Bugles & Bows

Ben Wellens with Midwest MTN drove down from the Appleton area with food in hand and a brain full of archery knowledge. What followed was a deep dive into bow tinkering, tuning setups, and why some hunters just can’t leave their gear alone. Ben shares how a mechanical engineer from northeast Wisconsin ended up restoring bows, building tuning rigs in his garage, and helping friends get dialed before season. We talk about the rabbit hole of archery setups, the difference between tinkering and overthinking, and why learning by breaking things sometimes works best. From there the conversation drifts west, into elk country. Ben walks through his first elk hunt, drawing a rare tag, and the chaos of a 15-yard encounter that ended with a bull on the ground and a three-mile pack-out. We also get into planning western hunts with friends, the point system game, gear refinement over time, and why sometimes the best part is just hearing a bull bugle for the first time. Somewhere along the way we also cover raccoons, grizzlies, archery leagues, backpack setups, and the eternal truth that hunters will absolutely overthink their equipment. If you like archery, elk hunting, gear tinkering, or the kind of conversations that only happen around a campfire or workbench, this one’s for you. Enter our Strut Season Sweepstakes: https://www.okayesthunter.com/pages/okayest-hunter-x-gerber-gear-strut-season-sweepstakes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trail cams, drones, crossbows… and the line nobody can quite draw. This one turns into a real-time gut check on hunting ethics—where tech helps, where it crosses the line, and why most of it lives in the gray. Callers jump in, perspectives clash, and somehow it all comes back to one thing: hunt your hunt, but know where you stand. Enter the Strut Season Sweepstakes for a chance to win over $5K in turkey hunting gear: https://www.okayesthunter.com/pages/okayest-hunter-x-gerber-gear-strut-season-sweepstakes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Shaun Ridderbush (Host of Camp Okayest) joins the show to share the wild story of the day his truck rolled into the river during a kayak tournament, and how walking away from it changed everything. We talk hunting, creativity, burnout, family, and why time in the woods has a way of resetting your priorities. A conversation about getting 1% better, finding stillness, and remembering what actually matters. Enter our Strut Season Sweepstakes for a chance to win over $5K in turkey gear: https://www.okayesthunter.com/pages/okayest-hunter-x-gerber-gear-strut-season-sweepstakes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you hunt, fish, hike, bike, or take your kids to a local park in Wisconsin, there’s a good chance the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program helped make it possible. This week, we sit down with Charles Carlin of Gathering Waters and Team Knowles-Nelson to break down what the program actually does, why it’s wildly popular with voters, and why it’s on the verge of being completely defunded. We talk about matching grants, public access, trout streams, the Ice Age Trail, legislative gridlock, and what happens if funding hits zero on June 30. This is not abstract politics; moreover, it’s about access, habitat, and whether the next generation inherits more opportunity... or less. Take action here: https://action.knowlesnelson.org Learn more: https://knowlesnelson.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on the pod, we sit down with Milwaukee radio host Elizabeth Kay for a conversation that’s less about inches of antler and more about everlasting memories. Elizabeth didn’t grow up hunting. No g💥ns or deer camp, but instead, city life, Bay View roots, and visits to the locker in Richland Center. Fast forward 13 years, a husband who “was practically born with a gun in his hand,” a German Shorthaired Pointer, and one unforgettable bear hunt that changed everything. We talk about what it’s like to marry into hunting culture, the intimidation factor of picking up a shotgun for the first time, why missing birds might matter more than hitting them, and the moment she looked at her son’s mounted bear and finally said, “Now I get it.” This one goes deep into storytelling, relationships, ego, imposter syndrome in the woods, and why hunting is often less about the kill and more about connection. It’s about supporting your partner’s passion, building traditions, raising kids in the outdoors, and realizing the mount on the wall might outlive all of us, but the memory is what really lasts. There’s pheasant poppers, vocal cord warmups, roadkill rack debates, and a whole lot of heart. If you’ve ever wondered how someone goes from “I’d never pick up a gun” to “Thank you, bird,” we think you'll enjoy this one! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This one’s a little different. No guest this week. Just a candid, behind-the-scenes conversation about how the Okayest Hunter went from a half-serious idea, a couple bad logos, and some pretty average deer… into a community, a media company, and something that we believe means a great deal to a lot of people. We talk about the early days. The first deer that didn’t score big but meant everything. Why humor mattered. Why ego didn’t. How deer shaming became the line in the sand we didn’t even realize we were drawing at first. And how stories (not antlers) ended up being the point. This episode digs into the evolution of the brand, the podcast, the network, and the mindset behind it all: hunting as a grounding force, not a scoreboard. A space where kindness beats clout, where your tag is your tag, and where a “small” deer can still carry a big story. We also get honest about the business side. The risks. The mistakes. The merch boxes stacked in home offices. The trade shows that barely broke even. The realization that we’re a media company first, and why that actually matters if you care about hunting culture long term. If you’re new here, this is the origin story. If you’ve been around a while, this is the reminder. Either way, thanks for being part of it. We don’t take that lightly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Moving states is one thing. Moving your family, your career, and your entire hunting identity is something else entirely. In this episode, we sit down with Justin Synan to talk through the real story behind his move from Virginia to Kentucky and ultimately to Iowa. We dig into what actually drives those decisions: family, faith, frustration, opportunity, and the reality of chasing big whitetails without losing yourself along the way. We talk about the culture shock of new states, the realities of hunting pressure and baiting laws, why you can’t just “trip into” a big deer, and how expectations can quietly ruin the experience if you’re not careful. Justin opens up about what worked, what didn’t, and how perspective changes when kids, marriage, and long-term goals start weighing more than inches of antler. It’s a candid conversation about risk, patience, and figuring out what “success” actually looks like, both in the woods and at home. If you’ve ever daydreamed about moving to a whitetail mecca, felt stuck where you’re at, or wondered whether the grind is worth it, this episode is a great example of what it could look like to make the move. Presented by: Nosler Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Laryngitis turns into an unexpected advantage as the conversation slows down and gets more thoughtful than usual. What starts as trade show chatter quickly becomes a grounded discussion about bows built for real hunting situations, not just spec sheets. Ryan Shutts from Bear Archery joins to walk through the thinking behind their 2026 lineup of bows like the Redeem, Alaskan Pro, Resilient, Adapt HP, and more. The focus stays on adjustability, forgiveness, and why confidence and comfort matter more than chasing maximum numbers. There is plenty of talk about short draw lengths, aging shoulders, youth shooters, and bows that can grow with someone or be passed down instead of replaced. Along the way, there are side tangents on trade show chaos, overengineering, minivans, and why Bear continues to be a first love for so many bowhunters and a brand people return to later in life. A practical, honest look at archery gear through the lens of actually hunting deer and enjoying the process. Presented by Nosler Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Derek recaps the scouting, access, and short-lived hunt for his 2025 WI public land buck.  Derek dives into the scouting process to find the location, the reasons he didn’t hunt this spot for 3 years, and the way he positioned and used timely intel from a camera to know it was time to get into the bedding area and make an aggressive move.  Although the access was less than ideal and led to Derek dripping water from his perch high in a tree, swinging in his Latitude saddle, he stayed warm long enough to arrow a buck sneaking back into the bedding pocket. We examine a few maps of an example location similar to the one where Derek harvested his buck and discuss the access route and choice of stand location.  Hopefully, you enjoy the story and can pick up a thing or two from the process he used to tag a bruiser of a SE WI buck. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, this week we kicked this one off by wondering where you’re actually listening to us (dog walk? treadmill? treestand?… hopefully not on the can...). Then we bounce from ATA into “staying hunt ready” the only way we know how; half gear talk, half real-life chaos, and a little bit of “don’t pee into the wind” wisdom that absolutely belongs in a hunting handbook. We recap the feel of ATA this year (more reunion than rave), catch up on seeing partners and buddies in-person, and talk through what actually matters about new gear—specs aside. Latitude’s new whitetail-focused packs (Praxis + Flyer) get broken down in plain English: why you’d care, what problems they solve, and which type of hunter they seem built for (from “all-day grind” to “two-hour grab-and-go”). From there we get into the real “hunt ready” stuff: dialing in a quiet and efficient mobile system, small upgrades that make a big difference, shooting through the offseason, and why archery leagues might be the most underrated confidence-builder you can do before fall. And because we can’t help ourselves, we go down the broadhead rabbit hole... fixed vs expandable, penetration vs blood trail, and the universal truth: I want my cake and I want to eat it too… and I’d also like to find the deer without needing a drone, a dog, and therapy. We also take a live call from a long-time listener, Noah, talk late-season realities, and end with what we’re most excited about next: scouting missions with friends, more in-person guests, and building our own circle—without chasing celebrity hunters or controversy for clicks. Bonus: There’s no episode next week (Vegas/SHOT), so enjoy this one while you’re shoveling the driveway… or sitting on the can… or pretending you’re “working.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices