By Larry Hart
Photo: Duncan McNeil, right, harvested his first deer Oct. 27, 2007, during a BADF Heart of Texas Chapter youth hunt. Larry Hart, BADF Heart of Texas Chapter member, assisted with the hunt.
The Buckmasters American Deer Foundation's Heart of Texas Chapter introduced two area kids to the great outdoors during its second annual youth hunt held in Brown County, Texas.
Overcoming Obstacles
Duncan McNeil was awarded a spot in the youth hunt by posting a perfect score on the Texas Hunter Education exam.
The Heart of Texas Chapter covered the class fees, provided lunch and hunter education supplies for the 30 young hunters.
Duncan is 12 years old and had never fired a rifle in his life. He also had a little problem to overcome before we went hunting - Duncan was right-handed and left-eye dominate. That is a problem when looking through a rifle scope at a deer downrange. Off to the riffle range we went for a little target practice before the opening weekend of the Texas Youth deer season.
Photo: Cory Crowell, second from left, harvested a 10-point buck Oct. 28, 2007, during a BADF Heart of Texas Chapter youth hunt. Pictured left to right are Tim Schoen, BADF Heart of Texas Chapter president, Crowell, Steve Felux and Dale Crowell.
I had a pretty good plan to get Duncan shooting with a scoped rifle. I covered his left eye with an eye patch and had him shoot a lot of rounds. The patch worked like a charm. Duncan was hitting bull's eyes in no time and continued shooting them after the patch was removed.
Duncan was ready as he would ever be for opening morning. Charles "Crab" Pitts has always been kind enough to donate a doe management hunt for one of our youth, and his farm has always produced a good first hunt.
Duncan and his dad, Mark, met me at the farm before daylight, and we settled in the blind for Duncan's first deer hunt. It started to get light, and I could see deer all around us in the field. Then, as it was getting lighter, I noticed a big-bodied deer coming from the brush into the corner of a grain field.
I thought to myself that this was a huge doe. Looking through the binoculars, I could see that the deer was not a doe, but a cow-horned spike and was at least 31/2 years old. I did not even have to think twice about telling Duncan to take the shot.
This was a perfect deer to remove from the herd. The buck offered Duncan a perfect broadside shot. Duncan fired, and the buck dropped in its tracks. There could not been a happier dad, son, guide and landowner for taking a true management buck.
The 4 1/2-year old deer had 10 1/2-inch spikes.
Right on the Mark
Our second youth hunt winner was found at a Big Brothers Big Sisters fundraiser. We helped the organization set up an archery shoot to help raise money for a Big Brothers Big Sisters program in Brown County.
Our chapter set up a booth and held an essay contest. The theme was "Conservation, Compassion and Community." The young writers had to include if they had an opportunity to hunt during the 2007 season, if they have hunted, their hunting experiences and why they should be selected to go on the hunt.
Twelve young people submitted essays that day. Our chapter unanimously chose an essay written by Corey Crowell. He has a compassion for hunting, and a big interest in what the BADF does for the community. Plus, the 12-year-old won the youth archery contest that day, and his score was in the top 10.
Again, Steve Felux invited us to take a youngster hunting this year. If you remember the 2006 Texas Youth hunt with Delaney, you know there are some quality bucks at Steve's place. Our hunt with Corey began the opening day of the Texas Youth deer season. Remember, earlier in this article it was opening morning with Duncan? Corey's hunt took place later that afternoon.
Along for the hunt were Corey's dad, Dale, myself, and Steve. We got settled in the blind high above a travel corridor where Steve has filmed a lot of nice bucks. All we saw were some really nice does. Steve invited us back the next morning, and we soon discovered that things were about to change!
It reminded me a lot of Delaney's hunt last year. At first light, there were bucks everywhere. We had to wait until shooting light to see just how big the bucks really were. When it was light enough to count the bucks' points and determine their age, we selected a mature 10-point buck. The big 10-pointer was definitely the dominant buck in the area and would hardly offer a shot.
Finally, the buck settled down and offered Corey a nice quartering away shot. The bullet found its mark and ended another magnificent Felux Ranch hunt. This buck gave a father, son and guide memories to last a lifetime. The big 10 had a heavy frame, 17-inch spread, scored 132, and was 4 1/2 years old. Congratulations, Corey and thank you, Steve for having us back.
– Larry Hart, BADF Heart of Texas Chapter
For more information about BADF, contact Beth Gregory at 1-800-240-3337 or bgregory@buckmasters.com.
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