In this Episode you'll hear about Aron Snyder's insane 2015 Elk Hunt with his buddy Colton. Colton and Aron went "where no man has gone before" - and lived to tell the tale. This is Part 1 Be sure to check your Gritty Bowmen Library to hear the second part.
In this Episode you'll hear about Aron Snyder's insane 2015 Elk Hunt with his buddy Colton. Colton and Aron went "where no man has gone before" - and lived to tell the tale. This is Part 2. Be sure to check your Gritty Bowmen Library to hear the first part.
-Stay Gritty
SHOW NOTES:
Friends, I highly recommend that you watch this podcast, if you can, as I have video and photo images from the hunt overlaying much of the conversation. As for this hunt, as Aron Snyder says, I’m not gonna church it up. We made some dumb mistakes on this hunt. And I guess that’s part of why I love hunting. There are no guarantees--just like in life. We all work hard to perfect our skills--our shooting, our calling, our fieldcraft, our fitness... but at the end of the day things can and do go wrong during a hunt as they do in life and you’ve got to improvise. Sometimes it’s not skill that you need, it’s grit. It’s determination. And Anthony Spencer has that. He’s as gritty as they come.
I wish I could say that Anthony’s bull felt no pain and went down easy. But it didn’t work out that way. Taking the life of another sentient being is not something we take lightly. Yet, it’s an everyday part of the natural world we live in. Animals hunt to eat and eat to live--including humans. And this endeavour results in pain and death to animals everyday. An ethical and compassionate hunter will always do his best to make the death as swift and painless as possible. But sometimes, despite our best efforts we fail in this. There are no guarantees--no gimmees in hunting--nor in life. Things will and do go wrong if you hunt long enough. I’m okay with that. Because that’s how life is. I didn’t want my wife to have cancer, but it happened. Sometimes, we don’t get to choose how it goes. The Hunting TV industry likes to pretend that mistakes don’t happen and animals don’t suffer. But that’s not reality. The Gritty Bowmen isn’t on a TV network, we don’t have anybody telling us what we can and cannot show. So what you get is the gritty truth. And I’m sorry to those who imagine that bliss is normal. Because as Jenkin Lloyd Jones said, “you’re going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that you’ve been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop. most beef is tough, most children grow up to just be people… most jobs are more dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail journey… delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.”
In this episode you'll find out what makes the Gritty Bowmen so gritty. The mental toughness and determination and sacrifice it takes to get the job done. "Those things are good for ya. It's always good to challenge yourself a little bit and not quit." - Anthony Spencer
"I know you could never tell by looking at me... but I'm not an endurance athlete. So it's not that I was in such phenomenal endurance condition that I could chase him down. What it took was a mind set. Ya know, I am stubborn. That was the other thing I learned this week. I'm really not that great of an elk hunter. I can screw up a lot of things really quickly. But I am stubborn and I am persistent and I had made up my mind I wasn't going to quit running that bull. If I had given up on him that wouldn't have happened." - Anthony Spencer
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner! In this episode the lucky Devldog that won the Kifaru Backpack is announced!
In this Episode of The Gritty Bowmen Podcast Aron Snyder and Brian Call talk Cecil the Lion, Trophy Hunting, Poaching, Flat Brims and more.
In this Episode of The Gritty Bowmen Podcast Aron Snyder tells the rest of the story of Phil Mendoza's Sheep Hunt. If you missed the first part please go to Grittybowmen.com and click on podcast EPISODE 24.
EPISODE 29 ARON SNYDER Q&A - SHOW NOTES
FEATURED IN THIS PODCAST:
BOOTS - Don’t buy Aron’s boots. (Unless they fit your foot.) “Get the right type of boot for your foot.”
Three different styles.
Light Hiker (or backpacking) -soft boot. i.e. Lowa Zephyr
http://www.lowaboots.com/catalog/zephyr-gtx-tf/3105370411/4
Trekking-medium stiffness boot. i.e. Lowa Sheep Hunter or Kenetrek Hardscrabble
http://www.kenetrek.com/KENETREK-HARDSCRABBLE-HIKER/productinfo/KE-420-HK/
http://www.lowaboots.com/catalog/hunting/
Mountaineering-Stiff boot.
Scarpa Triolet, Monte Blanc, Charmoz, Lowa Mountain Expert
https://www.scarpa.com/triolet-pro-gtx
https://www.scarpa.com/mont-blanc-gtx
https://www.scarpa.com/charmoz-pro-gtx
http://www.lowaboots.com/catalog/mountain-expert-gtx-evo/2100293099/1
Other Boots Mentioned in the podcast:
Danner Pronghorns http://www.danner.com/product/hunt/pronghorn/?gclid=Cj0KEQjwsb-vBRCLj7TvqpGx_MoBEiQALgFGnjyqd86_jcN7nnBzHZitEWiP6ceoT2V-_kTJ2CTqh5caAm4V8P8HAQ
Chocco’s -“Jesus Sandals”
http://www.chacos.com/US/en/home
INSOLES & SOCK LINERS
Smartwool Sock Liner and Sock - http://www.smartwool.com/socks/mens-socks.html
Lathrop & Sons -Synergy Footbed
https://lathropandsons.com/synergy-footbeds.html
Superfeet
Spenco
https://www.spenco.com/category.aspx?catid=2
ARON’S PEANUT BUTTER BAR
Perfect Peanut Butter Bars
http://perfectbar.com/products/
ARON'S ADVICE:
Go somewhere that has a great return policy like Zappos. http://www.zappos.com or REI. Try stair climbing in them at home. You don’t have to “break them in” to know if they’re going to fit right. Clean them and treat them with what they recommend.
CLOTHING -
You want a Nylon Pant with 4-way stretch. It is better than Polyester & Spandex.
Kuiu- Attack, Tiburon
http://store.kuiu.com/attack-pant-p/40001.htm
http://store.kuiu.com/tiburon-pant-p/11001.htm
First Lite- Corrugate Guide
http://www.firstlite.com/corrugate-guide-pant.html
Prana - Zion
Kuhl - Renegade
Sitka - Ascent
https://www.sitkagear.com/products/solids/pants/ascent-pant
Swazi
http://www.swazi.co.nz/product-category/mens/pants/
Mammut Courmayeur “Stove-pipe Skinny Jeans”
http://www.backcountry.com/mammut-courmayeur-advanced-softshell-pant-mens-mam0661
RAINGEAR -
“You need pit zips in your rain gear.” -Aron
Firstlite - Cocona
http://www.firstlite.com/cocona-technology/
eVent
http://www.eventfabrics.com/products#waterproof
^Breathe Better than Gore Tex
Kuiu Chugach
OTTE
Kryptek - Koldo
http://www.kryptekstore.com/Koldo-Rain-Jacket-Charcoal-P60.aspx
Sitka - Cold Front
https://www.sitkagear.com/products/solids/jackets-vests/coldfront-jacket
Swazi - Tahr - http://www.swazi.co.nz/shop/jackets/tahr-anorak/
Helly Hanson - http://shop.hellyhansen.com/us/products/men/rainwear/
Rivers West - like a dry suit. “Only wear it if you’re not moving.” - Aron
WHEY PROTEIN -
MTN OPS - Magnum - http://getmtnops.com
Episode 28: Conservation with Ty Stubblefield. How are the current fires impacting our hunting ground? How can you help? Why should you help? All of these questions and more are answered in this podcast. Thanks to Ty Stubblefield and Backcountry Hunters and Anglers for their work.
RMEF
Backcountry Hunters and Anglers