LOCAL DEER HUNTERS
Share their Bow Hunting Passion
WITH WHITETAIL ARCHERY SEASON AROUND THE CORNER, THREE LOCAL HUNTERS TOLD TRADITIONS ABOUT THEIR START AND WHY THEY CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF BOW HUNTING. THEY ALSO OFFERED SOME INTERESTING PERSPECTIVES AND SAFETY TIPS.
Hunting and shooting bows since he was 10, Tim has four decades of sighting down a bow string for rabbits, raccoons, woodchucks, prairie dogs, turkeys, elk, mule deer, whitetails, bears, mountain fo li lion (record book 10th in the world), grouse, caribou, coyotes and foxes. He tries to shoot 20 to 30 aarrows each noon hour, and said, “Nobody practices enough.” Tim’s many weekend trips made with his mother, Sue, remain extremely memorable. His Pope aand Young record-book elk came in New Mexico when on a trip with her, and the two will head back aagain this season. He said, “Mom, at 71, still hunts, and was instrumental in my love of hunting.” One of his oft-recalled hunts came with his dad on a 20-degree below zero Colorado morning. Aside from the cold, Tim’s thoughts turn to a 13-point whitetail with a 23-3/8ths inch inside spread A that grossed 165 scoring inches. “The big buck came to my decoy, which I dressed with a skull cap, th tarsal glands and the saliva of other deer. It was a 21-yard shot. I was really into scents before it was ta a big thing in archery,” he said. When Minnesota closed the deer season in 1972, and the next year opened for bucks statewide, Tim decided archery was his game. “With a bow, I could shoot a doe or a buck, and I wanted to shoot T a deer. I really got into bow hunting that year. I haven’t missed a season since,” he said. In the 1980’s aand 1990’s, he hunted many states with a bow because it was easier to get tags and licenses. “Hunting during the rut in great areas was heaven on earth,” he said. d His sons, Luke, Levi and Zane, followed in his footsteps. They’ve all shot Pope and Young record bucks. This fall, in addition to local hunting, Tim and wife Coleen will hunt whitetails in North b Dakota. The owner of Acorn Millwork and Duffney Cabinets has many of his trophies on display at D his business on the corner of Highways 18 and 6, about 15 miles east of Brainerd. He invites hunters “Nobody Practices Enough!” to stop in.
Tim Duffney
Dave, the archery lead at Baxter Gander Mountain has been involved with archery his entire working life. A buddy who was video taping a deer hunt saved his life. “I fell out of a tree when I was 21, broke six ribs, two vertebrae and punctured a lung when I landed 25-feet down. Without my friend there, I would have died. They flew me from Walker to the Twin Cities, and I fully recovered,” he said. “My advice to all bow hunters is based on experience – wear a harness!” Dave’s been bow hunting, mostly in Minnesota, but hits Manitoba every year and will hunt North Dakota this season. He picked up a fiberglass long bow at a garage sale and learned on his own. He purchased his first compound at age 12, and said, “I’ve been a nut-case ever since.” His first buck came from the southeastern part of the state that year on a mid-October morning. A buck ran towards him and stopped 10 yards away. “I’ve been hooked since shooting that 6-pointer,” he said. He began hanging around archery pro shops and was offered a job fletching arrows at “A buddy saved my life.” age 15. At 18, he was in charge of a Sportsman’s Warehouse archery department. He moved to the Baxter Gander store when it opened because he loves this area. He cited three reasons why people get into bow hunting: 1. Bow hunting gives hunters discipline. They must be educated, practiced, and pay attention to small things. 2. Bow hunting gets people in the woods at a great time of the year — September and October. Less people; gorgeous time. 3. Young people feel part of something. They can be good at a sport. Dave said programs for youth are making a difference. Schools working with the National Archery in Schools Program exposes youngsters to the fun of archery. Kids can feel special at their skills; Dave emphasized, and said the Gander youth league for those six to 12 years old takes place every Saturday morning all winter. He said, “I spend lots of time with kids, and at Gander we sell more youth bows than all other bows.” About 200 times each year, he has adults come into the store and tell him they loved shooting bows in school and wanted to get back into the sport. For those and other hunters, he recommended all bow hunters carry binoculars, a range-finder, practice from the stand, control scent and wear a harness.
Dave Peterson
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