1 00:00:01,280 --> 00:00:05,080 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Wired to Hunt Foundations podcast, your guide 2 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:08,920 Speaker 1: to the fundamentals of better deer hunting, presented by first Light, 3 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:13,600 Speaker 1: creating proven versatile hunting apparel for the stand, saddle or blind. 4 00:00:14,120 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: First Light Go Farther, Stay Longer, and now your host 5 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:19,919 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson. 6 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:23,400 Speaker 2: Hey everyone, welcome to the Wired to Hunt Foundation's podcast, 7 00:00:23,400 --> 00:00:25,040 Speaker 2: which has brought to you by first Light. I'm your host, 8 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:27,240 Speaker 2: Tony Peterson, and today I'm going to talk about learning 9 00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:34,680 Speaker 2: to move on from your deer hunting mistakes. All right, 10 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:36,640 Speaker 2: before I get into this, I need to do this 11 00:00:36,760 --> 00:00:38,839 Speaker 2: because I'm bound by the reality that I need a 12 00:00:38,920 --> 00:00:41,839 Speaker 2: job to buy food for my kids, and I don't know. 13 00:00:41,880 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 2: There is the reality that phishing lures are really expensive. 14 00:00:44,880 --> 00:00:47,720 Speaker 2: So employment is a good thing for me. Right now, 15 00:00:47,760 --> 00:00:51,440 Speaker 2: we have an enormous Black Friday sale going on. You 16 00:00:51,479 --> 00:00:53,280 Speaker 2: want hunting, You're at a steep discount. 17 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:53,880 Speaker 3: This is it. 18 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:55,680 Speaker 2: I know you've heard it before, you're going to hear 19 00:00:55,720 --> 00:00:57,400 Speaker 2: it again, but this is a good one. In fact, 20 00:00:57,440 --> 00:00:59,360 Speaker 2: it's the biggest sale of the year here at Meat Eater. 21 00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:02,520 Speaker 2: I want to find some good hunting gear. Go check 22 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 2: it out at the media dot Com. At least take 23 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:07,840 Speaker 2: a look around, you might find something you absolutely have 24 00:01:07,920 --> 00:01:10,240 Speaker 2: to have, and if you do, it's very likely you're 25 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:12,400 Speaker 2: not going to pay full price for it. All Right, 26 00:01:12,920 --> 00:01:15,360 Speaker 2: this episode is one I really don't want to do, 27 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:18,160 Speaker 2: but I'm going to. I'm having a weird season, and 28 00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:20,280 Speaker 2: it's mostly weird because I don't feel like I hunted 29 00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:22,479 Speaker 2: very well. I mean a lot of mistakes this year, 30 00:01:22,520 --> 00:01:24,720 Speaker 2: and some of them really bother me. I'm going to 31 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:27,160 Speaker 2: talk about that, but also the reality of us all 32 00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:30,080 Speaker 2: out there doing our thing and making huge mistakes, and 33 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:37,920 Speaker 2: of course how to get past them. It's hard for 34 00:01:38,000 --> 00:01:41,000 Speaker 2: us today to realize how crazy it is that companies 35 00:01:41,120 --> 00:01:44,680 Speaker 2: like SpaceX and rocket Lab can put dozens of rockets 36 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:47,319 Speaker 2: in their payloads into space in any given year. Hell, 37 00:01:47,440 --> 00:01:50,000 Speaker 2: SpaceX is on track to launch like two hundred times 38 00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:52,440 Speaker 2: next year. It wasn't that long ago that there was 39 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:55,480 Speaker 2: no reliability in getting anything out of Earth's gravity well, 40 00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:58,320 Speaker 2: and if we did, it wasn't guarantee that whatever we 41 00:01:58,400 --> 00:02:00,920 Speaker 2: sent up would function at all. The history of our 42 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:03,760 Speaker 2: space race with Russia, in our space program in general, 43 00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:07,200 Speaker 2: is rife with mistakes. One of the first occurred when 44 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:09,639 Speaker 2: NASA decided it was time to send something to Venus 45 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:12,519 Speaker 2: to take a look around way back in nineteen sixty two. 46 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:16,040 Speaker 2: Back then, we were trying real hard to make Russia 47 00:02:16,080 --> 00:02:18,800 Speaker 2: look like total amateurs when it came to rocket technology, 48 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:23,359 Speaker 2: so we poured some serious years into developing interplanetary technology. 49 00:02:23,680 --> 00:02:26,400 Speaker 2: So on July twenty second of that year, the big 50 00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:29,600 Speaker 2: brains at NASA sent the Mariner one probe toward Venus. 51 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:32,520 Speaker 2: Its job was to gather info on the planet and 52 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:35,239 Speaker 2: help us learn better how to send more stuff into 53 00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:38,639 Speaker 2: space for scientific research. This might seem a little mundane 54 00:02:38,720 --> 00:02:41,519 Speaker 2: these days, but it was a different story back then. Hell, 55 00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:44,639 Speaker 2: that was only fifty nine years after Orville and Wilbur 56 00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:48,040 Speaker 2: Wright took the first man flight ever in their little airplane, 57 00:02:48,200 --> 00:02:52,600 Speaker 2: which was get this, powered by a twelve horsepower gas engine. 58 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:55,160 Speaker 2: We moved the tech needle a long ways in those 59 00:02:55,200 --> 00:02:58,240 Speaker 2: six decades, and sending a crude robot to another planet 60 00:02:58,240 --> 00:02:59,520 Speaker 2: in our Solar system. 61 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:01,080 Speaker 3: Was a huge, huge deal. 62 00:03:01,520 --> 00:03:04,360 Speaker 2: The whole thing costs eighty million dollars, which in today's 63 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:07,040 Speaker 2: money would be ten x that. It only took a 64 00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:10,320 Speaker 2: few seconds after the highly anticipated launch that it became 65 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:12,960 Speaker 2: clear the rocket wasn't headed to Venus, but was far 66 00:03:13,040 --> 00:03:15,280 Speaker 2: more likely to crash into one of the busier shipping 67 00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:18,359 Speaker 2: lanes in the Atlantic Ocean. Instead of letting that happen, 68 00:03:18,440 --> 00:03:21,480 Speaker 2: the flight director had to do what flight directors hope 69 00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:24,120 Speaker 2: they never have to do, which has essentially hit the 70 00:03:24,120 --> 00:03:27,000 Speaker 2: self destruct button and blow that sum bitch up. When 71 00:03:27,040 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 2: they started to do a post mortem on what went wrong, 72 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:32,959 Speaker 2: they ended up realizing that someone who had written code 73 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:37,120 Speaker 2: for the guidance program had misplaced a hyphen, a simple 74 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:40,680 Speaker 2: bit of punctuation, and suddenly years of work and an 75 00:03:40,880 --> 00:03:45,760 Speaker 2: unfathomable amount of money went literally up in smoke. Imagine 76 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:48,080 Speaker 2: being the engineer who wrote that code when the word 77 00:03:48,120 --> 00:03:50,680 Speaker 2: got out. I can't prove this, so I'm just filling 78 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:53,000 Speaker 2: in the blanks here, but I'm guessing he finished out 79 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:56,920 Speaker 2: his career doing some landscaping or something non rocket science related. 80 00:03:57,000 --> 00:03:59,280 Speaker 2: I need stories like this in my life, and maybe 81 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:01,800 Speaker 2: you do too. One thing I've noticed with a lot 82 00:04:01,800 --> 00:04:03,720 Speaker 2: of folks who reach out to me about deer hunting 83 00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 2: is how they want to share their successes with me 84 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:09,280 Speaker 2: after a long road of mistakes. Sometimes it's people who 85 00:04:09,320 --> 00:04:11,480 Speaker 2: have actually overcome the worst of them and have killed 86 00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:14,080 Speaker 2: a good one, And sometimes it's people who are stuck 87 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:16,919 Speaker 2: in the mistake zone and they don't see a way out. 88 00:04:17,520 --> 00:04:19,640 Speaker 2: I have good news and bad news on that front. 89 00:04:20,279 --> 00:04:23,200 Speaker 2: The mistake zone doesn't ever really leave you. If you 90 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:25,039 Speaker 2: think the best of the best do this stuff and 91 00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:29,360 Speaker 2: don't make mistakes, you're way wrong. They do all the time. 92 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:31,600 Speaker 2: They just make a few more of the right decisions 93 00:04:31,600 --> 00:04:33,000 Speaker 2: and a lot of folks, and they don't let the 94 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:36,120 Speaker 2: mistakes derail them for their mission. I have a hard 95 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:39,719 Speaker 2: time with this. Last season, I danuear killed every buck 96 00:04:39,880 --> 00:04:42,720 Speaker 2: that walked by me. Public land, private land, you name it. 97 00:04:42,920 --> 00:04:46,520 Speaker 2: The season just went well. This year, it feels different, 98 00:04:46,640 --> 00:04:49,240 Speaker 2: even though on paper, I've had a decent season. My 99 00:04:49,360 --> 00:04:51,719 Speaker 2: daughters have killed two deer and a bear, which is great. 100 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:54,839 Speaker 2: I'm up to four deer as of this writing, and 101 00:04:54,960 --> 00:04:57,039 Speaker 2: for most folks four deer in a season would be 102 00:04:57,040 --> 00:04:57,919 Speaker 2: a pretty good one. 103 00:04:58,240 --> 00:04:59,000 Speaker 3: But here's the thing. 104 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:01,520 Speaker 2: I didn't do my job very well on a couple 105 00:05:01,520 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 2: of them, and that bothers me so much. If I'm 106 00:05:04,360 --> 00:05:07,039 Speaker 2: being totally honest, most of my mistakes this year have 107 00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:10,120 Speaker 2: been while filming hunts, which happens. There's a different level 108 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:12,080 Speaker 2: of pressure there, and it doesn't do a head case 109 00:05:12,200 --> 00:05:14,960 Speaker 2: like me much good. I started out in North Dakota 110 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:18,280 Speaker 2: this year and missed a giant buck right away, simply 111 00:05:18,320 --> 00:05:21,039 Speaker 2: because I guessed what distance he'd be when he walked 112 00:05:21,040 --> 00:05:23,279 Speaker 2: through and didn't realize he was much closer when I 113 00:05:23,279 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 2: finally settled in to shoot. It was dumb, dumb, dumb, 114 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:29,760 Speaker 2: but I've missed big bucks before. What sucks when you 115 00:05:29,839 --> 00:05:32,200 Speaker 2: do that is hunting your ass off for several days 116 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:34,520 Speaker 2: after and then deciding that a doe would be just 117 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:37,560 Speaker 2: a fine option to wrap up a trip, because venison 118 00:05:37,560 --> 00:05:39,800 Speaker 2: in the cooler is better than not in my opinion. 119 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:42,200 Speaker 2: So when I went to do just that, I was 120 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 2: sitting in a very awkward position, and I had told 121 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:47,839 Speaker 2: myself roughly I don't know a thousand times during that 122 00:05:47,880 --> 00:05:50,920 Speaker 2: sit that I needed to check and recheck my site's 123 00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:53,560 Speaker 2: bubble level because I was bound to cant my bow. 124 00:05:54,080 --> 00:05:56,200 Speaker 2: That's exactly what I did, and the shot was ugly. 125 00:05:57,000 --> 00:06:00,240 Speaker 2: It was pure luck to catch an artery and she 126 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:03,880 Speaker 2: piled up seventy yards away. My buddy Tim Kent calls 127 00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:06,240 Speaker 2: those happy accidents, and I think that's about all you 128 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:08,520 Speaker 2: need to say about that. So I tried to shake 129 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:11,680 Speaker 2: off two bad shots and go to Iowa and kill 130 00:06:11,720 --> 00:06:14,200 Speaker 2: something on public land down there. The buck that I 131 00:06:14,279 --> 00:06:16,960 Speaker 2: ended up decoying in wasn't the giant I was hoping for, 132 00:06:17,320 --> 00:06:18,880 Speaker 2: but he put on a hell of a show, and 133 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:20,920 Speaker 2: I wanted to go see my kids and stop sleeping 134 00:06:20,960 --> 00:06:23,159 Speaker 2: in a tent for a few days. The shot was 135 00:06:23,240 --> 00:06:27,000 Speaker 2: close from the ground and by all accounts, a done deal. 136 00:06:27,480 --> 00:06:29,880 Speaker 2: When my arrow ticked a little willow branch and spiral 137 00:06:29,920 --> 00:06:33,240 Speaker 2: toward that buck, I had half of a second of terror, 138 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:36,840 Speaker 2: followed by what is now several weeks of dread. That 139 00:06:36,960 --> 00:06:39,359 Speaker 2: arrow smacked right into his guts, and it did not 140 00:06:39,560 --> 00:06:40,119 Speaker 2: look good. 141 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:40,920 Speaker 3: Now. 142 00:06:40,920 --> 00:06:43,000 Speaker 2: When we slowed down the footage, it did show me 143 00:06:43,040 --> 00:06:45,839 Speaker 2: a better angle than my brain remembered, and it showed 144 00:06:45,839 --> 00:06:48,840 Speaker 2: me far more penetration than I assumed. In fact, I've 145 00:06:48,839 --> 00:06:50,800 Speaker 2: had a couple of times on film where I've thought 146 00:06:50,839 --> 00:06:53,760 Speaker 2: there is no way I got much penetration. But when 147 00:06:53,760 --> 00:06:56,320 Speaker 2: you can go back and watch it frame by frame, 148 00:06:56,720 --> 00:06:59,520 Speaker 2: you can see the arrow go in way farther than 149 00:06:59,520 --> 00:07:01,200 Speaker 2: you think instantly back out. 150 00:07:01,640 --> 00:07:03,120 Speaker 3: It's kind of interesting. Anyway. 151 00:07:03,440 --> 00:07:05,680 Speaker 2: Well, we gave that buck seven hours, but when we 152 00:07:05,720 --> 00:07:07,719 Speaker 2: found him, we probably could have given him maybe half 153 00:07:07,760 --> 00:07:08,080 Speaker 2: an hour. 154 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:09,880 Speaker 3: The exit wound was behind his. 155 00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 2: Off side shoulder, and he took a two inch cut 156 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:12,920 Speaker 2: to the gut's liver. 157 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:13,480 Speaker 3: In one lung. 158 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:17,520 Speaker 2: My broadhead had also broken a blade, which tells me 159 00:07:17,560 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 2: it was probably open on impact, and that is not good. 160 00:07:21,240 --> 00:07:24,560 Speaker 2: That's also topic for a different podcast. I started this 161 00:07:24,680 --> 00:07:26,960 Speaker 2: year with a perfect shot on a do in Minnesota, 162 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:29,880 Speaker 2: and then had three dreadful shots on film, and then 163 00:07:29,920 --> 00:07:32,120 Speaker 2: I came home and killed a buck in Minnesota that 164 00:07:32,240 --> 00:07:34,320 Speaker 2: had a great big hole in his heart when I 165 00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:36,640 Speaker 2: was done with him. So two perfect shots, but they 166 00:07:36,640 --> 00:07:38,880 Speaker 2: don't make up for the other ones, and that sucks. 167 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:42,000 Speaker 2: I also managed to let a great Wisconsin Big Woods 168 00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:44,200 Speaker 2: bucket right on top of me before I knew he 169 00:07:44,320 --> 00:07:47,000 Speaker 2: was there, and watched as he winded me at ten 170 00:07:47,120 --> 00:07:49,440 Speaker 2: yards when I was just about to shoot him. You 171 00:07:49,440 --> 00:07:51,800 Speaker 2: don't get public land opportunities in the big woods like 172 00:07:51,840 --> 00:07:54,240 Speaker 2: that very often, which made it even worse when I 173 00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:56,120 Speaker 2: took my daughter in there and we had the very 174 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:58,840 Speaker 2: same thing happen with like one hundred and thirty inch year. 175 00:07:59,160 --> 00:08:02,280 Speaker 2: That would have made her her and me very happy. 176 00:08:03,120 --> 00:08:15,480 Speaker 2: So many mistakes. You know the jokes about anxiety where 177 00:08:15,480 --> 00:08:17,680 Speaker 2: you're about to fall asleep and suddenly you remember something 178 00:08:17,720 --> 00:08:20,120 Speaker 2: dumb you did in sixth grade, like maybe you shit 179 00:08:20,160 --> 00:08:22,920 Speaker 2: your pants in Fayette or something. Well, I knock out 180 00:08:22,960 --> 00:08:25,280 Speaker 2: something like that about every other time I go hunting, 181 00:08:25,640 --> 00:08:27,760 Speaker 2: and boy do I think about them a lot at 182 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:29,880 Speaker 2: night when all I want is a quiet mind and 183 00:08:29,920 --> 00:08:33,200 Speaker 2: some deep sleep. And added bonus of this job of 184 00:08:33,240 --> 00:08:35,520 Speaker 2: mine is that not only do I have to live 185 00:08:35,559 --> 00:08:37,640 Speaker 2: with those mistakes, but I also have to think about 186 00:08:37,640 --> 00:08:39,840 Speaker 2: them for a full year before we share them with 187 00:08:39,920 --> 00:08:43,040 Speaker 2: thousands and thousands of people, many of whom will let 188 00:08:43,080 --> 00:08:45,400 Speaker 2: me know personally that they could do a much better 189 00:08:45,520 --> 00:08:48,520 Speaker 2: job than me. And that might be true. Hell, there 190 00:08:48,559 --> 00:08:50,079 Speaker 2: are a lot of days where I'd give them the 191 00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:52,880 Speaker 2: job just to see if that was true. The thing is, 192 00:08:53,080 --> 00:08:55,720 Speaker 2: we are all total f ups. I recently had a 193 00:08:55,760 --> 00:08:58,480 Speaker 2: conversation with a sheriff down in Iowa who was looking 194 00:08:58,520 --> 00:09:01,440 Speaker 2: for some stolen kayaks and and to find some dipshit 195 00:09:01,520 --> 00:09:03,360 Speaker 2: dragging a buck down the middle of the river at 196 00:09:03,400 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 2: like two in the morning, and he mentioned that he 197 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:08,800 Speaker 2: listens to this podcast and appreciates the message that we 198 00:09:08,840 --> 00:09:11,560 Speaker 2: are all struggling. I don't know who would be in 199 00:09:11,559 --> 00:09:13,839 Speaker 2: a better position to see the general struggle of many, 200 00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:16,600 Speaker 2: many people than a law enforcement officer these days. 201 00:09:16,800 --> 00:09:17,840 Speaker 3: But that was nice to hear. 202 00:09:18,400 --> 00:09:20,200 Speaker 2: In fact, I hope he listens to this, and I 203 00:09:20,200 --> 00:09:22,880 Speaker 2: hope by the time he hears it, he's killed a buck 204 00:09:22,920 --> 00:09:25,320 Speaker 2: in that spot where I killed mine, because it turns 205 00:09:25,360 --> 00:09:27,760 Speaker 2: out we were both on the same deer pattern down there. 206 00:09:28,160 --> 00:09:30,120 Speaker 2: So here's the thing I want to tell you, and 207 00:09:30,160 --> 00:09:33,440 Speaker 2: I want all of you to understand. We are all 208 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:36,800 Speaker 2: pretending we are better at this than we are. Every 209 00:09:36,960 --> 00:09:39,840 Speaker 2: one of us. We don't want to admit to our mistakes, 210 00:09:39,920 --> 00:09:42,360 Speaker 2: and we don't want anyone to know that we have flaws. 211 00:09:42,679 --> 00:09:46,600 Speaker 2: But guess what, that's dumb. Let me give you an 212 00:09:46,640 --> 00:09:48,840 Speaker 2: example of a time when this became apparent to me. 213 00:09:49,559 --> 00:09:51,600 Speaker 2: A couple buddies and I were on a combo hunt 214 00:09:51,640 --> 00:09:53,880 Speaker 2: for antelopen deer quite a few years ago. 215 00:09:54,080 --> 00:09:55,600 Speaker 3: This is when we were young and. 216 00:09:55,559 --> 00:09:58,240 Speaker 2: Going real hard out there, and I don't remember the 217 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:01,199 Speaker 2: exact circumstances, but I had nearly empty to quiver on 218 00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:03,720 Speaker 2: a mule deer and I hadn't touched it. Now, over 219 00:10:03,760 --> 00:10:06,440 Speaker 2: a glass a wild turkey around the campfire, I told 220 00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:10,040 Speaker 2: the story of shooting over, then under, then over a deer, 221 00:10:10,360 --> 00:10:12,200 Speaker 2: and we got a good laugh out of it. And 222 00:10:12,240 --> 00:10:14,480 Speaker 2: then one of my other buddies piped in and mentioned 223 00:10:14,480 --> 00:10:17,800 Speaker 2: that he had whiffed not once, not twice, but also 224 00:10:17,960 --> 00:10:21,080 Speaker 2: thrice on an antelope that day. He had kept that 225 00:10:21,160 --> 00:10:23,160 Speaker 2: to himself on the off chance that it might make 226 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:26,000 Speaker 2: him look like a total idiot. Only when one of 227 00:10:26,040 --> 00:10:28,679 Speaker 2: his total idiot buddies admitted to a similar oh for 228 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:32,000 Speaker 2: three performance did he chime in, this is the world 229 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:35,959 Speaker 2: we live in. Deer hunting is full of ego. That's dumb. 230 00:10:36,320 --> 00:10:39,280 Speaker 2: The trophy obsession is dumb. The fact that we take 231 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:41,760 Speaker 2: ourselves so seriously that we lie to cover up our 232 00:10:41,760 --> 00:10:43,160 Speaker 2: awards is dumb. 233 00:10:43,440 --> 00:10:44,320 Speaker 3: But we do it. 234 00:10:44,679 --> 00:10:47,199 Speaker 2: And instead we should just accept that we make mistakes. 235 00:10:47,720 --> 00:10:50,600 Speaker 2: I mean, think about it this way. What other outdoor 236 00:10:50,640 --> 00:10:53,559 Speaker 2: pursuits do you do where you dwell on one mistake? 237 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:55,840 Speaker 3: Fishing? Get out of here. 238 00:10:56,440 --> 00:10:59,640 Speaker 2: I can make multiple mistakes in fishing on the same cast, 239 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:02,000 Speaker 2: and I make a lot of casts, and by that 240 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:05,559 Speaker 2: I mean a lot of casts. Pheasant hunting, Get out 241 00:11:05,559 --> 00:11:07,880 Speaker 2: of here. Do you know how many gift roosters I've 242 00:11:07,880 --> 00:11:10,560 Speaker 2: missed with both barrels enough to make me realize that 243 00:11:10,600 --> 00:11:13,240 Speaker 2: my vision of myself as an amazing wingshot is just 244 00:11:13,280 --> 00:11:16,120 Speaker 2: total horseshit on as many days as it might be true. 245 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:20,040 Speaker 2: Turkey hunting, mm mmm. How many times have you had 246 00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:22,040 Speaker 2: a gobbler walk in to see you move without you 247 00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:24,800 Speaker 2: having a clue he was there? Ever make a sound 248 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:27,000 Speaker 2: with your box call like a wildebeest just caught his 249 00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:30,439 Speaker 2: nuts and a picket fence? I have ever had one 250 00:11:30,520 --> 00:11:32,800 Speaker 2: just right in and with with a shotgun. 251 00:11:33,280 --> 00:11:33,679 Speaker 3: I have. 252 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:36,600 Speaker 2: The reason we are all obsessed with white tail hunting 253 00:11:36,800 --> 00:11:38,240 Speaker 2: and why a hell of a lot of us try 254 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:39,559 Speaker 2: to do it in a way that is a little 255 00:11:39,559 --> 00:11:42,280 Speaker 2: more challenging than it has to be, is because we 256 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:45,280 Speaker 2: want the feeling of getting it right. But that feeling 257 00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:47,520 Speaker 2: comes with a tax, and that tax is that you 258 00:11:47,559 --> 00:11:50,280 Speaker 2: are going to feel like a complete moron a lot 259 00:11:50,880 --> 00:11:52,600 Speaker 2: far more than you're going to feel like the kind 260 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:54,320 Speaker 2: of guy who can make Andy may look like an 261 00:11:54,320 --> 00:11:57,400 Speaker 2: amateur in the field. The truth is, you're going to 262 00:11:57,440 --> 00:12:00,400 Speaker 2: make a ton of mistakes, and you know what, who 263 00:12:00,480 --> 00:12:02,480 Speaker 2: cares talk about them? 264 00:12:02,720 --> 00:12:03,240 Speaker 3: Own them. 265 00:12:03,520 --> 00:12:05,880 Speaker 2: They're a part of the process. If you miss an 266 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:08,240 Speaker 2: easy shot, you think you're the only one. 267 00:12:08,600 --> 00:12:08,960 Speaker 3: You're not. 268 00:12:09,440 --> 00:12:11,840 Speaker 2: If you set your baseline off of what you consume 269 00:12:11,880 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 2: for outdoor content, or worse, just the success photos in 270 00:12:15,440 --> 00:12:18,640 Speaker 2: your social feeds. You're going to want to hide the truth. 271 00:12:18,760 --> 00:12:22,040 Speaker 2: But that's dumb. I've hunted with a hell of a 272 00:12:22,040 --> 00:12:24,079 Speaker 2: lot of famous hunters in my life, and I can 273 00:12:24,120 --> 00:12:26,960 Speaker 2: tell you they are not immune to doing really, really 274 00:12:27,040 --> 00:12:30,120 Speaker 2: dumb shit. They have the luxury of telling you about 275 00:12:30,200 --> 00:12:33,320 Speaker 2: that or not, but it exists. We're all in the 276 00:12:33,360 --> 00:12:35,880 Speaker 2: same boat, and do you know how to get over them. 277 00:12:36,360 --> 00:12:39,520 Speaker 2: It's not to strive for perfection because you won't get 278 00:12:39,559 --> 00:12:43,000 Speaker 2: there one time, let alone in a general state of being. 279 00:12:43,360 --> 00:12:44,360 Speaker 3: It's not going to happen. 280 00:12:44,920 --> 00:12:48,120 Speaker 2: What you do is just keep doing the work, the 281 00:12:48,200 --> 00:12:48,960 Speaker 2: prep work. 282 00:12:48,760 --> 00:12:50,679 Speaker 3: The scouting, the shooting, the whatever. 283 00:12:51,400 --> 00:12:54,080 Speaker 2: Just build up the skills you can and understand that 284 00:12:54,120 --> 00:12:57,000 Speaker 2: the mistakes are just teaching you something, which I know 285 00:12:57,120 --> 00:12:59,280 Speaker 2: sounds corny as hell, but it is true. 286 00:12:59,559 --> 00:13:00,280 Speaker 3: It really is. 287 00:13:00,679 --> 00:13:03,960 Speaker 2: It's not the success that makes us better, it's the failure. 288 00:13:04,320 --> 00:13:06,280 Speaker 2: Think about it this way. If you were to go 289 00:13:06,320 --> 00:13:08,440 Speaker 2: to candy Land, where the bucks are everywhere and they 290 00:13:08,440 --> 00:13:10,839 Speaker 2: are dumb, and you spend a week hunting there and 291 00:13:10,920 --> 00:13:14,360 Speaker 2: kill a giant, what will happen to you? Sure you'll 292 00:13:14,360 --> 00:13:17,160 Speaker 2: be happy to have that grippingrin. You'll be happy to 293 00:13:17,200 --> 00:13:20,360 Speaker 2: have had a really fun hunt. Nothing wrong with those things. 294 00:13:20,840 --> 00:13:23,400 Speaker 2: But now go from that to a week on public 295 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:25,320 Speaker 2: land where you're lucky to see a few deer on 296 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:28,240 Speaker 2: any given day. You get busted, You hear a lot 297 00:13:28,240 --> 00:13:30,439 Speaker 2: of snorting. You hang and hunt and hang and hunt 298 00:13:30,480 --> 00:13:32,360 Speaker 2: and hang and hunt, and you look for sign and 299 00:13:32,440 --> 00:13:36,319 Speaker 2: you work the people and the deer. Which week will 300 00:13:36,360 --> 00:13:39,400 Speaker 2: make you a better hunter? You know the answer to this, 301 00:13:39,880 --> 00:13:42,199 Speaker 2: It's the one that's full of real challenge, because real 302 00:13:42,320 --> 00:13:43,600 Speaker 2: challenge produces. 303 00:13:43,240 --> 00:13:44,800 Speaker 3: Failure as a byproduct. 304 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:47,040 Speaker 2: If you haunt a place with tons of big bucks 305 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:49,240 Speaker 2: that never look up into trees and don't live off 306 00:13:49,280 --> 00:13:52,280 Speaker 2: the wind to detect danger, you're not learning how to 307 00:13:52,280 --> 00:13:52,840 Speaker 2: be better at this. 308 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:56,000 Speaker 3: Stuff can be great, can be fun. It's not teaching 309 00:13:56,080 --> 00:13:58,400 Speaker 3: you much. Now. I know that's an extreme example. 310 00:13:58,840 --> 00:14:00,360 Speaker 2: Now, But if you go out on a list or 311 00:14:00,440 --> 00:14:03,600 Speaker 2: grandma's farm and make mistakes, they sting a lot. But 312 00:14:03,679 --> 00:14:06,480 Speaker 2: so what everyone is out there screwing up and so 313 00:14:06,520 --> 00:14:08,400 Speaker 2: are you. What do they teach you? 314 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:08,680 Speaker 3: Though? 315 00:14:09,280 --> 00:14:11,480 Speaker 2: Maybe you reach for your boat at exactly the wrong 316 00:14:11,559 --> 00:14:14,120 Speaker 2: time and he saw you. Maybe you didn't clear out 317 00:14:14,120 --> 00:14:16,240 Speaker 2: your entrance road as well as you know you should, 318 00:14:16,480 --> 00:14:18,440 Speaker 2: and you made a lot more noise than you needed 319 00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:20,720 Speaker 2: to on the way in. What does that teach you? 320 00:14:21,120 --> 00:14:24,360 Speaker 2: And maybe you're hard on yourself over your mistakes, and 321 00:14:24,400 --> 00:14:27,560 Speaker 2: I get that, I really do. I'm my own worst critic, 322 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:30,640 Speaker 2: which is saying something, because boy do I have some critics. 323 00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:33,520 Speaker 2: I'm sure you're harder on yourself than you need to be, 324 00:14:33,720 --> 00:14:37,720 Speaker 2: And honestly, you should give yourself some grace, give yourself 325 00:14:37,760 --> 00:14:41,040 Speaker 2: a chance with this stuff. You're trying something super difficult, 326 00:14:41,280 --> 00:14:44,160 Speaker 2: and that means the mistakes are just built into the code. 327 00:14:44,600 --> 00:14:47,200 Speaker 2: They're there waiting for you. And while it sucks so 328 00:14:47,360 --> 00:14:49,320 Speaker 2: much to watch a dear slip from your grip because 329 00:14:49,360 --> 00:14:51,800 Speaker 2: of a dumb decision, you know for sure that you 330 00:14:51,800 --> 00:14:55,080 Speaker 2: shouldn't have made. It's done, and it might keep you 331 00:14:55,120 --> 00:14:58,640 Speaker 2: from doing it again. We all leaven extra hyphen in 332 00:14:58,680 --> 00:15:02,440 Speaker 2: the code. Sometimes when that happens, we want to self destruct. 333 00:15:02,960 --> 00:15:04,960 Speaker 2: But you gotta pick up the pieces. You gotta keep 334 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:08,280 Speaker 2: working the process, and you don't beat yourself up too much. 335 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:11,040 Speaker 2: You're doing fine if you're learning and growing as a hunter. 336 00:15:11,520 --> 00:15:13,640 Speaker 2: I mean that because I believe it to be true. 337 00:15:14,600 --> 00:15:16,680 Speaker 2: So do that for yourself and come back next week 338 00:15:16,680 --> 00:15:18,520 Speaker 2: because I'm going to talk about how to kill more 339 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:23,200 Speaker 2: deer by understanding the connective tissue of different properties and 340 00:15:23,240 --> 00:15:28,480 Speaker 2: how to read the land on a bigger level. That's 341 00:15:28,480 --> 00:15:30,360 Speaker 2: it for this week. I'm Tony Peterson. This has been 342 00:15:30,400 --> 00:15:33,320 Speaker 2: the Wired to Hunt Foundation's podcast. As always, thank you 343 00:15:33,400 --> 00:15:35,920 Speaker 2: so much for your support. If you're listening to this 344 00:15:35,960 --> 00:15:37,520 Speaker 2: in the week that it drops, you can head on 345 00:15:37,560 --> 00:15:40,320 Speaker 2: over to the mediat dot com and see one hell 346 00:15:40,320 --> 00:15:43,600 Speaker 2: of a Black Friday sale, so much good stuff on 347 00:15:43,680 --> 00:15:46,080 Speaker 2: sale there, or you just want to head over there 348 00:15:46,360 --> 00:15:48,880 Speaker 2: and maybe find a new podcast to listen to, like 349 00:15:48,920 --> 00:15:52,320 Speaker 2: Brent Reeves This Country Life, or maybe test your knowledge 350 00:15:52,360 --> 00:15:54,760 Speaker 2: on media or trivia, maybe find a recipe, maybe you 351 00:15:54,800 --> 00:15:58,320 Speaker 2: read an article, whatever, There's so much good stuff over 352 00:15:58,320 --> 00:16:00,000 Speaker 2: there at the mediat dot com. Go check it out, 353 00:16:00,160 --> 00:16:02,440 Speaker 2: and once again, thank you so much for your support.