pro ress2016 Monday, March 21
A SALUTE TO THOSE “OUTDOORSMEN” AND “OUTDOORSWOMEN” IN THE CRESTON NEWS ADVERTISER COVERAGE AREA
Matt Harper 2A Austin Berry 4A John Thomsen 6A Keith Winkelmann 8A Bob Berning 10A Rakenzy Pryor 12A Clel Baudler 13A Jim Oaks 14A Jonathan Cox 16A Thad Sickels 17A Ron Gordon 20A Tom Frakes 22A
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Progress 2016: Recognizing our community This year’s Creston News Advertiser Progress section has five themes, one for each day of publication this week. The themes are Outdoors, People in Industry, Youth, Culture and Art and Over 90. These sections will introduce
you to some extraordinary people with extraordinary talents right here in southwest Iowa. You’ll meet a banker who spends three months out of the year awaking before the sun to go trapping for coyote. You’ll meet an East Union stu-
dent on track to graduate high school by sophomore year and has aspirations of becoming a U.S. president. There are about 60 people featured in this year’s Progress section. We at the Creston News Ad-
vertiser know there are many, many more in southwest Iowa that we could feature, but we either couldn’t get to everyone or they declined our invitation. Please enjoy these stories as we recognize our local community.
Aiming high Seasoned hunter Matt Harper estimates he’s hunted at least 20 animal species. Now, he’s passing down the skills and ethics of the hunt to his two daughters. ■
By IAN RICHARDSON
CNA staff reporter irichardson@crestonnews.com
AFTON — While growing up on his family’s farm north of Lorimor, Matt Harper enjoyed tagging along with his father, John, on quail and pheasant hunts. In his youngest days, he’d do it armed with a toy gun. But that didn’t mean he got to treat it like a toy. “I had to handle the toy gun just like it was a real gun,” Matt said. As he got older, Matt made the transition to a BB gun, and, finally, a real one. When he was about 13 years old, he shot his first pheasant. “(We were) in a little draw that’s on Dad’s farm north of the house,” Matt said. “The bird got up, and Dad let me shoot it, and I actually hit the thing — which was crazy.” Ever since then, Matt’s been hooked on hunting. Since his days trailing his dad, he’s hunted a variety of animals around the nation, written more than 100 articles for hunting publications and hunted with several cus-
Contributed photo
Matt Harper, left, poses with his daughters and father, John. Pictured, from left, are Matt, Emma, John and Abby.
tomers. He estimates he’s hunted at least 20 different species, and he has more on his list. Today, just like his father did for him, he’s also passing the skills, knowledge and values he’s learned to a new generation of hunters: his two daughters.
Making connections Matt attended high school
at East Union Community School in Afton. He studied animal science at Iowa State University and, following graduation, went to work at the food processing company Archer Daniels Midland. There, he would mix diets for animals ranging from livestock or deer to turtles and — one time — a racing camel. Matt’s work on a deer project helped him form a relationship with Whitetail Institute, a company that produces feed for hunting food plots. He eventually went to work with them and stayed for about seven years. Then, about 11 years ago, Matt began working for Nutra Blend, a company that supplies feed mills with microingredients for livestock feed. Matt said a blessing with the companies he’s worked with is the amount of travel he gets to do. “With both companies I’ve gotten to go a lot of places, see a lot of things,” Matt said. “Fishing in Alaska, bear hunting in different provinces in Canada, moose hunting
in Alberta — I’ve hunted elk in almost every western state where they have elk, some personally on my own and some with customers. It’s just been a blessing that I’ve been able to do that stuff.” On the side, Matt hunts with customers and writes six to eight freelance articles a year for various publications, something he started while working with Whitetail Institute. He also does hunting photography and has done some TV work, as well.
Bear hunting One of the species Matt has hunted is black bear. In Canada, Matt said he uses bear baits to attract them to a certain area and bow and arrow to shoot them. “It makes it sound like it’s really easy, but a bear has a nose that’s better than a hound dog,” Matt said. “Especially an old boar that’s pretty cagey – been around a long time. If he smells you, he’s probably not going to come in.” Some places, Matt said, are so remote that bears
Contributed photo
Matt Harper poses next to a black bear he shot bow hunting in Canada in 2011.
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they shoot up,” Matt said. “You’re not so much worried about this cub, although they can be plenty big enough. ... You’re worried about the fact that now you’re in between a cub who’s up in the tree and Mom who’s down there on the ground, and she doesn’t like that very much. That’s a pretty bad situation to be in.”
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have never smelled humans before. He said that can also be dangerous because black bears are curious creatures. Matt has had bears climb up his tree or bluff a charge at him, but he said the most dangerous situations are when a mother and her cubs are involved. Mothers are defensive of other boar black bears and will make a sound whenever they encounter something they believe is a danger. “When she makes that sound, the cubs shoot up a tree wherever you’re at, and it could be your tree that
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HARPER: CONT. FROM | 2A
Hunting ethics After he kills an animal, Matt does much of the processing on his own. The Harpers have three freezers where they store the meat. “A lot of people, I think, think of a hunter and they think of somebody – especially someone who goes after trophy animals — they think that’s the only reason they do it,” Matt said. “But it’s certainly not just that in and of itself. You still eat the meat, you still do all of that. It’s another way to get substance.” That hunter work ethic is something he’s been passing down to his daughters, 16-year-old Emma and 12-year-old Abby, both of whom already have some experience under their belt. Emma, who’s a junior at East Union, said she started because of the opportunity to spend some quality time
Matt Harper poses behind a moose he shot in 2013.
with him. “That was always my favorite part about hunting,” Emma said, “getting to spend the quality time and having something fun to share in common.” Since then, she’s shot nearly 10 deer. Abby, who began hunting last year, has shot a deer and a wild pig already. Her motivation might have something to do with friendly competition. “Why I started was, of course, I had to be better than Emma at it,” Abby said. “And so even though I’ve only shot two things, still I think I’m going to be better.” Matt has been married to his wife, Shannon, for 20 years. He said her role in the family’s hunting excursions is that she allows them to do it. “My wife and I have an agreement, and that agreement is that I can hunt, I can pursue that, but no dead animals in the house,” he said. Ultimately, Matt said, hunting is about far more than just shooting animals. It’s the overall experience. “I think from a spiritual standpoint, I never feel closer to God than when I’m out there in what He built, and that’s actually another huge
Contributed photo
Matt Harper kneels near an alligator he shot during a trip to Florida in 2014. Matt said gator meat tastes like chicken.
part of why I like to do it and why I like to be out there,” Matt said. “I feel like once I’m out there, I’m where I’m supposed to be.”
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them specifically, he said he’s already met them on a few occasions. “A lot of the areas where I’m hunting other things, especially elk or moose, you’re in grizzly country and you may be hunting with a bow, so I’ve had at least three different occasions where I’ve had close proximity with grizzlies,” Matt said. “A couple of times they weren’t real happy I was there, and I just got lucky that I got out of there.” The first time Matt saw a grizzly, he was hunting at a water hole in the mountains of Idaho with only a bow and arrow. From the darkness, he said, he heard a “woof” sound. Sure enough, it was a grizzly. “As soon as it got downwind, then it started popping its jaws and started coming straight at me,” Matt said. “I’m up in this old rickety tree stand that you or I could walk up and push it over, let alone an 800-pound grizzly bear.” But then, he said, the bear changed direction. “I really honestly don’t know (what happened),” Matt said. “I think, apparently, the nonstop praying helped me because he got within 20 yards and then just walked away.” Matt said the next time he went hunting in that area, he brought a gun with him.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
‘Deadeye with a rifle’
Austin Berry of Creston hunts several types of game year round, including coyotes, ducks, pheasants. ■
By KELSEY HAUGEN CNA staff reporter khaugen@crestonnews.com
Austin Berry vividly remembers the first time he used his shotgun while duck hunting with his father. He was about 14, and he shot three ducks that morning. Two of them fell with one shot. “It was pure luck, but it was awesome,” Berry said. Later that morning, he went pheasant hunting on his parents’ farm in Creston and shot his first rooster. Shooting four birds on his first day hunting with a real gun, rather than a BB gun, was an “alltime high” for him. That day was the start of Berry hunting every chance he gets, whether it’s ducks, quail, pheasants, coyotes, deer, turkeys or geese. “It’s the adrenaline rush I get from a flock of ducks coming in or a coyote running to my call or a rooster flushing from the weeds that keeps me coming back for more,” he said. “My heart still races every time.” Berry, 27, of Creston works as a credit analyst at First National Bank. He earned an associate of arts degree from Southwestern Community College and a bachelor’s de-
Austin Berry pets one of his pointing dogs, a Vizsla named Lexi, while quail hunting Nov. 22 near Creston.
gree in agricultural studies from Iowa State University (ISU). At ISU, Berry was part of the trap and skeet club. “I like to put my practice target shooting into action,” he said. “Most of the time, I’m with my friends, my family or my dogs, so I enjoy spending that time with them. I also love the challenge of it. Sometimes, I’m very frustrated by the challenge of it, but I think that’s what keeps me going back.”
While Berry enjoys all types of hunting, his focus is always on ducks, pheasants and coyotes. “From the time duck season starts until the snow melts around February, it’s pretty constant,” he said. “We hunt ducks, then pheasant season starts, then we start to hunt coyotes.”
Ducks
For Berry, shotgun season means bird-hunting rather than deer-hunting. He’s
searching for trophy ducks – ones that are banded on their feet. “The timing can be tough,” he said. “They’re migratory birds, so they’re not here all the time like pheasants or coyotes are.” Another challenge with duck-hunting is it requires a lot of equipment: decoys, waders, boats, blinds and duck calls. “It’s important to get your decoys into a spread where the ducks can see them well and have a place to land,” Berry said. “We use a decoy with wings that spin, so it looks like a duck that’s landing on the water. Staying well concealed is very important. You want to hunt
with the wind at your back because the ducks always land into the wind.” If he’s hunting on a pond, Berry said it’s important to have a dog that will fetch a duck from the water and bring it back. He has two pointing dogs: a Vizsla named Lexi and a German Shorthaired Pointer named Halle. If he’s not on a pond, he might be trying to catch ducks in a cornfield when they come out to eat early in the morning.
Pheasants
When looking for pheasants, a trophy rooster is one with a long tail feather and large spurs. “You can’t really call
CNA photos by KELSEY HAUGEN
pheasants or quail. You just find them,” Berry said. Finding them can be quite a challenge, though. Pheasants like to be around cornfields where there’s food, but they also like to have plenty of cover to hide from predators. “If you can find the perfect mix of those two, that’s going to be a good place,” Berry said. “The weeds on the buffer strips on the edge of a cornfield is a good spot.” Berry always takes one of his pointing dogs when he’s hunting pheasants. “When a pointing dog smells a bird, their instinct is BERRY | 5A
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Austin Berry and one of his pointing dogs, a Vizsla named Lexi, pose with a pheasant and quail shot Nov. 1, the first day of pheasant season.
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BERRY: CONT. FROM | 4A
to stalk it slowly and be sneaky about it,” he said. “They’ll stop, get stiff as a board, look in the direction of the bird, and they’re just frozen. You teach them to stay there once they smell them, so then you know where the birds are. I love hunting with a pointing dog when it works well because it’s so cool to watch the dog lock onto a quail or rooster, and you get to go flush the bird right at your feet.” Pheasant and quail hunting are becoming increasingly difficult. When Berry went hunting with his longtime friend Matt Buck in Creston fields on Nov. 22, they only saw a few quail. “I think there’s a little bit of a loss of habitat,” Buck said. “I also think you don’t see as many farmers nowadays. It used to be more broken up; you didn’t see these massive areas of farms. One person would have 80 Buck (acres), one person would have 80, one person would have 40, and they would all be separated by fences, so there were more fencerows, which give (birds) more natural cover and escape routes. Now, I think predators have an easier time picking up pheasants and quail because they don’t have multiple fencerows to hide in.”
Coyotes
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One reason Berry loves hunting coyotes is for the chance to use a rifle, rather than a shotgun. “I remember when Austin was in high school, and it was one of the first years of rifle season – Austin’s a really good rifle shooter,” Buck said. “We put him up in a corner of a fencerow, and he shot all of (the birds). He was a deadeye with a rifle even when he was young.” With coyote-hunting,
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Austin Berry, left, and Matt Buck walk through a Creston field in search of quail Nov. 22.
“Austin’s a really good rifle shooter. We put him up in a corner of a fencerow, and he shot all of (the birds). He was a deadeye with a rifle even when he was young.” — Matt Buck
Fellow outdoorsman
Berry considers any coyote capture a success, as it’s challenging to do. The most he has shot in one year is 10 coyotes. “You want to be after them very early in the morning or right before dark because they’re nocturnal,” Berry said. “Once you see one and you’re going to try to call it in, it’s important to have the wind in your face, not at your back, because they can smell extremely well. They’ll smell you long before you’ll ever see them.” He sometimes finds coyotes using an animal-in-distress call. Other times, he uses hounds to locate them. “You’re not allowed to use
Austin Berry shoots at a quail in the distance while hunting in a Creston field Nov. 22. CNA photos by KELSEY HAUGEN
artificial light to hunt coyotes in Iowa, but if there’s a full snow cover and a full moon, you can see well enough to shoot them. Only a couple nights out of the year could you probably do that, but that’s one of my favorite things to do – hunt by moonlight.”
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With most of the animals unless their fur is in condihe hunts, Berry always saves tion to sell, which is during and eats the meat. He likes the winter. “I love animals, so I know to donate deer hides to Elks Lodge #605 to be made into gloves for military veterans, and he tries to sell coyote pelts. Some people hunt coyotes year-round, but Berry prefers not to shoot them
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Hooked on fishing
Creston optometrist John Thomsen fishes for leisure and competition. ■
“He’s able to catch fish when others can’t. He’s got a unique ability to be able to go a long period of time, even if he can’t practice, and get a feel for the water.”
By IAN RICHARDSON
CNA staff reporter irichardson@crestonnews.com
Creston optometrist John Thomsen spends his work week helping people see the world more clearly. But in his free time, Thomsen’s main hobby revolves around the mystery of something that lies just beyond his line of sight, swimming deep in the murk of local lakes and ponds. Thomsen, 52, has been an avid bass fisherman since he was a boy. It’s something he does for fun and relaxation, but it’s also something he does for the adrenaline rush of competition. Since he bought his first fishing boat more than two decades ago, Thomsen’s endeavors have included trips to more than 100 bass tournaments on the local, state or national level.
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Starting out Thomsen said his love of fishing began with his grandfather and namesake, John Thomsen. As a kid, John’s grandfather would take him fishing in the sand pits on his Nebraska farm. “My grandfather would sit and tell me stories about the things he’d done and chased around, and the fish that he’d caught,” John said. “When I was little, it was always just that thrill of Contributed photo wondering what was on the John Thomsen, left, his son Trey, middle, and their friend Mike Schuster hoist a 50-pound king salmon Trey caught other end of the line.” on a fishing trip to Alaska in 2010. While John’s father, Gerald, wasn’t much into hunt- competitiors — one with bass, while the cooler tem- you start keeping the big- Bob Walker at the 2014 ing or fishing at the time, a boat and one without — peratures farther north are ger ones and start throwing Fishers of Men national John said he took advantage would share a boat and perfect for walleye, leaving the smaller ones out,” John tournament at Chickamof family trips to get in some compete against one an- Iowa right in the middle. said. “Then at the end of the auga Lake in Tennessee, quality solo fishing time. But, about 15 years ago, day, your five biggest fish during which he caught a other. John said this setup “(Dad) would sleep in, helped younger fishermen John said he was in on the you bring them in and then 9-pound, 2-ounce bass. and I’d go out at sunrise like himself try out the sport ground floor of an upswing weigh them in.” At his peak, Thomsen and fish for a couple hours,” without having to purchase in local bass tournament acThe fish would then be re- said he competed in 23 comJohn said. “Then I’d go in expensive equipment first. tivity. leased alive. John said most petitions a year, all but a and try to wake him up, and “You probably could have tournaments impose a pen- few in the state of Iowa. As “I just hopped in,” John if he wouldn’t wake up, I’d said. “These guys had nice 60, 70 boats with two guys in alty of a half or a full pound a former college basketball run back out and fish for a bass boats and high-dollar a boat,” John said. “Every for each fish that dies in the player, he said he enjoys the few more hours.” rush of the competition. equipment, and I’m just sit- weekend you’d have that process. When John moved to Tex“Nobody wants their fish “When I was growing ting back there with my tiny kind of tournament someas to pursue his doctorate in where around the area.” to die,” John said. “We are up, I was involved in every optometry at the University tackle box and rod.” Local tournaments would very, very conscious about sport that you could be in,” of Houston, he would visit Tournament fishing consist of eight to nine hours making sure the fish are well Thomsen said. “But when the Gulf of Mexico to fish For more than two years, of fishing, in which compet- taken care of and released.” you get old enough that you as a means of finding solace John fished out of the back itors would catch the five John has fished regional can’t run around the basfrom the crowds. of fellow bass club mem- largest bass they could. circuits and reached nation- ketball court anymore, this When he moved back to bers’ boats. Then, in 1995, “They have to be at least al bass competitions four gives you a way to compete Creston in 1992, he was in- he purchased his own used 15 inches long, and once times, including a fourth- with the young guys and still vited to join a local fishing one. you get five legal ones then place finish with partner have a chance to do well. It club called the Southwest John said southwest Iowa Iowa Bass Anglers. The is somewhat of a no man’s bass club, which has since land when it comes to fishdissolved, would hold tour- ing. The warmer waters naments where pairs of farther south are ideal for
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gives you an adrenaline rush when you get out there and catch a big fish.” Tyler Wolfe, owner of Big Boyz Toyz in Creston and an avid bass competitor in his own right, has fished with John many times over the years. He’s also faced him in competitions. Wolfe said what makes John such a good competitor is his consistency. “He’s able to catch fish when others can’t,” Wolfe said. “He’s got a unique ability to be able to go a long period of time, even if he can’t practice, and get a feel for the water.”
Father and son John’s son, Trey, has been John’s fishing partner for as long as he can remember. Trey’s earliest memories of holding a rod and reel are the one-on-one fishing competitions against his dad in the pond near their house. “He’d set up our own little tournaments against each other,” Trey said. “I’m sure he let me win on purpose.” As Trey grew older, he and his dad would enter competitions — this time on the same team. “I like it a lot because I’d always been saying like it would be so fun if you could play sports with your dad, but this is kind of a little glimpse of that, just being on the same team,” Trey said. Both Trey and John’s favorite fishing memory came during a small, four-hour youth tournament with fewer than a half-dozen other competitors. John had a major tournament the next day, and he planned to save the best spots on the lake for the next day. THOMSEN | 7A
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
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RESTON UTOMOTIVE Rick Benson - Owner
Contributed photo
John Thomsen, left, and his son Trey hold up their stringer of fish caught during a youth tournament in 2007. It is the largest stringer of bass John has caught to date.
THOMSEN: CONT. FROM | 6A
By the end of the day, that strategy looked a bit backward. “We ended up with the biggest stringer that I’ve ever gotten,” John said. “Every one we caught kept getting bigger and bigger. ... We had almost 25 pounds in five fish.”
Rick is celebrating his 10th year of service to the customers of Creston Automotive. Rick is the owner of Creston Automotive. Rick has a daughter Jordan, who is married to Ryan Bell. Jordan and Ryan blessed Rick with his first grandchild, Mia Rose who is 11 months old. Rick also has a son, Trey Benson, who is a sophomore at Iowa State University. Rick is a member of the Union County Development, YMCA, Crestmoor Golf Club, Knights of Columbus, Elks Club, and the Eagles Club. In his spare time, Rick enjoys spending time with his girlfriend, Dee, and enjoys attending high school and college sporting events.
Halibut fishing Not all John’s fishing endeavors are competitive, though. John has a friend who owns a bed-and-breakfast in Alaska, and John and his family have stayed a couple times and fished for salmon and halibut. John said Alaska is probably his favorite place for fishing just for fun. While 9 pounds might be a big bass in the Midwest, he said the salmon in Alaska can reach 50 pounds. And the halibut? 100. “A lot of the guys around here (Iowa) will go to Canada to just try to catch a 15or 20-pound northern, and that’d be a big fish,” John said. “There (in Alaska), a 20-pound halibut — they just throw them back.” With exponentially larger fish, John said this kind of fishing involves some stronger equipment. The fishing rods are approximately 4 sturdy feet long, the line is as thick as a clothes line, and the reels have a winch-like handle that fishermen can turn with both their hands, if necessary. The fishermen in Alaska pack another “fishing” tool, too: a shotgun. That’s because the boats are small and the halibut are massive, so the fish must be dead before they’re brought inside. “When you’re out and there’s 20 boats around you doing this fishing, you’ll actually hear gunshots out on the water,” John said. “If you’re hearing shots going off around you, you know the big ones are biting.” Getting a halibut to that point, though, can be a challenge. John said if a halibut lies flat on the water bottom, pulling it up by pure strength is next to impossible. “They don’t come up if they don’t want to,” John said. “It’s just unbelievable how strong they are.” If a halibut fights, John said, the fisherman must
As owner, I hope you will enjoy your visit to Creston Automotive. Stop by and see how we are changing for you. We strive to put people in positions that will improve your experience with Creston Automotive. I invite you to see the difference and give us a chance to earn your business. If you ever have a problem with your experience with Creston Automotive, please let me know. Feel free to email me at creston_automotive@hotmail.com or give me a call at 782-2179 or 1-866-782-2179. Thanks for your support, I hope you like our changes!
Contributed photo
Les Elliott - Business/ Sales Manager
Trey Thomsen stands next to fish that he helped catch during a fishing trip with his father John.
“Alli’s not really a big fish- as many young people seem erman, and she thought that to be entering the sport any was pretty cool,” John said. more. “That’s probably the one Changing times thing for me,” John said. Now, John said, the num- “I’ve seen it long enough to ber of competitions he com- go from not a very big deal petes in has decreased. The to get to be a pretty big deal local bass club has stopped to now where it’s not as big holding events and his son, here anymore.” Trey, has begun attending But John still enjoys the college at Simpson. thrill of competition, and the Years after the bass club fun of leisure fishing. Shark fishing dissolved, John said bass “Wherever we visit, I find The biggest fish John has fishing is seeing a bit of a a way to get a fishing trip in ever had on a line, howev- local recession. He said not with it,” he said. er, came on the other side of the United States when John and his daughter, Alli, were fishing in Key West, Florida. They felt a bite on their The Road HOME starts here... line and soon realized it was a 6-foot shark. The father and daughter tag-teamed it, fighting the shark until each of them got tired, then handing it off to Ken Callahan the other. Finally, they had Bill Callahan 641.202.0406 641.344.0274 to cut the line. circle his boat until the line draws the halibut at an angle that gets it up and swimming. Then fishermen can work the fish up to the boat, and, if it’s one that’s more than about 50 pounds, shoot it. John said he and Trey secured a nearly 100-pound halibut in 2003. It’s the biggest fish he’s ever caught and weighed.
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Les is celebrating 18 years of service to the customers of Creston Automotive. Les is the Business/Sales Manager at Creston Automotive. Les not only tracks and monitors many aspects of the business, he also has a large list of clients that he services and serves as our lead finance specialist. Les is married to Amber Elliott, who is a quality assurance data clerk at Bunn. They have a son Brody (2-1/2) who keeps them busy. Les is very involved in his community of Diagonal by serving on the Diagonal City Council and also serves with the Diagonal Lions Club. Les is also a member of the Mt Ayr Golf & Country Club. In his spare time, he enjoys hunting, fishing, camping, participating in BBQ contests, and golfing. In fact, Les had his first hole-in-one at Crestmoor Golf Club during Creston’s annual Chamber of Commerce Golf Outing. Les is just one of the reasons you’ll enjoy your visit to Creston Automotive! Stop by and see how we are changing for you. We strive to put people, like Les, in positions that will improve your experience with Creston Automotive. Come see the difference!
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Mounting memories Winkelmann Wildlife Studio in Greenfield helps hunters recall their favorite moments with family and friends in nature. ■
By JAKE WADDINGHAM Special to the CNA
GREENFIELD — On the last drive of the day, Danielle Fairchild, 19, of Stuart was posted in a lead position for her group, hoping to get a chance at her first deer. She was out with her father, two brothers, boyfriend and a family friend on their annual hunting adventure. As they started to move toward her position, Fairchild saw a group of deer break her direction. “The first was a doe, followed by two smaller deer,” Fairchild said. “Then I saw the buck running behind them.” She lined up her shot and waited for the deer to run across so she could get a safe shot. She targeted the buck, pulled the trigger and felt the kick of the gun, but the deer continued to run past. “I didn’t think I had hit him, so I clicked my safety back on and watched them run toward the road,” Fairchild said. The buck ran about 15 yards further, turned back toward Fairchild and dropped. It is a tradition in Fairchild’s family to mount the first buck. Just like her brothers, Fairchild called Winkelmann Wildlife Studio in Greenfield to handle the taxidermy work for her deer. For more than 15 years, Keith Winkelmann has provided award-winning taxidermy for local hunters. “Every time they see that deer - and it doesn’t matter if they have five others hanging on the wall - it brings the memory back of that specific hunt and they can relive it,” Winkelmann said.
Background Winkelmann had his first interest in taxidermy in high school after purchasing a do-it-yourself kit from an ad in the back of a hunting magazine. His first major project was a mallard duck for a friend. Instead of the foam body molds used today, Winkelmann said he had to form the body out of course, straw-like packaging material. “I completely overstuffed it,” Winkelmann said. “It looked terrible when I was done. I figured I didn’t have the talent to do taxidermy.” He trained to be a carpenter and worked in the
CNA photo by JAKE WADDINGHAM
Keith Winkelmann is an award-winning taxidermist from Greenfield. A majority of his business is whitetail deer, but he has worked on a variety of other mammals, fish and birds from North America. Winkelmann won first place with thia skunk in 2015 in a category judged by spectators and officials.
industry for more than 30 years. It wasn’t until 1999 that the interest for taxidermy resurfaced. While out on a bow hunt, Winkelmann took a buck with a unique drop tine and was encouraged to get it mounted. A drop tine is a point that grows straight down from the main beam of the deer’s antler. After checking some prices, Winkelmann decided to attempt mounting the deer himself. He said the word got out and his friends started asking him to try mounting their deer as well. What started as a couple of favors quickly transformed into a business. “A majority of my work is deer, that is what keeps the door open,” Winkelmann said. “I have never done anything exotic to speak of, and I don’t care to either.” Michael Collings of Creston and his family received a mount of a large
“He (a judge) looked at me and said, ‘People pay you money for work like this?’ Then he started pointing out the mistakes that I couldn’t see.” —Keith Winkelmann
Greenfield taxidermist
mouth bass from Winkelmann Wildlife Studio. He said the fish was always displayed proudly, not just because of the quality of the work, but because of the CNA photo by JAKE WADDINGHAM meaning behind the fishing Keith Winkelmann sets an artificial eyeball onto a deer model in his work studio in December. Winkelmann said each mold is unique, but there are four main poses: story. “It has always been spe- upright, semi-upright, semi sneak and full sneak. cial to us because it came out of our family pond and it was a great gift to us for letting him (Winkelmann) fish there,” Collings said. MOUNT | 9A
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
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The process
CNA photo by JAKE WADDINGHAM
To make his mounts as life-like as possible, Keith Winkelmann uses photos of living deer to make sure the skin, eyes and antlers are in the correct position. He also fine tunes his work by learning new techniques at contests.
MOUNT: CONT. FROM | 8A
Collings and his family typically go fishing in their pond during the Memorial Day weekend. He said it is always a goal to try to catch a fish worthy to hang on the wall next to Winkelmann’s large mouth bass. Winkelmann estimated he has done more than 500 white-tail deer. He added there has been a sharp increase in bobcats and otters because of the new hunting and trapping seasons. Winkelmann hopes to add a moose and cougar to his repertoire of completed animals. “Most of the time, the customers are happy with it, but I need to be happy with it when it goes out the door,” Winkelmann said. The base price for a shoulder mount this year was $460. Winkelmann said the price is dependent on the type of mold and the details added such as habitat around the mount. There are thousands of different molds to use, but there are four main poses for the deer mounts. They are upright, semi-upright,
semi-sneak and full sneak. “When I look up on the wall and see my buck, I get to remember the fun I had with my family,” Fairchild said. “I also get to say I shot a buck, just like my brothers.”
Contests Winkelmann continues to hone his craft by interacting and learning from his peers at state taxidermy contests. “That is one of the main reasons I go to contests every year because I do not want to make the same mistakes twice,” Winkelmann said. One of the first pieces Winkelmann submitted to contest was a standing pheasant. He felt like it was some of his best work at the time and “was proud of it.” “He (a judge) looked at me and said, ‘People pay you money for work like this?’” Winkelmann said with a laugh. “Then he started pointing out the mistakes that I couldn’t see.” Winkelmann took that lesson and several other tips back to his shop and returned to win the furbearers category and several blue ribbons. He is now judged in the professional
“I thought maybe it was going to be deep, dark secrets where they weren’t going to tell you anything.” — Keith Winkelmann
Greenfield taxidermist
category, the intermediate level at contests. “I thought maybe it was going to be deep, dark secrets where they weren’t going to tell you anything,” Winkelmann said. “They were more than willing to be helpful, to teach me and correct me … and they Contributed photo still critique me and tell me Danielle Fairchild of Stuart tagged her first buck in the what I am doing wrong and fall of 2015. She kept the family tradition of going to how I can fix it.” Winkelmann Wildlife Studio to mount her first buck. In 2015, Winkelmann won a special category where taxidermists entered a skunk to be judged by spectators and experts. As the champion, Winkelmann was able to select the species for the special category in 2016. He picked a fox. “Iowa has some of the best taxidermists that I have seen,” Winkelmann said. “That makes it good for me because I get to learn from the best.”
The first step in preparing a deer is tanning the skin. This step is critical because the thickness and condition of the skin impacts how it fits onto the mold. If it is too thick, the skin may wrinkle with age, too thin and there is a higher risk for a tear. “They (deer) might all look alike at a glance, but they are all absolutely different,” Winkelmann said. “One thing that amazed me was the skull structure. I figured it would be similar, but each deer is different.” Winkelmann sets the eyes and antlers onto the foam mold, then forms the skin - also called a cape - onto the mold. Winkelmann said the quality of molds have grown rapidly, helping bring a realistic frame for a taxidermist to work on. “I use reference pictures of live deer to look through, check and compare it to my work,” Winkelmann said. “As you do more of them, there are little points of direction to make sure you have the skin in the right place.” The entire process takes months to complete. A majority of the time is spent waiting on parts to come in and tanning the skin. Winkelmann said he spends an average of 20 to 24 total hours of hands-on work with each mount. For pricing and information on specific mounts, contact Winkelmann Wildlife Studios at 641-343-8066.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
An outdoor retreat
Bob Berning and his family have made hundreds of memories at their cabin along the Grand River east of Creston. ■
By KYLE WILSON
CNA managing editor kwilson@crestonnews.com
Firewood pops and crackles in the stove behind us as Bob Berning comfortably clicks through family photos from the den of his home on Adams Street in Creston. Occasionally, he stops clicking to share a story, provide information about a photo or offer general wisdom. One thing is certain: This laptop is full of family memories, and most of them were made at a place called “Grand Oaks.” “That piece of land is a grandkids’ paradise,” Berning says. The idea for Grand Oaks, though, was formulated by Mr. Berning long before his grandchildren were even born. In 1976, Berning and his wife Freida bought his father’s cafe on Adams Street in Creston and, over time, ended up purchasing the entire square block of building, which they would call Berning Motor Inn. Berning Motor Inn included both red carpet fine dining and buffet-style dining, a bar, venue for events and nearly 50 hotel rooms. That said, Berning knew right away that the nature of the restaurant and hotel business — long hours and being on-call at all times — wasn’t going to allow for many out-of-state vacations with his wife and five kids. “The restaurant business really ties you down,” Berning said. “Disneyland was out of the question and so
Contributed photo
Grand Oaks is the name the Bernings selected for their outdoor retreat along the Grand River east of Creston. Each June, the family hosts Fish Week whereby about 50 family members join together to fish, swim, canoe, share meals and much more.
were other long family vacation trips. So, I decided we were going to have our own recreation.” Berning then went on the hunt for a piece of land that would offer an outdoor retreat for himself and his family. Later in 1976, he was fishing with a friend on the Grand River located east of Creston. This friend, Bob Nutt, had working relationships with several area farmers, and Nutt made Berning aware of 25 acres of farm ground that a local farmer might sell him. “He knew I wanted something on the Grand River, and as close to Creston as possible,” Berning said. At the restaurant each day, Berning served breakfast and lunch. And, if “everything was going well,” he could leave the restaurant each day around 12:30 p.m. and not have to return until the supper crowd arrived around 5 p.m. “I wanted a piece of land that took me less than 30 minutes to get to,” Berning said. “So that I could be on
the river fishing or on the land hunting by 1 or 1:30 p.m.” This horseshoe-shaped piece of farmland was perfect for the Berning family. A deal was struck and over the next two years, the Bernings — with help from the Steinbach family — constructed a 1,000-square-foot cabin on the land in 1978 whereby one porch overlooks Grand River and the other overlooks a homemade pond built. While owning the business, which lasted from the 1970s until retirement in Contributed photo 2002, Berning would make his way to Grand Oaks Members of the Berning family — all wearing life jackets — canoe together on the three to four times per week Grand River during Fish Week. to alleviate stress. Nobody made it back to to safely drag the canoe out were barefoot, too, so our “It’s always been a place the cabin that day without of the river, and they carried legs and feet were pretty cut where we could have famicapsizing. Nathan and Neil it until they could get a ride up. We learned a lesson that ly time and where you ain’t day.” struck a tree sticking up out back to the cabin. thinking about work,” BerNathan said his favorite “We weren’t going to try of the water and capsized ning said. it again. We got out of the the canoe halfway through One of the first family RETREAT | 11A memories recorded in the the trip. The two were able river,” Nathan said. “We cabin’s journal came in April 1979. Bob’s son Nathan was 11 years old when he took a $10 bet from his uncle Dan to jump in the cold pond at Grand Oaks. “Never make a bet with Nate because he will win the bet. And, never make a bet with Dan because he never pays up,” the journal entry reads. Nathan, now 47, has several memories from Grand Oaks. But, one he will never forget was an afternoon in the early 1990s when he and his friend Neil Walters, along with his father Bob and family friend Roger Nurnberg, decided to canoe down a river that was out of its banks. “It wasn’t one of our better ideas,” Nathan said. “You should never canoe on a river out of its banks.” Nathan said this particular canoe trip, from a bridge located south of the cabin, normally takes about 30 minutes to complete. However, because of the speed of the river that day, he estimated it would only take about 10 minutes to get to the cabin.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
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RETREAT: CONT. FROM | 10A
activity at Grand Oaks, though, was probably three-wheeling and four-wheeling on the property. Bob said while hunting and fishing expeditions were the original intent for the property, it has turned into much more. “There is something for everyone to do out there,” Bob said. Perfect example: Their oldest daughter, Barbara, liked to find a nice quiet spot on the property to read books. She liked hiking and planting flowers like daisies, coneflower and daffodils with her mother, too. But, Barbara also had an ornery side, which came out in June 1990. That day, the kids had been out catching frogs and Barbara was aware that her Aunt Margie wasn’t real fond of the four-legged amphibian. The sun fell below the horizon that night and around 10 p.m. everyone was settling into bed at the cabin. The lights turned off and Barbara crept downstairs and placed the frog in her aunt’s blanket. “She didn’t know what it was at first. She thought my uncle Roger had cold feet,” Barbara recalls. “Then the lights came on and the shrieking began. She managed to grab a pancake flipper. She was trying to push it out the door with that and accidentally flipped it on to my uncle Dan. It didn’t bother him at all. He then began taunting her with it, asking her if she wanted to give it a kiss.” Barbara hadn’t told anyone of her plan to scare her aunt, not even her siblings. Eventually, someone picked up the frog with a washcloth
Contributed photos
ABOVE: The Berning family poses for a photo during Fish Week in 2015. RIGHT: From left, Audrey Bolinger, Lila Berning, Emma Berning and Larissa Chaves slide down a large hill on inner tubes near the Berning cabin.
and moved it outdoors. Barbara said, luckily, her parents and her aunt stayed in pretty good humor about the practical joke.
Tiger muskie Another family memory came in 2010 when Bob was fishing on Grand River with his grandson Austin Bolinger. They both were using night crawlers with intentions of catching catfish. “I use live bait like night crawlers and crawdads because you can catch everything with those two,” Bob said. “You fish for catfish and if you catch a walleye, that’s a bonus.” That day they were stand-
ing in the river, water to their knees, and fishing in hole estimated at 15 feet wide and 9 feet deep, when Bob hooked into a large fish. “When you tie into a big fish like that, you have to wear him out,” Bob said. “First I thought I had a big carp, then I thought after getting a glimpse of him — because it was long and slim — that it was probably a gar, then I thought maybe I had a dandy walleye.” It was none of the above. Bob — with help from his grandson — finally wore that fish out after about 10 minutes. The fish swam toward them, they moved in behind
the fish and pushed him onto a nearby sandbar. “It was a tiger muskie that was 47 inches long and 25 pounds,” Berning said, “that probably came out of Three Mile Lake. I’ll never forget that catch.” These are just some of the fun memories made at Grand Oaks.
Each year in June, the Bernings host Fish Week at the cabin and about 50 family members attend. This June will be the 39th-consecutive year for this event. They go four-wheeling and canoeing, swim in the lake, have frog races, pie-eating contest and fly kites, It’s a whole week of family fun, which is what the
Berning family and Grand Oaks is really all about. “Just look through the photos,” Barbara said. “I have so many fond memories as a child out there, and I’m glad my kids have had the same experience. I’m just so very fortunate that my parents instilled in us the importance of family time.”
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Like father, like daughter
15-year-old Rakenzy Pryor of Afton hunts with her father, an avid hunter, and also competes in high school archery. ■
By KELSEY HAUGEN CNA staff reporter khaugen@crestonnews.com
AFTON – Rakenzy Pryor and her dad, Zack, sit in a deer blind about five miles outside Afton on a bitterly cold December day. Aside from occasional whispering and trees rustling in the wind, it’s silent. Off in the distance, two does daintily make their way out of the trees and onto the field. Zack grabs his binoculars. “Are they big?” Rakenzy whispers. “Yeah, they’re mature enough,” Zack whispers back. Two more deer come out of the trees. Rakenzy grabs the binoculars. “Hey, that’s a buck, ain’t it?” Zack asks. “Yeah, but it’s pretty small, like a six- or eight-pointer,” Rakenzy says. “I’d still shoot it, though. Can I shoot it?” Zack appears not to have heard her. His gaze is fixed on the herd of deer. “They’re going to come right to us,” Zack whispers. The buck comes in close and grazes on grass just below the blind. Zack attempts to open a window to get a better look and maybe give Rakenzy the chance to shoot it. He quietly unhooks three of the latches on the window. The last latch is louder, and the buck hears it. It scurries away, back into the trees. Coming from a family of avid hunters, Rakenzy is used to the disappointment of just barely missing the chance to shoot a buck or a turkey, whatever it may be. “Once, I shot at a buck, and it got up and ran away,” Rakenzy said. “Yeah, she shot it, it dropped, she started hootin’ and hollerin’, then it got up and ran,” Zack said. Zack first taught Rakenzy how to shoot on a .22 shotgun when she was about 8 years old. Now age 15, Rakenzy hunts as often as possible with her dad – and sometimes her 11-year-old brother Hunter tags along. The Pryors own 70 acres of land just outside Afton. Rakenzy is also on the archery team at East Union Community School.
Turkey hunting With her dad, Rakenzy likes to hunt just about anything: deer, turkeys, coyotes, ducks. She also loves to fish. “I like hunting turkeys because you don’t have to worry about them smelling you,” Rakenzy said. “It’s easier to hunt turkeys because you can hear them and call them in.” She killed her first and only turkey when she was about 12. “I shot it at the butt, and my dad had to go break its neck because it was just flopping around,” Rakenzy said.
She has shot at, and nearly killed, two other turkeys. “One of the times, my brother got up out of the blind and scared it away after I shot it,” Rakenzy said. “The next day, there was an injured turkey, and I shot at it, but that one didn’t die either.” “You ain’t doing very good, are you?” Zack teased Rakenzy.
Deer hunting Rakenzy almost always goes hunting with her dad, who offers advice while they hunt. Hunter also goes with them sometimes. He shot his first buck two years ago. “Last year, we took Hunter, but we probably won’t do that again because he scares turkeys away,” Rakenzy said. “Oh, stop,” Zack said. During shotgun and late muzzle loader seasons, Rakenzy enjoys group hunting. “You separate into two groups,” she said. “One will be a pushing group, so you push the deer toward the shooters.” Also during shotgun season, Zack said they sometimes do party hunting. “That means you can go out with a group of people. Say I have a tag, you have a tag, and you shoot your deer, you can still hunt and help me try to shoot my deer,” Zack said. “In late muzzle loader season, you can group hunt, but you can’t party hunt. In shotgun season, you can shoot somebody else’s deer, and they can tag it.” They also track deer sometimes using trail cameras, which means following a specific buck from the time it is very young until it is mature and big enough to shoot. The Pryors have at least eight deer heads mounted in their home, and they always use the meat from deer they kill. They haven’t had much luck lately with deer, though. “It seems like the population is down quite a bit from what it used to be,” Zack said. “A couple years ago, they got a disease, I think it’s called EHD (epizootic hemorrhagic disease), and it killed a lot of them in this area and a lot of other states.” EHD is a disease typically found in white-tailed deer. Most deer die within four days of being infected with the virus. In eastern and southern Iowa, EHD was widely reported in 2012 and 2013, but no reports were received in 2014, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
Archery At East Union, Rakenzy is on the high school division archery team, and Hunter is on the elementary division team. In March 2015, Rakenzy was an archery state qualifier. “She placed 7th out of more than 200 participants (in her division) and was able to go to nationals,” Zack said. “They can win a $50,000 scholarship, so it’s a big deal.” In May 2015, Rakenzy competed in the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) national tournament in Kentucky. The top 10 ar-
CNA photos by KELSEY HAUGEN
ABOVE: Rakenzy Pryor laughs at something her dad, Zack, said as they sit in a deer blind on their land five miles outside Afton on a December afternoon. BELOW: A buck comes up close to the Pryors’ deer blind.
chers go to the world tournament. “It went OK,” Rakenzy said. “I got 271st out of like 2,000 people.” Rakenzy practices archery at least twice a week. She has been on the East Union archery team for three years. “She’s excellent – a good listener, a good shooter, a natural,” said Dick Stream, East Union head archery coach. “I’m surprised she doesn’t bow hunt deer.” Pryor said she does eventually want to try bow hunting, but right now, her volleyball schedule coincides with bow season.
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Archery vs. guns One of the most important skills in gun-shooting is to learn how to handle a gun well, Rakenzy said. “You need to be used to the gun and have practiced a lot before going hunting,” she said. With archery, she said it is essential to have a lot of patience and a good eye. “If you don’t have any patience, or if you have a lot of nerves, you probably won’t do as good,” Rakenzy said. “It’s more of a relaxing sport; it’s not as intense.” While archery and shooting guns involve some similar tactics, including having good aim, Rakenzy sees them as fairly different. She sees one as a sport and one as more of a pastime. “In the sport archery, you have no sides and no releases; it’s basically free-handed,” Rakenzy said. “When I’m hunting, I like shooting guns. But as a sport, I prefer archery.”
Challenges For Rakenzy, the hardest part of hunting is that she must stay fairly still and very quiet. Too much noise will scare away deer. “It’s hard for me to sit still,” she said. “I can sit still for a little bit, but if we don’t see anything, I’m like, ‘OK, let’s move around.’ It’s also hard to keep quiet.” Some days hunting, she and her dad won’t see any
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deer. Other days, they might see as many as 15 does and bucks. But, even with 15 deer in the vicinity, that doesn’t mean there will be a kill. Zack often reminds Rakenzy she should wait for a buck, rather than a doe, and also wait for a big buck instead of just shooting the first one she sees. Another challenge for Rakenzy is staying calm once she sees a buck that’s big enough to shoot. “She does all right. She gets nervous, though,” Zack said.
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Creston Farm & Home Supply Creston Farmers Market Creston Livestock Auction Creston Medical Clinic Creston Publishing Company Creston Specialty Care Creston True Value Creston Veterinary Clinic Creston Vision Center, P.C. Crop Production Services Curves Dairy Queen of Creston David Young Di Miller at 3’s Company Dick & Peg Anderson Dr. Al & Pat Pokorny Dr. Brian Kinkade, O.D. Dr. Dan Coen, D.D.S. Dr. Dave Buck, D.D.S. Dr. Michael Buck, D.D.S. Dr. Wm Todd Scott, D.D.S. Draper, Snodgrass, Mikkelsen & Co. Eby’s Auto Echo Electric Edward Jones Investments Edward T. Harvey, Jr. Elite Staffing Elm’s Club F & M Body Shop Family Shoe Store Family Vision Center Fareway Stores Inc. Farmers Cooperative Company Ferrara Candy Company First National Bank Fredricksen Memorials Garden & Associates, Ltd Gavilon Grain, LLC Gay Lynn Owens, GO Realty Graphic Displays Great Western Bank Greater Regional Medical Center Green Accounting & Tax Green Valley Pest Control & Lawn Care Green Valley Realty Hahn Roofing Hazel Marie’s HCI Hospice Care Services Heartland Tire & Auto Center Hi-Crest Auto & United Super Wash Homestead Assisted Living & Memory Care Hometown Insurance Hometown Realty Hy-Vee Food Store Innovative Industries, Inc.
Iowa Focus Iowa State Savings Bank Iowa Tool & Manufacturing, Inc. Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services IowaWORKS ISU Union County Extension & Outreach iwireless J & A Flooring J & J Plumbing & Heating James Law Office, P.C. Jane’s Headquarters Java J’s Jo Anne Duckworth, Union County Emergency Management Journey Massage Studio Kawa Construction Ken’s Barber Shop Kenyon & Nielsen, P.C. Kilgore Rental & Lease Kilgore’s Enterprises, Inc. Kilgore’s RV Sales & Service Kinkade Industries KSIB Radio Leslie’s Dance & Tumbling Loretta Harvey M & M Motors Maple Street Memories MATURA Action Corporation McDonald’s (J & D Restaurants 2, Inc) Mediacom Medicap Pharmacy Mid-State Surveying & Consulting Midwest Opportunities, Inc. Moberg/Iowa Realty Morning Star Internal Medicine Clinic Ms.T’s Massage LLC NAPA - Creston New Life Family Medicine Nishna Valley Credit Union Oetken Office Machines PCSB Bank Pearson Family Funeral Services Perspective Counseling Pine Valley Golf & Bowl Piper Sign Art Pizza Ranch Pokorny BP & Automotive Service Powers Funeral Home Prairie Solid Waste Agency Precast Concrete Co., LLC Precision Optical Group Punky’s Quik Cash R Realty
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
‘One of the best, if not the best’ Iowa Rep. Clel Baudler found an irreplaceable friend in an unlikely location. ■
Clel Baudler stands with his dog Ike at his family farm north of Greenfield. Ike is about 10 years old now and is still a good hunting dog for Baudler during pheasant season.
By JAKE WADDINGHAM Special to the CNA
GREENFIELD — After another successful day of hunting during the Iowa pheasant season, Iowa Representative Clel Baudler returned home with his hunting dog, Bo. On their trip home, Baudler notices Bo wasn’t acting like his normal self. He cared for and continually checked on his hunting partner for the rest of the night, but Bo did not recover from his sudden decline in health. “With Bo, I never had to tie him up, never had to worry about him getting near the road,” Baudler said. By chance, Baudler learned a black lab had recently given birth to 15 puppies and they would be sent to an animal shelter in Des Moines. Typically, hunting dogs are from pedigree families with long, documented history of successful hunting dogs. “I went and looked at the pups at five weeks,” Baudler said. “There was no question Ike was the best of the litter. He was the biggest one and he was the friendliest one.” Baudler said he got out his keys and Ike was the only dog to react to the sound and even attempt to fetch the keys for him. Still unsure, Baudler left to consider his options. At eight weeks, Baudler returned to check on the litter and Ike made sure to catch his attention. “I walked in and you could just tell he remembered me,” Baudler said. “I got my keys out again and threw them. This time he took them, brought them straight back to me and waited to be petted.” From that day forward, Baudler described the relationship like finding a new best friend. The two were thick as thieves, constantly
CNA photo by KYLE WILSON
with each other on the farm, hunting and fishing. Baudler is a bird hunter and even though the pheasant population has been down in recent years, he said Ike has been a game changer. This year, Baudler was encouraged that his party came across a decent flock of quail. “We haven’t lost a pheasant in seven years,” Baudler said. “Now, that is not necessarily from accurate shooting. Ike is just a damn good dog.” Baudler’s son, Joe Baudler, said it is a tradition in their family to go out on opening day. Joe is the police chief in Ashland, Neb. He also served in Afghanistan as a law enforcement professional. He added that many of law enforcement friends from the DEA, FBI and Iowa State Patrol make it back to hunt with Baudler every year. When Baulder is able to find some time to go bass fishing, Ike is right beside him. “I went fishing with a good friend of mine and he said he had never seen a dog so loyal,” Baudler said. The name of Baudler’s dog
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isn’t mere coincidence either. Jennifer Bergmann, who served as a clerk for Baudler in the Iowa House, said that her boss was always full of clever life tips. “He (Ike) is a real sweety, extremely loyal, and a pheasant-hunting, bass-fishing machine,” Bergmann said. “I know Clel said any good dog name should be four letters or less.” Baudler said when it is just the two of them, Ike roams free without a collar because he is so responsive to Baudler’s commands. When they are hunting in groups, Baudler puts a collar on him just to emphasis the importance of the task at hand. “If a pheasant is shot, you have to go get it from Clel, because the dog always brings it back to him,” Joe
said. Baudler added even tasks like shed hunting in the fall is more fun with Ike. While walking through the woods, if Baudler spots a deer shed, Ike will retrieve it for him. “That dog is like his right arm, and it take directions really, really well,” said Ryan Frederick, chairman of the Adair County GOP since 2009. “It’s pretty remarkable to watch.”
Background Born on April 4, 1939 in Fontanelle, Baudler was raised with an agriculture emphasis. His father was a cattle buyer and his mother was a homemaker. He spent countless hours helping on the farm, hunting and fishing. He graduated from Fontanelle High School in 1957
safety committee and is on the environmental protection, government oversight and natural resources committees. “I think the one thing everyone will agree on with Clel is that you know where he stands. Folks may disagree with him on an issue here or there, but I think most respect the fact that he’s candid with them and doesn’t beat around the bush,” Frederick said. “There’s a difference, too, between being stubborn and being resilient, and that something is knowing your facts.” Outside of his duties as a state representative, Baudler remains active in several organizations. He is a member of the State Trooper Association, sits on the Board of Directors for the National Rifle Association (NRA) and is a member of the Iowa Police Combat League, the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, the Iowa State Patrol Revolver Team, Pheasants Forever, Ducks Unlimited and the Wild Turkey Federation. “I’ve also never seen him afraid to engage in a conversation, whether it’s someone who’s going to agree or not, or someone who’s going to be pleasant about it or not,” Frederick said. “That’s important in a public servant - even if we’re going to disagree, viewpoints deserve a hearing, and Clel gives them one. It’s a very mature, very reasonable approach to the job, and one that folks appreciate, even if they disagree on policy.” Days crafting policy and handling legislation can be long and tiresome, but Baudler is lucky he not only goes home to a loving wife, but also his best friend, Ike. “He is one of the best, if not the best,” Baudler said.
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and four years later, he married Mary Carole. Together, the couple raised four children and currently have 10 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Baudler was elected to political office in 1998 to represent what is now District 20. Despite his long career as a public servant in the Iowa House of Representatives, Baudler still identifies himself more closely as an Iowa State Trooper. “I fully understand how my decisions here impact the real world,” Baudler said. He served 32 1/2 years on the force. “He will always see himself as a trooper more then he will as a politician, that’s for sure,” Joe said. Baudler currently serves as the chairman of the public
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Making memories
For Oaks, bonds between family, friends are most important to the sport of hunting. ■
By AMY HANSEN
OST news editor ahansen@osceolaiowa.com
his brother-in-law in 1985.
South Dakota This soon evolved into going on hunting trips to South Dakota. In 1991, he ran into a mutual friend in the area who lined them up for hunting season. From that year until 2012, Jim traveled up north for fiveday hunting trips. Jim’s wife Kim has been on the South Dakota trips two or three times. They have made many friends in the area through hunting connections. “There’s a lot of really neat people up there,” Kim said. “They don’t know strangers,” Jim added. According to Jim, the pheasant hunting in South Dakota is a lot better than what hunters can currently find in Iowa. He enjoys the open ground and lack of brush.
MURRAY — It’s more than the hunting itself that draws Jim Oaks to the outdoor sport. The hunter from Murray loves the experience because it has become a family affair for him. “The world of hunting, most of the people in it are so good-natured, you’re just like brother and sister after a few hours. It’s unreal,” Jim said. When Jim was growing up, he didn’t bow hunt or pheas- Types of hunting ant hunt. It all started for him Jim hunts pheasants and when he began hunting with deer, including bow hunting
OAKS: CONT. FROM | 14A
their trophies, Jim and Kim also proudly tell stories of their family’s hunting victories. Last year, their daughter-inlaw shot a buck and won the Iowa Deer Classic women’s bow/archery division. “She has never been into any hunting or anything … until she met our son three, four years ago,” Jim said. “We told her she may never shoot another one that category again. That’s a once-in-a-lifeContributed photo time deer. But, she shot it her Jim Oaks of Murray shows a deer he hunted with a bow second deer ever.” and arrow in Clarke County in 2013.
ally is. There are four shoulder mounts and three plaque mounts from Jim’s deer hunting adventures. There is even a mounted black bear in Jim’s house from a bow and arrow hunt in Canada. As much as they showcase
and shotgun hunting. In the spring, he likes to turkey hunt. He has also coon hunted, and his sons Jesse and Shawn duck hunt. Jim has even been to Colorado to hunt elk. Walk into the Oaks’ house, and you can see how much of an avid outdoorsman Jim re-
Bird dogs The coolest thing about pheasant hunting for Jim is working with the hunting dogs. He showed various pictures of his dogs working on “point” with a pheasant — especially with getting the bird and bringing it back to the hunter. Training sessions are an im-
portant factor in the bird dogs and their hunting skills. At one time, Jim had up to four dogs in his kennel. Currently, he now has two dogs. “That’s the prettiest thing in the world,” Jim said of his bird dogs on point during a hunt. “If you ever get to see that in real life, you won’t believe it.” Kim recalled when she would take the dogs on walks in the summer for exercise before season would start. “We’re just out walking through the field and they’ll stop and lock,” she said.
Safety first However, safety is the No. 1 factor for Jim when he’s hunting, or when giving advice to someone who is learning how to hunt. He said a hunter needs to practice and become fluent with the sport, whether OAKS | 15A
it’s with a bow or gun. “When we go shotgun hunting, every year we go with shotguns, deer hunting, I tell the kids and everybody in the group (the) No. 1 thing is everybody walks out of here safe tonight,” Jim said. “There’s no animal that you want to kill worth taking a chance of hurting somebody else.” One would think the holidays would be a time off from hunting, but not for the Oaks family. On Thanksgiving, Jim and his sons would go hunting before the big family dinner. Kim laughed at the idea about it actually being beneficial to get her husband and sons out of the house so she could get things ready without being bothered. “People used to joke because we actually got married in the middle of November, and he didn’t hunt,” she
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“It will be a family thing
for them, too,” Kim said. “The world of hunting, most of Lessons learned is a lot of insight the people in it thatThere can be learned about the are so good-nasport from the couple. tured, you’re just For bow hunting, Jim said it’s a one-man and one-deer like brother and situation, and the hunter needs to get the deer within sister after just range of 25 to 30 yards. The a few hours. It’s achallenge is to get a big buck unreal.” close enough in bow range. — Jim Oaks
“It seems easy. You go out
said. “So, we’ve had a lot of people that have actually joked with us over the years, especially when pheasant was really good in this area, too. … They would laugh and they said, ‘Why in the world did you marry somebody that hunts in the middle of hunting season?’ I said, ‘He didn’t hunt when we got married!’” Jim and Kim are proud to have instilled a love of hunting in their sons and are now excited to see that love pass from their sons to their grandchildren.
wait on them, but you have to be patient,” Jim said. Again, he reiterated that patience is the key to hunting. Kim laughed and said sitting still for so long is one of the reasons she is not as avid a hunter as her husband. It’s really the bonding between family and friends that continues to foster Jim’s love for the sport, especially the memories gained along the way. Jim choked up when asked about his favorite hunting experiences.
Outdoorsman and sit in a tree stand and you
Contributed photo
Shawn, left, and Jesse Oaks, right, pose for a photo with their springer spaniel dog named Jewel in 1998.
The first memory that meant the most to him was when his sons shot their first pheasants. Then, there was a friend in South Dakota who had cancer and invited his own fam-
ily and friends to have a big hunt in the area. As tears formed in Jim’s eyes, he said, “I told him I didn’t want to come up hunting because we didn’t want to interfere. He said, “Come on
up, we’re all family.” This led to a 50-person hunting trip that Jim will remember forever. “That was one of the best memories I’ll ever have,” he said.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
One shot at a time
Jonathan Cox’s hunting background, committment to teamwork help him succeed on SWCC’s sports shooting team. ■
By KELSEY HAUGEN CNA staff reporter khaugen@crestonnews.com
Jonathan Cox had no prior experience with organized trapshooting when he joined the sports shooting team at Southwestern Community College (SWCC). In April 2015, during his first year on the team, Cox took second place at the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Collegiate Invitational Championship. Now in his second year, Cox continues to place individually. At the final home meet of the fall season in November, he shot 99/100, taking first place. “Jon’s an avid outdoorsman and probably one of the best natural shooters I’ve ever seen,” said Charlie Mundy, SWCC sports shooting coach. “He’s one of those guys who could pick up anything that has to do with a gun and do well.” Cox, 19, graduated from Bedford High School and now studies crop and livestock production at SWCC. Growing up, he was involved with FFA, sports and hunting. “I try to hunt about anything I can, it seems like,” he said. “I’ve been hunting as long as I can remember.” Cox was first taught how to shoot by his father. He learned on a rifle. “I like being able to reach out there and shoot a long ways (with a rifle),” he said.
While shooting for SWCC is his first time being on a trap team, he used to shoot clay pigeons with friends and family in Bedford. “We had an old thrower, and I just became interested,” Cox said. “The people in the area where I’m from, that’s what they do in the summer, so we’d get together and shoot. I enjoy it. It’s a lot of fun.” He has also hunted frequently since childhood. Deer hunting is his favorite – whether he’s shooting with a shotgun or a bow. “At first, when I started shooting with a shotgun, it was mainly during deer season and a little bit when we shot blue rock,” Cox said. “To constantly shoot with a shotgun now at meets is a lot of fun.” Mundy said Cox’s extensive hunting experience has undoubtedly contributed to his success as a sports shooter. “He’s comfortable with a gun in hand because he grew up with that in a rural setting and has done a lot of hunting,” Mundy said. “ W h e n Cox he started trapshooting for us, it was just kind of a natural fit. And anything he needs to work on, he does. He’s very coach-able.” Even so, going from hunting and shooting just for fun to being held accountable for his shooting accuracy on a team has been quite an adjustment for Cox. “It’s pretty nerve-racking because at a meet, you get up there in a line and have all these people behind you watching,” he said. “At the
Contributed photo
Southwestern Community College sports shooter Jonathan Cox, 19, of Bedford shoots at the final meet of the fall season Nov. 7 in Afton. Individually, Cox shot 99/100 and earned first place.
home meet where I took first place, I was up there on the line, and I shot the first 25 straight, and then missed the first bird on the second round. After that, I was just in my head. It’s all mental – you can’t think about it too much or else you’ll mess up. I catch myself (over-thinking) all the time.” Mundy said the main thing he needed to work on with Cox when he first started was his shooting stance. “With people like Jon, who come from hunting but have no formal competitive shooting background, their stance is usually the biggest thing we have to work on,” Mundy said. “When you shoot a shotgun, you stand with an open stance. A lot of people without an organized trap background want to shoot in a rifle or archery
stance. But Jon picked that up really well and has opened his stance up.” This year’s SWCC sports shooting team is made up of 25 men and women, and the top 15 shooters travel to shooting events and compete against teams from across the Midwest. Cox is one of the 15 who travel. “Jon’s definitely one of our top shooters,” Mundy said. “He had a spell at the beginning of the season where he went through I think it was four practices without missing a single target.” The SWCC team practices Mondays and Thursdays and competes most Saturdays. Individual scores are broken up into males and females, but how the team does overall in a competition is based on the combined scores of all the athletes.
“I’d have to say the best part is working as a team,” Cox said. “I think a lot of kids get caught up in shooting for themselves, but it’s not about that. It’s about shooting for the team. Yes, you might do well individually, but the score to win as a team is made up of everybody’s combined scores. If you don’t score well, it’s going to hurt the team.” Mundy added: “If you miss a target, you’ve got to pick yourself back up or a teammate has to pick you up because your team’s depending on you.” Last year, SWCC was undefeated and sixth in the nation. As usual, the team’s ultimate goal this year is to win at nationals, which will be held in San Antonio, Texas, in April. “These kids have been
shooting in practice well enough they should be contenders for national champions,” Mundy said. “We know we have the potential of being national champs, so that’s pretty exciting, but I always tell them to just take it one shot at a time.” In May, Cox will graduate from SWCC with his associate of arts degree. He hasn’t yet decided whether he wants to continue on at a university to earn a fouryear degree. But he comes from a farm family and is set on farming, both land and cattle, as a career. “I’ve also been thinking about getting a coaching license to help coach with the FFA to get kids started shooting,” Cox said. “There isn’t really a (youth) team in Bedford, so I’ve thought about getting one started.”
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
17A
True outdoorsman ■
Thad Sickels of Creston just completed his fifth year trapping for coyote in southwest Iowa. The local banker awakes at 3 a.m. each day during the season to check sets before going to work at 8 a.m.
By KYLE WILSON
CNA managing editor kwilson@crestonnews.com
I
t was a trail cam photo that lured Thad Sickels to trapping. Sickels had always been an avid deer hunter, and his two sons, Hunter and Gavin, had followed suit. His sons were 13 and 10 years old, respectively, in the fall of 2009 and were trying new approaches like deer stands, food plots and trail cameras. One day, his sons were flipping through photos from their trail camera, and among them was a photo of a bobcat running wild. “I wanted to catch that cat as soon as I saw the photo,” Sickels said. The problem: Sickels didn’t have much trapping experience. As a teenager, he would tag along with his uncle KJ, who took off one week each year from selling advertising at KSIB Radio, to trap for mink, coon, muskrat and fox along the Nodaway River. So, Sickels could set a trap and had some basic knowledge, but he was hardly a professional. It wasn’t long after seeing the bobcat photo that Sickels immersed himself in trapping books, videos, conventions and websites. He was feasting on any material he could get his hands on. He was 100 percent focused on catching that cat. “When he does something, he goes all out,” his wife Sandi Sickels said. “He has invested a lot of time learning about trapping. He’s had a professional come with him to give him tips along his trap line. The outdoors and being out in nature is just who he is and something he’s always been passionate about.” In the fall of 2010, Sickels called up Wayne Funke — who ran a supply house in State Center — and asked him to send a dozen traps and some lure. Funke, who has since died of cancer, did just that. In 2011 — his first full season trapping — Sickels caught the bobcat from the trail cam, along with several coyotes and some other fur. “My son Gavin was with me,” Sickels said. “We couldn’t believe it. We just looked at each other like ... did we just catch a cat?” Sickels thirsted for more information after that, especially considering his success. He continued to gather knowledge over the next two years, and in December 2013, he attended a Department of Natural Resources public input meeting held at Creston High School. There, he ran into an outdoorsman from his hometown of Fontanelle, who suggested he attend trapper’s college. “It was timed perfectly to provide the instruction I was looking for shortly before trapping season opened,” Sickels said. Sickels applied and was one of 50 students accepted to the “college” that year.
CNA photo by KYLE WILSON
Thad Sickels of Creston stands in a stream to get a good look at a beaver trap he set near Fontanelle. Sickels primarily traps for coyote, but will trap beaver that create problems for area residents.
It was a weeklong course in South Milford, Indiana, hosted by Fur Takers of America “All we did was eat, sleep and breathe trapping,” Sickels said. Trappers awoke at 5:30 a.m., breakfast was at 6, and they were out in the field trapping from 7 a.m. to noon each day. There were also round-robin demonstrations in the afternoon and classroom time in the evening. Trappers came from all over the United States and overseas, too. Two students were from Hawaii, another was from Australia and one from France was sent by the government so he could return and help control raccoon dogs becoming nuisances all over the country. Sickels returned to Creston with his education from the “school house” and had his best trapping season yet in 2014, primarily because that year he helped his uncle KJ — a role model of his — catch a bobcat along the Nodaway River.
at 4 p.m. each day. That’s when he remakes any sets that he had catches in that morning. “I remake sets until dark and then come home and skin all the furs from that day’s catch,” Sickels said. “I don’t sleep until I’m done skinning.” When asked if he gets nervous being alone in the dark woodlands of southwest Iowa, Sickels said he doesn’t. “Not at all. It doesn’t even cross my mind,” Sick-
els said. He carries a .22-caliber pistol on his hip at all times during his checks. Sickels said he rarely sees any other human life at that time of morning. Occasionally, he’ll run into another trapper. “And, every once in a while, you will see someone in a car doing things they shouldn’t be. ... Put it this way, I don’t think they are
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Early mornings
Sickels still catches bobcat today, but his primary focus now is trapping coyotes. Trapping season ran from Nov. 7 until Jan. 31 this year. In November, he was running a trap line near Afton and Shannon City that was 67 miles long. He had 54 traps on that line. During trapping season, “And, every once Sickels rises around 3 a.m. day to check traps on his in a while, you will each line. He tries to be home each see someone in a day no later than 7:10 a.m. so he can arrive at his job as a car doing things and agriculture they shouldn’t be. commercial loan officer at PCSB Bank in ... Put it this way, Creston by 8 a.m. Sickels mentioned he is acI don’t think they tually at a slight disadvantage are out delivering checking for his catches in the Sunday paper. the morning because coyotes and other animals are nocturThere are some nal and often times moving during that time. goofy things that “I know that I’m running happen at 4 in the coyotes away from my sets. I morning.” know I’m spooking some of them away from the area,” — Thad Sickels Sickels said. Outdoorsman Sickels usually leaves work
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
SICKELS:
“I was so excited. If you’ve ever held a beaver, they are just packed with muscle. This one was 64 pounds.”
CONT. FROM | 17A
out delivering the Sunday paper,” Sickels said. “There are some goofy things that happen at 4 in the morning.” Sickels has done a fair amount of research on coyote. He said a coyote’s diet changes throughout the year. A bulk of its diet is fruits and vegetables like wild plums and sweet corn. However, in late fall and early winter it eats as much fresh meat as it can, including mice and rabbits, in order to bulk up for colder weather. Locally, coyotes have even caused problems for farmers by killing calves and sheep. Coyotes are also hard on the pheasant and quail populations. “Thad is probably the best trapper in the area,” said Corey Carlton, conservation officer for Department of Natural Resources in Union County. “He’s learned a lot about trapping in the first couple years and is willing to do a little more work than some of the other guys. He’s not afraid to get off the road to the more remote areas. Coyotes can be hard on adult pheasant and quail, and truthfully, trapping is the best way to get rid of predators.”
Skunk essence Sickels runs a multi-species trap line with his focus being coyote. However, he also catches coon, skunk, bobcat and badger on that line. Sickels said skunk are somewhat misunderstood because the last thing they want to do is spray someone. He said, when he has one trapped, the key is to stay in front of it and keep eye contact with the skunk. “If you don’t startle them, you can get them out (of the trap) without them spraying you,” Sickels said. “They will bluff you and stomp their feet like they are going to charge, but won’t normally if you stay calm.”
— Thad Sickels
Outdoorsman
CNA photo by KYLE WILSON
Thad Sickels carefully places a Sterling MJ 600 trap into the hole he dug on his property near Fontanelle in December. Sickels sets out to trap 50 coyotes during each trapping season, which lasts only about 90 days.
Sickels has been sprayed twice by a skunk. “It sure made it tough on those days to get cleaned up when I had to be at work at 8 a.m.,” Sickels laughed. When sprayed, he uses a mixture of peroxide, Dawn dish soap and baking soda to help eliminate the smell. Sickels added the essence from the skunk is valuable, which is another reason he tries not to be sprayed. The going price for a skunk’s essence is $14 to $15 per ounce. “It’s used a lot in baits and lures,” Sickels said.
Pelt selling Sickels said fur is a commodity, just like corn or soybeans, and the price goes up and down every year. He said the market for furs is all overseas, predominately in Russia, China and Korea. Sickels takes all his finished animal pelts to a drop-off center in State Center. They are then transported to Stoughton, Wisconsin, where they
are graded and then entered into a North American Fur Association auction. “They are graded so precisely,” Sickels said. “I may send up 50 coyote pelts, and all of them will have a different grade. They grade on fur quality, density, color, size and more.” His coyote pelts sell anywhere between $12 and $40 right now.
Other catches
Sickels doesn’t just trap for coyotes, though. In November, a local farmer asked for his assistance in trapping a beaver that was continually clogging his pond tube. It was really becoming a problem for the farmer, who wasn’t even able to vacation for fear the pond tube would plug, water would rise over the banks and wash out his dam. “Every night the beaver would plug the tube, and every day the farmer would have to clean out this 18-inch tube,” Sickels said. Sickels had just purchased
Contributed photo
Thad Sickels poses with a 64-pound beaver he caught in a farm pond south of Creston.
some 7 1/2-inch beaver traps designed clasp to their back feet. He set the trap and the very next morning he’d caught the problem beaver. “I was so excited,” Sickels said. “If you’ve ever held a beaver, they are just packed with muscle. This one was 64 pounds.” Sickels also catches several possum each year, which is uncommon among trappers. He only catches them so he can control the population. Possum are nest predators, and the bulk of their diet is turkey, quail and pheasant eggs.
“I caught 47 possum one year in a single square mile,” Sickels said. “Some people think I’m crazy, but I want to control the population especially in areas where me and my family hunt.” Sickels said he’s doing everything he can to regain the pheasant population on his family’s hunting ground. He said he used to have family come north from Arkansas each year to hunt pheasant here and they had no problem reaching the limit. “We haven’t done that for seven years or more, which is really sad,” Sickels said.
Sickels, in his fifth year of trapping, said he’d like to be employed as a professional trapper sometime after he retires from the bank. “Sometime, just drive out in the country,” Sickels said, “and look as far as you can see. Look at all that open space. Then think about a trapper that has to make an animal step on a circle that’s 2 inches across, and can do it with consistency. When you can do that with consistency and start thinking about why an animal will put his foot right there or there ... I never felt like a true outdoorsman until now.”
Come In. Be Inspired... CNA photo by KYLE WILSON
Thad Sickels of Creston uses a butter knife to spread lure underneath a coyote trap he set on his property near Fontanelle. Sickels generally has a trap line that includes more than 50 sets that he checks every day during trapping season.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
19A
Photo package: Outdoors
Contributed photo
Bob Berning’s grandson Sam, left, pushes other grandchildren Lainie, Adrienne, Noah and Tyler in a Cadillac truck at the family’s cabin on Grand River. Contributed photo
Southwestern Community College sports shooters in the top squad pose with their plaque after winning a competition against five schools from the Iowa Collegiate Sports Shooting Conference Nov. 7 in Afton. The top shooters, from left, are Shelby Woods, Easton Ressler, Jonathan Cox, Brandon Dvorsky and Trenton Cheers.
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ABOVE: Jim Oaks of Murray, right, and his friend Contributed photo Scott May of Osceola, left, show off the pheasants Trey Thomsen stands next to a nearly 100-pound halibut he helped catch on a fishing they hunted in 1997. LEFT: trip to Alaska in 2003. Rakenzy Pryor poses with her dad, Zack, after deer hunting five miles outside Afton in December.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
Contributed photos
RIGHT: Ron Gordon poses for a photo with an eland during one of his bi-annual trips to Africa. Ron and his wife Elaine have visited the continent for hunting trips and sightseeing.
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Black twisting horns protrude from the heads of wildebeest and elands. Ostrich eggs shine in the sunlight. The feeling of a hot Saharan breeze ripples past. Ron Gordon, 66, sits behind a bar, pointing to a map of the African continent hanging on the wall and explaining where he and his wife, Elaine, flew into on his first African hunting trip in 2011. “I’d wanted to hunt in Africa for many years, and there was always something, some practical reason that I didn’t go,” Ron said. “A very good friend of mine and I started talking about it, and he, I guess, gave me the encouragement.”
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First trip For the first hunt, Ron went through an outfitter in California. They planned the 14-day trip for September, and when the autumn month rolled around, Ron and Elaine were on a plane heading for Dakar in the Western African country of Senegal. From there, they flew to Johannesburg, the largest city in South Africa, to obtain gun permits and check in with local law enforcement. The group of four, which included Ron’s friend and his wife, stayed overnight in Johannesburg before taking off for Upington, GORDON | 23A
Contributed photo
Ron Gordon poses after shooting an African Plains animal during a hunting trip to the continent. Ron has shot a cape buffalo, lion and many other Plains game.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
21A
Photo package: Outdoors
Contributed photo
Bob and Freida Berning pose in front of their cabin located along the Grand River east of Creston. This 1,000-square-foot cabin was completed in 1978. These two have been married for 52 years.
Contributed photo
Southwestern Community College sports shooter Jonathan Cox, right, poses with second- and third-place male shooters from Iowa Central Community College (ICCC) after the final meet of the fall season Nov. 7 in Afton. Individually, Cox won first place with 99/100, Jake Schwenker, middle, of ICCC took second place with 98/100 and Matt Kennebeck, left, took third place with 97/100.
John Thomsen holds up a 9-pound 2-ounce bass he caught at the Fishers of Men national tournament at Chickamauga Lake in Tennessee in 2014. He and partner Bob Walker placed fourth in that tournament. Contributed photo
Gabriel Frakes shows off a crappie he caught pond fishing with his father Tom Frakes in January 2015 in Corning. Gabriel and Tom fish together in the southwest Iowa area.
Contributed photo
Pictured are Matt Harper, middle, and his daughters Emma, left, and Abby, right. Emma and Abby have both carried on their father’s hunting traditions. This is the trail cam photo that lured Thad Sickels to trapping. Pictured is a bobcat walking on farmland south of Creston.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
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Tom Frakes prepares to line up his crossbow sight with an animal during a hunting trip in November at Twelve Mile Lake near Afton. Frakes fishes and hunts turkey, deer and dove in the southwestern Iowa area.
Growing to love the sport Creston man learns to love hunting, passes love to son ■
By BAILEY POOLMAN CNA staff reporter bpoolman@crestonnews.com
A
cool breeze snakes through the trees near Twelve Mile Lake while Tom Frakes sits underneath a tree with bated breath, waiting for a deer to lope through the woods. Tom, 41, didn’t start hunting as a child like so many do. He began hunting 14 years ago, and has made a life around the sport. “I actually started on the (Creston) fire department, and was hanging out with Eric Shawler and a couple other friends, and got into shooting bows. I started hunting then,” Tom said.
First time out Tom hunts turkey, deer and dove, and has hunted pheasant in the past. But, his first hunt was during shotgun season in spring 2003, when he got his first turkey with Shawler, who has hunted since he was 12. “He’d never been hunting before,” Shawler said. “I don’t even think Tom owned a gun when I met him. So, I sold him his first shotgun, I believe, and took him turkey hunting.” That was when Tom shot his first bird. “Eric took me to a property south of Thayer that he had hunted for many years,” Tom said. “Hearing turkeys for the first time in the early morning was kind of awesome. We were set up about 35 yards apart, and he let the bird walk past him and come to me. It was a good bird.” After that, Tom did research, talked with other avid hunters and discovered the best ways for him to hunt. “I was excited. You shake. For me, it’s an adrenaline rush,” Tom said. “I still get the adrenaline rush.”
Deer firsts Tom got his first deer with a bow in the early 2000s near Twelve Mile Lake. The lake was drained, and he sat in a
CNA photo by BAILEY POOLMAN
Tom Frakes unhooks a fish during the Fogel Lake ice-fishing tournament in January in Diagonal.
“I had never deer hunted in my life. I sat on the brush pile and had two does seriously 15 yards in front of me and they had no idea I was there. That was probably the proudest moment of my life.” — Tom Frakes
Local outdoorsman
brush pile in the crater where the lake would have been. “I had never deer hunted in my life,” Tom said. “I sat on the brush pile and had two does seriously 15 yards in front of me and they had no idea I was there. That was probably the proudest moment of my life. I called Eric (Shawler) and he came and helped me track it, and taught me how to gut my first deer.” After five or 10 minutes of tracking, the two found the deer. “You’re able to share an experience with someone (when you hunt),” Shawler said. “Especially when Tom went, it was kind of fun showing somebody how to do something new, FRAKES | 23A
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Gabriel Frakes smiles for the camera after taking his first turkey in April east of Afton. Gabriel and his father Tom Frakes hunt and fish together when Gabriel isn’t in class at Creston Middle School.
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Creston News Advertiser Monday, March 21, 2016
FRAKES:
GORDON: Third trip
CONT. FROM | 22A
and experience how excited they were when they got their first game, their first successful hunt.” Tom shot his first bow buck about six years ago east of Afton on property belonging to the Waigand family. There was still some corn standing when a buck cantered through the crop. “I made a 40-yard shot on a buck and I had never seen a deer run as fast as that deer ran. I thought I lost him,” Tom said. “You always have the questions run through your head: Did I hit him too high? Did I hit him too low? Did I hit him too far back?” Tom got out of his deer stand after 20 minutes and walked to where he hit the buck. His nerves were firing because he thought he had only wounded the animal. He walked the path he saw the deer take, through a waterway in the field, then turned a corner into the crop and looked down at the ground. The arrow had actually pierced the deer through the lungs and made a circular movement similar to a wheel in motion, causing serious blood loss. After 15 yards past the corner, the deer lay down. No damage was done to the nine-point deer, which was the largest bow buck Tom has shot to date.
Father and son
For the past eight years, Tom has taken his son Gabriel hunting with him, ever since Gabriel was 5 or 6 years old. “I took him turkey hunting with me. He didn’t hunt. He’d sit there with me and watch me hunt,” Tom said. “He got his first turkey this year by himself. He was with me.” Gabriel, 13, said he shot and killed the turkey in April, when he and his father sat waiting until two turkeys rolled in. “The tom was just sitting up on the ridge, and he wouldn’t come down,” Gabriel said. “He wanted the hen to go up there. And so, he came down eventually. It was a pretty far shot, but I got him right in the head.” Tom said it was one of the proudest moments of his life when his son got the turkey, which Gabriel kept the beard and the shell of the bullet he used when he shot the gun. “It’s a blast. It’s great family
23A
CONT. FROM | 20A
Contributed photo
Tom Frakes takes a selfie with a catfish in June in Lenox. Frakes fishes and ice fishes and hunts dove, turkey and deer.
time. It’s cool to just explore nature,” Gabriel said. “It’s cool to just listen to what’s going on. It’s very awesome when you just hear something move, and it’s just, like, you feel like you’re the only ones out there.” Tom said he’s happy his son has discovered a love of hunting similar to his own. “He’s actually found the excitement in hunting as much as I have,” Tom said.
Union County Tom and his son hunt in the rolling hills of Union County, such as near Afton or Thayer, and sometimes he travels to Adams County near Lake Icaria to dove hunt with his friend Tom Danilovich. Either way, he loves being in nature. “I just like being out in nature. It’s calming and exciting all at the same time to be out in the wilderness knowing people have been there before and done things differently back in the day,” Tom said. “It’s a heritage thing, I guess. Something I can pass down to my child and he can pass to his kids.” Tom, who never hunted as a child, grew up fishing. Eventually, his mother taught him to clean fish. He learned to respect Mother Nature that
“I just like being out in nature. It’s calming and exciting all at the same time to be out in the wilderness knowing people have been there before and done things differently back in the day.” — Tom Frakes
Local outdoorsman
way. “It’s a renewable resource for our world,” Tom said. “If it’s taken care of properly by our sportsmen today, a hundred years from now it’ll still be there.” He keeps this respect with him whenever he hunts, and has exclaimed how he loves hunting in Union County. “Union County is an awesome county to be in, to be honest,” Tom said. “Hunting and fishing and wildlife in general, because we take care of our properties. We manage our parks. We manage our properties and our lakes well.”
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another city in South Africa. “We had a good time. We were treated like royalty. My wife and the other lady, my friend’s wife, were treated like royalty,” Ron said. “Anything they wanted to eat or drink or do, they were waited on hand and foot. That’s the way it is in Africa.” The two men hunted with a professional hunter and shot African Plains game, such as antelope. During the hunt, the group stayed in a lodge and ate a meal with the meat of animals the men hunted. The rest of the meat, Ron said, went back to feed the trackers and villagers. “We cooked a meal in dutch ovens. White linens were the tablecloths. We had drinks and ate what we shot,” Ron said. “It was just a wonderful experience.”
his home, as well as more After leaving the UnitPlains animals. ed States Army, Ron had a gunsmithing shop and gunsmithing The third trip to the Af- attended schools. He has always rican continent lasted 27 been involved in some days in July 2015. While form of competitive shootthere, Ron did not get ing. his third big five animal, But, farming is Ron’s the leopard, but managed business, and he and his to score 14 other Plains wife live northwest of Cresgame. ton on a farm. They have This trip took place in three children, Lacey, DanLimpopo, which is near the border of Botswana ielle and Ryan, who all live in the Creston area. Ryan and Mozambique. “It was very exciting. helps his father with the It’s a much different coun- farming operation. When he has the time, try than our country, but Ron still goes out to hunt it was very enjoyable,” deer, rabbits and pheasElaine said. “The people ants, but it’s not the same. of Africa are so gracious. “The people you meet And, I guess that was one and the way you’re treated, of the things I enjoyed the and just the sheer beauty most, the nice people.” of the country it’s someOther hunting thing I can’t explain, but I Ron grew up with guns. can guarantee that if you As a kid, he learned to ever go to Africa, whether shoot a gun properly from you’re hunting or you’re his father and was able to hunting or on a photo sago out hunting for rabbits, fari or just sightseeing, you pheasants, squirrels or won’t be happy till you get deer on his own when he back,” Ron said. “Africa was about 13 years old. gets in your blood.”
Second trip Ron and his friend traveled to Africa in July 2013 for a second trip when two spots opened up in a prescheduled group hunt. “Two of the guys that were going in that group backed out, they couldn’t go. So, my friend and I went along to fill the void,” Ron said. “I had a great time. I brought four animals home. I had decided then that I would hunt more dangerous game, and that’s what we did.” During the 14-day trip to Great Karoo, Ron focused on the “big five,” a group of dangerous animals known for their difficulty hunting on foot. The animals are the elephant, lion, leopard, white or black rhinoceros and cape buffalo. “I thought it would be more of a challenge to hunt these animals more up close and personal, so I concentrated on a couple of those on my second trip,” Ron said. He now has a lion and cape buffalo on display at
Contributed photo
This cape buffalo, one of many animals Ron Gordon has shot during his African hunting trips, is on display in his home in Creston. Ron and his wife Elaine have visited Africa three times for hunting trips, and he has shot a lion and other Plains game as well.
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