Just like everything else in life, some celebrity hunters are good hunters and some are not. I believe many of them were good hunters before turning famous. And in the end, how they hunt or if they are any good doesn't really matter. They are in the business of making money.
Just like any career or sport, there are no doubt many who got where they are via short cuts, connections, money. That in no way means all of them have. There are many who are the "real deal" and are very very efficient hunters. Of course these folks harvest more and better bucks on their private property they have manicured for umpteen years than the average Joe will on public land. I'll wager there are very few hunters that if they had the wherewithal to buy land and manage it for trophy bucks, would refuse to do it. Just because they have managed trophies running around doesn't mean they are easy query either. Free range deer and specifically the old mature bucks, are damn challenging no matter where you go. A lot of things have to come together just so so before anyone is going to connect.
Rick James, you put into better words what I tried to earlier. These are people who live it 24/7/365. I don't particularly care for most of the hunting shows, but I do have much respect for a few. The Lakosky's, Drurys and Kisky's and the Heartland guys are my favorites. These folks worked hard to get where they are. I'm sure they pined along the way for sponsorship. Why not? Managing that kind of property is expensive and not something the typical 9 to 5 job can fund. I highly doubt there is a person on this forum that would shoot down the opportunity to do what they do. I know I wouldn't.
Did they work hard to get the opportunities they have? Yes. Do most of them deserve respect? Yes But this is about money verse skills, and money will get you bigger bucks more than skills will.
The point of this post wasnt to bring down or praise any certain celebrity. The point was simple, take away the money...do these "celebrities" still score? Do they even still hunt? No doubt some would, but i think others would get frustrated by the reality of tresspassers, hit-list deet getting killed, pressure, cost, cheaper equipment, ect. Watching hunting on TV is no different then watching pro-sports or The Lord of the Rings. Its all fantasy and entertainment.
I think the Lakosky's, Drury's, Kisky's, Stan Potts and a few more would definitely hunt if the money and resources were taken away. I think their love for deer hunting is what drives them. Actually being able to make a career out of it is just a tremendous bonus. And I guarantee if you put them on any piece of ground, where ever it may be, they would be able to figure it out and kill mature bucks on that property. It won't always be a 160" deer because some areas just don't have them. But I believe they would definitely put themselves in a position to take mature deer year after year. As far as many of the other hunting celebrities, I think they would struggle without the benefit of outfitters and guides.
Just seems to me that they are privy to hunting better land then the average joe! With TV and all the commercials and the $ involved in it, they hunt primo areas, with no pressure and have time to hutn, unlike the average bowhunter. Remember, these shows ARE their jobs! We work, and then hunt when we can. Just a thought.
Look at the BHOD show... it is all just a bunch of average joes that love hunting. They still drop trophies year after year. It doesn't take celebrity status to do that. Yes it does require some money, but if you get a group of people together you can lease some quality land. It takes a longer term investment in any kind of property though. A lot of the celebrities got to be so by killing a lot of deer before they were celebrities. The Lakosky's just up and bought a farm, and then used their job (farming) to set up a primo place for whitetails. With work, the average joe can do the same thing.
I think a few of them have some of those talents but in my opinion most of their success comes down to having primo spots or outfitters. The truth is, if you're running around the country hunting all these different states and outfitters, how could you possibly have time to do any hard-core scouting? I don't begrudge any of their success because after all, that's the point of the show......to kill something. There are also those who own huge tracts of land that certainly doesn't hurt their chances of success. There are exceptions but I think MOST of the celebrity hunters would be pretty average if they had to deal with the things most of us deal with. Great question Caleb! Blessings.........Pastorjim
If I didn't have to work - hunting, fishing, and camping is all I would ever do depending on the season. I've always wanted a hunting personality to come hunt my property to see if they could be successful like they are on their own properties. Not to test their skills in an average Joe hunting situation but moreso to gauge myself and see if there are things I can improve on. It's only 9 acres but I have a small cabin and would love to hang out and I'd film them for free. Also, I think it varies from one hunting personality to the next, without knowing them personally I don't know how anyone could possibly know how they'd fare or if they would even hunt.
I think I could schedule a trip to Ohio next year. Let's say week before Halloweeen....oh wait do you mean a famous hunting personality?
So from my perspective, I believe that we are all on the same playing field. Think about it this way, how many bucks would you have if you were paid to hunt, review and endorse products, and live through your craft. The only thing that some of these "celebrities" have on us is that at some point some moron(for the ones I dislike) thought people would love this guy/gal on tv. Some of them are as messed up as giving a monkey a handgun. The only thing they have on us is time and opportunity.
These celebrities drop everything, move to big buck areas, improve habitat and are heavily involved in QDMA and get famous because of it. I think if you break that down further that's really what hunters are. Finding deer, improving the herd, shooting deer. Is the question asking about if they are better archers? Most practice all year long and could probably out shoot a large percentage of this forums members. If you're talking about hunting public land, scouting and producing on more pressured land, remember if any of us had the time and resources we could probably do it as well. Now I think there are a few celebrities that are head and shoulders above the rest as far as talent goes. Fame and money have allowed a few yahoos their own shows and it's easy to spot the ones that need to be guided. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thats kind of my point...you bring up resources... How successful would each one of us (with our love for bowhunting) have if we each had 100k EVERY YEAR to spend on just hunting?
It just seems so tainted with all the product placement they all seem fake, the way they endorse and change brands. I am insulted by the reverse angle camera placement on the tracking job, it is so manufactured. Lee and Tiff can do an ad about Wild game innovations being the best trail camera out there, we all know they are crap yet they get a check so they sell out and the masses who watch the show defend them. Do not get me wrong it is not jealousy or envy I would not want to be a TV hunter but they are all sell outs who will never turn down a check, I get it production is expensive but do you really think we want to watch you ride in a truck or get off a plane?
Having to back the biggest backer would be the main reason I couldn't do it...just not my style AT ALL....can't sell my honesty for anything.
