are the enemy, and we must form a united 183 00:09:52,559 --> 00:09:56,400 Speaker 2: front against them. Fair enough, but I promise you that 184 00:09:56,440 --> 00:09:58,959 Speaker 2: you'll lose far more hunting opportunities in the next decade 185 00:09:58,960 --> 00:10:01,720 Speaker 2: to your fellow hunters than you will the vegan cat crowd. 186 00:10:01,760 --> 00:10:05,200 Speaker 2: With peta bumper stickers on their electric cars. We are 187 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:10,440 Speaker 2: all hypocrites. I'll give you another example. I've had permission 188 00:10:10,480 --> 00:10:14,200 Speaker 2: to hunt a farm in southeastern Minnesota for a long time. 189 00:10:14,640 --> 00:10:17,960 Speaker 2: You've heard me mention this place many, many times. I 190 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:20,920 Speaker 2: love the place, even if the hunting kind of sucks. 191 00:10:21,640 --> 00:10:24,440 Speaker 2: I love it when every couple of years the landowner 192 00:10:24,480 --> 00:10:27,720 Speaker 2: lets in so many people that a few unscrupulous individuals 193 00:10:27,720 --> 00:10:30,240 Speaker 2: sneak in and they really make it rough for everyone else. 194 00:10:31,080 --> 00:10:34,040 Speaker 2: But here's the thing. I want you to know how 195 00:10:34,120 --> 00:10:36,680 Speaker 2: hard it is to hunt there because I want credit 196 00:10:36,720 --> 00:10:39,600 Speaker 2: for that. I'm not proud of it, but I really 197 00:10:39,679 --> 00:10:41,640 Speaker 2: don't want you to think I'm hunting some cushy spot 198 00:10:41,679 --> 00:10:44,360 Speaker 2: where the hunting is easy. Although when we had Antler 199 00:10:44,360 --> 00:10:47,880 Speaker 2: Point restrictions it sure was easy. It's not now, and 200 00:10:47,960 --> 00:10:50,200 Speaker 2: it wasn't before. But I didn't really go out of 201 00:10:50,200 --> 00:10:51,680 Speaker 2: my way to make it sound like a walk in 202 00:10:51,720 --> 00:10:55,240 Speaker 2: the park for those years that it actually was pretty easy. 203 00:10:55,559 --> 00:10:57,520 Speaker 2: This is one of the reasons I like hunting public land. 204 00:10:57,880 --> 00:11:02,000 Speaker 2: Everyone knows the language around public land, and everyone understands 205 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:04,520 Speaker 2: that it's generally the toughest hunting we can have for 206 00:11:04,559 --> 00:11:07,760 Speaker 2: white tails and other critters. You don't really need to 207 00:11:07,800 --> 00:11:10,800 Speaker 2: say much more. But if you hunt private land, all 208 00:11:10,840 --> 00:11:14,160 Speaker 2: bets are off. You better say how many hunters could 209 00:11:14,200 --> 00:11:16,840 Speaker 2: be there, and how early your gun season is, and 210 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:19,520 Speaker 2: how the DNR ruined everything by encouraging a huge harvest 211 00:11:19,520 --> 00:11:23,720 Speaker 2: over CWD concerns and on down the line. But really, 212 00:11:23,840 --> 00:11:27,959 Speaker 2: who cares? I mean, really, who freaking cares? We do 213 00:11:28,280 --> 00:11:31,640 Speaker 2: because we're all hypocrites. But that's okay. We do this 214 00:11:31,679 --> 00:11:34,280 Speaker 2: with our political tribalism. We do this with our jobs 215 00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:36,280 Speaker 2: and our finances, in our lives and our kids and 216 00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:40,280 Speaker 2: our hunting. So you know what I propose, at least 217 00:11:40,280 --> 00:11:42,600 Speaker 2: on the hunting front, that we acknowledge this and we 218 00:11:42,679 --> 00:11:45,600 Speaker 2: just try to be better. It doesn't matter if someone 219 00:11:45,720 --> 00:11:47,640 Speaker 2: kills a deer with a crossbow and you think they 220 00:11:47,640 --> 00:11:52,000 Speaker 2: are the work of the devil himself. It doesn't matter 221 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:54,800 Speaker 2: if someone has access to unbelievable ground and you're stuck 222 00:11:54,840 --> 00:11:57,720 Speaker 2: slugging out with the rest of the peons on public land. 223 00:11:58,679 --> 00:12:01,480 Speaker 2: At the opposite end, if you're a able to afford 224 00:12:01,480 --> 00:12:03,600 Speaker 2: a sweet crossbow and a nice lease and you stack 225 00:12:03,679 --> 00:12:07,520 Speaker 2: up the one fifties, acknowledge that not everyone is there. 226 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:10,160 Speaker 2: If your grandpa happened to buy a land back in 227 00:12:10,200 --> 00:12:12,400 Speaker 2: the forties to farm, and he was good at it, 228 00:12:12,480 --> 00:12:15,440 Speaker 2: And now you're the benefactor of several thousand amazing acres 229 00:12:15,440 --> 00:12:19,480 Speaker 2: a deer dirt. That's great. Don't shit on the person 230 00:12:19,520 --> 00:12:22,880 Speaker 2: who doesn't have that, who is really really stoked to 231 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:27,640 Speaker 2: just shoot a forky somewhere. We all have different circumstances, 232 00:12:27,920 --> 00:12:30,800 Speaker 2: we all have different goals in life and different opportunities, 233 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:33,480 Speaker 2: but we all love this hunting thing and that's great, 234 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:37,079 Speaker 2: so we should all just be nice about it. Let 235 00:12:37,080 --> 00:12:39,000 Speaker 2: me give you another example here to tie a nice 236 00:12:39,040 --> 00:12:42,360 Speaker 2: bow on this whole thing. I recently filmed a fishing 237 00:12:42,440 --> 00:12:45,840 Speaker 2: show with the one and only Andy May. Now, if 238 00:12:45,880 --> 00:12:48,800 Speaker 2: you don't know who Andy is, google him. There are 239 00:12:48,800 --> 00:12:51,120 Speaker 2: only a couple people in the country with a resume 240 00:12:51,360 --> 00:12:55,040 Speaker 2: like his when it comes to big deer on public land. Hell, 241 00:12:55,480 --> 00:12:58,600 Speaker 2: he might have the best resume, even though he'll be 242 00:12:58,640 --> 00:13:01,839 Speaker 2: the first to admit it's not a competition, and he 243 00:13:01,880 --> 00:13:03,920 Speaker 2: has an awful lot of people he looks up to 244 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:08,040 Speaker 2: a lot. You know what, Andy's right, He's competing against 245 00:13:08,120 --> 00:13:11,200 Speaker 2: himself to be better and he gets better every year. 246 00:13:12,080 --> 00:13:14,440 Speaker 2: That's the kind of person I respect. But it goes 247 00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:17,200 Speaker 2: a lot further than that, As you can imagine. While 248 00:13:17,200 --> 00:13:19,040 Speaker 2: Andy and I shared a boat together for hours and 249 00:13:19,120 --> 00:13:21,920 Speaker 2: hours trying to catch big smallies in large mouth, I 250 00:13:21,960 --> 00:13:23,360 Speaker 2: got to know him in a way that I just 251 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:25,200 Speaker 2: never have in the I don't know, six or eight 252 00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:28,640 Speaker 2: years that we've known each other, and he's a guy 253 00:13:28,679 --> 00:13:30,920 Speaker 2: who hasn't had a lot handed to him, but he's 254 00:13:30,960 --> 00:13:34,559 Speaker 2: gone out and done amazing things. He also is not 255 00:13:34,679 --> 00:13:37,840 Speaker 2: very quick to shit on people, and that's real important. 256 00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:40,000 Speaker 2: He's at the top of the wait tail game and 257 00:13:40,040 --> 00:13:43,240 Speaker 2: the bow hunting in general game, and he's genuinely happy 258 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:47,000 Speaker 2: for people's success. He's about the least hypocritical guy I 259 00:13:47,040 --> 00:13:48,520 Speaker 2: know when it comes to hunting, and it makes me 260 00:13:48,559 --> 00:13:52,160 Speaker 2: a little ashamed that I'm not there yet. It's also 261 00:13:52,160 --> 00:13:54,640 Speaker 2: a reminder that while we were all hypocrites to some extent, 262 00:13:55,200 --> 00:13:58,400 Speaker 2: we can do better. We can be more like Andy 263 00:13:58,800 --> 00:14:01,480 Speaker 2: and hell think that'd be a good shirt or maybe 264 00:14:01,520 --> 00:14:05,120 Speaker 2: we should mentor I don't know, more hunters and post 265 00:14:05,120 --> 00:14:08,679 Speaker 2: hashtags be like Andy. I don't know. What I do 266 00:14:08,800 --> 00:14:11,679 Speaker 2: know is that life sucks a lot of times. It's hard. 267 00:14:12,160 --> 00:14:15,119 Speaker 2: It feels like we are living in this dystopian nightmare 268 00:14:15,320 --> 00:14:18,080 Speaker 2: that might be some sort of late stage capitalism that 269 00:14:18,120 --> 00:14:20,720 Speaker 2: is teetering on the brink of something much, much worse. 270 00:14:21,520 --> 00:14:24,440 Speaker 2: There's a lot of anxiety and stress in life, some 271 00:14:24,520 --> 00:14:26,800 Speaker 2: of which we invite in and some we just absorb 272 00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:30,240 Speaker 2: through our daily existence. And as hard as you have 273 00:14:30,280 --> 00:14:33,720 Speaker 2: it or I have it, or whoever, they are countless 274 00:14:33,760 --> 00:14:37,800 Speaker 2: people who have things way harder. I might not outwardly 275 00:14:37,960 --> 00:14:41,320 Speaker 2: show it because me, like a lot of people, are 276 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:44,920 Speaker 2: good at compartmentalizing this stuff and presenting a positive image. 277 00:14:45,400 --> 00:14:49,000 Speaker 2: But the truth is we're all just fighting our own battles. 278 00:14:49,720 --> 00:14:51,560 Speaker 2: Most of us are just trying to do a decent 279 00:14:51,640 --> 00:14:54,200 Speaker 2: job at life, and we don't always get it right. 280 00:14:54,800 --> 00:14:59,280 Speaker 2: We don't always win, we don't always kill big bucks whatever, 281 00:15:00,200 --> 00:15:02,040 Speaker 2: but we try to be a little happier and have 282 00:15:02,080 --> 00:15:04,800 Speaker 2: a better life. And if you're listening to this, one 283 00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:06,640 Speaker 2: of the ways you probably try to get a little 284 00:15:06,680 --> 00:15:10,000 Speaker 2: better is by shooting your bow in the summer, maybe 285 00:15:10,040 --> 00:15:12,960 Speaker 2: running a few trail cameras, maybe getting together with a 286 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:14,600 Speaker 2: buddy or two to plant a trip. In the fall, 287 00:15:15,400 --> 00:15:18,120 Speaker 2: you scout, and you use hunting as an escape to 288 00:15:18,200 --> 00:15:21,800 Speaker 2: get away from the crushing weight of everyday life. Just 289 00:15:21,840 --> 00:15:24,680 Speaker 2: so you can recharge the batteries a little bit, and 290 00:15:24,680 --> 00:15:27,160 Speaker 2: it's a good way to do it too. But you 291 00:15:27,200 --> 00:15:29,040 Speaker 2: won't do it in a way that makes everyone happy. 292 00:15:29,840 --> 00:15:31,480 Speaker 2: You won't do it in a way that is harder 293 00:15:31,520 --> 00:15:34,560 Speaker 2: than every other hunter out there. You're going to use 294 00:15:34,600 --> 00:15:37,680 Speaker 2: your advantages, however big or small, or impactful or meaningful, 295 00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:40,600 Speaker 2: and you'll draw your own lines in the sand for 296 00:15:40,680 --> 00:15:43,000 Speaker 2: what you want out of it, and those are yours, 297 00:15:43,120 --> 00:15:46,760 Speaker 2: and it's your journey. Enjoy it. Just remember that no 298 00:15:46,760 --> 00:15:48,960 Speaker 2: one else is on the same hunting journey, and no 299 00:15:48,960 --> 00:15:52,120 Speaker 2: one else is on the same life journey. It's all 300 00:15:52,160 --> 00:15:54,600 Speaker 2: different for each of us, and it's all good. So 301 00:15:54,720 --> 00:15:57,640 Speaker 2: let's be nice. Let's enjoy the shit out of this 302 00:15:57,720 --> 00:16:00,560 Speaker 2: hunting thing while we have it. Maybe share some venison 303 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:03,200 Speaker 2: with some non hunters. Let's take a few people out 304 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:06,560 Speaker 2: if we can, even it's only a late season dough hunter, whatever. 305 00:16:07,560 --> 00:16:10,680 Speaker 2: Let's recognize this for what it is, acknowledge that we 306 00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:13,280 Speaker 2: are all hypocrites in our own right, and just do 307 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:16,160 Speaker 2: a little better. I think we will all be better 308 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:19,480 Speaker 2: off for that, don't you. And I also think we 309 00:16:19,600 --> 00:16:21,400 Speaker 2: owe it to ourselves to just give each other a 310 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:23,560 Speaker 2: break and be a little more supportive of this whole 311 00:16:23,600 --> 00:16:29,160 Speaker 2: thing before it's too late. How's that sound? Also? How 312 00:16:29,160 --> 00:16:31,680 Speaker 2: does this sound? Next week, I'm going to talk about 313 00:16:31,680 --> 00:16:33,240 Speaker 2: a couple of things you can do to make yourself 314 00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:35,840 Speaker 2: better in the off season. If you want to be 315 00:16:35,880 --> 00:16:38,160 Speaker 2: a better hunter, there are things you can do that 316 00:16:38,200 --> 00:16:42,840 Speaker 2: aren't directly tied to throwing out that trail camera, doing 317 00:16:42,880 --> 00:16:44,600 Speaker 2: this or that. Trust me, I'm going to get into 318 00:16:44,640 --> 00:16:49,520 Speaker 2: them next week, So listen up. That's it for this week, folks. 319 00:16:49,560 --> 00:16:51,560 Speaker 2: Thank you so much for listening on Tony Peterson. This 320 00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:54,160 Speaker 2: has been the Wired to Hunt Foundations podcast, which is 321 00:16:54,200 --> 00:16:57,240 Speaker 2: brought to you by First Light. As always, thank you 322 00:16:57,360 --> 00:17:00,480 Speaker 2: so much for listening. We truly appreciate your support here. 323 00:17:00,840 --> 00:17:03,560 Speaker 2: It means the world to us. If you want some 324 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:09,840 Speaker 2: more hunting content, and I mean white tail articles series 325 00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:14,240 Speaker 2: like the buck Truck that we dropped recently, anything hunting 326 00:17:14,320 --> 00:17:16,600 Speaker 2: related and quite a bit of phishing related stuff too, 327 00:17:16,640 --> 00:17:18,639 Speaker 2: you can head on over to the meeteater dot com 328 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:23,040 Speaker 2: watch our series, read our articles, listen to the podcast. 329 00:17:23,440 --> 00:17:25,680 Speaker 2: Whatever you need to scratch that itch, it's there.