Plan Into Practice: Utah's Big Bet on Mule Deer Restoration | Big Hunt Guys, Ep. 146

Eric Jackson is a prolific backcountry freestyle and freeride snowboarder with an expansive career in the sport. He is also a passionate outdoorsman with a love for waterfowl hunting, fishing, and more recently archery elk hunting. Eric joins Brady and Trail on this week's episode to talk about his pathway into the sport and his developing devotion to archery hunting. Eric talks about being comfortable being uncomfortable, facing fear, and compares archery elk hunting to his pursuits in snowboarding. Eric also discusses the film “River” that he did in conjunction with Sitka gear and elaborates on how bowhunting has challenged him in new ways. Eric’s passion for big mountains and adventure is infectious and inspiring. This is a great episode with new perspectives on why hunters are so driven by the pursuit of big game and adventure.

Uncle Randy stopped by the Big Hunt Guys podcast studio to catch up with the guys. They discuss his 2024 hunting season and his plans for the upcoming year. Randy shares what initially sparked his interest in hunting, as well as his passion for public land preservation and wildlife conservation. The conversation also delves into several conservation issues, including the Prop 127 victory for sportsmen and the public land transfer lawsuit filed by the state of Utah. Randy consistently offers insightful perspectives, and this episode adds to his legacy as one of the most influential advocates for public land preservation and hunting.

With the NFR happening in our hometown, The Big Hunt Guys had the pleasure of sitting down with Doug Champion. Doug is a former competitive rodeo rider who now runs Champion Living Fitness, where he works with professional rodeo riders to improve their mobility and fitness. The guys explore Doug’s background and talk about the lifestyle of competitive rodeo before diving into what is required to build strength and fitness for rodeo and hunting. Doug is an avid outdoorsman and a hell of a guy who has a genuine desire to help people improve their lives through fitness and nutrition. This is a perfect episode to help you establish goals and kick off the 2025 hunting season more physically prepared than you were last year.

On this week's episode of the Big Hunt Guys, Jenny Lesieutre and Joel Blakeslee join Lorenzo, Brady, and Trail to discuss feral horses and the ecological toll they are having on western landscapes. Jenny recently retired as the Wild Horse and Burro BLM Branch Chief in Reno, NV. Joel has a background in range management and has served as the policy director for the Nevada Trappers Association. The group discusses the history of the Wild Horse and Burro Act before digging into what the act actually mandates. They talk about horse and environmental activists and the lies and propaganda they promote to deter federal and state agencies from managing to proper objectives. The group also discusses population expansion and the detrimental impacts they are having on the natural landscapes throughout the west. The group rounds out the discussion with a rallying cry for sportsmen and women to become a more active voice in demanding that the federal government manage feral horses as outlined by law.

Chris Porter joins Lorenzo, Brady, and Trail to recap a recent successful 3rd season OTC Colorado elk hunt. Lorenzo and Chris were joined by good friends and coworkers for a traditional-style late-season elk camp. Listen in as they talk about the challenges they faced and the lessons they learned. This is an entertaining listen, where they recount delayed travel plans, broken down equipment, late-night cold weather pack outs, and the sweet taste of success.

With the launch of a new lineup of hunting bows from Mathews Archery, the Big Hunt Guys talk with Mathews own engineer, Mark Hayes. They talk with Mark about his background and love of archery before diving into the new Lift X bows. Mark expounds on Limb-Shift technology, the ARC7 limbs, and the new grip options. They also address the elephant in the room, which was the issue some Mathews bows had with limbs last year. Mark rounds out the discussion talking about arrow selection, vanes, and details his keys for getting great arrow flight.

For Episode 146, the Big Hunt Guys dive into the newly released Utah Mule Deer Management Plan. They discuss how the mule deer committee was formed and the plan developed from that committee. They break down the proposed change to reduce buck to doe ratios in many general season units of the state and what the potential outcomes could be. They discuss the data incorporated into the plan and new research studies that will be incorporated along with the proposed changes. They examine youth deer hunting opportunities and how some changes may improve youth applicant odds of getting a permit. The Big Hunt Guys round out the episode with a lively discussion on feral horse and burro management.

The Big Hunt Guys are back for Episode 145, where Trail sits down with Brady and Lorenzo to recap his late-season Nevada archery deer hunt from last fall. The GOHUNT original film of his hunt, “One Good Chance,” will be dropping on our YouTube page this coming Sunday, the 10th. Tune in to get insider information on how the hunt unfolded. We are also giving away a Mystery Ranch Metcalf 75 along with the film; look for coming details on how you can enter to win on our social media pages.

On this Halloween episode of the Big Hunt Guys, Brady, Lorenzo, and Trail read strange and spooky stories submitted by listeners. Being stalked by a shadowy figure after dark in the woods, things that go bump in the night, and maybe even an alien encounter... You won’t want to miss this episode!

The Big Hunt Guys cover some ground on this week’s episode, starting with more information about Prop 127 in Colorado and moving into mule deer and bighorn sheep hunting stories for Trail and Brady. Brady and Trail talk about attending the rally at the Capital in Denver in opposition to Prop 127 and further discuss why it’s important to vote. Trail later talks about a successful rifle mule deer hunt where he took his 11-year-old son out on an epic weekend adventure and Brady recounts his recent hunt where he took a desert bighorn ewe with an open sight muzzleloader. The experiences that hunting and the outdoors provides is our life blood, it's more important now than ever before that we fight for the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation and the part that hunting plays in sound wildlife management.