Pro's vs. Joe's

[DropTyne]

Have any of you ever seen that show where they put normal guys up against NFL or MLB pro's in physical contests? I was thinking what if they did that for Deer Hunting. What if they took a normal guy and a celebrity hunter, i.e. Michael Waddell, Mark Drury, Tiffany..... threw em' both on a piece of public land and filmed them! I wonder who would win such a contest? I would for sure watch that! If this did happen the very first matchup I would want to see would be Dan vs. Stan Potts!

[Treejunkie]

No, I would like to see Dan vs. Greg Miller. Sorry Dan, had to do that.

[Zap]

I certainly would not question Dan's ability.....

But I think some folks might be suprised to find out that alot of TV "pro" hunters really have good hunting skills.

Tiff definately has good form.

marty

[Sam Ubl]

I would watch it, too!

They get on a show for a reason, though... Some may have had the money that bought them good land and afforded them opportunities at great bucks to build up there walls and albums, which they turned into a great resume to submit to sponsorships, etc. Others were do it yourselfers that took a camera everywhere with them, started small, like the Drury's, and eventually became huge, like the Drury's.

What seperates the Drury's and several others out there on the Outdoor Channel? They practice fair chase, meaning not hunting with Outfitters (fences not included even) almost 90% of the time. Sure, they have some fancy land... but so does Andre D'Aquisto

They sell their sponsorships to continue making their living in the way they are, the way we all wish we were, hunting.

[lungbuster]

The Drury's hunt with alot of outfitters when they aren't hunting thier own land. And as a matter of fact they have hunted with some of the highest dollar outfitters in the US, Hadley Creek, Terra and Willow point etc......

[Sam Ubl]

"They have" is the most important detail of your post...

Make a Wish Foundation, the Drury's and Hadley Creek Outfitters teamed up in an effort to support the cause of getting unfortunate and unhealthy children and teens in the stand for the opportunity to take a good buck.

I would stray away from discrediting a group like the Drury's who have built their success managing, hunting and taking the best footage I've ever seen from the stand on their own private acreages and permissions...

[dreaming bucks]

Hadley Creek... when they take kids in need there or offer for some of their team to hunt there, but when do Mark or Terry hunt anywhere but there own land?? They own prime property in 4 states?? I own their entire series of DVD's - when someone hunts Hadley Creek, which is a sponsor of theirs BTW, they mention it... I also have their show series DVR'ed... Again, same thing.

Ya, I don't think they need to hunt Hadley, when they have the land that they have...

[Mountain Man]

They get on a show for a reason, though... Some may have had the money that bought them good land and afforded them opportunities at great bucks to build up there walls and albums, which they turned into a great resume to submit to sponsorships, etc. Others were do it yourselfers that took a camera everywhere with them, started small, like the Drury's, and eventually became huge, like the Drury's.

While the Drury's might appear to be do-it-yourselfers Terry made his money as a developer that allowed them to start doing the videos and then buy their several farms that they can manage. I don't know this for a fact but Terry probably bankrolled Mark's call business too and that has grown nicely. Bill Jordan had money from the family boat business before Realtree. The Whitetail freak guys in IL have huge family farms to hunt that I assume have been passed down through the years. The common theme here is there is a lot of money involved with the "pro" hunters on tv.

Now regarding the skill level of these "pro" hunters I don't think most of them are any better than the "Joe's" we have here on the Beast. Some "pros" are good shots but look at how many bad hits other "pros" make. Some of the bad shots might be due to trying to get the kill on video and I know bad hits do happen but for example with all of his experience why does Greg Miller seem to shoot high a lot? Did you ever notice Terry Drury isn't that good of a shot?

Why does it take these "pros" 100 days of hunting on their highly managed land to kill a buck worthy enough for a tv show? Is it b/c they only sit over their food plots? Do they only hunt funnels or rub lines, etc.? You can kill good deer that way but it seems that they don't hunt like a lot of the "Joe's" that consistently knock down big ones even on public land or smaller private parcels. If the "pros" with thousands of acres of prime, managed land (and therefore assuming several large bucks as possible targets that would make a good tv show) hunted like Dan or other Beast members keying in on bedding areas and setting up close I would think they should be killing something big in way less than 100 days or however long they claim to have hunted.

If someone was to do what DropTyne suggested and the "pro" and "Joe" went head to head like that I think more than 50% of the time the "Joe" would win assuming the Joe was a serious deer hunter.

[DropTyne]

I don't think any pro's would actually have the "stones" to sign up for this competition because I feel they would think it would "tarnish" their reputation if they lost the competition to say a Sam, Mountain Man, or even myself.

[tim]

i wouldnt want to be the one knocking anyone for building their own empire doing what they love or for even being it handed down to them, good for them. ive got me and me only to worry about. but some of these hunters did build their reputation the old fashion way, i remember seing potts in magazines over 20 years ago killing beasts. but if putting "joes vs pros" joes odds are just as good as pros. cause joe is still hunting now how pro use to hunt.

[Mountain Man]

i wouldnt want to be the one knocking anyone for building their own empire doing what they love or for even being it handed down to them, good for them.

And just to be clear, if that was directed at me, I'm not knocking them for building their own empire. I was just stating how some of them came into what they have now. It's just that it seems today in most cases that if you want to be in the spotlight and have a successful show or shows to appeal to the masses by killing big bucks you need that financial backing to have places to hunt where you can manage and raise and kill big deer and the big advertising dollars go along with it. I'm sure they all worked hard to get where they are. I agree good for them. That's part of the American dream.

[lungbuster]

Sam, I'm not knocking the Drury's, they have built an empire and have alot of fans......I was just clearifying the statement you made about them hunting on private lands vs. outfitted hunts. I have a good friend that is a pro-staffer for the drury's and i know of alot more outfitted hunts that both mark and Terry hunt on, I understand they are your Idols or Favorites or whatever, but just because you own thier videos does not mean you know what they do behind the scenes. Again i am not knocking them, they have obviously found a niche in the industry and some people like them, but don't compare them to anyone that is a blue collar average "joe" hunter, because most people would never get to hunt the lands they own and PAY to hunt.

[Sam Ubl]

Understand.

...and I don't idolize them, lol, I just like watching their hunts. I guess you could say I'm envious of their lifestyle and/or time in the woods. Idolize is as strong as hate - ego comment.

PM Sent.

[lungbuster]

. Idolize is as strong as hate - ego comment.

I hope you are not implying that I hate the Drury's or that my ego is coming into play with my comments......I am secure enough in myself and my work that I don't need to bash anyone in the industry. I see enough of that whenever I visit archerytalk, seems everytime I go over there someone is bitching about shows on tv and the Drurys are not above the bashing as someone had a "problem" with one of the new shows they endorse. I feel if you don't like my show or the Drurys or any other show, simply quit watching it, there is no need to bash people you do not know.

[tim]

yeah mountain man i wasnt directiong that at you or anyone, im just saying in general i dont worry about anyone else and try to stay focused on my own goals. and lord willing i ever am blessed enough to own a huge farm or be as well off as id like, im hoping people dont look at me differently.but if someone did it probably wouldnt matter. definately money is a huge factor here. but it usually is in every part of life.